Page 26 of Promise Me Ever After
“You have your own recipe book?”
“Of course. How do you think I come up with the dishes at the restaurant?”
“I thought it was all in your head.”
“There are a lot of things in my head right now, not all of them food related.”
The silence in the air between us crackled. I had to turn the conversation back to the dinner before things went too far.
“Scallops,” I said. “And duck. Then anything which involves chocolate.”
There was a beat before Alex answered. “Very classic choices, Ms. Cavanagh. I’m sure I can come up with something which would meet your approval. Especially since you paid such a handsome price for my services. I wouldn’t want to disappoint.”
My face split into a wide grin.I don’t think there’s any danger of that.
10
Alex
I’d hadthe best part of two days to come up with a stunning menu to impress Georgie. At half past three on Tuesday afternoon I skidded into the local independent off licence to purchase alcohol for the evening. Using Georgie’s suggestions, I’d created three dishes for the two of us which, I hoped, would knock her socks off. Not to mention other items of clothing too.
There was a lot riding on this dinner.
“Alex, how are you?” Dave and his shop supplied Anna’s Kitchen and we knew each other fairly well. I hoped he had everything I wanted and would also give me a discount on the prices.
“Good thanks, mate. I need these if you’ve got them.” I handed him a scrappy piece of paper I’d jotted the wines down on.
First up was an Albarino to accompany the scallops, then a classic Pinot Noir to pair with the duck and finally a sweet and concentrated ruby port to go with the chocolate pudding. I hadn’t been this excited to cook for someone in a long time, maybe ever. I didn’t want to fuck it up.
Dave nodded. “Nice choices, mate. Doing something special for your mum?”
I shook my head. “No. You know the Fortunes for Favours event last week? I’m cooking for the prize winner tonight.”
“I heard Melody Johnson wasverydisappointed not to get your services.” Dave let out a loud chuckle which made me shudder. Drunk or not, I’d be eternally grateful to Georgie for her bid, however crazy it had been. “Give me a minute, I’ll find these out back.”
While I waited for him, I checked my cool box to make sure I had everything I needed. All the produce had been bought fresh that morning from the local shops: the fishmonger, the butcher and the farm shop. Not knowing whether Georgie would have the utensils I’d normally use, I’d stashed my knife kit in the box as well.
It took Dave a few minutes to come back with the wines and I’d placed a bottle of champagne by the till as well. She’d paid three thousand pounds, I wanted her to think it was worth it. He rang up my purchases and my credit card winced at the cost.
Fifteen minutes later, I knocked on Georgie’s front door. Her house was a modest, Victorian semi in the middle of a row of houses I knew were mostly holiday lets. She answered the door, a towel wrapped around her hair, clutching a dressing gown around her.
“Sorry, I’m not early, am I?” I frowned.
“No, I’m running late. Darcy called, and we got chatting about her ever-changing ideas for the hen night, so I didn’t get to have a shower until…” She ground to a halt, noticing how full my hands were with bags. “You don’t really care about that though, do you? You probably want to come in and get started.”
“That would be great, thank you.”
She showed me into the house, and I noted the barely furnished living room and the horribly out of date decor. The kitchen at the back of the house was small, with old-fashioned pine cupboards, but a shiny new hob, oven and fridge. I dumped my bags onto the counter and turned to Georgie.
“Why don’t you go and finish getting dressed.” My gaze swept over her as she tried not to flash me and pulled the dressing gown tighter, a glimpse of her tantalising cleavage on show before she hid it away. “And I’ll make a start down here.” I waved at the cupboards. “I’m guessing I’ll find what I need?”
Her shoulders went up to her ears. “Honestly, I don’t know what you’ll need, but if I’ve got it that’s where it will be. You should know I’m not much of a cook.” Her cheeks coloured.
I smirked. “Good thing I am then.”
“I won’t be long.” She headed out of the kitchen and I watched her go, taking in the sight of her bare calves beneath the dressing gown.
Shaking my head, I told myself to focus. Dinner wasn’t going to cook itself.
