Page 34 of Tarek

“Thank you,” she mutters.

Taking my jacket off I throw it behind my chair, then I take a seat. I should have added candles to the table. But I didn’t because I thought it would spook her.

“This room looks like those mob shows where they have secret meetings in the back of the restaurant.” She snickers.

“Let me make you an offer you can’t refuse,” I mock the voice of the Godfather.

God, she was beautiful.

The single light above us cast a glow across her skin, like shimmering gold dust. I want to touch. I want to see if she feels as creamy and soft as she looks.

“Why did you dye your hair red?” I take my lighter out of my pocket to keep my hands to myself.

Instinctively, she touches the back of her hair. “Um.”

“Shit, I like your hair and how it looks. I just wondered why red.” I needed to clarify that I love her hair color.

“At the time I just wanted change and to be bold. My mom used to watch a show calledMy So-Called Lifeand the girl’s hair was red…and it has fascinated me since then.” She smiles shyly at me.

“You’re cute. So, we are going to taste food from Trinidad and Tobago, a beautiful island in the Caribbean.”

She takes the napkin off the table and places it gently on her lap.

“So, jerk chicken?” she asks, interlacing her fingers and placing her chin on top of her hands, her elbows resting on the table.

I chuckle thinking of the conniption my Trinidadian friends would have if they heard jerk chicken being presented as their cuisine.

“No, here comes the first meal.”

* * *

PENNY

Is he calling me cute, or just the idea of my hair color? Either way I want to sayHey is it me or my hair you’re calling cute? But I don’t. The first meal arrives, its three purse like dumplings sitting in a creamy curried sauce. It smells of coconut milk and spices.

“This is Helios version of curried crab and dumplings, it’s a Tobagonian meal.”

I take up my spoon, and dip it into the sauce, after taking a taste I exclaim. “This sauce! It’s delicious. I wanna kiss the chef.”

Tarek cheeks redden. “Anytime you want to kiss me, Penelope, please do.”

“Oh, duh, you’re the chef.”

“Yes.”

I swallow because I don’t know if he is joking, or it’s just mixed signals. “What’s in this?”

He nods and looks me dead in the eyes. “Okay, it’s crab meat infused with some aromatics that includes, cumin, turmeric. I find it creates bold tastes in the curry.”

My fork pokes at the dumplings. “I love that they look like purses.”

“Yeah, the flour has to be kneaded to a perfect consistency, then boiled at the right temperature.” He cuts his dumpling.

His fork appears in front of my face. “Try this one. Mine is a little more spiced than yours.”

“Oh um…thanks.” I wrap my lips around the fork and pull back.

Tarek eyes are on my mouth, and they haven’t moved. I feel so self-conscience that I take the napkin up and wiped my mouth.

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