Page 21 of One Weekend in Seattle

Her eyes crossed. “Sawyer…” she whispered.

“Tonight is a night for you to let go, Gabby.” He took her left hand in his and raised it to his lips. “Tonight, I’m going to show you the sensual pleasure of food.”

“And then?” Anticipation flowed through her.

“We’ll see.”

Chapter Three

Sawyer loved the way Gabby enjoyed food. He’d make sure they would have a feast for breakfast tomorrow. He might be getting ahead of himself here, but he wanted Gabby in his bed tonight. They’d been flirting all day, and she wasn’t immune to him.

While he’d never slept with a woman on the first date, Gabby made him want to break all his rules. She’d shown him how much today meant to her with her words and actions. No expectations that he should buy her things and even objecting to him spending so much on the tours he’d arranged.

“This must have cost a fortune,” she said after the waiter removed their plates.

Was she reading his mind? “Nothing I couldn’t handle.”

“But…”

“No buts.” He squeezed her shoulder and leaned closer. “The happiness on your face is worth it.”

“Sawyer, that’s so nice. It’s just…” She waved her hand in the air. “Today has been wonderful, and I know there is more to come.”

“There is. So put all thoughts about cost out of your head.”

“It’s hard.”

“Why?” He was curious why she was constantly worried about money.

“It was the way I was brought up. We didn’t have a lot, but we paid our own way.”

“I understand. It can make it hard to accept letting someone else pay, but I want to do this.” He’d never had to worry when he was growing up about where the next meal was coming from, or if his shoes needed replacing, or anything like that.

“My parents made it work, but there wasn’t a lot for extra treats. I started working when I was fifteen to help out.”

Sawyer frowned. “That’s early.” While he knew young people started working early, he hated it had happened to her.

“Even then, I knew I wanted to be a chef.”

“What was your first job?”

“Washing dishes.” She sighed. “It was a thankless job. While there were dishwasher machines, some of the pots had to be scrubbed by hand. But I learned a lot.”

“I bet.”

“The junior chef took pity on me and began showing me how to cook. That was fun.” She grinned. “I learned a lot of swear words in that kitchen.”

Sawyer almost spit out the water he’d sipped. “They taught you to swear?”

“Not really. There were some older male chefs, and they didn’t always hold back when something went wrong or if customers sent their food back.”

“I bet.”

“Anyway, by the time I graduated college, I knew I wanted to be a chef. I was promoted to an assistant chef at the restaurant, and I went to culinary school.”

“I bet that was expensive.” He glanced up as Tony returned with their next course. The lobster rolls and Dungeness crab cakes were placed on the table, along with a new wine.

“The wine is a white burgundy that goes well with the lobster and crab,” Tony said as he poured them each a glass. “Please enjoy.”

---