Hot in the Kitchen Read online

  Natalie stared in horror at Seth. “You locked us in here. It’s why the door was open a little bit.”

  Seth’s face wrinkled in confusion. “What?” He turned to test the silver door, which, sure enough, didn’t budge, and cursed. “I totally forgot.”

  She was locked in a fridge for who knew how long with Seth Clark. This has to be a nightmare. Wake up, Natalie. Wake up.

  Seth apparently felt the same way, scratching a hand across his short beard. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

  The walls were closing in on her. “Aubrey said she’d come get me if I wasn’t back in a few minutes. She’ll let us out.”

  Seth groaned. “Sure, any second now.”

  Natalie said nothing, clutching her container of fruit against her chest. Her heart felt like it was stuck in her throat, along with whatever she wanted to say to him. Somehow she’d both wanted and dreaded this kind of moment with him.

  Seth gathered a few items from the shelves, obviously ignoring her. He murmured an apology when his elbow brushed her shoulder, but otherwise didn’t speak. The silence went on so long that Natalie was willing to talk about the freaking weather just to stave off the discomfort. Just as she opened her mouth to speak, however, he heaved a sigh.

  “Ya know, I’m surprised to see you here.”

  “In the fridge?”

  Seth’s mouth quirked a little and he tamped it down with a scowl instead. “Waiting tables at LUSH … or back in town, I dunno.”

  A nervous laugh escaped Natalie. “Yeah, I guess it is surprising, isn’t it. Or a small world, or whatever.”

  He shot her a sideways look, maybe unsure of what to make of her reply. “Yeah, sure.” He tried the door again, sighing when no one conveniently swung it open for him. “I’ve gotta get out of here.”

  “It’s not that bad to be stuck in here, is it?” Natalie hated the timidness in her question.

  “I just … I’ve got things on the stove,” Seth growled. He ripped his black cap off to run a hand through his hair with a free hand.

  Natalie pretended not to notice the ripple of his bicep and went with sarcasm instead.

  “Don’t worry, you’ve made it perfectly clear it’s such a burden to be within ten feet of me.” The words spilled from her mouth before she could stop herself. She was glad to hold the plastic container of fruit, not wanting to give away her emotions through frantic hand motions or hands on her hips.

  “Right, I guess it’s easy for you,” Seth retorted, still not looking at her. He spoke to her just over his left shoulder. “Tell me, how many other hearts have you broken in the last four years?”

  Her mouth fell open. “I—what?”

  “You heard me.”

  Natalie narrowed her eyes at his sanctimonious attitude. “I suppose I did, but the context is a little blurry.”

  Seth pressed his lips together in a hard line, clearly not wanting any of this situation. He looked as if the last thing he wanted was to get into this conversation, not least of which shouldn’t be at work and in this godforsaken malfunctioning refrigerator.

  When he didn’t respond, Natalie scoffed. “Right, easy to throw out accusations without any proof. Did you ever stop to think that you’re the heartbreaker in this scenario? ”

  He tossed his products onto a nearby shelf to turn and glare at her. “I broke your heart? C’mon, Natalie, give yourself a little more credit there. After all, you were the one who left.”

  “Because I couldn’t take you seriously!” Natalie struggled to keep the ingredients together rather than gesture or throw a grapefruit at his head. Tears sprung to her eyes, whether out of anger or sadness, she wasn’t sure. “You were aimless, with no clue of what you wanted.”

  “You practically gave me an ultimatum.” Seth didn’t look at her when he spoke, instead staring at one of the shelves full of peppers. “I just needed a little more time.”

  “I heard that line again and again. So what, was I supposed to stick around while you took whatever time you wanted to find yourself?” Natalie scoffed. “That’s not fair and you know it.”

  “I wasn’t asking you to wait,” he mumbled, rubbing a hand across his beard. “I just … I wanted to get my act together for you, for us. And then you just left after graduation. Your parents wouldn’t even give me your new address when you moved.”

  “You talked to my parents?” Natalie asked faintly.

  Seth released a ragged sigh, finally turning to look her in the eye. “Yeah, I did.”

  They’d never told her Seth had come by after she left Crystal Springs. The tears stung her eyes. Natalie didn’t have anything smart to say about that, but desperately wanted to somehow prove him wrong. She’d never so badly in her life wanted to be right about something. But she couldn’t think of a single thing besides the fact that despite all these years apart, she still wanted him.

  They stood inches apart. Natalie resisted the urge to reach out and stroke his face, to run her thumb across his bottom lip like she’d done so many times in the past. The only thing keeping her from doing so was the plastic tub of ingredients still in her arms. But she knew he could feel it too, that magnetic pull that threatened to pull them closer and closer together. Natalie’s heartbeat pounded in her ears, drowning out the hum of the refrigerator.

  The two of them faced off, glaring at the other. Natalie tried very hard not to notice Seth’s nostrils flare as his pupils dilated, or the way his eyes went to her lips. A naval orange pressed into her ribcage, but she could hardly sense the discomfort with him this close. Their faces were a hairsbreadth apart. Natalie could practically taste the sprig of mint on his tongue.

  The instant Natalie decided to drop the fruit and fling her arms around Seth instead, the refrigerator door swung open. The small space flooded with light, a shadow in the doorway. Natalie and Seth blinked against it, jumping apart as though caught doing something other than arguing.

  Aubrey stood in the doorway. She was clearly guessing at the situation, judging by the raised eyebrows and awkward silence. She gave them a halfhearted wave.

  “Just uh, checking on my citrus.”

  “I got it,” Natalie said, pushing past Seth. She kept her head high, hoping her watery eyes didn’t let a tear fall.

  Aubrey stayed on her heels, quickly getting back to work. Natalie stacked the fruit on the bar, taking a seat on one of the flawless wooden chairs. Luckily the other servers were busy, and Natalie sucked in a deep breath, her face still flaming red. Aubrey wordlessly handed Natalie a rag for the silverware behind her bar.

  “Thanks for coming to open the door.” Natalie cleared her throat and began to polish. “It’s not what you think.”

  “I don’t think anything.” Aubrey didn’t look up at she sliced lime wedges. Her knife went through the rind and she swept the cut pieces to the side to make room on the cutting board. Aubrey didn’t push, but the words spilled out of Natalie anyway.

  “Seth and I, we … used to date.”

  Aubrey shot her an amused look. “I kind of figured that part out.”

  Natalie chuckled, relaxing a little. “It didn’t really end well. We sort of … broke each other’s hearts, I guess. Though that’s news to me as of three minutes ago.”

  Aubrey’s lips pressed together in thought. She continued working on her cutting board. “And you haven’t seen him since?”

  Natalie’s curly ponytail swung as she shook her head. “Not in four years. I didn’t even know he worked here until my first day. Do me a favor and please don’t tell anyone else, okay? It’s no one else’s business and I don’t want them thinking anything weird about me and Seth.”

  Especially Seth; he’d worked too long and too hard to suddenly lose respect from his employees just because his ex-girlfriend blabbed about their long-past relationship. She couldn’t even imagine how mad he’d be, but no matter what, it just wouldn’t be fair to his career.

  “Of course.” Aubrey arranged her wedges into a small plastic container, mo
ving on to lemons. “So why the broken hearts club?”

  “It’s … complicated.”

  Aubrey gave her a knowing look. “It always is, Nat.”

  Rachel appeared around the corner, humming loudly to herself, and effectively ending the conversation. Natalie sat back in her chair, continuing to polish silverware. Aubrey stole concerned looks her way every so often, but Natalie decided to keep quiet. She and Seth were over, a thing of the past. It was time she moved on from him for good.

  Seth could’ve absolutely kicked himself. Four years of pining over Natalie and he’d had the perfect chance to tell her everything. She would’ve had to hear him out; even if she wouldn’t accept his apology for being such a listless loser back then, at least she would’ve known how he felt.

  With nowhere to go in that tiny, cold space, Seth should’ve scooped her up into his arms and made her remember the heat between them. God help him, he was turned on by the entire interaction. Despite everything screaming inside him not to do it, he’d wanted nothing more than to close the distance between them and kiss her.

  And instead he’d been a total jerk.

  “Seth, you idiot,” he berated himself over and over.

  Seth didn’t know what came over him. Seeing her split him in two, both eager and angry, wanting to please her and stay far, far away at the same time. Is this what schizophrenia feels like? He had to be losing his mind.

  “Seth, come on, man,” Tom snapped, bringing him back to the scene in front of me. Seth cursed, yanking the skirt steak off the grill.

  He’d just barely pulled it off in time for the medium-rare request. He put it aside to let it rest, focusing on the other meats in front of him.

  Tom shot him an angry look, but didn’t say anything else. Seth could feel the annoyance rolling off him in waves. He sucked in a deep breath and tried to get his head back in the game. The last thing Seth wanted was to screw the kitchen over. He’d definitely worked way too hard for that, Natalie or no Natalie.

  Seth managed to get his head back in the game for the next couple of hours. While they closed up and wiped down their stations, Seth ignored the looks from Tom and the other guys. He’d make it up to Tom later with a six-pack, but it was nobody else’s business.

  When they got back to the house, Seth explained what happened in the fridge with Natalie. Tom whistled under his breath.

  “Boy, what a charmer you are,” he said. “I had no idea you had such a way with women.”

  Seth rolled his eyes. “Shut up, man, I know it was a jerk move.”

  “You said it, not me.”

  “I’m not going to apologize.”

  Tom took a swig of his bottled beer. “Sure, that’ll patch things right up.”

  Seth glared at him, resisting the urge to swing a pillow at his roommate’s head. His phone buzzed. He glanced down at the screen to see a text from Brenna. Wanna hang?

  For Brenna and Seth, that was obvious code. Seth sat there for at least a full minute, debating if he wanted to go down that path again. Then Natalie flashed in his mind again, and Seth was halfway off the couch before he’d even realized.

  “I’ve gotta clear my head,” Seth mumbled. He took his beer bottle into the kitchen to the recycling bin.

  “And how exactly do you plan to do that?” Tom called out.

  “Gonna take a walk,” Seth said as he shoved his feet into a pair of beat-up Vans.

  “To Brenna’s?” Tom asked knowingly.

  Seth paused near the front door, scowling at his best friend. “So what if I do?”

  Tom held up his hands in mock truce, a beer bottle still in his right hand. “Innocent bystander keeping opinions to himself here.”

  Seth sighed, running a hand through his hair. “Sorry man, I just…”

  “Yeah, all right,” Tom said, taking another swallow of beer. “Go ‘clear your head.’ Just quit bringing your baggage into the kitchen, got it?”

  “Yes, Chef,” Seth said, not letting Tom see his eye roll. Tommy was right, of course, but right now, Seth had to get out of the house and distract himself. Brenna would provide the perfect opportunity.

  * * *

  “You want anything to eat?” Brenna asked him afterwards.

  “No, thanks, it’s late.”

  “We could go to the diner,” she suggested. “They’re always open.”

  Seth withheld a sigh. She’d been doing this lately, trying to get him to stay longer, or go out and do something with her. They’d been off and on for months, but Brenna and Seth only had two rules to their relationship: no spending the night, and no strings attached. He had no interest in changing the rules, despite her obvious attempts to tweak them when she thought he wasn’t paying attention.

  “I’m not really hungry,” he said.

  “You seem distracted,” Brenna said, ruffling Seth’s hair. “Everything okay?”

  He resisted the urge to brush her off, not wanting to outright hurt her feelings. He sat up on the bed instead, reaching for his clothes. “Yeah, I’m fine. Just a long day at work.”

  “And how is the best restaurant in town?”

  He shrugged, tugging his shirt back on. “Same as always.”

  “You know, I never did hear back on my application for bartender,” Brenna commented. She slipped into her silky bathrobe, padding into the bathroom.

  “That’s too bad,” he called back, but didn’t elaborate.

  Seth grimaced as he zipped up his jeans. She’d never heard back because he’d specifically asked Daniel to lose her resume. Brenna made for a decent server, but she couldn’t mix a drink to save her life. Even then, Seth hadn’t been crazy about the idea of having Brenna work in the same restaurant with him. It’d give her one more reason to push “them” or whatever she wanted to call it.

  Besides, now that Natalie was at LUSH, there was no way he wanted Brenna working there, too. That was the stuff of nightmares.

  Brenna opened her door, face falling with disappointment when she saw Seth completely dressed. “You’re leaving?”

  “Long day,” Seth mumbled, fully aware of his terrible excuse. “Gonna go home and crash.”

  “Okay,” she said, pouting a little. “If you’re sure.”

  Seth slipped out of her place and walked home. Heat and humidity hung heavy in the air, sweat breaking out across his hairline. Hands in pockets, he kept his head down and scowled with every step. “Distracting himself” hadn’t even really worked, which was exactly what he’d been afraid of. It was like no matter what he did, thoughts of Natalie pressed down on his mind. Even with Brenna’s lips on his, he couldn’t help but wish it was his ex-girlfriend. He hated himself for it.

  He kicked pebbles in his path out into the street, listening to them skitter across the pavement. He didn’t go home, instead wandering aimlessly through the neighborhood. Most houses were dark at this hour, his shadow his only company. When he came to an intersection a few blocks later, he looked up at the street names and halted in his tracks.

  Seth’s feet had taken him to Natalie’s parents’ street. As if pulled by a magnet, Seth veered right, unable to stop walking even if he wanted. When he stood in front of her house, it looked exactly as he remembered it. Nothing about the brick house with navy shutters had changed in at least four years. He half-expected to walk in and find it all the same inside, too.

  He was torn. He didn’t want to let any of the past come back, too intent on his new path. The old Seth Clark hadn’t had a clue, or half of the determination he had now. It wasn’t just about slipping back into old habits. He didn’t have time for drama, or angst, or any number of things sure to happen with Natalie.

  Movement in the upper right window–Natalie’s room–caught Seth’s eye and his heart wrenched. The light went out and Seth backed away, unable to look away from the house until he turned the corner and went home.

  Natalie arrived for her shift the next afternoon, her feet still sore from running around the restaurant until midnight the night befor
e. She waved to her friends prepping at the bar and clocked in. After tossing her purse in the stowaway section of the service station, she joined Aubrey, Katie, Rachel, and Adam to finish up napkins and silverware.

  “Wanna grab a beer after close?” Aubrey asked her in greeting.

  “Oh, I don’t know–” Natalie barely got out before Rachel interrupted.

  “Natalie, you have to! We usually hang out on Saturdays, anyway. You have to join us.”

  “Yeah, it’s kinda like hazing,” Adam said, waving his hand in the air. “Instead of keg stands, it’s hustling pool.”

  “I have to work brunch tomorrow,” Natalie said, hedging a bit.

  Adam scoffed. “So do I, and I’m definitely going out tonight.”

  Aubrey flipped her long braid over her shoulder and rolled her eyes. “It’s brunch. You’ll be fine.”

  “All right, all right,” Natalie said with a laugh. She popped in the service station to text her mom not to wait up, though it wasn’t exactly necessary. Her parents were in bed long before Natalie got home these days with her evening shifts, but she didn’t want them to worry.

  Her mom replied almost instantly. Great, have fun with your friends.

  Natalie suppressed a sigh. Her mother had been nagging her about a social life for, well, years at this point. She changed the subject. How’s Dad?

  The little bubble popped up while her mom replied, followed by: May be a rough evening but he’s OK.

  Natalie groaned. When her mom used terms like “rough,” that meant Dad was in for a really bad night–painful, nauseous, or otherwise. Perhaps the worst part of it all for Natalie and her mother was that there was simply nothing they could do but sit with him. Guilt clawed at her insides and almost as if on cue, another text from her mother buzzed:

  Don’t worry – see you tomorrow! Have fun.

  A silly cartoon gif followed; Natalie was almost impressed her mom had figured those out. Gnawing on her lip, she glanced back to her friends. Aubrey tossed a rag on Adam’s shoulder, while Katie and Rachel gabbed about the movie playing next door.