by Laura Burton
“$200 a week, no $250. What about $300? That’s $30 an hour for two hours a day,” Charlie argued.
I bit my lower lip for a second before I said, “$2500 for the whole eight weeks. I want it up front.”
Charlie looked surprised for a moment, but then he stood quietly for another moment. “You have a deal,” he said with a nod.
His hand reached out, and I looked at his face again. He seemed to tell the truth, and I took his hand to shake.
“I’ll go get your money,” he announced. “We have some time before class. Maybe we can start tonight.”
I checked the time and nodded my head. “We could probably get a little done today but I will need to figure out a plan. I also need to see where you are skill-wise.”
Charlie nodded his head in understanding and then left to go retrieve my money. I was excited to be getting such a nice sum of money, but I was also nervous about having that much cash on me.
While I waited for him to return, I tried not to think about the money and focused on grading the last of my papers. I promised to return them to the students the following day.
I was eating my sandwich and reading over a paper when Charlie returned. He gripped a plain white envelope in one hand and I swallowed my mouthful.
He walked over and put it on the desk, pushing it over to me. I reached out and picked it up. After glancing inside, I took a deep breath.
“I don’t feel comfortable having this with me,” I confessed.
“The banks are still open.”
I nodded at his words and looked at my half-eaten sandwich, the open bag of chips, and then at his face.
“Can I trust you to stay here?” I asked. It was a foolish idea, trusting a man I hardly knew.
Charlie nodded his head.
“I want you to look through the fridge and the pantry. When I come back, I want a dish from you. This will be a test to see your knife skills, your ability to cook and what flavor profiles you gravitate toward,” I said, hoping that if I kept him busy, he wouldn’t be causing any trouble. I didn’t need something to happen and Mr. Banner get in trouble for referring me.
“What if I mostly cook things from a box?”
The red tint to Charlie’s cheeks was adorable, but I realized that I was in over my head. We would have to start way back at the beginning, and this might need more than eight weeks.
“Make me something before I get back and we’ll take it from there,” I said as encouragingly as possible.
He reluctantly nodded his head and then looked to the kitchen.
“If you’re not comfortable with the stove, don’t attempt it. I don’t want you to get hurt, nor do I want the building to go up in flames,” I told him. I tried to joke about it, but I knew it didn’t come across that way.
“Okay.” He sounded so unsure of himself as he walked across the room and went to the pantry.
I packed up my half eaten dinner and put it back into my bag. I shoved my grade book and the students’ papers into it as well. With it slung over my shoulder, I grabbed my purse with my money tucked safely inside.
“I should be back in forty minutes,” I told Charlie as I went to the door.
The poor guy looked like a deer caught in headlights as he stared at the pantry. I wanted to laugh, but I bit my lip. He was frazzled enough.
I gave him one last look before I hurried out the door. I needed to make it to the bank before they closed. If I had to keep all this cash on me until tomorrow, I wouldn’t be able to sleep.
Chapter 4
Mary
“You’re getting better,” I said honestly.
Charlie looked relieved. He reached for a fork and took a bite of the chicken-fried steak he had just prepared.
“Mm that isn’t bad at all. Sure, it’s just putting some meat in seasoning and cooking, but it’s not burned and doesn’t taste terrible,” he commented.
“It’s more than you could do a few days ago,” I pointed out.
“This is true and I have you to thank for it.” Charlie smiled at me and the butterflies went crazy in my stomach.
“You did all the work,” I reminded him.
“I couldn’t have done it without you,” he pointed out.
A silence settled over us as he finished eating the plate of food he’d just prepared. I thought about his skills—how he was improving and the homework he was given. I tried to make him do some reading and practice. We’d started with knife skills. If he knew how to cut various things, he would seem more professional in his videos.
I made a mental list of the things we needed to do the following week and how he could improve faster. I rubbed my fingers over my eyes and knew I’d need to come up with more challenging dishes, better homework, and search for good videos for him to watch during the day.
The weekend wasn’t going to be spent relaxing like I’d planned. I had more tests to review and the lessons for the cooking class to prepare for. On top of that, I needed to think of a game plan for Charlie.
With a sigh, I leaned back in my seat and rubbed my eyes again.
“What are you thinking?”
I dropped my hands and looked at Charlie. He was watching me, and I felt a little uncomfortable under his gaze.
“I’m trying to make a mental checklist of everything I need to do this weekend,” I answered.
“Can you add one more thing to that list?” he asked softly.
“I suppose. It would depend what it was.” I looked at him curiously and wondered what he was getting at.
“Pencil me in.” Charlie smiled before he took another bite.
“For?” Now I was getting confused.
“I’m going to take you out for dinner,” he announced. “Your choice.”
I shook my head. As attractive as he was, and how often I pictured a happily ever after, it wouldn’t be a good idea.
“Why not?”
“Because you’re my student,” I said immediately.
“Not formally and it doesn’t have to be a romantic date. Think of it as a thank you for helping me,” Charlie argued.
“I can’t. It wouldn’t be right.” My head was calling the shots. My heart didn’t want to listen. It wanted to jump at the chance to enjoy a nice meal with a handsome man like Charlie, but my head knew better. It had finally learned its lesson.
He looked defeated, and I felt bad. What made it worse was his shoulders slumped for a second before he shrugged. It was obvious he was trying to brush it off as not a big deal, but it was. At least in my eyes.
I didn’t get asked out often. I’m pretty average looking. I have a job—three at the moment. I have a cute little house. I don’t drink or smoke. My life was tidy. I’m just an average girl with a big fear of getting hurt.
Even though I had a feeling I’d be kicking myself later for turning him down, there was no way I would risk getting a broken heart for a few minutes of fun. Nope, not going to happen.
“I’m sorry,” I said in a whisper.
“It’s okay,” Charlie said. He looked at me a moment longer before taking a drink. “Maybe you’ll change your mind the next time I ask you.”
My mouth dropped open. I was surprised he wasn’t giving up. Before I could speak, students entered the room.
“You better get everything cleaned up,” I finally said before I got up to return to my spot at the front of the classroom.
Charles
I watched as Mary got up from the table. She moved effortlessly to the front of the room and had me mesmerized. I’m not sure when my crush on her started. I’d imagine it was the first moment I saw her. But now, she was all I thought about.
After eating the last few bites on my plate, I gathered everything up and took it to the sink. I turned on the hot water and squirted some soap into it. As it filled up, I looked back to Mary. She was talking with a couple of older women and I smiled at how they seemed to hang on her every word. I knew the feeling.
I looked down just in time to see the water n
early breaching the top of the sink. I quickly turned off the tap and washed the dishes. Even though I didn’t know how to cook—at least not very well yet—I definitely knew how to do the dishes. Mary made me clean every last pot and pan, too.
As disappointed as I was that I wouldn’t see her tomorrow evening for dinner, I wasn’t going to give up.
The noise in the room got louder as more people joined in the class and I scrubbed a little harder on the pan.
Everyone knew I was taking private lessons from Mary. After the first full lesson, we misjudged how much we could get done in two hours. Everyone walked in and saw me burning a grilled cheese on the griddle. Mary was quick to let everyone know what we were doing. I guess she didn’t want anyone to get the wrong idea. I don’t blame her.
It took another five minutes for me to finish up the last of the dishes. I got them in the drying rack and cleaned up around the sink before making sure the stove was spotless. Mary harped on being clean in the kitchen. At first, it felt like she was treating me like one of her high school students, but now I understood the importance.
The last thing I wanted to do was get someone sick.
“Everyone, please take a seat,” Mary said from her spot at the front.
I washed my hands one last time before I went to take my seat. The woman who sat at the same table as me eyed me as I sat down.
“Have a good lesson?” she asked.
“I didn’t burn anything this time,” I answered with a smile.
“Did you tell the teacher you have a thing for her?”
My mouth dropped open. I didn’t realize the torch I was carrying was that obvious. I looked away from the woman and scooted my chair in.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I mumbled.
“Hmm. Don’t you,” the woman stated.
We both turned our attention to the front as Mary spoke about the day’s lesson. I didn’t hear what she was saying, even though I knew I needed to pay attention. The woman beside me hit a nerve, and I couldn’t stop thinking about how many suspected my attraction to our teacher.
I got more confused the longer I thought about it. I wasn’t in love with her. I barely knew her. She was beautiful, gorgeous even. I wanted to know her more. It wasn’t why I was doing the private lessons, but now I wondered if people had the wrong idea. Perhaps it was for the best—they wouldn’t be any wiser when my column started getting published in the newspaper.
With a sigh, I ran my fingers through my hair and put my chin in my palm. I needed to focus on Mary and what she was teaching. No matter what it was we were learning, it would benefit me.
It wouldn’t do me any good to dwell on my budding crush on the woman. Although, it was nice to imagine the two of us sitting down to a nice meal. In a perfect world, I’d cook for her, but I can’t get ahead of myself. I am learning the basics right now. It’s better to take her out and pay someone to make her something delicious.
My mind drifted off, wondering what her favorite dish was or if there was a cuisine she could never turn down. Was she into sweets? What did she have when it was just her? From the looks of the other day, sandwiches were her quick and easy dinner, but that didn’t sound very filling.
Maybe I could do some extra homework this weekend and come up with something to make for her on Monday.
A smile formed on my face as I thought about the surprise, and I didn’t realize my name was being said. The woman beside me nudged my side softly.
I looked up at Mary, who was looking at me, as was the rest of the class.
“Everything okay?” she asked.
“Yes. Sorry, it’s perfect. Please continue.”
I swallowed hard as she studied me a moment before she continued on with her lesson. I did my best to focus, knowing the entire class would be a struggle. All I wanted to do was work on my surprise.
Chapter 5
Mary
“I don’t know how you convinced me to do this,” I said with a laugh as I entered the kitchen classroom.
“That was easy,” Charlie replied. He followed behind me and closed the door after we were inside. There was a casserole dish in his hand with tinfoil across the top. It had me curious, but I assumed he would present whatever it was when the time was right.
“What made it so easy?” I asked, taking off my jacket. I put it with my purse on the small desk and looked back to him.
“You spend Sunday with me, teaching me a week’s worth of lessons, and you don’t have to see me for the next five days,” he said with a grin. “Well, other than the usual three classes with everyone else.”
“That might have done it. We’re also lucky that the community center doesn’t mind us using this room on off days, and they keep the pantry and fridge stocked with what I need.” I laughed. I looked at the dish in his hands again and then back at his face. “Are you going to explain that?” I gave a nod to his hands.
He looked down and smiled. “I wanted to surprise you.”
“Oh?” This wasn’t a good time to tell him I didn’t like surprises.
Charlie walked over to the desk and put the dish down. He looked at my face a moment before pulling back the foil.
The smell of warm cinnamon hit me instantly, and my stomach growled. Gooey cinnamon rolls filled the pan, and I felt confused. Looking back at Charlie, I waited for him to explain.
“I wanted to surprise you,” he reminded.
“Are these store bought?” I asked.
“No, ma’am.”
“None of that ma’am business,” I warned with a smile. “Did it come out of a tube?”
“Nope. I made it from scratch. Well, I used a recipe I found online. I bought the ingredients to try it myself. The first two batches didn’t look as good at this, but third time’s a charm.” Charlie was beaming.
“They look delicious. Is this your first time making something from a recipe on your own?” I asked.
Charlie nodded. “I’m glad you like them.”
“I haven’t tasted them yet,” I teased.
Our eyes met, and the butterflies reminded me to look away. I focused on the cinnamon rolls in front of us.
“Well…are you going to try one?” Charlie asked.
“Of course.” I walked over to where the paper goods were and pulled out two small paper plates and two plastic forks.
“I didn’t plan on having one,” he said when I returned.
“I’m not eating by myself, especially something you made,” I continued to tease him.
“Ouch!” Charlie laughed and put his hand on his chest.
“It makes me suspicious you won’t eat your own food. You could have poisoned it for all I know.” I laughed and reached for the knife I had brought over.
“Why would I poison you?”
Charlie looked almost hurt I would accuse him of such a thing, so I stopped cutting to look up at him. I gave him a smile.
“I was only teasing you. If you poisoned me, you’d have to find someone else that could teach you how to cook.” I shrugged.
“If I planned on poisoning people, you wouldn’t be on that list. You’d be number one on the list of people not to poison.” He spoke matter-of-factly, and it made goosebumps appear on my arms.
I opened my mouth to say something. I wanted to ask about his family or his mother. There was no way I could be ahead of her on his list. As much as I wanted to make a joke and break the seriousness, it didn’t feel right.
“I appreciate not being on your list of people to poison,” I said with a smile. “Of course, you might want to keep it to yourself that you have such a list.” I couldn’t help but tease him further.
He laughed. “I’ll try my best to keep it to myself.”
“I’d hate to find out you got taken to the police station for questioning.” I spoke while dishing up our cinnamon rolls. “These look really good. Nice height, fluffiness, cinnamon is spread evenly throughout. I think you might be well on your way.”
Charlie la
ughed as a blush hit his cheeks.
“Pastries might be your thing,” I pointed out. “Every chef has something they specialize in.”
“What’s yours?” he asked.
I handed him a plate before I walked over to the nearest table to take a seat. I cut through the pastry and thought about his question.
“I used to think I was better at soups, then savory, but I find myself baking more. I think desserts are more my thing. Not just baked things like cakes and cookies, but pies,” I shrugged. “I don’t cook as much as I used to.”
“Why not?”
“I went into teaching. My dreams of working in a five-star restaurant died shortly after culinary school,” I explained before getting my first bite on my fork.
I looked at Charlie. He looked a bit nervous. Either he wanted to know the answer as to what happened to my dreams or he dreaded me taking a bite of his food. I went for it.
“Mmm.” The sound escaped me as I chewed the deliciousness in my mouth.
Charlie had yet to take a bite but did so as soon as I gave my approval on the taste. I don’t know what he was waiting for, but he did a good job.
“That tasted nearly as good as what you could get at a bakery or restaurant,” I said honestly. “I would add maybe a little more cinnamon and the icing… I would prefer a cream cheese icing. I can show you how to make some at some point. If you want.”
Charlie nodded his head and finished his mouthful. “I would appreciate that. I’m glad you liked it. I know it’s a little ambitious, but I wanted to step out of my comfort zone.”
“You did an excellent job. I’m surprised you were able to do so well, minus your previous two failed attempts, in such a short time. You’re a quick learner and that’s a good quality to have. I won’t be surprised if you don’t need a full eight weeks from me,” I said before taking another bite.
“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. This is only one recipe, and it was pretty straightforward,” Charlie replied with his hands up as if he was telling me to pump the brakes.