Page 41 of The Fifth Avenue Apartment

Sophie dumped the mushrooms and some more broth into the pan and took a sip of her wine. After another ladle of broth was absorbed, she added the spinach and chopped cooked chicken. The final step was to add the last bit of broth, more butter and about a third of a cup of freshly grated parmesan cheese. She stirred it all together and then handled Max a forkful to taste. “Can you let me know if this needs anything?”

He took the bite and swallowed. “That’s good. Did you use low sodium broth?”

She nodded. “I did. Does it need salt?”

“Yeah, a little salt and pepper and maybe another pinch of parmesan. It’s good though!”

Sophie added the seasoning and grated more cheese over the risotto and gave it a final stir. She took two plates from the cupboard and scooped a big mound of risotto on each. They ate at the island, and both went back for seconds. Sophie was happy with how it turned out.

“It’s really not hard at all. A great way to use up leftovers,” she said.

“It will taste great tomorrow, too,” Max said.

“You might have to take some home with you. I can’t eat all of this.” The recipe made a huge amount.

“I’m happy to help you out with that,” Max said.

After they finished eating and Sophie put everything away. She turned to Max.

“How are you feeling now that you’ve eaten? Any better?”

He grinned. “All better. Did you mention something about brownies?”

She laughed. “Yes, I’ll get them. Ice cream, too?”

“What do you think?”

“Right. Silly question.” She got the carton of vanilla ice cream out and the box of brownies and two bowls. “Here you go, help yourself.”

They filled their bowls with ice cream and mini-brownies and took them into the living room and settled on the sofa. Sophie clicked on the TV and surfed until she found a movie on Netflix that they both wanted to watch—a humorous action film.

The movie was good and by the time it ended, Max was yawning even though it wasn’t even nine yet. Sophie guessed that the day had caught up to him and that he probably hadn’t slept well the night before and then woke up feeling awful from being hungover.

“I’m sorry. How lame that I’m ready for bed already,” Max apologized.

Sophie picked up their ice cream bowls and brought them to the kitchen sink.

“Don’t be silly,” she said. “You had a rough night or rather day. I bet you’ll sleep well tonight.”

“Thanks, Soph. For dinner and for understanding. You’re a good friend.” He pulled her in for a goodbye hug and squeezed her tight.

“Goodnight, Max. See you tomorrow.”

She closed the door behind him, rinsed the bowls and put them in the dishwasher and tidied up the rest of the kitchen. It was still early, and she was wide awake, so she headed back to the sofa and clicked over to the Hallmark Channel. After the action movie she was in the mood for cozy Christmas. She thought about what Max had said, how he considered her a good friend. That made it clear how he felt about her. She did value his friendship. He was one of the few friends she’d made so far in the city. She didn’t want to ruin that by crushing on him too obviously.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Sophie’s open house was at one the next day and she headed out early to make sure she had time to heat up her cookies in the oven. She’d made the cookie batter that morning, shaped it into balls and froze them. Then she brought the frozen dough balls and a cookie sheet to the open house and popped them into the oven. She got there a half hour early and baked two batches. The first batch was cool enough to eat, but still warm and the smell of baking cookies was tantalizing and gave the apartment a cozy feel.

She’d just finished piling the cookies on a platter when the first person arrived. It was a sunny, clear day and she was surprised by how many people came to see the apartment. Some of them were with brokers, who were also curious to see it. One of them stopped and chatted with her while his clients were walking around.

“This is a great listing. If the people I brought don’t offer, I may have several others that could be interested. Will let you know ASAP,” he said.

A few of the people looking were curious neighbors. Caroline had told her that often happened with open houses. But there were also two interesting buyers that were not currently working with realtors, and both agreed to speak further with Sophie on Monday. They both loved the property but wanted to look at other things.

Max came by a little after one thirty. He walked around and then joined her in the kitchen and took a cookie. “Are these homemade? It smells like you baked them here.”

She nodded. “They are and I did.”

---