With that, Sawyer pulled out his phone and reached out to Louie.
~*~
“So, Bell,” Clementine said as the two of them jogged through the botanical gardens in the heart of Porto Castello, “care to fill me in on, well, anything? Since I snuck out of the study oh, about a week ago, I’ve heard nothing but crickets from you.”
Isabella was glad she wasn’t good at talking and running; this way she could keep the conversation clipped. “Yeah, well, it’s been a weird time.”
“Care to elaborate?”
“Not so much.”
“Like not even about what happened that night?”
Isabella shook her head and her ponytail trailed back and forth behind her.
“Well, I know you weren’t there in the morning.”
No response.
“And I also know you left a certain someone high and dry,” she said. “Who had to find his way out of my house in the morning without being spotted by prying eyes.”
Isabella looked at her sideways as they ran next to each other. “And?”
“I think you know my mother is up before the roosters start to crow.”
“Oh, crap,” she said.
“Crap is right,” Clem said. “It wasn’t good.”
Isabella spotted a park bench and steered them to it and sat down.
“Like wasn’t good in what way?”
“Well, Sawyer handled himself fine,” she said. “Excusing the fact that he was completely disheveled, right down to the spot on the crotch of his pants—my brother noticed that and kindly pointed it out to me.”
Isabella blushed.
“I’m not even going to ask about that one,” her friend said. “That bit is completely don’t ask, don’t tell. But then things got more complicated.”
“How much more so?”
“Well you know my mum. She’s as friendly as they come. I’m sure she offered a complete breakfast to poor Sawyer,” Clementine said. “And knowing Edouardo, he likely interrogated Sawyer as if he was a murder suspect.”
Isabella winced. “Poor guy.”
“Oh, honey, you don’t know the half of it.”
“What else could have happened?”
“So then, Freddo started out a little too enthusiastic about his friendship—”
“Yeah, well, that comes with the territory. It’s part of Freddo’s charm.”
“But then Sawyer accidentally stepped on his tail and Freddo turned around and bit him on his ankle.”
Isabella gasped, her mouth agape. “He bit Sawyer? Did it bleed?”
“Hell yes, it bled. My mum was appalled. She made Edouardo drive him straight to the hospital to have it taken care of. I’ve tried to get hold of him all week, and he won’t return my calls or texts. And you, well, you’ve been avoiding me it seems. So I’m completely in the dark! And you know how I hate that.”
“Oh, God, Sawyer was at the hospital,” she said. “I had no idea what he was doing there. It was so strange. I was having a perfectly lovely time of it reading to the children, and then this poor little girl had a seizure right in my lap. Things got a bit chaotic at that point, the parents rushed over, only for it to be that one baker from my party—”
“The big guy?”
Bella nodded. “So after his daughter Ava was okay and they’d gotten everything settled with the nurses and Ava was asleep, he came over to me and apologized for the bait-and-switch maneuver with the cake.”
“So it was he who pulled that trick?”
Bella nodded. “And here I was giving Sawyer such a hard time about it and this guy was trying to destroy his business. But then I felt so badly for this man. He told me he has no work, no money, he’s got this child who has been hospitalized and the doctors can’t figure out what is causing these seizures she keeps having. And his wife is furious with him. I feel like it’s my fault for screaming at Sawyer but I feel like it’s my fault that Sawyer fired this guy. I don’t know what to do about anything, so I’m just doing nothing.”
“I think I know exactly what you should do, Bell. Just leave it all up to me.”
~*~
Sawyer felt awkwardly nervous as the phone rang. Finally, Louie answered.
“It’s Sawyer. Sawyer Patterson,” he said.
Louie remained silent on the other end.
“Are you there?”
“Yes, I’m sorry. I did not know why you would want me at this point. It makes me worried why you call me.”
“So look,” he said. “When everything happened at that party, the princess screamed at me. It was kind of complicated because there was more to it than simply what happened that night. Only I didn’t know it at the time. And of course, I let you go because, well, what else would one do when an employee sabotages you? But then at some point, I ran into Isabella and for some reason, she chose to be kind to me rather than to hold her anger toward me. Which stuck with me: she had every reason in the world to continue with her threats to destroy my career here in Monaforte. But instead, she forgave me.”
“She is a good person.”
“Yes, she is,” Sawyer said, thinking about how good she was. Probably too good for him. “So the thing is, I’m having some problems and I need the help, and well, I was hoping you might consider returning to work with me.”
Louie was silent on the other end of the line for several seconds. “Huh,” he said. “Wow. That is the last thing I ever expected to hear. After all the time my wife Marie-Claire yelled at me that you would never take me back. And now I have found work elsewhere, so I have to decline your offer. I am sorry.”
Sawyer frowned. “I’m certainly sorry to hear that but glad for you that you’ve found steady work. Perhaps you can keep me in mind if things don’t work out for you.”
With that, he hung up the phone and softly banged his forehead against the counter.
Well, shit, that complicated things.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Clementine had an idea, but she had to clear it with Isabella first.
“So you can bring Louie in to help out at the palace,” she said. “Surely there is always a need for another sous chef there. You have a number of big events coming up at the palace. That way you don’t feel guilty, he’s got a paid job, all good.”
“Yes, but sometimes the kitchen staff just brings in extra catering companies to offset the additional cooking and food prep needed,” Isabella said. “I can’t see how I can just unilaterally bring in some strange baker.”
“Just tell your mother that you love a good pastry,” she said, laughing. “I know your father will be happy to have him.”
“Maybe this idea has merit,” she said. “Let me see what I can do to facilitate this, even if it’s just for the time being.”
What Clementine failed to mention to Isabella was that her mother Charlotte had lunch with the queen shortly after the dog-bite episode. And, as all mothers do, they shared gossip about their children. After all, Clementine had come by her romantic meddling ways honestly; her mother was practically a hall of famer in the matchmaking department, having successfully intervened to ensure the union of her son Darcy with his fiancée Caroline, the American best friend of Adrian’s wife. And since Clementine and Isabella were dear friends, well, that practically made Isabella one of Charlotte’s own children. Which meant she felt compelled to apprise the queen that her daughter needed a little push when it came to Sawyer.
Clementine’s mother told her that Ariana was appalled to hear that Isabella was shoving the poor boy away, but more so about her public displays of detestation over Sawyer. It was most unroyal for one of her children to behave in that way. And to then cause the poor fellow’s business to dry up? Unconscionable. That’s why Ariana felt the need to give a little nudge to Sawyer in hopes of helping Isabella come to her senses about him. After all, he was a prized baker. Who wouldn’t want to settle down with someone who will feed both your stomach and your soul?
~*~
Sawyer had an id
ea. Sure, he didn’t have his right-hand man, but he could certainly enlist some people to help, and there was one, in particular, who owed him big time. He just needed to get to him through someone else.
“I’m desperate,” he said to Gabriella when he called her. “I know I can count on you, but can you bring me some strong arms as well? I’m sure Edouardo wouldn’t capitulate to my plea, even though he does owe me, what with it being his miserable mutt that has me in this position, but I’m sure he’ll listen to anything you say.”
“Awww, Sawyer, of course I’ll help out,” Gabriella said. “I can’t promise I’ll be any good with anything. My mother long ago suggested a future in carryout for me, what with my failed kitchen skills.”
“No worries, there’s plenty to do that doesn’t involve actual cooking,” he said. “I know you’ll be great.”
“As for Edouardo, I’ll do my best,” she said. “He can be a bit prickly at times, but I might be able to work my wiles on the man.”
“Prickly would be an understatement,” Sawyer said. “More like the wide-open jaws of a great white shark.”
His friend laughed. “Edouardo’s a little kitty cat. Just give him a chance.”
“We’ll see how he does at this dinner party and then I’ll decide if I’m no longer in fear for my life around the man.”
~*~
“Yoo hoo,” Gabriella said as she arrived at the delivery entrance to the Royal Museum of Fine Arts, where the party was being held. “I’ve come with reinforcements.”
Beside her were Edouardo and Amelie, of all people.
Sawyer shook his head in amazement. “I’m honored to have you all here to help,” he said, walking gingerly on his foot as he escorted them into the service kitchen. He handed out aprons and quickly put them all to work with the rest of the staff. Throughout the course of the afternoon, they helped carry and move and chop and stir and plate food. It was a collaborative effort and by the time guests arrived, Amelie was finishing prepping the bars, slicing lemons and limes, stockpiling citrus peels, and skewering olives on toothpicks and such.
The room looked breathtaking: swaths of pastel-colored fabrics were draped from the corners of the ceiling across to opposite sides. The fabric shifted with the air currents in the large room to create an ethereal, romantic feel. Various spotlights of jewel-tone colors highlighted the draped garbs, and it all lent a festive atmosphere.
“What is this event?” Amelie asked Gabriella, who shrugged.
“Something to do with an appreciation dinner for top patrons of the museum, I think.”
“Well, they should feel appreciated, with all the trouble they’ve gone to in order to make this place so inviting. Though if it were up to me, the artwork in the place would have been decoration enough.”
Amelie and Gabriella were tasked with passing appetizers to attendees. Edouardo got to help bus dishes.
~*~
The event was running smoothly. Sawyer was so grateful for his last-minute assistants and pleasantly surprised at how willing Edouardo was to pitch in. Sawyer remained mostly in the kitchen, overseeing meal prep and plating and serving. He felt certain the night would go off without a hitch. Until, however, he saw none other than Isabella arrive with an unfamiliar man on her arm.
No wonder he’d heard nothing from her, he thought. The heartless witch had already moved on.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Isabella smiled as she chatted with many guests gathered around her at the party. She leaned over to her brother and thanked him for serving as her escort for the evening.
“If I had to go to one more of these things on my own, I think I’d have burst at the seams from boredom,” she said to Luca.
“No worries,” he said. “I was happy to get out and mingle for a while. Even if it is with my big sister who loves to tease me.”
She squeezed his cheek. “I wouldn’t ever tease you, my wittle baby brother,” she said in a baby-talk voice.
They both laughed at her remark because he knew she liked nothing better than to do so.
He’d just relayed a story to the director of the museum about how Isabella used to lock him in the bathroom so that she could nab his dessert after dinner at night.
“You’d think he’d learn after a few times,” she said, laughing as she remembered... until she noticed the woman handing her canapés and instead furrowed her brows.
“What the bloody hell is she doing here?” she whispered to her brother Luca.
He looked at the woman, who by then had moved along. “I haven’t a clue who she is. Is there a problem?”
“You’re damned right there’s a problem,” Isabella said. “She is a horrible, horrible person. Why would she be here unless she wanted to cause me more grief?”
“Bell, I’m afraid you’re going to need to be more succinct in your description,” Luca said. “Is she dangerous to you? If so, let me know immediately, because I’ll get our bodyguards to remove her from the premises.”
Isabella shook her head. “She’s not going to hurt me. Well, at least, I don’t think so. But I wouldn’t be surprised one bit if she planned to humiliate me. She seems to have a particular talent for it.”
It was then she caught sight of Sawyer, and she raced over to confront him.
“How dare you bring that woman here!” she said. “I thought you were better than that, Sawyer.”
“Listen,” he said, an imploring look in his eyes. “Isabella. Let me explain. It’s not what you think.”
“I think I’ve heard that very line before,” she said.
“I haven’t even been able to talk to you for over a week,” he said. “How could I have even let you know in advance? For that matter, I didn’t even know you were to be in attendance, let alone here with a new man.” He frowned toward Luca.
“So, all the more reason that you could fraternize with the likes of her,” she glanced in the direction of Amelie and glared. “It clearly is irrelevant to you that she is my enemy.”
“Princess,” he said. “Kitten!”
“Don’t kitten me,” she said.
“But you really don’t understand,” he said.
“I am not going to make another scene over you or your cohorts,” she said. “But do realize that by consorting with the likes of her, I’ll have nothing to do with you.”
Sawyer threw his hands up in frustration. “You know what, Princess? You could do everyone a favor if you’d stop leaping to conclusions and instead enter the world of facts. And if you knew the facts, I think you’d feel awfully foolish for your behavior right now. For that matter, maybe I did you a favor all those years ago sticking that vibrator in your backpack. Maybe I spared you years of enduring more insults. It may have taken that long before the others would have outgrown their bullying behavior. So you can say a simple thank-you to me rather than constantly wanting to hate me.”
She just glared at him.
“Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got work to do. Go off and enjoy your little boy toy over there.”
With that, Sawyer turned on his heels and walked away from the most infuriating woman he’d ever met—unfortunately, the very woman with whom he was falling in love.
~*~
“Sometimes, my dear friend, you would do yourself a favor to not pass judgment on things about which you know very little,” Clementine said the next day, trying to talk some sense into her friend. “I swear, I think you’ve caught whatever it is my brother Edouardo has. Hothead-itis, or whatever you’d call it. When did you start behaving so irrationally?”
Bella shook her head as she paced the floor of her private apartment in the palace. Now that they were grown, each of her siblings had their own separate quarters, all conveniently tucked away for the sake of privacy. Bella’s apartment was very warm and inviting, a mix of subtly placed animal prints with an Italian villa flair. The walls were painted a warm ochre, and artwork evoking the old-world charm of peasants working the Tuscan fields was strategically placed on th
e walls. The décor was coupled with a sense of fun as seen in the hooked zebra-print rug and the oversized zebra-and-leopard-print pillows scattered about the large white L-shaped sofa.
“I don’t know why it is, but somehow I just get crazy mad when it comes to that man and the things he does.”
Clementine smiled. “Passion does that to a person.”
Isabella glared at her. “Passion? I’ll show you passion. My passion for strangling the man with my bare hands, that is.”
“The lady doth protest a bit loudly, methinks.”
“Oh stop with the Shakespeare nonsense.”
Clementine laughed. “I suspect literary scholars wouldn’t appreciate your calling Shakespeare nonsense!”
“Good thing there are none here to bear witness, then.”
“Seriously, Isabella, you’ve got to pull yourself together. Maybe it’s time for you to admit that you have feelings for Sawyer.”
Isabella pursed her lips.
“You do know you look like a stubborn little girl when you do that.”
“So perhaps I’m entitled to be one. What business is it of yours?”
Clementine burst out laughing. “Now I know you’re joking,” she said. “Are you kidding? This has been completely my business from the get-go. I got this ball rolling and I will see it to its completion.”
“Well let’s just put a big hole in that ball and deflate the air. Then we can all call it a day.”
“Won’t you talk to him at the very least? I think Sawyer’s feeling a little desperate.”
“If he’s desperate, he can call on his new girlfriend. I’m sure she’ll give him what he wants.”
“I swear, I might have to resort to clubbing you over the head and dragging you to him.” Clementine cracked a smile. Not only at her little joke but also because suddenly she had an idea. If she couldn’t bring Mohammed to the mountain, then maybe she needed to bring the mountain to Mohammed.
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Throne for a Loop Page 12