Encounters Susie: Encounters, #2

By Simona Carr

Welcome to Encounters, the restaurant of love. There is something magical about Encounters. People who go there don't just get a wonderful meal, they find their true love. The Encounters stories are a series of novelettes, each one telling the story of a couple whose lives are forever changed by the Encounters magic.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Vixen
• Release date: May 29, 2024
• ISBN: 9798227764317

Book preview

Introduction

Welcome to Encounters, the restaurant of love. There is something magical about Encounters. People who go there don’t just get a wonderful meal, they find their true love. The Encounters stories are a series of novelettes, each one telling the story of a couple whose lives are forever changed by the Encounters magic.

Chapter One

What the?

Susie looked up from where she was setting tableware in preparation for opening. She saw Simon, a dark frown marring the masculine beauty of his face, stabbing at the keyboard of the computer.

What’s going on here? Why isn’t anything working?

Susie’s heart sank as she heard those words. Encounters was a busy restaurant at any time, and she knew they were fully booked tonight.

It’s okay, I’ll sort it, and if I can’t we will just use the booking ledger instead.

Susie grinned, Jess to the rescue. Jess always kept a calm head no matter how chaotic things got. And while diners at Encounters saw a smooth, efficient machine, behind the scenes there was a lot of drama and frantic running that kept it the elegant dining experience they had come to expect.

Jess took over the computer while Simon moved to the end of the small reception desk, flipping open the booking ledger and studying the hand written entries. It was still the practice at Encounters to write down all bookings in the ledger before adding them to the computer. Susie saw now that what she had considered to be a waste of time actually had a practical reason behind it.

She left them to try to sort it out and went back into the kitchen where the chef, Manfred, was yelling at one of the new hires.

Not like that you imbecile! Encounters is the restaurant of love! You prepare even the onion with love! Not this chop chop chop without care and consistency.

He scraped the onion into a bowl, where it would be used somewhere she knew. Manfred abhorred waste and would never throw out good food. Banging the board down in front of the new guy he made an obvious effort to modulate his voice.

You have not been here long, so you do not yet understand. Encounters is a special restaurant. It is the restaurant of love. That love must be reflected in everything we do, even the most mundane of tasks, right Susie?

Susie smiled at new guy. That’s right. There is something about Encounters, as you will find out once you’ve been here a while. We all play our part in the magic.

She could see that he did not believe her but was too cowed by the presence of the chef to say anything. He mumbled his apologies and picked up another onion. Manfred watched as this time he gave it his full attention, peeling and chopping as though he was turning out a masterpiece of sculpture. Satisfied, Manfred moved back to his own work space.

Susie leaned closer to the young man, who looked up in surprise.

Prepare with love, but make it fast love.

He smiled at her and picked up his pace. She grinned at him and winked at Manfred, who of course had heard her. Manfred heard everything in his kitchen and noticed everything. Susie studied the busy room for a few moments before returning to her duties. In the dining room the first person she saw was Jess.

Jess, did you get the computer working?

Jess sighed. "No, and the one in the office is the same. I don’t know what has happened. They were working just fine a couple of hours ago but now, nothing. Thank goodness we still