Page 14 of The Signature Dish of the Underworld

Rae stared at him a moment. “Huh?”

Garth smiled. “To be honest with you, we don’t usually get such a busy lunch. Ever since you started at Geras’ Grub, you put us out of the lunch service. I thought the least I could do was help you out for your cook-off prep, seeing as you helped me out so much.”

Rae went to open her mouth, but Garth held a hand up and stopped her. “I know, you don’t need my help. But please. I’m starting to feel bad here, and I don’t want people thinking Ideliberatelysabotaged a cursed ones efforts. It would be bad for my reputation. So, let me help? Let me prove I’m not trying to ‘psych you out’. It’ll put my conscience at ease.”

She knew he was deliberately baiting her, but for the life of her she couldn’t think of a single reason to justify saying no to him. Shecoulduse the help.

“You have a conscience?” Rae muttered sarcastically, though she didn’t really mean it, so she stood aside and let him enter.

“I do. And I haven’t seen the bistro this quiet in … a couple centuries at least.” He looked around, then threw a smile over his shoulder at her.

“Yeah, well, you might see it quieter later after the disaster that was yesterday.”

“I wouldn’t be too worried about that,” Garth continued as he stepped behind the counter and began rolling his sleeves up as they entered the kitchen. “Everyone’s allowed an off day. They’ll be back today to see how you fare. They’ll especially want to see what you’ve created for the festival, if it’s anything like your ambrosia.”

“How do you know about my ambrosia?”

“Sunshine,everyonein Asphodel knows about it. It’s the stuff of legends.”

The kitchen lights flickered to life in agreement.

Across every available surface was a golden bauble in the shape of an apple that sparkled to life under the lights.

“Holy gods,” Garth breathed.

“These are just for today,” Rae explained, trying to scoot around him and then busying herself in the kitchen, trying to organise chaos. “They still need to be piped, then kept chilled, the honey warmed and the lotus leaves plucked and ready for presentation. Not to mention the usual dishes for the cabinet.”

“Well then,” Garth looked at her, eyebrows raised. “Where do you want me?”

Rae couldn't help but grin back. “How are your baking skills?”

***

She’d set Garth in charge of the sweets. Sure, it would have been easier to have him whip and set the goats cream, but Rae wasn’t entrusting her entry dish to anyone. So, while she laboured over each individual apple; carefully piping the cream into the edges and then adding the apple juice drop, Garth was covered in flour.

Every so often he would turn to ask her how exactly she wanted something done when it came to the flavour combinations, and Rae would answer him without looking up from her work.

When she was done with the final apple for the day, she looked up from the dropper to find Garth staring at her, his arms crossed in front of a flour-bombed apron.

“What isthat?”

Rae narrowed her eyes slightly, her lips quirked to one side, considering something. “You want to try it?”

Garth surveyed the apples in front of him. “Well, you can’t be wanting to poison the whole Asphodel meadow so … sure.”

Rae tried not to break out in a grin. This was the perfect way to test if just a drop of the apple was enough to induce the effects she’d experienced from taking a bite.

“Hold out your tongue then.”

Garth took two steps towards Rae and then stooped down so that he was the right height for her to place a drop on his tongue, their eyes perfectly aligned. The eye contact made the act seem more intimate – uncomfortable – and Rae tried not to squirm away by focusing her attention on the dropper, on the pale golden drop forming perfectly on the end of it, then heavily dropping onto Garth’s forked tongue. She watched his eyes dilate, black pupils meeting shards of palest green, before returning to their normal sizes a minute later.

Garth took a moment to stand to his full height and cleared his throat. “Well.”

“Well?”

Garth looked around, looked anywhere but at Rae. “Do you still need me? I think I’ve done about as much as I can do to help you here. I should really get to the restaurant.”

Rae frowned. She’d expected him to comment on the flavour, or the reaction – because he’d definitely hadareaction – not ignore it completely.

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