Two years earlier...

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Chapter 1

Saitou woke up from his afternoon nap, grabbing at his sore shoulders while sitting up on the tiny cot. He looked around the cramped room the owner deemed as the chef's office and he snorted to laugh at the idea of it. The room was a glorified closet above the Les Alles brasserie but it had a desk, several clean chef's jackets, and it was a place Saitou could call his own. He'd invested all his work time and his free time to his job at this French brasserie, and he had finally earned the position of head chef.

It'd been over one year since he had gotten the promotion, but it took that long for Les Alles' owner, Shishio, to stop coming by to oversee the restaurant's daily operations. In the beginning, Shishio came everyday to allow Saitou to see how he handles the vendors and payments. Eventually, he cut down the visits to every other day. After a few months, Saitou had made Shishio feel comfortable enough that he came in only once a week. Now, having been head chef for a full year, Shishio would only swing by once a month for reports and mostly to see his customers and to dine on whatever new specials Saitou would whip up, based on whatever the seasons would provide.

All this dedication to his craft is why Saitou stayed on after opening the restaurant at 6:00am to meet the grocery vendors, oversee the breakfast shift, unload most of the inventory, and then come back here to catch a few hours of sleep before starting his shift for the evening. Saitou looked over at the item people called a desk but to him was nothing but a piece of furniture to hold all his receipts and invoices and his cigarettes and ashtray. He reached over to light a cigarette and he took a long drag before getting up from the cot. Grabbing his chef's jacket which he had doffed for his nap, Saitou snaked his arms into the sleeves and began to button it up as he made his way down the stairs to enter the kitchen.

As he reached the bottom step, he noticed a box of onions sitting on the floor. With stealthy grace, Saitou jumped over lightly and landed next to the box before he even realized he could have tumbled over the groceries that should have been cleared away hours ago.

"YAHIKO!" Saitou barked with the cigarette still clenched firmly between two tight lips.

"Coming, Chef!" Yahiko stood up straight from his position over scrubbing pots in the sink. He dried his hands quickly as he rushed over to where Saitou was standing looking none to pleased.

Uh oh. What did I do now? Yahiko gulped as he stood in front of the imposing man.

"Yahiko, what have I said about taking care of the morning's inventory BY THE MORNING?" Saitou looked at the young teen with narrowed amber eyes. The look was calm but filled with a smoldering menace only Saitou could convey easily.

Yahiko immediately saw the box of onions next to his foot.

"Um, gee, Chef... sorry about this. I was putting everything away and then Shishio-san came by and asked me some questions and then... I forgot about this box." Yahiko wasn't groveling, since he knew it was an honest mistake, but you didn't argue any points against the chef everyone called the Wolf. Saitou had heard the nickman when he worked at a sushi bar in Mibu and helped make it a top dining desination while working his way up using his skills, dedication and ruthless training to be the best. The man was a pack leader and no one tested his leadership. So Yahiko left it at that.

Saitou looked at Yahiko's head which had turned down so his eyes faced the floor. He addressed the 15 year old, "Why was Shishio here? Did he say he was looking for me?"

"No, Chef. He didn't say he was looking for you. I even asked him, but he said he would just catch up with you tonight."

Saitou's brow furrowed for a split second, but he immediately got into work mode by telling Yahiko to move his ass and clear the box and to get back to work. And Yahiko did just that while Saitou decided to set up his mise en place so it'd be ready before the dinner rush rolled in. He didn't have time to consider why Shishio was visiting on an unscheduled day since he knew the man would show up at the peak of the dinner rush just to annoy Saitou to no end. He grabbed a cup of strong black coffee, his apron and an armload of towels, and decided to get to work.

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By nine o'clock that night, the place was getting slammed. People waiting for tables had the bar area packed and every table in the house was filled. The energy was frenetic but lively; in short, the crowd was having a great time. Food was moving out of the kitchen at breakneck speed and everything was delicious, so people were happy to wait. It didn't hurt that the bartender, Sagara Sanosuke, was not only possessed devilsihly good-looks to please the ladies, but his easy going manner and charms made him one of the boys to all the gents in the joint. Sano, as he reminded everyone to call him by, had the bar patrons happy while getting drinks out to the diners quickly too.

In the kitchen, Saitou barked out the orders as they came in. "I got a four top at table 29 - two steak frites, one medium rare, one well - WELL DONE!?"

He looked over to the service window and yelled, "TSUBAME! Who the f*ck ordered the steak well done!?"

Tsubame ran over quickly and with a timid look and eyes with fear she replied, "I'm sorry, Chef Saitou. They are visitors from L.A. I tried to suggest medium but he was adamant, and I didn't want to argue with the customer..."

Saitou grimaced and said, "An idiot from L.A. I should have guessed." He looked over at the frightened girl and cooly replied. "You did the right thing by suggesting but not arguing with the customer." Tsubame looked up and gave him a small smile. "Can't help that he's an ahou." He gave her a quick nod and she ran off to her station.

He turned around and repeated, "Four top at table 29. Two steak frites - one medium rare, one WELL. Tch. One coq au vin and one demi canard roti." At least the rest of that group aren't complete losers.

"YES, CHEF!" yelled his entire kitchen staff.

Saitou got back to his station to fire up the duck and oversee the chicken preparation. The rest of his crew hustled back and forth in the narrow kitchen which was like a well oiled machine. It had to be since the area was so small for the amount of bodies. His sous chef, Okita Souji, kept the pace he knew Saitou demanded. The sound of pots clinking and over doors slamming was music to his ears as it was done in an incredible but organized pace.

Just then, as Yahiko was exiting the kitchen into the dining room, the swinging door was heaved open from the wrong side which had Yahiko jumping back to avoid the door, only to bump into Okita who had a pan full of fries. Luckily, Okita's reflexes had him spin around to avoid dropping it to the floor, but this unusual misstep of order in the kitchen annoyed Saitou to no end. He looked around to see who caused this disturbance. "Shishio."

"Saitou! Busy night, neh? It's jam-packed out front, and all I hear are people talking about how delicious the food is." He looked at his head chef with narrowed eyes before he started his next sentence. "You know, a lot of the women are asking if the 'chef' is in tonight, and how they'd love to give him their compliments personally." Shishio saw that Saitou's face remained emotionless. He knew Saitou loved the ladies, but that when he was working, he had no time for such, as Saitou deemed, nonsense. Shishio smirked as he knew that would be his chef's reaction, or lack thereof.

"What brings you by tonight, Shishio?" One of our busiest nights and the busiest dinner hour at that.

"I want you to meet somebody. Yumi is-," Shishio was cut off as his lovely wife, Yumi, was ushering in another woman. "Ah, there they are."

The woman next to Yumi looked about 24 years old. Her hair was black with a sheen of blue undertones and was worn up in a pony tail while her bangs and soft tendrils framed her face. She had a creamy porcelain complexion, full lips, high cheekbones with a slight flush of color, and beautiful large sapphire blue eyes.

Saitou took in the girl's loveliness and his eyebrow twitched slightly in concern. He rarely cared about any woman, especially any that dared enter his kitchen during a dinner rush, but for some reason, he noticed her. It annoyed him that a young girl like her could disrupt his usually stoic mindset. She was pretty, but not of the supermodel caliber he was used to getting, but something about her eyes had him slightly mesmerized. He looked away briefly to clear his head.

Shishio took the woman by the arm and brought her closer to Saitou, much to his chagrin. "Chef Saitou Hajime, I want you to meet your new Pastry Chef, Miss Kamiya Kaoru."

She approached Saitou with her hand extended and said, "Please, call me Kaoru." Kaoru looked up at the taller man and gave him a simple but professional smile. It was then she noticed the amber eyes that were brilliant in its shade. She admired his face which was ruggedly handsome with his slim features, a long and shapely nose, and his lips which were currently set in a firm grimace. Much to her dismay, she noticed Saitou's eyes narrow while he kept them trained on hers. He didn't shake her hand before he looked up to face Shishio.

Kaoru wasn't sure if he just missed seeing her hand or if he chose to ignore. Hmm, by the look on his face, I'm guessing he meant to ignore me.

"Shishio, we've never had a pastry chef before. Okita and I managed to get what's needed out to the customers and there haven't been any complaints." He looked over pointedly at Kaoru and continued, "Les Alles has more business than ever. We don't need a pastry chef."

Kaoru felt her stomach churn at his glare, but her outward appearance only showed defiance as she lifted her chin a bit to prove he didn't intimidate her one bit. Now if only I could get my heart to believe that and stop racing.

Shishio knew Saitou would never agree to this, and it's the only reason he hadn't yet given the head chef part ownership of the brasserie. This was the last piece of business Shishio wanted to add to his perceived legacy of Les Alles, and he wanted to make sure it was done before Saitou could refuse. All the other establishments were expanding and making a name for itself, and while a brasserie couldn't compare to a fine dining restaurant like Le Ripert, he knew having a pastry chef would create an air of excelled dining.

"Well, Saitou, I thought you'd like to have something that your buddy Shinomori already has."

Saitou gave a small, "hmph," as he looked away from Kaoru and back to Shishio.

"Shinomori runs Le Ripert. It's a three Michelin star fine dining restaurant. Of course he has a pastry chef. He also has a sommelier. Are we getting one too?"

His tone was sarcastic and haughty. While Saitou had no intention of trying to argue with the owner, he had no intention to deny his sense of right. Aku Soku Zan.* He lived by this code throughout his life, for better or for worse. His straightforward and tactless demeanor may have created a lot of enemies, but he was respected (and feared) for it too.

Kaoru couldn't understand how someone could argue with an establishment's owner. She knew Shishio-san could fire the man on the spot. How can this man stand there arguing the owner's wishes, let alone in that tone?

Expecting that response, Shishio dropped the bomb he'd been waiting for. "Well, you see, Chef... it's the last pre-requisite in the contract before I have it sent to your lawyer friend, Uramura, to include you as part-owner of Les Alles." He waited for the words to sink in before adding, "it's always been a desire for me to have a few more dessert items, especially since it pleases Yumi so..." He looked over to his beautiful mistress to which Yumi blushed at looked returned his gaze with loving eyes. "Oh, Shishio-sama..." she sighed.

He looked back at Saitou to see that his shoulders had relaxed. He knew he had the man where he wanted him.

"I'll talk to Uramura. If I sign, you can do whatever you want with her." Saitou then looked over at the pretty Kaoru to finish with, "so long as she stays out of my staff's way."

Kaoru gulped but then her indignant fury bubbled over. "Look, Chef, I don't know what your problem is, but I'm a pretty damn good chef. Just because I specialize in desserts doesn't mean I can't handle making anything else. I've put in my time at the Cordon Bleu and several restaurants before making my way up. So why don't you judge me AFTER you've seen what I can do."

Kaoru bit her lip as she realized that she let her temper get the best of her. While she would never let someone get away with treating her like sh*t, she also knew she had to keep her temper in check and that she wants to always display her professionalism. She was very young to be at the level she has achieved, and she didn't want to let her behavior seem immature.

Everyone in the kitchen suddenly got quiet. The crew still continued their business, but Okita, Yahiko and the others exchanged glances at one another as they anticipated their Chef's response.

Saitou didn't react but inside, his stomach tightened. Interesting. She's got spunk. I'm sure she won't last a week. I'll just let her quit on her own. "Fine. You can start on Sunday."

With that, he turned on his heel and returned to his station. As he walked away, he stated, "Shishio, get out of my kitchen and go enjoy your evening. I'll expect those papers first thing tomorrow."

"But of course," replied the man with a smirk. Shishio then looked at Kaoru with a new found respect. He had no idea this petite woman could handle the Wolf as well as she did on her first encounter. "Well, Chef Kamiya, looks like you have a nice couple of days before your first day. Let's go back out and finish our meal."

Kaoru wasn't sure how she felt. She simply nodded and allowed herself to follow Yumi and Shishio-san. She took a quick look around to see the staff and realized that no one would be making introductions tonight. Okita returned her look with a smile to which Kaoru responded in like, but when her gaze fell on Yahiko, her smile dimmed. The young dishwasher absorbed her with arms crossed and an annoyed look on his face. He knew Saitou didn't like her, and Yahiko was apt to agree with anything his Chef said. She sighed quietly to herself as the kitchen door swung closed behind her. Tough crowd. Sunday's going to be interesting.

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