Last Flight to L.A.

chapter thirty-three: flying ovens

"The flower that blooms in adversity is the most rare and beautiful of all." 

                                                                                     ~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Chef Romano towered over a boiling pot of potatoes, unflinching against the sweltering steam coming from the surface.

"This won't do," she growled.

Kelsey stood next to her, frowning down at the stove. It had been acting up over the past few days, and everything that was put on the stove was burned.

They realized that the low-heat setting was broken.

The knob was turned to the number one setting, yet the pot of potatoes was almost boiling over.

Kelsey bit back an "I told you so". She'd been blamed for burning lunch every day and had to face the wrath of Chef Romano.

"I'll go place an order for a new one," Kelsey said.

"The sooner the better," Chef Romano agreed.

Kelsey retreated to the back room and picked up the phone, dialing the number to a local appliance store.

When she inquired about the type of stove she needed, the salesman told her that they happened to have it in stock already and that she could come pick it up whenever she wanted.

Kelsey hung up and peered around the corner. "Good news!"

"There better be," Chef Romano replied.

"I'm going to go pick one up right now."

"Hurry up, then!"

Kelsey drove down to the appliance store and had a man come out and load the new stove into her trunk. It was too big to fit, so Kelsey had to strap it down.

She was checking her clumsy knots when a voice startled her.

"Miss Harris? Miss Harris, can we have a word?"

Kelsey turned around and saw a blonde woman with a notepad standing behind her. A man holding a fancy camera stood next to her.

"Excuse me?" Kelsey asked, blinking when the flash of the camera went off. "What is this?"

"Is it true that you'll be accompanying Ethan Glenn to the premiere of "A Summer in Paris" next week?"

"I..." Kelsey was stopped when another blinding flash went off.

"Just give us a few details!" the woman pleaded, inching closer.

"I don't know if I can—"

"Did he ask you to come before or after you started dating?"

"Please—"

"Just a few sentences!"

"I have to go," Kelsey yelped.

She skirted around her car and got into the driver's seat. For a moment she thought she was safe until the woman knocked on her window. "Miss Harris, just one more—"

Kelsey stepped on the gas and pulled forward, turning the corner a little too sharply.

Her car jerked unexpectedly as the stove toppled out of the trunk and tumbled across the pavement.

Kelsey didn't stop.

She kept driving around the block until she was sure that no one was following her and then continued on to the movie set.