“Yes,” Ethan agreed. “It is.”
“Okay, what’s next?” Zayne said, all put jumping up and down beside Chloé.
“‘Vibrant and chic, with only the finest ingredients, Chloé Thornton-Priestley delivers a fresh young take on traditional French flavors.’”
“Oh my God.” That got her attention. Chloé sat up and shifted to the edge of the couch. “Who wrote that?”
“Fiona McKenzie.”
“Shut the hell up.”
Ethan chuckled as he propped his ankle up on one of his knees. “I assume that’s a good thing?”
“Good? Yeah, she’s tough as hell.”
“Not around you, apparently,” Zayne said, and pulled her back into his arms. “You young, chic thing.”
Chloé giggled. “I mean, I am pretty chic. Look at these awesome yoga pants.”
“Trust me, Red, I was looking at themallmorning.”
She tipped her face up toward his, and Zayne gently kissed her lips. Her worries were easing a little now.
“Ready for the next one?” Ethan said.
“Mhmm.”
“Okay, here goes. ‘With just one bite, Chef Chloé manages to transport each diner to a little French restaurant down by the River Seine. She takes the heart of France and serves it right here in downtown Chicago.’”
Ethan tossed the phone down on the seat beside him as he got to his feet.
“These are unbelievable,” he said, then he leaned down, cupped her face, and stole a sweet kiss from her lips. “Youare unbelievable. What’d we tell you? You had nothing to worry about.”
She nodded as she stared up at him.
“You’re right,” she said, then turned to Zayne. “You both are. I just didn’t want anything to ruin last night.”
“Nothingcould ruin last night, Red.”
She couldn’t agree more. So many amazing things had happened, and now that she could finally stop worrying about whether or not she would have a career today, it was time to tell Ethan and Zayne about the other amazing thing that had happened—her fathers’ proposition.
She’d been going to bring it up last night when they got home, but it had slipped her mind when the earl and viscount had shown up to play. But now seemed as good a time as any.
“So, can I talk to you two for a minute?” She tugged Ethan down to the couch, then got to her feet and moved to the coffee table so she could face them.
Ethan narrowed his eyes. “Is everything all right?”
“Yeah, um, it’s just… You know how my fathers wanted to speak to me yesterday after everything?”
“Yeah, up in the skybox.”
Chloé nodded at Zayne. “That’s right. Well, they wanted to congratulate me, but also…” She looked down at her lap and started to fiddle with the drawstring there.
“Chloé?”
She looked at Ethan, who had sat forward, his brows pulled down in a frown.
“Did something happen? Are your fathers okay?”