Page 38 of Thanking Her Brother's Best Friends

On days when my mind refused to settle down, I liked to be in the kitchen, trying to get inspiration for new menu items.

This entire morning, I'd been struggling with one thing—how to introduce unconventional flavors into a celeriac mash and what to pair it with.

"Take an off day," Dom advised, turning his back to me as he worked on his signature dish. "You can mash your ideas tomorrow."

"I'm not mashing my ideas," I replied sagely. "You'll see. It's going to be the most delicious, silkiest—"

"Niall?"

Annoyed at being cut off in the middle of describing everything I hoped the damned mash would be, I scowled heavily at Harvey, one of the newest bussers in our restaurant. Good kid, but a bit terrified of the chaos that usually characterized kitchens.

"You just had to interrupt a genius on the verge of his next great discovery."

His face immediately transformed into looking like he was a lost puppy with frightened eyes.

I sighed and immediately retraced my steps. "Only kidding, Harv. You need to stop taking everything I say so seriously. What is it?"

"We have a new guest. Sandy told me to tell you."

"So, ask Sandy to get them seated and show them the menu and ask them what they'd like to drink—what's so difficult about that?" I asked him, frowning slightly.

"No, it's that lady. Selene."

A clatter behind me told me Dominic had also heard Harvey and responded in the most Dominic-way possible. But this was my opportunity. "Don't you dare," I snarled at him. "You had your shot last time. I get to go say hello first today!"

Look at us, my logical mind taunted me. Behaving like a bunch of rowdy teenagers calling dibs on their favorite girl.

Dominic raised his hands. "Okay, okay. I'm too busy, anyway. Go make your move."

Chuckling slightly, I hopped down from the counter and headed through the back doors and into the main dining area. There she was, sitting at a corner table, a sweet smile on her lips.

Man, she was so beautiful. Like Aiden and Dominic, I'd had the hots for her for as long as I could remember. But we were assholes in school, and like my best friends, I kind of grew up thinking girls were enemy territory.

She had been on my mind since the day of Ben's wedding. As I approached her, the playful tilt on her lips grew wider. This girl knew she was pulling at my heartstrings.

For a celebrity, she was dressed simply—jeans, a shirt, hair loose, freckles free, and a dash of gloss and eyeliner to amplify what she already had. She was beautiful, in the most endearing sense of the word.

I sat down beside her. "Can I tell you I was totally heartbroken when the boys said you'd come over to Harvest and Hearth when I wasn't here?"

She laughed in response. I liked how her eyes and face lit up when she was amused. I liked a lot about her, actually.

"Straight to the chase. Well, here I am, making up for it. I had some time between work today, so I thought I'd come in and get a taste of your seasonal menu."

The new menu I was curating had almost come together, except for the damn mash. "Would you like to try the different dishes we're launching tomorrow? It's all experimental right now but nothing I wouldn't do for a special guest." I punctuated the last bit with an aggressive wink and then thought it probably made me look stupid.

She took it as gracefully as I'd expected and responded with a happy, "I'm game."

I almost ran back to the kitchen like my pants were on fire and only Dominic would be able to put it out. He took one look at my distressed face. "What did you do?"

"I may have told Selene that she can try out tomorrow's menu."

"Ai, ai, ai!" He glared at me. "You’d make me change today's plan completely because you're in love?"

"I'm not in love," I replied defensively. "Come on, help a brother out!"

Dominic continued glaring at me for a full thirty seconds before finally relenting. "Fuck you. But I love you, so I'll do my best. And also because it's Selene."

I went back to Selene's table and waited for each course to arrive. As it did, I watched her like she was the most important experiment I'd ever invested in.

---