Page 49 of Viktor at Sea

It was a little disappointing, but all was forgiven when I went in for another bite, and I all but mimicked the same sound, unable to hold myself back.

“I don’t know what you’ve done to this chicken, Gustav, but it’s the best-tasting chicken I’ve ever had,” I groaned, already reaching for another piece. Seeing as Gustav was part of my crew and an excellent cook, it was a no-brainer to ask him to cater our wedding. He was over the moon to be asked, especially as this would be the first wedding he would be catering for. “For a while there, I was starting to think the only thing you could cook was fish,” I joked.

“I’m a little tired of fish if I’m being honest,” Gustav chuckled. “But I’m happy you guys enjoyed the chicken. Now I’d like you to try some rabbit,” he said and went to take the plates from us.

Astrid and I shared panicked looks.

“Oh, don’t be so dramatic,” Gustav scoffed. “I’ll let you finish it at the end, but right now, I need you to finish this taste testing and decide what meals you want for your wedding.”

“I don’t think anything can top the chicken,” Astrid pouted, but the expression quickly turned upside down when Gustav presented mouthwatering rabbit dishes.

“Wait till you try the rabbit,” Gustav grinned and stood back with his hands clasped behind his back, watching us expectantly.

“The rabbit does look good,” I murmured, reaching for the leg piece.

“It smells good as well,” Astrid agreed and took a bite. The same moan from before sounded as she savoured the taste of the rabbit that turned out to be just as tasty as the chicken, if not more. I matched her moan as I went in for a second bite, my mouth salivating at what had to be the best rabbit I had ever eaten. “I hate to say this, but I think I prefer the chicken.”

“What?” I asked, genuinely surprised by her choice. “But the rabbit has so much flavour.”

“Really? I thought the chicken had so much more flavour. And the meat literally falls off the bone.”

“I’m not convinced it’s better than the rabbit though.”

“You don’t need to decide now,” Gustav chuckled. “You still have the boar and fish dish to taste before you decide.”

Astrid pulled a face. “I’m not a huge fan of boar.”

“It’s not my favourite either.” I agreed with a shrug. “Let’s just taste the fish dish.”

“If that’s what you want.” Gustav cleared our plates and swapped them out for what had to be the pinkest, most beautiful cut of salmon I had ever seen.

“Salmon is my favourite,” I said, staring at the fish dish. “I didn’t think that after eating nothing but fish and dry foods for the past few months, I would be this happy to see a fish dish ever again, but I am.”

“I knew that when I cooked it,” Gustav grinned, eager for us to taste more of his food.

“I’m not a fan of fish in general, but this is nice,” Astrid said, having just nibbled on a small piece of the salmon. “But I think we should go for the chicken or the rabbit for our wedding meal.”

“Not the salmon?” I frowned in question.

“It was nice, but I’ve never been much of a fan of it,” she shrugged. “Don’t you agree that the chicken was better?”

“If I were to pick one from the two meat dishes, I would go for the rabbit,” I mused aloud, having a hard time keeping the grin from my face as I stared at my future bride. I seemed to always be in a happy mood whenever she was around. “But I think the salmon is better than both those dishes put together.”

“I didn’t like the fish.”

“I thought you said it was nice.”

“I only said that because I could tell you liked it, but surely we can’t have the fish at our wedding if one of us doesn’t like fish.”

“I have to be honest here,” I began with a mock-serious expression. “I wish I would have known about your hatred for fish before I asked you to marry me.”

“How could you say that?” Astrid frowned deeply at me. At the serious expression on her face, I laughed, and before she could come for me, Gustav stepped in to play the voice of reason.

“How about both?” Gustav groaned, no doubt tired of our playful back and forth. “The guests can choose which one they want on the day, and both of you can have whichever ones you like best.”

“You mean one fish dish and one meat?” Astrid asked, her lips turning up slightly at the corners. “I think that’s a good idea.”

“I’m full of good ideas,” Gustav grinned. “So, which two dishes do you choose?’

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