Page 41 of A Table for Two
“Not this time,” he said with a little laugh. “I wanted to make up for the whole candied yams thing, so I cooked this time—everythingexcept the rolls.”
He’d said he could cook, but after the last time, she was a little nervous about trying his food. If it didn’t taste good, she didn’t want to hurt his feelings, especially since he’d gone through all the trouble to make the picnic special. “Um…you weren’t lying about being able to cook, were you?”
He laughed harder. “I promise I can cook. I’m still perfecting some dishes, but I went with a menu that I’m comfortable with.”
“Okay,” she said, still somewhat skeptical. “What are we having with it?”
“Potato salad and corn on the cob.” He unearthed the rest of the food, plates, utensils, and drinks.
Serenity held up a hand. “Wait a minute. Now, you know it’s bad enough to mess up picnic staples like fried chicken, but it is downright sacrilegious to screw up the potato salad. What’s the first thing everybody asks when they go to a picnic?”
“Who made the potato salad? I know.” Gabriel leaned over and gave her a soft kiss. “Do you want to fix yours first, or should I while you’re still deciding?”
“No, no, I’ll go first.” He watched her, seemingly amused as opposed to being upset, as she selected a wing, an ear of corn, a small scoop of potato salad, and a roll. She loved these particular rolls, so if nothing else, she could fill up on bread.
In contrast, he packed his plate with two pieces of chicken and a mound of potato salad. “I have bottles of iced tea and lemonade.”
“The lemonade, please.”
He opened the bottle and handed it to her, along with a napkin and a fork.
She glanced down at her plate. Thinking she should work up to the chicken and potato salad, Serenity started with a few bites of the roll and corn. Knowing she couldn’t hold off any longer, she bit into the fragrant wing. The flavors exploded on her tongue, and before she could stop it, a moan escaped. “Oh, Gabriel, I am so sorry for dissing you. This chicken is…” She took another bite and chewed. Her eyes slid closed, and she wanted to hum like babies did when eating something that tasted good. “This chicken is beyond amazing.”
“Thanks. I told you it wouldn’t be too bad. My feelings should be hurt, but I’m going to let you slide this time, since I did kind of put the doubt there in the first place.”
Serenity finished the wing so fast, she would swear someone else stole half. She reached into the container for another piece, a thigh. After a few bites, she worked up enough courage to try the potato salad. She forked up a little bit and tentatively put it in her mouth. It was so good, this time she actually swooned. “Did your grandmother help you make this?”
“I can assure you Nana did not help me.”
She glanced all around her and behind him.
He gave her a strange look. “What are you doing?”
“Checking to see if I’m being punked.” His food tasted as good as her mama’s and grandmother’s. She narrowed her eyes at him. “Are you sure you messed up those candied yams?”
Gabriel roared with laughter. “Baby, trust me when I tell you, you didnotwant to taste those yams. You know I love good food, so I learned how to cook some of my favorites well. This meal is at the top of my list. It took me a while to get it just right, but now I can make the potato salad without measuring. And yeah, I was definitely one of those people asking because you can’t eat everybody’s potato salad.”
Still trying to process the endearment, it took her a few seconds to respond. “You’ve got that right.” When he went for a second helping, she snatched the spoon from him. “Let me get some more before you eat it all.”
“Oh, so now you want to be eating up all my food.”
“Mm-hmm, and now that I know you can indeed cook, I may need to sample something else in your repertoire.”
“Movie night. My house next weekend. I’ll cook,” he said before she could continue.
Serenity blinked.I should’ve seen that one coming. “Okay,” she said slowly.
Gabriel tilted the bottle of iced tea to his lips and took a long drink. “Any particular movie you’d like to see?”
She thought for a moment. “Does it have to be something new?”
“It can be anything you want, old or new.”
“The Shawshank Redemption.”
His mouth dropped. “How did you know that’s one of my favorite movies? I had to buy a new copy because I watched it so much, I wore the disc out. Apparently, we have a lot in common.”
Too much—food, music, and now movies. And how could she forget the fact that for their first two dates, the things he’d planned were things she enjoyed most in a relationship. But they didn’t have a relationship, she reminded herself. Serenity shifted her focus to the water and finished eating.
