I saluted her-only because she wasn't looking-and headed down to the cellar. The door was propped open using a rubber doorstop, and the two, black crates were stacked on top of each other just a few feet away.
I picked them both up and carried them out to the bar. Raven glanced up and rolled her eyes the moment she saw I had both crates.
How was that for appreciation?
This was going to be worse than a nightmare.
"Anything else you need doing?" I asked, smirking as I set the crates down.
"Yep. I need to see your menu." Glass bottles clinked in her grip. "Read it to me while I restock."
I'd barely gotten through the first two appetizers when she stopped me.
She slammed the fridge door shut. Her foot slammed into the side of the crate, kicking it with such force that it skidded across the floor and bounced off the corner of the bar into the wall. "Give me that goddamn menu." Her nimble fingers snatched it from my hand with a flash of scarlet red nail polish.
I leaned against the edge of the bar and folded my arms. A light pink flushed up her neck and crept onto her face, moving a little further up each time her eyes flicked across the page. Slowly, her expression became pinched, from the hard purse of her lips to the quick drawing together of her curved eyebrows.
If there were any doubt left in my mind that Raven Archer was pissed off, the cutting glare of her bright blue eyes as her gaze slammed into mine was the final nail in the coffin.
"This is Greek food." Each word was perfectly formed and articulated in a voice so sharp diamond would shatter if it came into contact with it. "One thing, Parker. I wanted one thing."
"Listen to me-"
"One. Thing." She slapped the paper down onto the top of the bar and pinched her nose.
"Why won't you just embrace your fucking heritage?" The words snapped out of me before I could stop them. "Jesus, Raven, it's like you're ashamed of who you are."
"The last two Greek restaurants on the Key went out of business." Her voice was softer than a moment ago and punctuated with a sigh, but the edge of annoyance was still present. "One lasted six months and the other even less than that. Greek food is simple, but not easy to get right. It's not a matter of being ashamed of my heritage-it's a matter of respecting it and not wanting to screw it up."
Well, fucking hell. Why didn't she just say that in the first damn place?
"Do you trust me?" I asked her after a moment.
She tucked her dark hair behind her ear and looked at me. "I'd rather trust a crab to flick my clit."
Jesus.
"There's an image I never thought I'd have in my mind." Coughing into my hand, I shook my head. "Raven, your mom taught me and Ryan to cook. I can do anything on this menu to perfection or I wouldn't have given it to you. You might be a pain my damn ass, but I don't want to be the person who ruins your business."
Her throat bobbed as she swallowed, and her tongue flicked out across her red lower lip. "I have control issues, all right?"
"You don't say."
"You're not doing good in convincing me to let you cook this." She paused. "And it's not about trusting you to cook it. But, when this menu is out, it has to stay pretty much this menu even when you leave. It's being able to find someone else who can cook this food to a good enough standard, because Ryan isn't exactly going to come and work for me, is he?"
No. And I was starting to understand why he wouldn't.
"You know I'm on extended leave-"
"You mean you quit."
"-From my job," I continued, twitching at her word 'quit.' How the hell did she figure it out? "So, if you need me to, I'll train whoever you hire for real. I won't leave until they know how to cook this stuff as well as me."
She arched one eyebrow in a silent, "Really?"
All right, so that wasn't gonna happen, but still. "As well as they can," I amended.
"Do you swear?"
"On my life."
"That means that if you bail, I get to kill you. Slowly and painfully."
It took everything I had to fight the grin that was creeping onto my face. "Understood."
"But, before I agree," Raven went on, sliding the menu back to her. Her gaze briefly dropped to it. "I want you to cook me some of this stuff. I want to know if you're as good as you say you are."
"Tonight?"
"No, next week." With a snort, she continued, "Yes, tonight. For me, Lani, Camille, and Ryan."
"No pressure, then."