Safari Island Shifters: The Complete Collection(51)
Venzil held out his hand. “You can call me Gummy, and I am a huge fan. I can’t believe I get to meet the oh-so-talented Chef Blue.”
Clem smiled from ear to ear. “Shut your mouth! I can’t believe you even watched my little show.”
He nodded. “I was hooked after that first episode. You and Denny were so entertaining.”
“Denny. I swear, he gets more love letters than I do!”
“He’s a very handsome man.” Gummy sat down and patted the couch next to him. “Do you two still talk?”
Clem sat down. “We do. He’s going to be working on a food truck. It doesn’t sound that glamorous, but it’s his dream.”
“Well, I’ll have to make a trip to wherever his truck is parked.”
“I’ll give you his number. I’m sure he’d love to have you come on down to his truck when it opens. He’s a big fan too.”
They exchanged numbers as they talked about the show. She gave him Denny’s number, then turned to Ward. “Thanks for making the introduction. It’s getting late. I need to get back so I can meet Polly when her bus gets in.”
“Okay. Thanks for coming out. I don’t know when you and Gummy will cross paths again before the wedding, but I wanted to be sure you two had met.”
“Thanks for this.” Gummy hugged Clem. “I really hope you get the wedding. You’re my first choice, but I don’t want to influence the bride and groom.”
“Huh?” Clem put her hands on her hips and glared at Ward. “I thought I was picking the menu tomorrow, not being tested.”
“Yeah, about that. Our resident chef will be doing a tasting tomorrow also.”
“Resident chef?” Clem tapped her foot. “I didn’t need to fly out an assistant if I don’t have the job. Thanks for springing this on me at the last minute. Very professional.”
“He won’t get picked. Please understand, this is a courtesy,” Ward begged. “He asked to be included and I didn’t want to turn him down again. I had to when we had the big wedding two years ago and he was gutted.”
“Who’s the chef?” Clem asked.
“Parker Travers.”
“I guess I look forward to meeting him tomorrow,” Clem huffed. She kissed Gummy on the cheek. “Until I see you again.”
She gave Ward one last glare before leaving. When she got outside, she sighed to herself. She wasn’t actually mad; she just didn’t want him thinking he could walk all over her. He should have told her about the other chef earlier. It had sounded like a slam dunk. The couple and Safari Corp just wanted to be sure that she was up to the job. Now, it was actually an audition and she was going to be competing against a Safari Island regular.
No, she wasn’t worried about getting beat out for the job. She was a brilliant chef, and the couple had asked for her personally. Parker Travers might as well be Chef Boyardee for all she cared. It was her job to lose, and it had been twenty years since Clementine Blue had lost a cooking completion.
Three
He had a menu. He looked like hell, but he had a menu.
Parker went back to his rental home as the sun was coming up. The workers at the hotel had been excellent. Not only had they let him stay long after the lobby had closed, the cook had been kind enough to lend him his work area. Parker had worked on three entrees, four side dishes, three appetizers, and he’d even thought up a few signature cocktails.
It was simple food, but that worked best in large catering situations. It was still a gamble, since he had no meat dishes. He was hoping to impress the couple enough that they’d pick him anyway. He could always have another chef come in to do steaks for the guests who had to have meat. It wasn’t something he wanted to do, but he was willing to try. Anything to get this job.
Sometime during the night, he’d become fixated on being the one chosen. He’d be crushed if it wasn’t him. He needed this. It was fated for him to get this job. Why else would Ward have let him do a tasting at the last minute? Hell, he hadn’t even known about the wedding until the last minute and he’d still come up with a great menu to show the couple. He was on his game, and there was no way he could lose when he was on.
Walking around his house was a big reminder of how off the rest of his life was. This wedding was going to get his professional life going in the right direction. But what was he going to do about his personal life?
Seeing the empty bathroom counters made it hit home even harder. The place had been cluttered with all of Jasminda’s makeup and perfumes. It was cold and sterile without all her feminine things. He was lucky the house had come furnished, but it was still noticeable that all of her things were gone.
He was a carefree bachelor again. Only he didn’t feel so carefree anymore. What she’d done was wrong, but it wasn’t like he’d done anything to make her think their relationship was special. They had been dating for well over a year and he still wouldn’t agree to be exclusive.
He wasn’t sleeping with anyone else, but that was his way of hedging his bets. If someone better came along, he would have been free to do what he wanted.
He was an *. A jerk. A cad. Not good boyfriend material. He shouldn’t be dating anyone. Plain and simple, it was time for him to take a break from dating and all the things that came with it. It wasn’t going to be easy in a place like Safari Island, but he was going to do it.