Page 29 of Prince Charmless
He smiles in the mirror above my sink. I bet he forgot it was there because when he turns around, the smile is gone.
“You’re too nice for exploitation, Melina. You’ll come around, eventually.”
His tenacity is annoying. And slightly attractive.
“Well, if you’re going to keep doing this, I should tell you I’m mildly allergic to sesame.”
Taylor is too dialed into his sauce to hear me. It doesn’t seem like scallops with crème-de-whatever has any sesame in it anyway.
Watching Taylor cook is kind of relaxing. He’s like my own Barefoot Contessa, and I get to taste the food instead of watching it on TV. I also like watching people do things they’re passionate about. I don’t know if Taylor would admit cooking is his passion, but he seems to enjoy it. I think.
After searing the scallops, pouring the sauce over them, and adding a few more spices and herbs, he sets the plate in front of me. I’ve never had scallops before, but they look and smell amazing.
Taylor pours me a glass of the wine he used to cook with. “Are you a magician’s assistant?”
What?
Oh, the handcuffs thing. I thought he would have forgotten by now.
“No, I—wait a minute, why did you say assistant? You don’t think I could just be a magician?”
I guess it’s a male-dominated profession. I can’t think of any female magicians. Either that’s an injustice, or I’m a terrible feminist.
He takes a swig of the wine bottle like a pirate. “Well, are you?”
“No. I help Rachel out with her photography business.”
He leans over the counter. “I’m talking about the handcuffs, Melina,” he says slowly.
“I am, too. Besides weddings, she does boudoir and pinup photography, like sexy photos. Some people, uh, like to use them as props. I had to buy new ones because the others were cheap and broke. I must’ve forgotten to drop them off. Sorry if that’s not as exciting as whatever was in your pervy man brain before.”I take a bite of my scallops, and of course, it’s heavenly. “This is really good.”
“You guys don’t look like pornographers.”
“It’s not porn, it’s...one second.” I pull up Rachel’s website and hand him my phone. He takes it and scrolls through some of our promo shots. “I also made that website, and it has a very nice-looking logo and banner.”
“Yeah, I’m really appreciating all this great web design work.”
I roll my eyes and take my phone back.
“You’re not having any?” I ask when Taylor starts cleaning up the kitchen.
“No.”
“Do you not eat food or something? Or do you just use photosynthesis to get your energy? I could believe it. You’re very tall and skinny, like a palm tree or snake plant.”
He laughs and scratches the back of his neck. “It’s kind of date-y, isn’t it? Eating together.” He gestures lazily between us. “It’s not why I’m doing this.”
That’s right. This is purely a business relationship. And I bet he has dozens of beautiful date-y gal pals he can pick and choose from to be his distraction. For a second there it felt like we were friends.
Taylor washes dishes as I eat. This is appreciated because I don’t have a dishwasher and it’s my least favorite chore. When he finishes, he turns around to face me. “You know what I’m going to ask you.”
I sigh. “I’ll admit you’re growing on me a bit.” Today, I’ve only been slightly annoyed with him instead of the full-on frustrated like normal.
He smiles a bit. It’s dorky looking, but for some reason, it makes my stomach do a somersault, so I add, “But not in a good way. Maybe like mold.”
His face drops to a familiar and more comfortable scowl.
“You’ve provided a nice service and shown me that we can have a cordial conversation for more than a minute.”
