Dreaming in the Kitchen | By : FlameWolf666 Category: Celebrities - Misc > General Views: 2231 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0 |
Disclaimer: I do not know Gordon Ramsay or his family in real life. This is just fiction, for fun and no profit will be made. |
Author’s Note: I really didn’t like how the original was turning out so I decided to re-write it a bit. Still inspired by: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30134037/chapters/74231400
Dreaming in the Kitchen
By: FlameWolf
Chapter One: A Proposition
“Order!” she shouted from her position, bringing her food to the head chef. As she scurried back to her position on meats, Tiff could swear she had caught a glimpse of someone in the kitchen. Having no time to take a second look, she slid a tray of lamb into a hot oven; not stopping to move her red hair out of her eyes.
“Ten minutes!” she called out to a chorus of ‘heard.’ Like a well oiled machine, the team moved to finish service; oblivious to the man currently observing them.
Passing up the last steak as service wound down, she felt a tired sort of triumph. Nothing had been sent back and her team had gelled well. Letting out a slow breath, she switched off her range to catch sight of blonde hair. Blinking, she looked up to see nothing there.Yet, for just a second, she could have sworn she had seen... Shrugging it off, she moved to the sinks to wash her hands. While she was drying them, she heard her boss’ voice call for her from his office.
Curious, she walked into the room and shut the door. That was when she saw her best friend’s husband, Gordon Ramsay standing on the other side of the chamber. Eyes wide, she swayed as a far off conversation with Tana Came to mind. Though, to be honest, she had thought the woman was joking. After all, what kind of housekeeper could she be? Not to mention a small problem. She had a crush on the woman’s husband. A fact she was ashamed to admit to herself even now.
That wedding was supposed to be her soul sister’s day. Instead, she had felt instant jealousy rather than joy. She had done her best to avoid the couple, afraid Tana would sense the envy. Instead, the older female had interpreted her distance as being shy. So, when she had been getting food, the stubborn brunette had struck. There he was, mere inches from her with his hand held out and a smile on his lined but handsome face. The real kicker had been those damned blue eyes. Eyes that showed nothing but politeness. The moment their skin had met, there had been sparks.
Since that day, she had avoided the growing family as best she could. While she still met with Tana in her own home, she always found excuses to avoid going to theirs. She had missed many events she regretted. Many birthdays and special events. Thankfully, her practical sibling hadn’t said a thing. In fact, she almost seemed understanding to a fault. Yet, here was the very man she had spent all that time and effort avoiding.
Green eyes wide, she felt a blush on her cheeks and fought the urge to hide her face. The flush would make her freckles stand out, a feature she had long hated about herself. “...wants to take you on as a sous chef,” came the end of a declaration, drawing her back to the present.
“Wh-what?” she wheezed out, having not heard the first part of the sentence.
“I know, I’ll be sorry to lose you but I can’t stand in the way of your career,” her boss assured, mistaking her confusion for humbleness.
Then Gordon was walking toward her, a wide smile curling his lips. “I hope you’ll say yes,” he purred, his gruff accent causing her stomach to do flips. Putting it all into context, Tiff finally understood what was happening and her eyes went wide.
“But surely there must be more qualified people,” she protested, only to have him laugh lightly.
“There always is, luv. I did not come to watch them, however,” he pointed out, offering a hand to her.
Looking down at the appendage, she only knew one reason why the man was here. Tana. When that woman wanted something, she was nothing if not proactive. Tiffany suspected she had gotten tired of the continued absences and excuses. Yet, that didn’t explain the offer Gordon was extending to her. Nibbling her lower lip, she considered the implications as well as what this meant for her future. If she accepted, nothing would ever be the same again. Looking up into the chef’s azure orbs, she saw nothing but confidence. So, with a bit of hesitance, she placed her hand in his.
Everything that happened after occurred rapidly. Her boss immediately excused her from her job so she could get ready for her new venture. There were many assurances she would always have a place. Then she was ushered out of the building and into a high end looking car. Something she doubted she could ever come close to affording. The moment she had her seatbelt buckled, the engine roared to life. “So, tell me the truth. Tana sent you, right,” she whispered, avoiding his gaze to stare into her lap.
“Darling, please look at me when talking,” he requested, smiling when she met his gaze.
“Yes, she wanted to ask you to be our housekeeper. After hearing her talk about you so often, I must admit I got curious. When I saw you in action, however, I knew giving you over to my wife would be a waste,” he responded, pulling out of the parking spot and onto the highway.
Blushing at the praise, she cleared her throat as she glanced away briefly. “So, what now,” she managed after a moment, looking at him again.
“Well, we make arrangements. This can go one of two ways. You stay in your house while we attempt to build a rapport so we can begin training. Or, you could move into a house we have attached to ours. With you so nearby, it will be easier for us to build trust and for me to assess your skills. Not to mention Tana would be over the moon to have you around,” he responded, meeting her gaze briefly.
While remaining in her apartment appealed to her, moving in with her closest friend was too good to pass up for any reason. She longed to see the children more, to see Tana. The only problem was how she felt about the man to her right. If it wasn’t obvious she had a crush, it soon would be. Crinkling her brow, she told Ramsay her address while mulling it over in her mind. If she was to go through with this, she would have to do her best to bury her feelings. A task she wasn’t sure was possible.
After a long while, she glanced up to see her rat box of an apartment. It had barely enough room for her, let alone her pets. Yet it was all she could afford that was close to her work. Even the man next to her seemed just a bit appalled, a poorly hidden expression of disgust on his famous visage. Yet, he said nothing. Polite as always, he simply walked over to her side of the car to open the door. “Think about what I said, yeah?” he requested, watching her as she went up the stairs and into the building.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The moment she was in her apartment, she was letting out her Cockatiel before taking out her cell. Dialing in a number, she pressed it to her face while she paced. Sensing her agitation, the bird landed on her shoulder and began to whistle an odd rendition of ‘One Winged Angel.’ Scritching his head, she stopped moving the moment she heard the line pick up. “How’d it go?” came a question that answered several of hers. Letting out a sigh, Tiffany sat on her ancient couch.
“He... he wants me to be his sous chef,” she admitted, eyes slipping close while her friend squealed in excitement.
“Tana, why are you doing this?” she asked, genuine curiosity filling her.
“I miss you Tiffy. We used to be inseparable until I met Gordon. This just isn’t like you and I wanted you to see he wasn’t anyone to be frightened of,” came assurance that had her smiling.
With his shows, it would be easy to see why anyone would be afraid of Gordon. Yet, that wasn’t her reason for avoiding him. “Tana...,” she began.
“At home, he’s such a teddy bear! You should see the way he is with ‘Tilly,” the other woman interrupted in a rush.
“Tana!” Tiff tried again, more firmly. This time, she got the older woman’s attention.
“I’ve... I’ve never been afraid of him. I can’t... I can’t hide this from you anymore. If I’m going to be working with him, you of all people need to know,” she informed, nervousness swelling inside her.
There was silence, allowing her to gather her thoughts. Just as she was about to speak, she heard Tana say something. “Well, it was either fear or...,” the woman began, trailing off. Heart skipping a beat, Tiff held her breath and waited. Waited for their sisterhood to be over. Instead, there was a chuckle.
“Oh, honey. You should have told me!” came unexpected assurance.
Blinking, the irish born femme sat up with a confused expression. Of all the reactions, she hadn’t expected this. “Its just a harmless crush, right? Not worth breaking up our bond over,” Tana continued.
“But...,” she tried to interject.
“Tiffany, I trust you. No matter what,” growled a stern interruption. Then things were steered to more neutral topics, her head still spinning from overwhelming confusion. By the time she hung up, she had a roaring headache.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Over the next few days, Tiffany got very little sleep. Her mind was plagued by thousands of questions, many she knew she wouldn’t get an answer to. Staring down at her meager breakfast of dry toast, she shoved it to one side. Since her talk with Tana, her stomach had been tying itself in knots. Would it really be okay to work with her ‘sister’s’ husband despite how she felt? Let alone move into an adjacent house? This was an opportunity of a lifetime! She would have to be insane to turn it down now. Being pulled by both her conscience and logic, she fought off an urge to call Tana again.
In the past, she had always called the other woman for advice and vice versa. The pair had shared everything since they were toddlers. So to not consult her on this huge decision almost seemed wrong. Yet, she already knew the older woman’s answer. Tana would want her to say yes, despite recent events. Heading into the room where she kept her ferrets and snails, she looked down at the pair of mustelids. As if sensing her distress, the black male scampered over to her while his white, female partner wrestled with his tail.
Looking into his tiny, red eyes, she could swear she saw a deeper intelligence. Just like the day she had picked up the pair. “What do you think Alucard? Do I take the job?” she asked, chuckling when he licked his whiskers. Then he was sticking his nose out of a hole in a baby gate that made up his enclosure. Booping his nose, she felt her heart melt when he kissed her finger with his tongue.
“I guess that’s a yes Sephiroth,” she murmured to the bird on her shoulder, getting a tweetle in response.
Rubbing the grey blush spot on his cheek, she pulled out her phone and looked at the contacts. Gathering her courage, she touched the one contact she had been dreading to call. Even as the line rang, she had to fight a huge urge to just hang up. “Tiffy! Have you made a decision?” Tana answered brightly, as sharp as ever.
“Uh, y-yes. C-can I speak to Chef Ramsay?” she stammered, nearly shaking from her nerves.
“You don’t have to be so formal. But yes, here he is,” chirped a reply before there was a brief silence.
“Good morning Tiffany, you have good news I hope,” came a chipper, accented baritone.
Just hearing him had her cheeks lighting on fire but she swallowed that emotion. She had to be professional. “Yes chef, I...,” she started.
“Gordon,” came a sharp but polite correction. It was so sudden, it threw her a bit off balance.
“Er, G-gordon. I, uh, I d-decided to move into the house joined to yours,” she announced.
“Great! That’s great to hear! I’ll begin proceedings immediately, don’t worry about a thing,” he responded, the smile almost audible in his voice.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The next few days went by quickly. All of the Ramsay family had decided to help her pack and move. Between all of them, her meager possessions were ready within a day. The only problem had been her lease and her pets. Not only did the parrot and ferrets have massive cages but she also had a huge tube with five Giant African Land Snails inside. Even with the minivan used for family trips, it would take a couple tries to get all of it.
Her landlord wasn’t as easily solved, however. Despite being at the end of her lease anyway, he wanted to charge her for breaking it. Something he had refused to budge on, saying she hadn't given enough notice. Today was no different. “Greg... Greg! Tomorrow was when it was up anyway! We’ve gone over this! I don’t owe you notice or anything!” she snarled into the phone, trying to keep her voice down while the others moved the last of her furniture into a rented u-haul. Unfortunately, her long struggle hadn’t gone unnoticed.
Next thing she knew, her phone was gently taken from her hands. Turning around, she saw Gordon holding it to his ear while Tana moved forward to give her a hug. Stunned, Tiff shuddered when the blonde holding her phone winked at her. “That’s not necessary,” she protested, only to have the other woman shake her head slightly.
“Honey, you’ve been fighting him for almost a week. Let us help you,” the brunette cajoled, brown eyes shining as she gave her version of ‘puppy eyes.’
Before she could answer, the TV celebrity began to speak. “Greg, is it? Care to have a meeting about this matter in person? I would like to get this settled as soon as possible,” he proposed. After a pause, he nodded a few times in agreement to what was said.
“Yes, you can remain outside the property. I just wish to get this done with,” he responded. Then he was hanging up and handing the small device back.
Within moments, there was a knock on the door. Before she could answer it, she was stopped by both Tana and Gordon. “It’ll be alright luv,” he assured, swinging open the entry and shutting it behind him. Blinking, Tiff tried to shrug off her curiousness; gathering up a small box to take out to one of the vehicles. Heading for the door, she opened it to see a certain chef handing over a bunch of cash. He was paying what her landlord wanted.
Before she could protest, her sister from another mister was ushering her down the corridor. “B-but Tana..,” she tried to protest.
“Don’t worry about it. Please. Just, consider it an advance on your salary,” the brunette interrupted before pushing her towards Gordon’s car. The minivan was already stuffed with boxes and the children, so it made sense. Still, something inside her balked at the idea of being left alone with him.
Opening the passenger side to place her last box in the back, she heard the other vehicle start. The U-haul had already been relocated, so this was the final trip. After this, she would be living with her almost second family. Not to mention what her new job would entail. Just thinking about it was enough to make her nervous all over again. Watching as the larger car moved away, she took a deep breath to calm herself.
Glancing back toward her old apartment, she saw her new boss quickly approaching with a bright smile on his face. “Sorry that took so long luv. Let’s get this show on the road,” he urged, motioning for her to enter the car. Yet, she hesitated. It didn’t feel right to let him pay for her landlord’s greed.
“Gordon, I appreciate what you did but...,” she started to say.
“Before you say anything else, I do not wish you to feel bad. I was just the easiest route to resolve your problem. If it really bothers you, I can take the amount out of your intended pay,” he interrupted, opening his own door and staring at her over the car.
While she still wasn’t very happy, she had to admit the offer made her feel a bit better. “Alright. Since this will be a one time thing I’ll let it slide this time,” she sighed, finally getting into the car and shutting the door. After both had put on their seatbelts, the man next to her was revving his car into action.
“Good girl,” he cooed, the praise sending a shock of lust through her.
Rubbing her upper arms, she avoided looking over at Gordon as they drove. Why had that affected her so strongly? Was she going to get like this if he praised her in the kitchen? Just what was she getting herself into? Groaning, she rubbed her hot face while she tried to get herself back under some semblance of control. Not that Gordon was oblivious to her struggle. In fact, he had paid close attention to her body language. Smirking to himself, he simply continued to pretend he didn’t notice. After all, he was used to women having crushes on him. “Let’s get you home and unpacked,” he purred as he pulled out onto the highway.
A long time ago, when he and Tana had just married, they had decided to open their relationship. While she had found someone she trusted fairly quickly, he had yet to come across anyone that caught his eye. That was until he had seen the woman next to him cook. It certainly helped that she had the trust and love of his wife. Maybe, in time, they could become more than colleagues. Maybe, just maybe, he had found someone to join him on his lonely travels. Someone that could offer him the comfort he had pined for.
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