Page 33 of Kiss Me Forever

Chapter Nine

Megan

We stepped inside andwere immediately led to a table. I felt the air between us thicken. As we sat down, the waiter gave us the menu. We both ordered the lunch special: duck breast with salad and potatoes au gratin. They promised fast service for lunch specials, which was good because I was really hungry now.

As we waited, I looked around at the décor with a smile.

"Do you mind if I snap a few pictures?"

"No, not at all. Who are they for?"

"My best friend, Nina. I think she'd love this place. She’s always looking for cool restaurants.”

“What’s your favorite restaurant in Chicago?”

“Bean & Baxter. I love their poke bowls. My God, look at the molding on the wall. They’ve put so much detail into the decoration." There were several paintings that seemed to be reproductions of Monet, but they somehow worked. Especially with the old-fashioned brass chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. The chairs and tables were classic style. It was very French.

As I snapped the pictures, an email notification came up.

“Oh my God,” I exclaimed.

“What’s wrong?”

“I’m officially part of the competition. They sent the list of participants.” I opened the PDF, scrolling to P. The list was endless. There it was, in black-and-white.

Luke smiled. “Congratulations, Megan. I’m proud of you.”

“Thanks.”

Another name on the list caught my eye. Carson Porter.

I groaned. “Just my luck.”

“What?”

“I know one of the other participants. Carson Porter. But it doesn’t matter. I won’t have any interactions with him.”

I needed to change the subject. My heart was beating insanely fast. Of course Carson would participate in something like this. I wanted to throw up.

"How did you discover this place? Just by googling, like I did, or did you want a French restaurant and this popped up?" I asked Luke.

He glanced at me intently, as if debating something, then shook his head.

"After my cousin Kimberly moved to France, she told me I would love the food, insisted I try out bouillabaisse. Reese and I bet her we wouldn’t like it. Then I brought Reese here. It was delicious. And speaking of Reese, I need to check my phone. I've got some messages from her. Do you mind?"

"Not at all," I said, watching him take out his phone from the inner pocket of his jacket. His face instantly lit up with a smile.

"Good news?" I asked.

He put the phone down on the table, looking at me.

"Yes. Gran is spending time with her granddaughter, and Reese is relaxing. We'll probably have a family get-together once they're back, and we'll hear the full story."

I put my hands on the table. "You spend a lot of time with your family, huh? You seem to get together a lot."

"Yeah, we do."

"That's amazing," I said.

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