Page 92 of The Baby Dragon Cafe
Then, they were interrupted by a knock on the door. Aiden furrowed his brows, wondering who it could be.
He went to answer, turning on the lights of his cottage as he did. He opened the door, then blinked at who was there. It was Emmeline and Genevieve.
“Hello!” Emmy said.
“We’re here for dinner,” Ginny announced. “So you better have made something good.”
They walked past him, entering, then paused when they saw Saphira.
“Ooh, sorry,” Emmeline said. “I didn’t realize you had a hot date.”
“Yes,” Aiden replied, glaring. “So please go.”
“You’re the one who said to come over for dinner sometime,” Genevieve protested.
“Not today!” He tried to shoo them out the door, but Saphira put a hand on his arm.
“No, it’s fine, let them stay,” she said, smiling. He pulled her to the side.
“Are you sure?” he asked, voice low. “Because I can absolutely kick them out.”
“No, I like seeing you with them,” she said with a laugh. “Even when you’re being harassed by the women in your life, you’re very patient about it.”
He turned back to Emmeline and Genevieve. “Okay,fine, you guys can stay.”
“Please do!” Saphira added. “We can all have dinner together.”
“See, this is why you’re my fave,” Emmy said, wrapping an arm around Saphira.
“Team Saph for the win!” Ginny hugged Saphira’s other side. Even though Aiden was initially annoyed by the girls crashing, the sight of them with Saphira now made him surprisingly very happy.
He loved to see Saphira slotting easily into his life, like she was always meant to be there. It was as if he had spent his whole life saving a seat for her, even when he didn’t know who she was, and now she was finally here.
“So what did you make?” Emmeline asked.
“I’m starving,” Genevieve added.
“Anything I can help with?” Saphira asked, heading to the kitchen, but he stepped in front of her, blocking entry.
“No, no, this is a surprise,” he said, hands on her shoulders, turning her around. “You go sit.”
Saphira shrugged. “If you insist.”
Aiden turned to Emmeline: “Emmy, you can stay and help, though.”
“You got it, boss.”
Ginny went to sit with Saphira on the couch, and he threwhis sister a quick warning look to behave, while Emmeline went into the kitchen. She strayed to the stove, where she lifted the cover off the pot. Her face lit up when she saw what was inside.
“Oh my god?” She blinked, looking up at Aiden. “How did you make this?”
“Does it look okay?” he asked, worried.
It was a dish called kachnar gosht. Saphira had mentioned once that her favorite dish was a mutton curry made of flower buds. She hadn’t known what it was called, so it was difficult to find a recipe, but he had talked to Emmeline’s mother about it, and she had known right away what it was.
“It looks great,” Emmeline said. “Did my mom teach you?”
He nodded. “I watched her make it once, then practiced with her once, then practiced once on my own.”
