by Rhonda James
“Perfect,” he made a noise that sounded an awful lot like two hands clapping together. “Can you meet me at my house tomorrow morning, around eight? I’ll prepare breakfast for us.”
“I would be honored, thank you so much,” I gushed.
“Terrific, I’ll text you the directions. See you bright and early.” I heard the sound of a dead line and sat there holding the phone in my hand, unable to fully process what had just happened; the irony was almost too much to take in. I had to go talk to Sebastian.
“What’s up?” he asked, slipping off his headphones as I stepped through the closed door. “I’m sorry I’ve been down here so long, I’m kind of struggling with this chorus,” he apologized. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah, great actually, I just got off the phone with Max Wolf, he wants to meet with me tomorrow morning,” I blurted, still in shock from the news.
“Max Wolf?” he cocked his head, confused.
“I’m sorry, Chef Wolf, from Lardon’s. He told me that he’d just recently returned from London, that’s why he never contacted me. I just thought I hadn’t met his qualifications, this is unbelievable.”
“Babe, that’s amazing; I’m so proud of you. What did he say?” he asked, sliding his stool up to my waist and wrapping his arms around me.
“I still can’t believe it. He said that he watched the video of my interview and was impressed by my skills; he was willing to fly me out to meet him but I told him that I was already in town. I’m meeting him at his house tomorrow morning for breakfast.”
He looked up at me from his seated position, eyes full of pride. “You know he’s going to offer you a job don’t you?”
“That thought has crossed my mind,” I chewed nervously on my thumbnail. “I mean, it makes sense that’s why he would call me back out but I don’t want to get my hopes up.”
“If he offers it to you will you take it?” he asked quietly.
“You know,” I ran my fingers through his hair, “it’s ironic actually, I had just been speaking to Jade and we were talking about the possibility of me moving out here.”
“And, what did she have to say?” he prodded.
“After listening to everything I had to say, she told me that I already knew the answer, and then Max called.”
“So, you already know you’re answer?” he smiled.
“I do,” I nodded.
“Damn, you have no idea how much I love hearing you say those two little words,” he sighed.
“Oh, I think I have a pretty good idea,” I whispered, bending to kiss him, right before he stood and threw me over his shoulder, carrying me up the stairs and into his room, with me screaming the entire way.
We were lying on his bed, he was straight up and down and I was horizontal, so that I was on my back with my head resting on his stomach, and we’re talking while he played with my hair.
“What would it be like, us living together, would it things change between us?” I asked.
“I think it would be pretty much the way it is now, only better, and we’d get to share all of our free time with each other. Things would definitely change though, there’s no way they wouldn’t, right now we share most of our lives with one another over a telephone or a text, this way we’d get to come home and talk about our day face to face.”
“Don’t you worry that we might grow tired of each other, we’re not used to being together every single day of our lives,” I twisted my head around to look at him.
“What are you talking about? We lived together for nearly ten days and got along great,” he scoffed.
“Ten days is nothing compared to the next forty years, Sebastian. What if we take this step only to realize that we aren’t right for each other, that would be a pretty hard adjustment to reverse.
“Do you think we aren’t right for each other?” his hands stopped moving and he leaned toward me. “Is that what you’re afraid of? Cause I can tell you right now that I know you are right for me, it won’t take living together to prove that to me, I just don’t want to waste anymore time being apart.” He adjusted his body to lay parallel to mine. “I’m ready to start our lives together, this just seems like the next logical step before we get married.”
“You want to marry me?” I buried my face in his neck, taking in the warmth of his scent.
“Yes, I would, someday when the time is right for both of us. When I think of my future, and what it would look like, you’re the one I see standing beside me, and the thought of that makes me very happy.”
“That would make me very happy too,” I cried, snuggling tighter against him just as he rolled me over onto my back and straddled me, pinning my arms loosely over my head and staring down into my eyes.
“Brooke Caldwell, I’m going to make you the happiest woman in the world, I promise you that. I love you.” And with that, his lips found mine, and all of the passion that he exuded was poured into me as he began to show me just how much he loved me and wanted to take care of me, and this time, I didn’t stop him.
“Brooke, I am so glad to finally meet the woman behind the video.” Max greeted warmly as he opened the door for me to enter. The ride to his house had taken nearly thirty minutes. Sebastian had lent me one of his cars to drive while I was visiting.
“The pleasure is all mine Chef Wolf, I’m flattered that you are still interested,” I gushed.
“Please, call me Max, I hope you’re hungry, I’ve prepared a feast for us.” He led me through his home and into a kitchen that was every chef’s dream. Dark cherry wood cabinets accented the marble and stainless steel surfaces, one side of the kitchen was lined with pots and pans of all sizes that hung from a stainless rack that was suspended from the ceiling, knives of every type dotted a magnetic strip on the wall behind the commercial range, each one honed to perfection and organized by blade size.
“Wow,” I exclaimed, standing stock-still in the middle of the floor, unable to move. “This is incredible.”
“I agree, but thank you, it took me years to finally get the kitchen of my dreams in my own home. Everyone seems to think that just because you are a chef by trade that you must have an amazing kitchen to cook in at home, but for years that just wasn’t the case.”
“Really, why was that?” I asked, interested in learning more about this culinary genius.
“Well, for starters, I didn’t really need it, I was hardly ever home to cook, I did most of my cooking and dining at my own restaurants. Over time I began to realize that I needed to spend more time with the people who mean the most in my life, so my wife and I built this house five years ago and now I’m eating at home a lot more frequently.,” He smiled and directed me to a chair at the kitchenette. He began placing platters of food before me on the expansive counter. There were eggs Benedict, homemade hash browns, maple-glazed bacon, fresh fruit, and thick slices of toasted fresh-baked challah bread.
“It all looks and smells amazing,” I announced, carefully eyeing each selection as I reminded myself to not overindulge.
“Please, help yourself, try everything.” He handed me a large plate, and I reached across the items to start with the bacon, my one true weakness, Max leaned over at the same time and grabbed two pieces.
“Looks like we both share an affinity for pork,” he chuckled.
“It’s one of the reasons I’d love to work at your restaurant,” I shot back, referring to the name of his high-end restaurant, Lardon’s, his eyebrow arched up and he gave a quick wink.
“Speaking of working for me, I’d be interested to know what it would take for you to relocate to L.A. and be my new executive chef.”
“Seriously, I would have assumed that position to be filled months ago.”
“Now Brooke, you know what they say about assuming,” he volleyed.
“I know, I know, but I would never have guessed that you would still be looking, that has to be one of the most sought after positions around.”
“Indeed, it is, but we just hadn’t found the right
chef for the job, until you,” he responded, as he took a bite of eggs. “So, what do I have to do to convince you to leave Michigan for California?”
“I don’t…I.,” I struggled to find the words, “I’m speechless. This would be an incredible opportunity for me. Wow, I’m blown away.”
“So, is that a yes, I hope?” he persuaded.
“It’s definitely something that I would like to say yes to, can you just give me a little time? I need to talk this over with my boss and a few other people,” I looked at him hopefully.
“Of course, Brooke, take your time, we’ve waited this long to finally extend the offer, the least I can do is give you time to think it over,” he smiled. “Now, please continue eating.”
We made polite conversation as we finished up our breakfast, and at one point his wife, Laura, stopped in to introduce herself and steal a piece of bacon.
“Thanks for pleasantries sweetie but Brooke and I both know that meeting her was just a ruse, you were only after the bacon,” Max playfully called to her, as she was leaving, then giving me a wink.
She popped her head back around the corner with lightening speed. “Don’t listen to him Brooke, it was delightful meeting you, I just happen to be a sucker for anything related to pork,” she smiled sweetly, then blew a kiss in her husband’s direction. I got a kick out of watching the way they interacted with one another and wondered if that’s what it would be like if Sebastian and I lived together.
“Do you have anyone special in your life Brooke?” he turned his attention to me.
“Yes,” I felt myself blushing just thinking about how special Sebastian is to me. “In fact, I met him when I came out for the first interview.”
“He lives here in L.A.? Isn’t it rather hard to keep a relationship going, being that far apart?”
“Well, yes, it can be challenging, but we’ve managed to make it work so far. I must admit, seeing the way you and Laura interact gives me a reason to long for something less spatially challenged,” I admitted.
“What was it that brought you back to L.A. this time? Was it him?”
“Yes,” I nodded, “his sister got married this past weekend and I came back for that, but also to spend time with him. In fact, he’s asked me to relocate here and live with him.”
“So the timing of my offer coincides rather splendidly, doesn’t it?”
“That’s what the little voice inside my head keeps telling me,” I sighed.
“May I ask his name?” he urged, politely.
“Certainly, his name is Sebastian Miles.”
“Ah, I know his parents, Thomas, and Tracy, they are regular patrons of several of my restaurants. They are a great family, I’ve heard good things about Sebastian as well,” he patted my hand, in what I supposed could be considered a fatherly act, although I had no personal account of what that might actually look like.
“Well, speaking of Sebastian, I should probably be heading back, he tends to worry about me if I’m out of his sight for too long,” I laughed. “Thank you very much for today. I want you to know that I’ve heard everything you said, and I think I know which way I am leaning towards, but I just want to take a day or two and sleep on it. I hope that’s okay.”
“Absolutely. Take all the time you need and be sure to give me a call once you’ve made your decision, or if you have any further questions.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Sebastian~
Brooke came through the door just after I had returned from a late morning run on the beach. I had just been on my way to the shower when she barreled toward me and jumped into my arms, with a huge grin on her face and joy in her eyes.
“Umph,” I groaned as she collided with my waist. “Wow, that’s quite an entrance; I take it everything went well.” She captured my face in her hands and proceeded to cover my face with kisses. “Mmm, I like happy Brooke,” I smiled against her lips.
“It was an amazing meeting babe, he made me this incredible breakfast, offered me the job, and gave me a tour of his house, I even met his wife!” She placed another kiss on my lips before grimacing and sliding down my sweaty body. “Ew, you’re all slippery,” she laughed, turning to grab a bottle of water from the fridge.
“Well, that’s probably because I just got back from a run. Wait a minute, can we back up for a minute, you said he offered you the job as his executive chef?” She nodded enthusiastically.
“Incredible isn’t it!” She broke into an impromptu dance right there in the middle of the kitchen, and I have to tell you, she looked pretty sexy.
“Hell yeah!” I danced up behind her, grabbing her by the hips and matching her crazy rhythm. “So, does this mean that you’ll be moving to California?” Her body froze.
“Not exactly,” she said, slowly.
I turned her around to face me; I needed to see her eyes. “What do you mean, not exactly? Is there something you’re not telling me?”
“I haven’t given him an answer yet; I told him that I needed to sit on it for a couple of days.” She pressed her hands gently on my stomach and pushed back, putting distance between us and raising my irritation level.
“I thought this was what we wanted, what you wanted, why do you need to think about it? This is like a sign that you’re supposed to move in with me,” I argued.
“I need time to talk it over with Donnie and Jade, get their opinion. This isn’t a snap decision for me Sebastian; I don’t work that way.”
“Why the hell not! This is a way for us to be together, and you can still live out your dream, it’s a win-win for both of us.”
“Stop it! Stop trying to pressure me,” she cried out.
“Since when do I pressure you into anything?” I threw my hands in the air, at a complete loss to understand what pressure she was referring to.
“You do this with me a lot, it’s just like the whole sex thing all over,” she screamed, turning away from me.
“Wait a minute, I thought we made that decision together; I never pressured you Brooke.” I felt my chest constrict and immediately raised my hand to rub it.
“I need to get away for a bit; I need some time alone to think.” I watched her walk out the door and make her way to the beach, and, for the first time, I didn’t follow her. Instead, I turned and went out the front door.
I had been driving for fifteen minutes before I realized where I was headed, straight to Travis and Natalie for some sage advice, because God knew I needed it. At this point, I was starting to think that I was in over my head. For me it seemed perfectly simple, we loved each other and wanted to be together, the best solution was to have her share my home. All this time I had been under the assumption that she felt the same way and could no longer live without me, maybe I had been wrong.
Travis opened the door, and the look on his face told me that he already knew that something was up.
“Let me guess, trouble in paradise?” he motioned me in. I grunted and brushed past him, wishing like hell that I could have a drink to help calm my nerves.
“How do you always know when my life’s falling apart?” I asked sarcastically, rolling my eyes and falling back on the loveseat next to the dog.
“Natalie’s on the phone with Brooke right now, she’s out back using her ‘Mom’ voice so I figured you must have done something to screw things up,” he guffawed. “So you want to tell me what happened, or do I have to guess?”
“She said I was pressuring her into moving to California,” I spat out.
“Are you?”
“No!” I said defiantly, looking over at him and staring, he stared back intently, asking me the question once more with nothing but a look. “Alright, maybe I did a little, but that was only because she got offered her dream job here in L.A. What was I supposed to say when she told me that?”
“Well, for starters, how about congratulations, or I’m so proud of you.”
“I’m sure I told her that,” I muttered, replaying the scene over in my mind. Crap, I hadn’t said e
ither of those things.
“Well, something ticked her off. I could hear her yelling through the phone,” he said, shaking his head and sitting down across from me.
I let out a loud sigh and dropped my head into my open hands, feeling very ashamed.
“She thinks I pressured her about sex,” I groaned into my palms.
“Dude, that’s not cool at all,” Travis reached over and grabbed my hands, pulling them away from my wet face. “Sebastian, did you pressure her into something she didn’t want to do?”
“No,” I insisted. “Maybe I pressured her at first when she first stayed with me, but nothing happened. She told me how she felt, and I respected that. Anything that’s happened since then has been a mutual decision, I swear. I would never do that to her, or any woman. I think she was just angry and probably wanted to hurt me. I’m not going to lie, Travis, it wasn’t easy for me, but I’ve always let it be her call.
“Okay,” he eased back in his seat, “I believe you. I don’t know what’s going on between you two, it’s obvious that you are very much in love, but this is a big decision for her. As hard as it is for you, and I’m sure that sometimes it must hurt like hell, you need to give her time. She needs to come to terms with this in her own way; it can’t only be about making you happy.”
I sat there absentmindedly scratching behind the sleeping dogs ears, thinking about what he had just said, knowing that he was right, and what I needed to do to fix it. Natalie came back inside, pausing when she saw me, and then went to sit down next to Travis.
“How are you doing sweetie?” she asked in her best ‘Mom’ voice. I didn’t respond, only offering a slight shrug of my shoulder. “I think you may have messed up a bit tonight.”
“What do you mean?” I sat up, searching her face for answers.
“Brooke left sweetie; she caught a cab back to the airport.” Her words took the air right out of my lungs, I hadn’t been expecting that outcome. “Sebastian,” Natalie came over and knelt in front of me, taking both of my hands into hers. “She still loves you, she just needs some time to work all of this out. She knew that if she stayed she wouldn’t be able to think straight, you kind of make her lose focus.” I winced outwardly at that comment, no longer able to contain my emotions. I broke down, not knowing if this was the end, or if I should even keep fighting. “Sebastian, she loves you so much. She wants so desperately to take this job and live with you, but it’s not going to come easily to her. She will be leaving everything she knows to come out and bet all of her cards on you. She’s not used to giving up control to anyone else. Please, just give her a couple of days, I promise she’ll come around.” Her arms enveloped me in a tight embrace, and I held on for dear life as the fear poured out of me through the tears that continued to fall.