Ava's Prize

by Cari Lynn Webb

  “Even though I don’t combine my food, it doesn’t mean my palette is any less refined,” Ava challenged. “Or that I don’t take risks.”

  She’d taken a risk entering the contest. It meant every day she didn’t secure a second job. That was more than enough to upset her stomach and leave her queasy. She’d table the culinary risks for someone else. Every minute she lingered in the restaurant, she wanted to remain beside Kyle and skip her job interview. Kyle was the risk she couldn’t take.

  The waiter cleared the empty plates while thoughtfully and thoroughly reciting the dessert menu.

  “Scared to take a risk on dessert?” Kyle asked.

  Ava fumbled with her phone in her lap. So much for her discreet time check. “I’m going to have to pass.” At this pace, she might have to take the interview call in the truck, out in the parking lot with Kyle, her mom and Chad listening in.

  “What? You don’t like your salted caramel sauce mixing with your hot chocolate?” Kyle teased. “There’s something tempting about the combination.”

  She’d never liked hot chocolate and preferred her caramel sauce with a spoon. But she liked Kyle and the challenge in his cool gaze. Ava kept her gaze on Kyle and ordered the bread pudding. She took risks and she was in control. “Now, let me show you how the centerpiece should be put together.”

  Barbra handed Ava the glass bowls. Between bites of bread pudding and suggestions from the table, Ava rearranged the bowls more than once. Finally satisfied, she sat back and spread her hands over the centerpiece.

  Barbra nodded. “It’s quite nice.”

  Her mom offered a small smile.

  “That’s quaint.” Kyle reached over her and pulled Ava’s centerpiece apart. “And hardly remarkable.”

  “You think you can do better?” Ava challenged.

  “I know I can.” Kyle gathered the different glass bowls, emptied the flowers and decorations from each one. “Watch and learn.”

  “I never took you for a floral and color guy.” Ava worked through her dessert while he organized the decorations across the table.

  “I’m not.” Kyle switched the glass rocks to the bowl with the flowers.

  “Could’ve fooled me,” Ava said. “You’re coordinating the ribbon colors and the flowers better than an interior designer.”

  “These look good together.” Kyle held up the glass bowl with the tea lights and silver ribbon inside. “Besides, Iris is the one with the eye for design.”

  “Creativity seems to run in the Quinn family,” Ava teased.

  “You might be right.” Kyle smiled. “Maybe I have learned a few things from my big sister after all.”

  Ava finished her dessert and Kyle finished the centerpiece. Barbra sighed, and her mother clapped. He hadn’t created a masterpiece. He’d stacked several glass bowls. Although the light caught perfectly on the top glass bowl and reflected into the other bowls, giving the illusion of water. “That’s quaint.”

  “It’s perfect.” Barbra snapped a picture. “Now we can replicate it on the night of the event.”

  “I win,” Kyle whispered.

  Sam edged closer. “My wife is going to want to take one of those home from the event.”

  Karen touched Sam’s arm. “That’s a wonderful idea, Sam. We could auction off the centerpieces.”

  “Or give them away as door prizes,” Kyle suggested.

  “Even better.” Karen typed on her phone. “I’m adding it to my list for Sophie.”

  “I’m declaring the evening a success.” Sam tossed his napkin on the table.

  “We should end it now,” Grant added. “On a high note.”

  The table abandoned for the next group, they walked toward the exit. Kyle held the door open. Ava waited, lingering until everyone else had exited. “Not everything is about winning or losing. It isn’t always a competition.”

  Kyle let the door swing closed and stepped beside her. “Sure it is. Winning feels good.”

  Ava should be feeling bad she’d missed her interview. Yet all she felt beside Kyle was good. And that was bad.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  KYLE HAD WANTED to hold Ava’s hand during the Creative Craft field trip and every day since. One week later and the urge had only intensified. Worse, he watched the clock every afternoon until the group arrived. He worked on their ideas on his downtime, not his own. He placed several calls to contacts about apartments and flats for Grant. He’d even agreed to be a guest for one of Barbra’s lectures next semester.

  He’d lost control and become a joiner. He’d never been like this. He had to stop. No good ever came from his willing participation. That he’d proven more than once. Was he trying to prove that he could belong if he chose to? Well, today he changed his mind. He was making a different choice. He wanted his old life back. His safe, controllable life back. The one where he wasn’t reaching for a woman’s hand as if he craved that personal connection.

  Today he chose to detach and reclaim his old self.

  Step one: recover his personal space.

  Kyle walked into the design lab and tossed nine silver-embossed cards onto the center of the worktable. “Thought we’d change things up tonight. There is an invitation to the grand opening celebration of the Glass Violet Restaurant for each of you. Sam, I included one for your wife. Chad and Barbra, there are two extra invites in case you’ve been keeping your plus ones a secret from us.”

  Chad laughed. “Give my plus one to your sister.”

  “I’m sure Iris will be thrilled to join us.” Kyle picked up an invite from the table. He’d have to track down Iris first. He hadn’t seen his sister since the finalist after-party two weeks ago. She’d been busy on the days he’d texted and vague about her evening plans, as if she didn’t want to reveal where she was.

  Barbra slid an invitation across the table. “Reservations for the Glass Violet are full through the New Year. How did you come by these?”

  Celebrity status offered invitations to most of the city’s events. He usually declined. But tonight, the Glass Violet provided the perfect excuse to get the group out of his place. Even better, there was an open bar and open seating. He wouldn’t have to jostle for the chair next to Ava. He wouldn’t be tempted to hold her hand like he’d wanted to at the Copper Table. “I can’t reveal my sources.”

  “You can keep your sources.” Grant slid an invitation into the back pocket of his jeans. “I’m just excited to eat there.”

  “I have to call Glenda. She’s going to need a few hours to get ready.” Sam held up his phone and walked out. “Kyle, you’re going to be my wife’s favorite person.”

  He wasn’t interested in the title of most popular. He was only interested in reclaiming his personal space, where he could concentrate on himself and his own ideas. “It’s no big deal.”

  “That’s the celebrity talking.” Sam squeezed his shoulder. “Seriously, thanks.”

  Kyle nodded, accepting Sam’s gratitude. His gaze collided with Ava. She chewed on her bottom lips as if uncertain.

  “Are we all meeting at the restaurant?” she asked.

  “The press will definitely be there tonight.” Chad picked up an invitation.

  “We should decide on a time to meet,” Grant suggested.

  “We can meet out front of the Pacific Bank and Trust building at seven. It’s one block away from the Glass Violet,” Barbra suggested. “Then we can walk together.”

  “That works.” Ava looked at Barbra. “I’ve never been to an event like this. Any ideas on what I should wear?”

  “Yoga pants are out.” Barbra sat in the chair beside Ava’s workstation.

  Kyle liked Ava in her workout clothes. Barbra mentioned a black cocktail dress. Kyle liked Ava in the dress she’d worn for the contest party. Ava described a pair of silver rhinestone heels she’d splurged on, but had yet to wear.
He’d like those, too. Kyle twisted his chair away from the women and faced Grant’s computer. He liked being alone more than he liked Ava with her yoga pants, sparkly heels and contagious laugh.

  Grant opened his cell phone case design on the computer screen. “I feel like we should discuss our outfits for the evening, too. We should coordinate our color scheme, like the ladies.”

  “This is a serious conversation.” Ava threw a crumpled-up piece of paper across the lab. It bounced against Grant’s shoulder before he caught it.

  Kyle ripped a page off the legal notepad, wadded it up and shot the ball at Ava. “We’re being serious, too. We don’t want to clash tonight and look like we don’t know what we’re doing.”

  Ava caught the paper ball. “Good point. We don’t want any extra attention. Let’s keep the color scheme classic and subdued. Agreed?”

  Kyle wasn’t convinced Ava could ever be considered subdued with her perceptive green eyes and bold red hair. “Fine. Now can we get to work?”

  Barbra twisted her chair to face Ava’s computer. “We’ll need to end early to have enough time to get ready.”

  He’d already anticipated an early release. He’d have his suite all to himself for longer. “Then we should make the most of the afternoon.”

  * * *

  THREE HOURS AND an extralong shower later, Kyle walked out of his bedroom in his dress pants. His shirt still hung on a hanger in his closet, and his socks and shoes waited beside his bed. He hadn’t ventured into his apartment half-dressed in weeks. His kitchen trashcan wasn’t overflowing with takeout containers. He wasn’t looking over his shoulder, waiting for Chad or Grant to pop in. Silence surrounded him.

  Exactly what he wanted to hear. Why, then, did he want to turn on the music or open a window to hear the street noise? Quiet never bothered him before.

  He scratched his chest, stretched his arms over his head, flicked water from his damp hair. Nothing made him comfortable. Even the floor tiles under his bare feet seemed too cold, too hard. He’d always walked around his apartment like this: alone and in charge of his surroundings. That was before the invasion of the contest crew.

  Kyle headed into the arcade room, circled around the foosball table and rolled the ten ball across the pool table. The crack of the striped blue ball against the others echoed in the empty room. He flopped onto the couch, set his legs onto the ottoman and assumed his favorite position for a power nap. The conditions were perfect. He had more than enough time for a twenty-minute recharge. His gaze tracked to the wall of champions and refused to close.

  He punched the sofa cushion and strode back to his bedroom. Five minutes later, he slammed his front door on the silence and headed out into the noisy city. Iris had texted and told him she’d meet him at Glass Violet. Kyle patted his jacket pocket, confirming he had both the invitation, the check for Penny he planned to drop off first and his EpiPen.

  Kyle welcomed the conversation with the taxicab driver about the Pioneers’ upcoming game on Sunday. Penny greeted him with a hug and fudge samples from her newest batch.

  “The women are busy in the new room.” Penny motioned toward the back of the house. “I’m sure they’ll welcome your help.”

  He’d never volunteered at the house before. He’d only ever dropped off a check and left. “I’m not sure what they need me for.”

  “Your height for one.” Penny laughed and opened a frosted-glass door. “Your sister won’t have to haul the ladder through the house with you here.”

  Iris was here? Kyle stepped into an enclosed patio with one wall of windows and gaped. His sister stood on a folding chair, holding a large picture frame, her back to him. That wasn’t the back that captured his focus like a fly trap. Instead, it was the bare back of the woman with his sister—her red hair sweeping across a fitted black cocktail dress. Her silver heels added even more length to her already long legs. What was Ava doing at Penny’s Place with his sister?

  Iris turned around and shouted, “Kyle. Perfect timing. Can you hang this, please?”

  Kyle took the large frame from Iris. “What are you doing?”

  “It’s their new art room.” Iris jumped off the chair and swept her arms wide. “Isn’t it fabulous? Doesn’t it inspire you to create?”

  Ava stepped beside him and pointed at the hook already in the wall. “Iris designed the whole space.”

  “I never imagined this when we first discussed an art room.” Penny clasped her hands under her chin and turned in a slow circle.

  “I had help,” Iris said.

  Kyle looked at Ava.

  Ava lifted her hands and took a step back. “I only delivered supplies.”

  “That was more helpful than you know.” Iris carried an easel toward the windows. “Ava saved me a trip to Creative Craft.”

  “I need to start dinner.” Penny wrapped one arm around Kyle’s waist. “Your sister is a true gem.”

  A gem in hiding. Kyle squeezed Penny. “As are you.”

  “If you need me, just holler.” Penny swept out of the room.

  Kyle waited until the door closed, set his hands on his hips and asked, “Can someone tell me what’s going on?”

  Iris frowned at Ava. “I told you he’d do this.”

  “Do what?” Kyle looked between the women. He’d dropped off a check and hung a picture. Nothing that deserved his sister’s censure.

  Ava motioned around the room. “Don’t you think Iris did fantastic work?”

  “I don’t understand how,” Kyle said. Had she used the money he’d given her for rent and bills? Was that why she hadn’t told him?

  “You never understand.” Iris fisted her hands and walked past him. An old oak table took up the side wall. Art supplies covered every inch.

  Kyle glanced at Ava, not bothering to hide his confusion.

  “Iris spent her free time the last few weeks and turned this space into an art room for the residents.” Ava’s tone was pleasant and patient.

  Kyle waited, as if he was back in school and had been warned repeatedly not to interrupt the guest speaker.

  “The residents needed a space to create their work to auction off at Sophie’s City Causes gala,” Ava added.

  Kyle studied his sister. She sorted paintbrushes on a table in the back and avoided looking at him. The last of the sunlight streamed through the windows and reached for Iris. The sunlight highlighted her free fall of curls and his understanding.

  “Iris is teaching them, too.” Ava smiled as if pleased with his progress. “Every Friday night.”

  Kyle walked closer to his sister. “That’s why you didn’t want to go to the Harrington event.”

  “It’s therapy for the women.” Iris’s fingers stilled in a bowl of crystal beads. “To create without judgment or hostility is freeing.”

  It was therapy for his sister, too. Why hadn’t he realized that until now?

  “I’ve been trying to tell Iris that there is a degree in art therapy.” Ava’s voice was encouraging. “And jobs at the hospital and rehab centers.”

  “Then art becomes work.” Again, Iris’s hand stilled inside the bead bowl.

  “Work that you’re passionate about.” Kyle left it at that. He’d talk to Iris more about a degree later. Ava might’ve helped Iris find her niche. One more thing for Kyle to appreciate about Ava. “I think I’m caught up, except for Sophie’s gala.” A charity gala that kept inserting itself into his world.

  “That was my mom.” Ava shrugged. “She talked to Penny at the finalist party. Penny’s Place became an item on her agenda. Sophie loved it.”

  He wasn’t surprised. At the after-party, he’d peeked at Karen’s growing agenda. Everyone had suggestions for the charity event, even his sister. By then he’d been too busy trying to beat Ava at Ping-Pong to pay much attention to the conversation. He was paying attention now. “How can I help?”
>
  “Really?” Iris asked.

  “We can make it a family affair.” Kyle rolled up his shirt sleeves. “We’ll finish faster if we all help. And you need time to get ready for the Glass Violet opening.”

  “You still have my ticket?” Iris asked.

  “Right here.” Kyle tugged the invite from his shirt pocket. “You’ll be there?”

  “I wouldn’t miss it.” Iris tucked the invite into her apron pocket. “I helped Ava find a dress this afternoon at that vintage reseller I like.”

  That store just became one of Kyle’s favorites. Ava was breath-stealing in her black dress, stunning and classic and hardly subdued.

  “She might’ve found a dress for herself,” Ava added.

  Iris patted her apron pocket. “I thought I’d be here finishing up tonight, but I had hope that I’d make it.”

  Iris wasted no time putting Kyle and Ava to work. Finally, she agreed to leave Ava and Kyle alone to finish the last of the art room setup. She’d refused to leave until Kyle could repeat her instructions word for word. Fortunately, Ava remembered the details Kyle forgot.

  The paintings hung on the wall, the easels prepped and waiting, Ava pulled the front door to Penny’s Place closed. “I’m starving. Do you know the menu on the buffet tonight?”

  Kyle shoved his hands into his jacket pocket to keep from taking Ava’s hand. “Nothing was posted on their website.” Nothing had been posted about food allergies, either. In his rush to escape the quiet of his apartment, he’d forgotten to grab one of the protein bars Ava had left at his place. “I’m sure everything will be well-prepared and delicious.”

  “Wait.” Ava touched his arm. “You haven’t eaten at this restaurant before.”

  “That would’ve been impossible,” he said, trying to keep his voice light. “It’s just opening tonight.”

  Ava typed on her phone. Frustration rushed her words. “There are caprese pesto bites, macadamia-encrusted Mahi-Mahi and chocolate hazelnut truffles on the main menu. It’s like a nut house. You can’t eat there.”

  “But everyone else can.” And everyone was out of his apartment, including him. Not exactly how he’d envisioned things. He’d maneuvered the evening to ensure he had his apartment all to himself. Then that very emptiness he’d craved had chased him out of his own place early like a rodent infestation.