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you want to talk to the chef who was on duty tonight, you need to talk to Lauren here.” She nudged Lauren’s arm. “She’s our sous chef.”
    â€œSo you’re the one I should be bowing down to?”
    With his eyes on her, Lauren felt like she was under the glare of a spotlight. Suddenly, she wished she wasn’t in a chef’s jacket, wrinkled jeans, and scuffed tennis shoes. Suddenly, she wished she had done something to her hair today and not thrown on a red bandanna to hold her locks out of open flames and saucepans. She didn’t look like an alluring woman but rather a twelve-year-old boy in search of the nearest skater park.
    Lauren had felt so much pride minutes earlier and for some strange reason, it was being whittled away in this man’s presence.
    â€œWell, uh . . . well, no,” she answered nervously. “No, not really.”
    The stranger’s smile faded.
    â€œI mean, there are lots of line cooks in here and, uh, Phillip—he’s the executive chef—came up with the menu. He’s great at coming up with dishes. I just make a few suggestions here and there, but it would be wrong to take credit for his brilliance. They’re mostly all his ideas.”
    Oh, Lord! What the hell am I saying? What’s gotten into me?
    Lust: that was what had gotten into her, and it had come out of nowhere.
    â€œI mean . . . we’re a team, here,” she continued to babble. “I can’t take credit for this all by myself. We’re . . . uh . . . we’re a team. It’s a team effort. I couldn’t do it without . . . everyone’s help.”
    The kitchen fell silent with the exception of the steady chug of the dishwashers.
    â€œWell, my compliments to the team, then.”
    â€œWe appreciate it,” Paula said. “Go, team, go!”
    The stranger laughed while Lauren turned to narrow her eyes at Paula. Paula grinned apologetically in return.
    â€œWell, thank you for the wonderful dinner.”
    â€œYou’re welcome,” Lauren said, finally regaining her calm. “Thank you for patronizing our restaurant. We hope you’ll come back soon.”
    â€œOh . . .” He gave a slow and meaningful nod. “I most certainly will.”
    Butterflies started to flutter in her stomach again.
    Don’t start , she silently told herself. He enjoyed the food. That’s all he meant.
    He stared at her for several seconds more, not saying anything. Lauren stared back. Paula coughed loudly to break the awkward silence and he smiled.
    â€œWell, it was nice meeting you ladies.” He headed back out of the kitchen. “Good night.”
    â€œGood night!” Paula called after him.
    â€œ ’Night,” Lauren whispered.
    The door shut behind him.
    Paula grabbed Lauren’s shoulders and turned her around. “Oh my God, he was so checking you out!”
    Lauren yanked her bandanna off her head. “No, he wasn’t! He was staring at me like I was an escaped mental patient. I wasn’t making any sense.”
    â€œYeah, what was all that stuff about ‘team effort’?”
    â€œDon’t remind me.”
    â€œHe made you nervous, didn’t he? You liked him, didn’t you?”
    â€œI don’t know him, Paula.” Lauren walked across the kitchen to a door that led to the women’s locker room. “I talked to him for two minutes.”
    â€œThirty seconds is all it takes. Ever heard of love at first sight?”
    â€œEver heard of a quickie divorce?” Lauren muttered as she shoved open the wooden door. “Because that’s what happens when you believe in love at first sight.”
    She slouched onto one of the wooden benches perched in between two rows of green metal lockers.
    â€œI told you to stop being so cynical. It doesn’t become you.” Paula began to tap her fingernails on one of the lockers. She dropped her other hand to her hip. “Is it just