Introducing Chaos: Bombshells of Yesterday

By Angelica Kate

Rayne Dempsey had been told for years that her mother died when she was a toddler. She and her father had made good on starting a chain of restaurants, and after culinary school, she had put her stamp on particular establishment downtown with a fusion menu that was raved about in all the best magazines. Unfortunately, with every success comes those that want to take it from you, like Donovan Greer, the detective that shows up one day to ask her questions about her mother. It turns out her body has just been discovered, and her father is the prime suspect. Not what she needed on the precipice of her first nationwide cooking show beginning. Now, she is fighting feelings for the hot detective while trying not to throw disbelieving glances in her father's direction. 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Angelica Kate
• Release date: Sep 8, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223677567

Angelica Kate

Angelica Kate writes contemporary romances with strong characters and inspiration to keep the readers coming back for more. She is a lifetime scribbler who has been journaling since an early age and finally parlayed that into more structured storytelling. Angelica loves strong female leads and the men that adore them, despite their scars and baggage. When not writing, she spends time on Florida's sunny shores near her home in Sarasota, FL, with her puppies Tesla and Harley Quinn, her daughters, and a host of kooky amazing friends. TWITTER: @AngelicaKate5 FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/authorangelicakate INSTAGRAM: https://www.instagram.com/aknaff12/ Email Angelica directly: [e-mail] HAPPY READING AND CHASING HAPPINESS WHEREVER YOU CHOOSE TO FIND IT!!

Book preview

Introducing Chaos

Angelica Kate

Copyright © [2023] by Angelica Kate

All rights reserved.

No portion of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher or author, except as permitted by U.S. copyright law.

Introducing Chaos

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Epilogue

Chapter 1

Rayne

O h my god, this is orgasmic, Hannah said, rolling her eyes as if she was in the middle of making love versus tasting pasta.

I’m glad you like it. I laughed at her dramatic antics.

You are going to kill this, Hannah gushed, leaning in to hug me. I think this pasta might be the best thing I’ve ever tasted, she looked at the vibrant color of the dish. The colors are also inviting and make you wonder what you eat.

Thanks. I want a vegetarian option that isn’t the same old same, I told her with a sense of pride spiking all my nerve endings. I’m glad you approve. I can’t wait to have Dad taste it tonight, I added, smiling. I know he is still adjusting to the huge changes at this location, but he seems to be taking it all in stride.

Yeah, this place doesn’t look like the diners you have all run before, Hannah remarked, glancing over the eclectic décor. I love the vibe here, though. You should be happy he gives so much leeway in design and the menu. I know it must cost a fortune, but I think this will take your entire business to the next level.

You should love this entire place, I giggled at her. You designed it.

I will say this is my favorite project ever, Hannah gushed with another enthusiastic hug. She had been doing that a lot since we took on this massive new gig together.

We had been best friends since high school. Even through college, which saw me go to Paris for over a year for a prestigious culinary internship, and Hannah on the West Coast for interior design – we managed to stay connected. Social media was a wonderful tool to ensure you could maintain those connections despite time and distance, and for that, I was grateful. When I finally graduated and started building my business plan to launch on my father, turning one of our eight cafés into this flagship new fusion bistro – Hannah asked about the aesthetic. Together, each of our dreams was coming for a future opening we were anticipating, like the birth of our first baby.

I hope this goes as well as we are both predicting, I whispered, biting on my bottom lip as a touch of indecision hit me hard. I know Dad had a ton of faith in giving up this location. It might not have been a cash cow, but it helped the bottom line. I don’t want this to fail and put him behind.

This location is perfect for lunch and dinner crowds. You are near the theater and business district, Hannah extolled all the benefits of this location. I don’t think there is a perfect location in all of Dallas.

I would agree, I sighed. Truly, I think those grand opening jitters are just starting to plague me. We have less than two weeks to go now, and I wake up in a cold sweat most nights. I am certain I’m forgetting something huge, and it will be our demise before I can get this off the ground. I can’t explain it, I glanced off into the distance, I just have this terrible feeling of foreboding.

That’s odd, Hannah replied. You have that business plan tight as anything I’ve ever seen, and you know this business inside and out. You might be bringing some new twist to the menu, but overall, you live and breathe the restaurant business. I think you worked in this place before you were old enough to glance over the table. Besides, you aren’t a worrier but tend more toward dreamer.

I know, right? I chuckled. You are the worrier for us, and you are so calm right now; it is early weird this flip of roles we seem to be having.

Well, you will see that this grand opening goes off with a bang, and the future is so bright, Hannah replied.

Anything with the last pieces of furniture I need to be worried about?

No, and I do have three other local artists that are going to hang pieces in here, so I love the rich, bohemian, and industrial feels of the place coming together, she said, glancing about with the happiest expressions on her face.

I knew I should stop worrying and let things land where they might. I had a plan, and every detail had been falling into place meticulously. I guess the thought of disappointing my father in any way was weighing on me. For as long as I could remember, it had just been the two of us against the world, and there had never been anything he withheld from me when I asked. Not that he spoiled me, as I  worked in restaurants since earning my keep and garnering knowledge was legal. That said, he was an amazing father who would always come through with encouragement and help when I needed it.

My mother passed when I was just a few months old. Apparently, she had a brain aneurysm or something like that. My father always said she was gone before she hit the floor, and he missed her every day even more than I did. For me, it was not having a material figure