Again the knocking came, and this time it was enough to get Tracy moving. She walked slowly over to the door, took a deep breath and jerked the thing open.
At first, the bright light of day made it hard for her to make out the man’s features. Tracy squinted her eyes and bit the inside of her cheek, trying desperately to see the man she was sure would be her undoing.
When her eyes finally came into focus a few seconds later, she saw Gordon Baxter’s light skin and dirty blond, swept-back hair.
Tracy sighed a deep breath of relief and extended her hand. "Hi. I’m Tracy."
Gordon met her handshake with a smile.
"It’s a pleasure," he said and softly flicked his head to get a stray chunk of hair out of his eyes.
The award-winning chef’s features were chiseled and rugged. Even his crystal blue eyes screamed masculinity. He was taller than Tracy, though not by much, and he was already dressed in his newest whites.
Realizing that they’d been standing there a little longer than they should have, Tracy released her grip on his rough hands and stammered, "Come, uh, come in. Please, Mr. Baxter."
"Thanks. And, please, call me Gordon."
He walked past Tracy, who had already started to relax. In fact, she felt like a huge weight had been lifted, though the impending grand opening was more than enough to keep her spirit bogged down in the mean time.
Gordon walked in and set a sizable case down next to the bag of spilled salt shakers. Tracy had been so distracted that she didn’t even notice he had it.
"What happened here?"
He poked the scattered pile with the tip of his black shoe.
"Oh, oh!" Tracy scampered over and quickly swept the mess up into a dust pan. "That was nothing. I was just finishing cleaning it up." She dumped it out and cast the pan aside. "Can I show you around?"
"That’s okay. I'll take a look while you finish." Gordon’s voice faded as he walked away.. While she was busy sweeping up, he made himself comfortable in the kitchen. By the time she looked back, he was inspecting the range.
"Is everything okay?" Her voice did little to mask her anxiety. She needed him to want to work here.
Gordon looked up at the stacks of new pots, pans and dishes. "It looks like it to me."
"Good," she sighed. "Do you want to have a seat and go over the paperwork?"
"No problem." He smiled at her, and her knees wobbled slightly. The man was incredibly attractive, and the force of his smile was something else.
As they left the kitchen, Tracy glanced over to the case that he brought with him. She wanted to know what was inside, but didn’t dare ask. Who was she to question one of the best chefs in the world, after all? Instead she grabbed one of the yellow folders near it and continued on her way.
Out in the dining room, she put the papers on the table where Mr. Hayes took her and pulled the other three seats down.
Gordon sat down across from her and scooted his chair in.
"So," he said, folding his hands together. "I trust you’ve had a chance to look at the contract that the lawyers finally agreed on."
"Yes. It all looks good to me." Tracy smiled and held her breath. This was where any problems would come up.
"Great. Where do I sign?" he asked.
Tracy rifled through the papers and plucked out one with a little, red flag sticking out. She handed him a pen. "Right there, please."
Tracy glanced down. There, near her shoe and in plain view, was the pair of lacy panties that she hadn't bothered to put back on from the night before. On seeing them, Tracy did her best to muffle the gasp that rose up in the back of her throat. Hoping that Gordon hadn’t seen them, Tracy quickly kicked them under the table’s raised feet and bit down on her lip in a feeble attempt at hiding her embarrassment.
Gordon scribbled his name quickly and handed the pen back to her. "Looks like we’re in business."
Tracy suddenly felt giddy. It took everything she had to keep from melting into a giggling school girl right then and there. Gordon, for his part, didn’t seem to notice.
"I know we’ve talked about the menu at some length," he said and leaned back in his chair, "but obviously I would prefer to do a private tasting so that I can get your final approval. We need to nail this down so we can get our orders out to the vendors."