Chasing Shadows (complete)

Chapter 12

Jenny looked herself in the mirror and sighed. What was she doing? Fixing her hair, putting on makeup, slipping in contacts, dressing up… and for what? So she could sit in a fancy restaurant that she couldn’t afford to eat so much as the bread at, waiting for Carter to sneak out of the kitchen for a chat? They were worlds apart, and being in his restaurant only underscored that fact.

Jenny walked over to her couch and sat down on the edge. What else did she have planned for tonight? Lock herself in as per usual and watch TV, maybe read a book? When she had work to fill her days, the nights didn’t seem so long. But now she was antsy. Her legs felt like they were bouncing off the floor, urging her to get out, to do something for once.

With a groan of frustration, Jenny grabbed her bag and, before she could change her mind, headed out.

Carter kept a steady eye on the dining room throughout the evening. Monday nights were usually slow, and tonight he counted only seven tables in a room of twenty. None of those tables were occupied by Jenny Miller.

“Boss, Table 12 is requesting to see you,” Tom told him and Carter barely contained a groan. Mrs. Cray’s usual table. Tom patted his shoulder and said in a low voice that only the two of them could hear, “go get her, Tiger.” He walked away, chuckling. Carter, on the other hand, felt like throwing something. Tom, maybe.

But, as he entered the dining room, all thoughts of pesky guests evaporated and Carter only had eyes for the young woman currently being shown to an empty table. She came. He chose not to dwell on why his steps felt lighter and his polite smile brighter as he crossed the dining room to get to her. He made a dutiful stop at Mrs. Cray’s table and accepted her compliments on the meal, purposely ignoring the not-so-subtle hints that he should join her. When she gave up on the hints and went for the direct approach – a hand on his arm and a direct order – he simply smiled and said he needed to tend to his other guests also dining solo this evening. Mrs. Cray looked around, spotted Jenny, and turned up her nose, letting out a disgruntled sniff before asking for the check.

“I’ll have Tom bring that for you,” he said easily. Too easily, he noted. He should be focusing on keeping his guests happy, but Mrs. Cray was clearly not. Yet, somehow he just couldn’t seem to care. He flashed a polite smile and headed over to Jenny’s table, where Susan was just handing her the menu.

“I’ll take it from here, Suze,” he said as he tapped her shoulder. “Have Tom bring up the check for Mrs. Cray, will you?”

“I can do it, Chef,” Susan volunteered.

“No, this one’s on Tom,” he insisted, feeling pretty smug about it. Susan looked perplexed, but, ever the professional, didn’t question his order and headed for the kitchen to collect Tom.

“Now,” he turned to Jenny, “may I recommend the veal?”

Jenny had seen Carter in work mode before, and he had an appealing management style. Tonight was no different, except for the fact that she was there as a paying customer – she fully intended on paying her tab and leaving tips. She could see why Mrs. Cray was salivating over Carter every Monday night. There was just something about him. Aside from the obvious – him being drop dead gorgeous and all – Carter had a walk that drew eyes to him, and a personality that made you want to be his friend, a smile that reached his eyes and made you hope he only had eyes for you…

Jenny snapped herself out of her googly-eyed state and focused on what Carter had actually asked her.

“Um…” she looked down at the menu she couldn’t read for her unfocused eyes, “I’ll just have the Caesar Salad, please.”