New York HEAT (HEAT Vol. 6) A Coming-of-Age Romantic Suspense: Master Chefs: Heat Series Read online

  New York

  HEAT

  Master Chef: HEAT Serial

  VOL. 6

  Kailin Gow

  HEAT (HEAT: Vol 6)

  Published by KailinGowBooks.com

  Copyright © 2015 Kailin Gow

  All Rights Reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage or retrieval system, without the permission in writing from the publisher except in case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

  For information, please contact:

  Kailingowbooks(at)aol(dot)com.

  First Edition.

  Printed in the United States of America.

  DEDICATION

  To the people of New York. Thanks for welcoming me whenever I visit and for being one of the most fascinating places in the world!

  Prologue

  Bobby

  “Welcome back to the United States, Mr. Cummings,” the customs officer said.

  I nodded and hurried out to grab my suitcase and attempted to get a cab back home.

  Home. I couldn’t believe I was back in New York… alone. I’d been far too optimistic… thinking I could convince Lilly to come back with me.”

  I managed to get a cab after only five minutes and soon I was back at home… my mother’s home. Only now, it didn’t feel right. Something had changed back in Paris. Helping my mother out with her little family restaurant wasn’t enough. I wanted more, much more.

  Walking into my mom’s apartment, I set my suitcase down only to find another suitcase sitting by the sofa.

  “Mom,” I called out.

  “Bobby!” Wearing loose fitting jeans and an oversized red sweater, she came out of the kitchen to greet me. “I wasn’t expecting you until next week.” Her smile turned sad, the way it always did when she realized her little boy wasn’t happy. “What happened out there?”

  “Nothing, Mom.” Though I’d accepted Lilly’s decision, it was still too painful to talk about, at least for now. My only consolation was that Rial really did seem to be a good guy, a guy who really loved his girl and would treat her right.

  “Did you settle everything you needed to settle? Lilly’s father? Did she come back with you?”

  “Mom, please.”

  “I’ll take that as a no.”

  I turned to her. She was going to find out one way or another, so it may as well be from him. “Lilly’s in love with someone else. With Rial… Rial King.”

  “King?”

  “That’s right. Errol’s brother.” I glanced at the suitcase. “Are you heading off somewhere?”

  She seemed reluctant to answer. “Like I said, I wasn’t expecting you. I thought I’d get to see you in Paris.”

  “You’re going to Paris?” After an initial spark of anger, I realized I’d have the place to myself. And Sam’s Restaurant. I’d have free reign.

  “I suppose you already know; I’m going to be a grandmother.”

  I nodded and smiled. It was kind of cool.

  “I want to go out and help Taryn… you know… shopping for baby clothes, getting the nursery ready and whatever else she may need.”

  At that very moment, I didn’t really care why she was going out to Paris. I was just happy that she was.

  It was only later that night, after she’d taken a cab out to the airport and I was lying in my bed alone, that I allowed myself one last glimpse at my time with Lilly.

  I got a hard-on thinking of the nights we’d shared. One thing I could say, sex with her was terrific. I knew I’d lost a good one, but I was still happy for her and wished her the best. I would always have Taryn to keep an eye on her, and to let me know how things were going, although I wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or a bad.

  If I was to get on with my life, I really had to put her and my plans with her behind.

  I fell asleep thinking of her, but by the time I woke up the next morning, I was a new man, ready to take on the world.

  Or at least Manhattan.

  I had a lot on my plate, and first on my list was taking charge of Sam’s. I arrived bright and early, like usual.

  “Hey, Bobby. Good to have you back,” Vinny said from behind the grill.

  The morning rush had already begun and he was deep in it.

  “Good to be back. How are things going?”

  “Everything’s under control at this end.”

  “But we got a few deliveries coming in this morning, and no one’s gotten around to taking inventory of the freezer yet,” Burton added.

  “I’ll try to take care of that.”

  “Hey, do you know an Allison… something?” Vinny said.

  “Allison Lincoln?” I said.

  “Yeah, something like that.”

  “Yeah, I know her. Why?”

  “She came around the other night. I think she wanted to check out how things worked around here.”

  My heart raced. Allison Lincoln; we’d gone to the same college and had discovered our love of the culinary arts together. She’d been a pert, little red-head with to-die-for green eyes and a killer body she modestly hid behind shapeless shirts and loose fitting jeans.

  Throughout the day, I thought of her, wondering what had brought her into Sam’s… and more importantly, when would she come back again? I’d heard she’d gone on to become a very respected young chef who didn’t let people push her around, no matter how big they were. She’d become a tough cookie.

  “Filet mignon, medium rare,” Kelly, the waitress, called out as she set the order on the counter.

  “You got that, Vinny?” I said.

  “Got it.”

  I busied myself plating two orders of creamy seafood pasta, and when Vinny finished grilling the steak, I plated it as well. “Filet mignon,” I called out as I set the plate out for the waitress to take.

  The dinner rush was hectic and exhausting, but I loved the challenge and the adrenaline rush that accompanied it. Just as I was setting out three more dishes, Kelly came in.

  “A diner wants to meet you, Bobby. You got time?”

  “Sure,” I said, wiping my hands on my apron. “Send them in.”

  I put away the bottles of herbs I’d just used and looked up at the sound of footsteps. My heart stopped, and my cock stiffened. “Allison,” I said.

  “Bobby Cummings. So you're the one responsible for the food here.”

  My God, she looked terrific.

  “Nice to see you, too, Allison.”

  “I suspected you still worked here, but I wasn’t sure. I thought I heard something about you being out in Paris.”

  “I came back. My mom needed a hand.”

  “Isn’t that sweet?”

  There was something cool and aloof in her manner. This obviously wasn’t a nostalgic visit.

  “Maybe you heard; I opened a restaurant nearby.” She flipped a lock of her red hair back.

  “No. I hadn’t heard about that. Congratulations. Opening a restaurant is a big deal. So what brings you to Sam’s?”

  She shrugged. “Checking out the competition. I hear a lot of my potential customers are coming here.”

  “That’s understandable. The food here is great. How’d you like your dinner?”

  “It was Average.”

  “Average?”

  “Yeah. It was decent.”

  “Decent?”

  “Are you a chef or a parrot?”

 
“I think we’re a cut above average or decent. I mean, I’m willing to concede that we’re not the top of the tops… not yet, but we’re far from average.”

  “Come on, Bobby. Admit it. Sam’s might have a quaint little atmosphere, and you have a faithful clientele, but the food is subpar.”

  I jumped back. “Subpar. Now I know you're just trying to play with my head.”

  “I’m being dead serious.”

  “Well, then maybe you should go out there and ask my patrons why they’re dining here and not at your place. You said it yourself… your potential customers are flocking to Sam’s. It’s not just for my baby blues, you know.”

  She smiled for the first time, the same smile I remembered from College; shy, yet assertive, and oh, so sexy.

  Yeah, she’d definitely grown up since I’d last seen her. Gone were the baggy clothes and plain ponytail. Wearing a pair of hip hugging, pale grey slacks and a white button down shirt that was open just enough at the neckline to allow a tantalizing glimpse of her white bra, she’d become a sexy, take charge woman.

  “They’re not flocking here,” she corrected. “They’re probably just used to coming here and don’t have the guts to try something new.”

  “Fess up, Red. I’m doing better than you expected and you can’t admit defeat.” I closed in on her and backed her to the wall. “You never could stand to lose.”

  “I’ve lost nothing.” She pulled in a long, deep breath, deep enough to push her breasts out until they touched lightly against my chest.

  The hard on that’d begun became a full fledge woody.

  “Tell me, Allison. Did you come here to check out my food, or me?”

  She didn’t answer.

  My eyes were glued to her lips, luscious and full, with just a hint of peach gloss over them. Damn she was hot. Her hair fell about her face in thick waves, and the light splash of freckles across her nose made her all the more becoming.

  “You don’t have to answer that,” I finally said, leaning in closer.

  Her breath caught in her throat and I knew I’d had the desired affect on her.

  For a moment I was reminded of Lilly, not the pure innocence of her, but…there was something so similar. Something that drew me in and kept me there, eager to find out what she had to offer.

  I leaned in fast and kissed her before she could pull away. Her full lips immediately parted to let me in, and while her tongue resisted the invitation to come play with mine, I knew I had her.

  “Now that you’ve checked me out,” I said as I pulled away from the heated kiss, “Go back to your place and contemplate that.”

  Chapter 1

  The rest of that night I thought of Alyson and the real reason she stopped by. Something about her cool and aloof manner turned me on. Maybe it was the challenge, or maybe I just needed a good lay, no matter who it was with. Either way, I was happy to have a diversion, anything to keep me from thinking of Lilly.

  After I’d cleaned up in the kitchen and was ready to close down for the night, I poured myself a small glass of port and sat at one of the tables in the dining room – the table with the best view of the deserted street outside – and thought of Alyson and Lilly. So similar, yet so different. Lilly was warm where Alyson was cool. Lilly was charmingly innocent where Alyson was in command, almost haughty. I thought of Lilly with what I’d hope would be a final bittersweet sigh; a whirlwind love affair. Yes. That was exactly what it’d been.

  It was all Taryn’s fault, I mused. If she hadn’t gone to Paris and met up with Errol King… who knows? I might have never left New York. I’d partly based my decision on her praise of the International Culinary Institute where Errol taught, and had gone to Paris to attend classes there. Instead of concentrating on my classes as much as I should have, I ended up falling for a pretty little Parisian girl… one who’d almost become a nun, no less.

  Alone in the dining room of Sam’s, I laughed at the thought; me and a girl just months from taking the veil. No one would ever believe me.

  Well, that was all in the past now. I’d always have fond memories of my time with Lilly, but that was all I had. She’d moved on, and I guess it was for the best. Her life was to be with Rial and there was nothing I could do about that. I guess it was my cue to move on with my life and start all over again.

  Only I was moving onto what? Lilly was a hard act to follow.

  Alyson? A chain of single, slutty women? There certainly was no lack of them. Or was I facing a celibate period of my life?

  Parish the thought.

  I got up and dusted myself off. Single and free in New York City. I couldn’t complain. My name was circulating in culinary circles and the women who came to Sam’s were well aware of my bachelor status.

  It was just a matter of time before I hooked up with a fabulous girl.

  And the next day was that time.

  Late in the evening, three women walked in and took a table close to the kitchen. It was something that happened often; women wanted a chance to get a glimpse of me. It wasn’t rare that I strolled through the dining room, chatting with patrons and ensuring everyone was happy.

  A few women want a word with you, Bobby,” Kelly said after talking to them a minute.

  “I’ll be right out.” Grinning, I finished chopping the chives that were to garnish our creamy potage, set the cleaver down and wiped my hands off.

  Kelly’s frown told the story; these women were on the prowl and I was their prey.

  “Hello, ladies,” I said as I approached the table.

  “Oh, my God,” the voluptuous blond said with a girlish giggle. Her squeaky voice matched the pigtails that were pulled high on either side of her head. “You’re even better looking than I’d heard.”

  “Thank you.”

  Her tits were huge and on display in a clingy dress that left absolutely nothing to the imagination. A large heart pendant, encrusted with ruby red crystals, hung low on a silver chain and was trapped between the large orbs that were enticingly squeezed together.

  “I’m Missy.” She smiled as she noticed the direction of my gaze and arched her back to emphasize her tits even more.

  “I’m Teri,” the pert brunette beside her said. “I’m honored to meet you.” She seemed a little older than the other two, probably inching towards thirty. Though attractive in a minimalist way, her pale skin and pinched face gave her a weasel like appearance, especially when she smiled. But that didn’t keep her from wearing a knock out dress that was a veritable web of strings and straps that held a scant amount of strategically placed fabric over her body. Her tits were smaller than Missy’s, but high and firm… definitely delicious.

  “I’m Jessica,” the third girl said. Dressed just as slutty as the other two in a low cut shirt and tight mini skirt, there was nonetheless something frumpy and dumpy about her. Her dark wavy hair showed signs of grey, despite her youthful face. “I heard you make a delicious gourmet burger with exotic cheese and a savory special sauce.”

  “It’s one of the more popular items on the menu, yes.”

  Missy’s sultry gaze went to the menu. “And where are you on this menu?”

  I laughed and knew I was going to get some action that night. There was no mistaking it. These girls wanted me and I wasn’t about to say no. I was horny, very horny, and heartbroken from finally breaking up from Lilly. I was in need of a big distraction from my heartbreak. I needed to forget Lilly and

  “My heart is in every one of those items on the menu,” I managed to say without any hint of sexual innuendo.

  “Sounds yummy,” Missy said.

  “You ladies looked parched. How about I send over one of our finest bottles of red wine?”

  “It’d be a nice start,” Teri said.

  “And if I might suggest, the seafood platter is particularly good tonight,” I added. “I’ll have Kelly come over and take care of you right away.”

  “With you on top of things here, I’m sure it would be tasty,” Missy said, licking her li
ps and eyeing my crotch. She moved one of her fingers into her mouth and began licking it and then sucking on it, her eyes still gazing hard on my crotch.

  I left them and tried to keep my head straight when I returned to the kitchen. My cock ached and it was virtually impossible to concentrate. It was one hell of a busy night and I had to put Missy’s tits and horny mouth aside and get the job done. Twenty minutes later, however, I was in desperate need of a break and headed to the men’s room.

  My hard-on simply wouldn’t leave me and I had to tend to it if I were to survive the night.

  The swing door hadn’t completely closed behind me when it opened again and Teri came in.

  “I couldn’t help but notice your discomfort,” she said, her eyes on the bulge in my pants. With catlike strides she came to me and pushed me back into a stall, kicking the door shut behind her. “Your seafood platter might be delicious, but I had something else in mind.”

  She reached out to grab the waist of my pants and tug me to her. My cock crushed against her belly and I let out a painful gasp. Though I would have preferred having Missy, I was in no position to be choosy. I needed release and I needed it right then and there.

  Her fingers worked quickly to release my belt, unbutton my pants and pull the zipper down. My cock throbbed with anticipation.

  “Let’s see what we have here,” she mused. Her warm fingers wrapped around my stiff cock and released it from the confines of my pants.

  I was in heaven.

  “Looks like you’ve been holding back for a long time.”

  I immediately thought of my time in Paris. I’d expected something to happen with Lilly. I’d planned to seduce her all over again, to win her back, or at the very least to have a hot and passionate night with her, but that wasn’t to be. I’d returned to New York with my heart broken and my balls full.

  “I’m a hard working guy,” I said. “I don’t always have time to get out there.”

  She unbuttoned my white jacket then pulled up the black shirt I had underneath. “Nice six pack,” she murmured, as she ran her hand over my abs. “Looks like you really do work hard.”