Page 76 of Property of Stone
Taryn shook her head at her crazy fantasy of possibly being the next Julia Child and, before hitting the record button, downed the rest of the coffee in her mug. Caffeine was sorely needed since her ass was already dragging from the lack of sleep. Maybe she’d take a quick nap once the kids were off to school, Stone was off to do whatever the hell he did, and before heading over to the ladies’ monthly tea.
Those ladies alone could be wearisome. But they were regular paying customers and tended to tip well, despite her telling them that tips were unnecessary.
“Okay, you can do this,” she whispered. “Nobody will be watching. It’s good practice.”
Giving herself a nod, she pushed the button to go live and began her demo. After briefly introducing herself, she explained slowly and clearly everything as she did it and the reasons why. As the minutes ticked by, she occasionally glanced at the number of watchers and tried not to show her shock.
Or her panic.
Holy shit!She already had fifty subscribers and over seventy-fivepeople watching!
Don’t hyperventilate.
Be professional. Don’t rush. Be thorough. Slip in a few tasteful jokes. Keep it fun. Nobody wants a stiff, awkward robot.
What she wasn’t expecting was the real-time comments. No surprise, some were downright rude. Asking her to take off her top. Telling her that her techniques were wrong. Even adding puking emojis because of the recipe she was making.
But she expected that from a social media site full of keyboard warriors. She doubted any of them would come to her in-person classes and be brave enough to say those same things to her face. She needed to learn to ignore the bad and concentrate on all the good. The compliments. The questions. The watchers who quickly subscribed to her channel.
This might actually work!
She’d have to thank Stone for the idea. She should thank him for the orgasms, too, but she didn’t want to ever speak of it again.
It could be a mistake easily forgotten. A once and done thing. Because she surely didn’t want to have sex with him again. Of course not. That would be foolish. And make things messy.
They had to coexist in this house. Work together for a common goal: taking care of the kids and keeping them safe.
“Spread the cream cheese evenly over the cucumber rounds and top with a small piece of salmon. Then sprinkle with dill or any of your favorite seasonings. And don’t forget the basics: salt and pepper!”
She did it! She got through the first dish. Yes, it was simple, and no, it wasn’t a cooked dish, but it had gone better than expected.
With a smile, she quickly scanned the comments to see ifshe needed to answer any more questions or clarify any of the steps before she logged off.
Looks delicious!
“Yes, I promise you this comboisdelicious! And the recipe is so simple and refreshing. It’s the perfect finger food for any gathering. Especially in the summer.”
Drooling!
I’d do that in a hot second!
Her smile widened. “I’m glad I could motivate you to make these!”
Yummy!
Give me a bite of that perfect peach.
Peach? This dish didn’t include peaches. It was cucumber, smoked salmon and?—
A noise made her spin around to see Stone sauntering through the kitchen wearing nothing but his very,verysnug boxer briefs.
Oh. My. God.
All his tattoos are on full display, as was his undeniable bulge.
No wonder her audience was going nuts. They weren’t making comments about her food, they were lusting over Stone in his damn underwear!
Suddenly, the temperature in the kitchen became as hot as if she’d been baking all day. Her cheeks were on fire.
