For the Love of Anna (The Town of Pearl 1)

Jack eyed her suspiciously, then said, “Let’s start off real simple. I want to see what a New York cook can do with my chicken salad.”

Anna smiled then quickly went in search of ingredients she could use. While she did it, she introduced herself to o

ther staff in the kitchen and thanked them for the stuff she took.

Before long, she was chopping, dicing, sprinkling, and combining what she could find to make a gourmet chicken salad. “Are you allergic to anything?”

A nod of his head was all she got, so she began to add the chopped grapes, the diced walnuts, and chopped cranberries. Next, she added a little bit of mayo mixed with a tad bit of horseradish sauce and a few spices.

She toasted some thick-sliced Italian bread and seasoned it with some more stuff before placing it on the plate. She topped the bread with her chicken salad concoction, added the top slice, then cut it in half. She then added a fresh strawberry on top of each slice. To the side, she added pickles and Francine’s famous fries.

She handed the plate to Jack just as his wife entered.

Anna waited as Jack eyed the dish, as if concerned that the food might kill him.

“I’m not a fruit kind of guy,” he stated.

“Doc Jones said you need more fruit in your diet. Now, try the damn thing then move over so I can have some.”

Anna hid a smile at Mary’s tone.

Jack took a bite then chewed. He made some humming noises then took another bite. He closed his eyes and continued to eat as Mary took a bite of the second half.

“This is delicious! What did you do to my chicken salad, girl?” Francine asked as Jack picked the scraps off the plate.

“Just a little New York-style chicken salad like the man asked,” Anna teased, and Mary laughed.

“Well, Jack?”

“What?”

“If you don’t hire her right now, then I will,” Mary stated, and Jack laughed.

“When can ya start, honey?”

“Tomorrow good?” Anna asked.

“Right now would be great, but I guess that’s too much to ask. Be here by nine in the morning for prep and to get the kitchen staff ready for whatever you need.”

“Hey, Miguel!” Jack called to the current cook.

“Sí, señor?”

“You’re off the hook starting tomorrow. We got ourselves a real New York chef right here.”

Anna felt terrible. She didn’t want the other man to lose his job.

“Jack, Mary…I don’t want to take his job away. I thought you were in need of a cook?”

“Oh, don’t fret, honey. Miguel has been dying to quit being in charge. He’s only been at it for a few weeks after Chuck the old cook took off for Vegas and never came back.”

“Señorita…gracias,” Miguel added as he kissed Anna’s hand and went back to work.

Anna looked around at the now-smiling faces. She wasn’t too sure what to think, but at least she had a job. The pay was pretty good, too.

She thanked the Boslows then headed out of the kitchen. While Jack showed her the front of the place, some young men made a few comments and began flirting with her. Jack and Mary introduced her as the new cook.

“When ya startin’, honey?” one real nice-looking cowboy asked as he eyed her from head to toe.