"Prep," I answered simply, cutting the pork. "What are you doing back out here?"
She put a pre-packed sandwich on the counter just out of my reach. "I went to grab lunch. You need to eat. There's a cafe just down the road that makes these fresh. I took a punt on chicken." She paused. "Unless you'd rather have beef?"
Any other day, I would have said beef just to piss her off. But, this was unusually thoughtful for her, and I didn't actually care either way.
"Chicken is great. Thank you." I shot her a smile as I cut some more pork.
"You're welcome." She stepped back. "Do you need anything else?"
"Yeah, can we get some water in the fridge? I asked Wes to come and get you an hour ago but you were...screaming at somebody." I glanced at her in time to see her cheeks flush.
"Some suppliers are assholes," is all she said. "I'll be right back."
She scuttled out of the kitchen. The second the door closed behind her, I chuckled to myself. Some suppliers were indeed assholes, but did she unleash her temper on them unnecessarily, or did they have it coming to them?
Either way, I made a mental note to use her for any asshole suppliers around here.
I threw the chopped pork chunks into a bowl and washed my hands. The seasoning I needed was sitting on the shelf above me, so I grabbed it, uncapped it, and sprinkled it onto the meat. With one hand, I stuck in and started mixing it all up. I added more seasoning as and when I needed it until I heard the door open again.
"Ugh," Raven said. "I don't usually want to eat raw pork, but that smells pretty good."
I laughed and washed my hands again. "I'd advise against it."
"Is this enough water?"
I looked over my shoulder. It was a package of twenty bottles, and she was holding it like it was nothing. I expect it would be if you carried that shit every day. "More than. Thanks. Just dump it on the side and I'll have Wes put it in when he gets back."
"Nah, I got it." She opened the smaller fridge a few feet away from me. "How does he seem?"
"Wes?"
She nodded.
"Dunno. I'd have him do some prep when he gets back. I need some fries cutting."
Raven paused by the fridge door, three bottles in each hand. "Really? You're gonna make him cut fries?"
"Executive chef privileges." I grinned and put some clear wrap over the pork to keep it fresh. Carrying it over to the fridge, I said, "Nah, I do it with all new hires, especially if they're young. I cut one or two potatoes exactly how the fries need to be cut, and how well he copies me is an indication of his ability in general."
"His ability to what? Slice a fucking potato?"
"Primarily." I set the bowl on the bottom shelf. "But also to listen to instructions. If I want chunky fries half an inch thick, that's what I want. Not a quarter-inch or three-quarter-inch. Half an inch. If I want skinny fries two-tenths of an inch, that's what I want."
"That's kind of picky."
"Picky got me Michelin stars."
"I don't know how to argue that point." She shrugged and finally slipped the bottles into a shelf in the door. "All right, but remember that half-decent kitchen staff are slim pickings around here. If he gives you one three-quarter-inch fry in a batch of half-inch fries, it's not his fault."
"Sure it is. He put it in there. He cut it. I didn't."
She hits me with a withering look that draws a tiny smile from me. "And men are prone to exaggeration, so your half-inch thick fries are probably not even a quarter."
"God, I've never heard that before."
"It's nice to be original." She grabbed more water bottles.
"I had a woman work for me last year at the restaurant. She constantly told me I got my sizes wrong." I ran the tap and put the chopping board in the sink. "I put up with it until I told her I had a firm eight inches of my own, so I was pretty sure I was accurate."
Raven met my eyes with a raise of her eyebrows. "Classic overcompensation."
"I'd prove you wrong if I didn't think you'd slice it clean off."
"It's always nice to have a healthy dose of fear in my employees."
"I'm not afraid of you, Raven. I'm afraid of what you could do to my cock. There's a very big difference." I shut off the tap and grabbed a towel to dry the board.
"Sorry, I don't sleep with the staff. They get crazy when you do that." She paused. "Not that I've ever done that."
"You've done that, haven't you?"