Page 33 of Bella Rosa
She laughs and puts down the knife so she can put her hands on her hips. "I never said I could cook! I'm good at eating the food, not making it." I take a step toward her and her eyes go big. She snatches the knife from the cutting board so she can hold it hostage. "No. I'm going to finish this. I promise I can do it."
I don't say a word as I come to her and spin her so she's facing the counter. I step behind her and push my hips up against hers. Her breath catches as I push her hair to the side and run my nose along the side of her neck. I run one hand down from her neck to take control of her hand that's holding the knife. "I know you can do it, Rosa. Let me show you the proper technique so you don't cut yourself."
I take her other hand and show her how to position it. Then I show her how to move the knife. After she gets a good rhythm going, I let go. "There. Now you're a pro." I walk back around to the stove and situate myself in my pants once again. This woman.
I take one last glance at her before I begin working on the bacon. I prepared the soup base before I left this morning so the flavor would be just right for tonight. All that's left to do is prepare the bacon and the vegetables. That shouldn't take us more than thirty minutes or so.
One look at her face and I can see she is concentrating on what she’s doing. "What do you want the name of your new restaurant to be?"
I turn the stove on to begin warming up before I walk to the fridge to retrieve the soup base and the bacon. "I don't know to be honest."
She never looks up from the cutting board as she speaks. "So it won't be Moretti's?"
I shake my head and laugh. "No. This restaurant will be mine. I want my dad's input and his support, but I want to be the one making all the decisions." The soup base starts to warm up as I slice the bacon. My hands feel like they are on autopilot from the years of similar motions.
I glance over my shoulder to check on her. She has almost all the vegetables cut in the time it took me to put everything on the stove. I go over to the island and lean on my forearms to get a better look. I expected to see junior chef level work, but I am pleasantly surprised. "You're a natural."
My new favorite shade of pink takes over her cheeks. "I enjoy knitting sometimes, so I guess that means I'm good with my hands." She lays her knife down and looks up at me expectantly. "Now what can I do?"
I push away from the counter to check on the stove. After taking inventory of what's left to be done I give her a few options. "Do you want to cut the holes in the bread to make bowls or do you want to tend to the bacon and vegetables?"
She gets another big smile on her face. "Bacon. Definitely bacon."
I smile as I step to the side to make room for her in front of the stove. She steps in front of me and begins inspecting her new work station. I hand her a wooden spatula. "You can use the spatula to scrape the vegetables into the pan with the bacon. We'll transfer everything in with the soup base after it's all cooked."
She gently slides the vegetables into the pan and begins stirring them all together. I come up behind her closer than is necessary. "Do you want me to show you how to flip a skillet?"
Confusion takes over her face. "Why would I flip it?"
I shake my head and laugh. "Not flip it over. That's what we call this." I take the pan and quickly move it back and forth on the stove. This causes the contents to be suspended midair and land softly back in the pan. "This is the most effective way to stir and keep the food from burning on the bottom.
Another smile lights up her face. "Can I try?"
I nod my head as I hand the pan back over. "Just be careful not to lift the skillet up off the stove. That could cause food to fly everywhere."
She moves timidly at first, then slowly gains more confidence until she finally gets her first flip. She lets go of the pan and does a victory dance while shouting, "I did it!"
I can't contain the smile on my face. "You did so well, Rosa."
21
Not a Chance in Hell
Matteo
Shesetsthetableas I plate our food, then she sits and I place her plate in front of her. She watches intensely as I take my seat and pick up my fork. I can't help but notice she doesn't get her phone out like normal. "No photos of the food tonight?"
She shakes her head, a smile on her face. "No. This one is just for me." She finally breaks eye contact to try her food. She moans when she takes her first bite and I clinch the fork in my hand and close my eyes to keep from exploding in my pants. Oblivious to my discomfort she says, "This is amazing! I could write an entire spread for food like this!"
I open my eyes to look at her with a beaming smile on my face. "I'm glad you like it." I don't know when her opinion became so important to me, but it definitely is.
She pinches off a small piece of bread so she can dip it into the soup. After she plops it in her mouth, she looks up to catch me watching her. Another blush creeps across her face. "You're staring."
I nod my head. "I am."
She tilts her head to the side. "Why?"
"Because you're mesmerizing."
