“Patricia said Brent was boring in bed,” Trudy reported, grinning when Georgia glared.
“Yes, he’s terribly boring. That’s why the man married two more times after her.”
Trudy laughed. “What does that sarcasm mean?”
Georgia narrowed her eyes. “That there’s nothing wrong with the man… at all… anywhere.”
Trudy raised both hands. “Hell has officially frozen over. Georgia Bates is defending a man’s skills in bed.”
Jellica sighed. “How could she not? Brent’s very handsome. I could just look at him all day.”
“Yes. Brent is very handsome,” Ann agreed.
“Get your own guy to look at,” Georgia said gruffly, glaring at a still smiling Jellica. She turned to Ann. “You going to kick Cal to the curb?’
“Nope,” Ann said, holding out her hand. On it was a diamond solitaire. “I’m going to marry him. The man has a way with his tools.”
Trudy laughed. “And I thought Georgia was crazy. You’re actually going to marry again.”
“Why am I crazy? I’m not getting married. Hell’s only half frozen over in my life,” Georgia said, sipping her coffee.
“Guess you’re next to find romance,” Jellica said, looking at Trudy. “I had to put Mariah off until school’s out. The boys will be going to their grandparents for a couple months then. All I hear about from those two is cars, cars, cars. I’ll be lucky to afford one for them to share, much less two.”
Trudy laughed at Jellica’s complaining. She’d never had children nor wanted them. There were enough unloved people in the world. “I promised Mariah that I’d do her recording this week, but no one’s doing a makeover on me. I’m not putting makeup on for anyone who isn’t paying me to appear on a show. I can’t believe I’m actually considering it again.”
“Sounds like you have a job offer,” Georgia said.
Trudy huffed. “They want to me to guest spot on someone else’s show to jazz it up for him. I’d be on it once a week for just over three months. The money’s good… and it’s not like I’m doing anything else important.”
“I couldn’t tell a thing was different about those eggs Sunday. Maybe you need to do it for the inspiration.”
“Inspiration?” Trudy laughed. “Jack isn’t going to provide it.”
“Jack Dozen?” Jellica asked. “I love his show. Every week he does one day where everything he fixes is raw.”
“Any fool can cut vegetables, Jellica. That doesn’t make him a chef. And he’s younger than Ann’s boyfriend,” Trudy declared.
“No, he’s not. He’s about the same age as Cal. He’s in his forties. He just doesn’t look that old. And I wasn’t talking about his looks, Trudy… though he does come to my private celebrity yoga class on Saturday mornings. He’s in really great shape for a guy, but I guess he has to look good for TV.”
Trudy grunted. “Maybe he’s gay. And that could explain why he’s never been married.”
“Really? What's your reason? You’ve never married,” Georgia pointed out. “Are you secretly gay and afraid to tell us? Only open-minded souls are welcome at this table.”
“No. I just hate dating. I’ve thought about being gay, but I never got there because the idea of having sex with a woman is too much like doing everything to myself. Another woman might love the red room though. Thanks Georgia. Now I feel homophobic.”
“Speaking of your red room—your suit and tank top are at the cleaners. I’ll return them this week.”
“No rush. They want to call my appearances ‘Baker’s Dozen’ which is kitschy and stupid.”
“I think it’s cute,” Ann said.
“Me too,” Jellica added. “Are you going to cook together?”
“No,” Trudy said. “We’re supposed to bake.”
“Baking. Sounds very hot,” Georgia teased.
Trudy chuckled. “Ha. Ha. Brent has not made you funnier.”
“No,” Georgia said, smiling at the women at the table. “But he has made me happy. Feel free to gloat.”
After their laughter subsided, Jellica clapped. “Yay, I can’t wait for my turn.”
Georgia laughed. “No, Trudy goes next. You’ll live longer than she will.”
“Okay. I’ll wait,” Jellica said innocently, missing the nuance.
Ann touched Jellica’s arm. “Honey… Georgia was making a joke about Trudy’s age.”
Jellica worried her bottom lip with her teeth. “Well, Trudy is older than me. I thought Georgia was being serious.”
Trudy picked up a chocolate croissant and threw it at Georgia who was laughing too hard to dodge it.
— The End —
Note From The Author
Thank you for reading Never A Dull Moment!
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~ Donna McDonald
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Excerpt: Never Ever Satisfied
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Chapter One
Trudy walked alongside one of the TV station’s poorly paid interns. The girl was probably only working for college credit. She was proud of herself for not complaining or asking why she hadn’t been met by the producer.
Her mood worsened though as they neared Luke’s office and she heard two male voices raised in argument. It didn’t take much to figure out the problem since she heard Luke calmly repeating her name over and over.
She couldn’t bring herself to smile at the nervous girl, but she did nod when the barely twenty-something left her and sprinted back the way they’d come. She stared at the door and suddenly felt too bone weary to face the challenge inside.
Why was she here again? Oh, yes… her old producer, and the station, had offered her gobs of money and something creatively interesting to do for three months. Of course it was also potentially explosive, but the producers didn’t know that part of the story…
Her snarky friend’s comments about her lackluster breakfast eggs had been enough to keep her out of both her own restaurants for a couple weeks now. She’d perfected the food they served years ago. They just needed to rotate the menus more so customers didn’t get bored. Sometimes her involvement only made things worse which made her feel useless. That kind of feeling always irritated her and left her at loose ends. Hence the reason she was considering this ridiculous offer.
Not bothering to knock, Trudy opened the already cracked door wide enough to enter. The older, bearded man behind the desk looked vastly relieved to see her. The handsome man standing with his arms crossed looked like he’d shoot her if someone handed him a gun.
That realization brought a real smile to her face for the first time all day. Apathy would have been worse to face after all this time. Jack Dozen’s resentment of her appearing on his show cranked the entertainment value of this gig up by a factor of ten for her. They just had to settle a bit of old business first.
She gave Luke a big smile. “Hello, Lucas. Been a long time.”
“Too long,” Luke said, getting up to come around and give her a hug. “Thanks for coming by.”
Trudy hugged back, grunting as Luke squeezed her. She ignored the glare Jack was giving her over Luke’s shoulder, mostly because she didn’t care about the younger chef’s opinion. In her fifteen years on the air, she’d suffered frequently from the venomous attitudes of co-hosts, guests, and even audience members.
Jack’s frown? It didn’t even phase her. A big part of her was still—and would always be—Chef Trudy Baker.
She focuse
d on Luke, keeping one hand on his arm. “The contract’s out to my lawyer, but Rod will have it back to me in a couple days. I didn’t see any big problems with it. That’s why I came in when you asked.”
“Good. Good,” Luke said, rubbing his beard. He lifted a hand and pointed. “You remember Jack Dozen, don’t you?”
Trudy turned, lifted an eyebrow. “Yes, I do. Hello, Jack. Good to see you again.” She smiled, knowing he couldn’t ignore her pleasantries without looking like an eccentric asshole.
His mouth twisted into a grimace before he spoke. “Chef Baker.”
Trudy smiled at hearing him say her title, even if it was said with a very sarcastic tone.
“Afraid to share the limelight with me?” she asked, going straight for Jack’s celebrity balls. Guesting was never going to work if the star of the show was resentful. “I thought every student dreamed of getting a chance to show up their old teacher.”
Jack snorted. “That’s a rather subtle dig.”
“Was it?” Trudy asked. “I didn’t mean for it to be subtle. I meant for it to be blunt.”
“Right. I forgot who I was talking to for a moment.”
Jack had been a student of hers. She’d criticized something he’d made and Jack had walked out of her class—never to return. Such things happened with students all the time.
But Jack had taken it far more personally. And unfortunately so had she.
He’d been flirting with her and she’d had to nip his flirting off before the attention ruined her reputation. He’d deserved the criticism. He knew it too. She’d waited two damn weeks for him to make the kind of mistake she could fault him for. Chef Dozen was good in the kitchen—not as good as her—but he had talent and the loyal following of modern women like her friend, Jellica.
Jack had been younger back then, but no better looking. He had intense black eyes hinting at an Asian heritage somewhere in his gene pool and a smooth Roman jaw made for stroking. The hair on his head was still solid black and his body was still leanly muscled. He was aging slowly and well.
His career in TV should be evolving into something a lot bigger than Cincinnati. Instead, his show was floundering.
She was fairly sure she knew why.
Trudy walked over to stand in front of the glaring man. She crossed her arms to mirror Jack’s body language, as she met and held his accusatory gaze. She wasn’t sure about his inexperience any longer, but she was very sure of her increased maturity.
“Don’t let boredom cost you your career. Don’t let pride keep you from using the publicity I can bring your show. I realize it’s three months of your life and dealing with me again, but Luke’s idea will work for you. I have no intention of coming back, if that’s what worries you. My attorney is putting the limitation in the contract even as we speak.”
Jack uttered a grunt, shook his head, and then glared across the room at his producer. “Three shows only—not three months. If fans don’t respond, I want her gone… or I’ll go.”
“I’m still in the room, Jack. It’s not good to insult your guest host while she’s listening.”
His glare turned her way. “You know I don’t want this and you know why. You’re still as much a hard-ass as you ever were.”
Trudy shrugged. “What lovely things you think of me. Do you think you’re the first chef I’ve ever come across who couldn’t handle seeing me as anything other than competition? You’re not the first, Jack. Probably won’t be the last either. So chef up and let’s do this…”
Shaking his head, Jack stomped passed her and slammed open the office door to escape. It bounced off the hallway wall, making a dramatically loud sound. When Luke rubbed his beard again and stared at the now open door, Trudy chuckled at the tense expression on his face.
“Jack’s the calmest person around here. He wouldn’t give me any good reason, but he’s been in my office for two hours trying to talk me out of doing this feature. What the hell did you ever do to him?”
Trudy snorted. “If he won’t tell you, why would I?”
“Because we’re friends?” Luke suggested.
That weak plea made her laugh again. “We’re not real friends, Luke. We’re business partners. Only you didn’t tell him that, did you?”
“No. You told me never to tell him, so I never have. All this time, I thought it was just because he studied under you. Now I can see Jack would never have taken this job if he knew you were one of the money people. Would he?”
Trudy slowly shook her head. “No. He probably wouldn’t have.”
“Is there some bad history between you that could erupt on the show?”
What could she say? That she’d once ignored a sexual pull to a man she’d thought to be too green about life in about fifty different ways? She’d all but forgotten why he hated her. Apparently, Jack hadn’t forgotten anything. Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea.
“How badly is Jack’s show doing?”
Luke went back to sit behind the desk. “They’re talking about moving him to a graveyard time slot. You know what that means.”
Trudy drew in a breath and blew it out again. “There’s not enough history between me and Jack to let him fail that badly. Jack’s talented, good-looking, and has good ideas. He has the whole package, Luke. It’s tough to stay excited week after week. That’s all that’s wrong with Jack’s show.”
“I knew it. I knew it. There’s a vibe there. You like him,” Luke concluded, shaking his finger at her.
“Hard to like someone when he’s always being a shit,” Trudy replied smoothly.
She shrugged off her profanity when Luke chuckled. She didn’t dislike Jack. Wasn’t that nearly the same thing?
“There’s no vibe, but I’m willing to tolerate Jack for the sake of the show succeeding. My business needs the tax write-off of sponsoring it.”
Luke chuckled again. “Can I tell Jack that he’s nothing but a tax write-off to you? That would remove any question in his mind of your presence here being something personal.”
Trudy sighed. “No. I… ”
She stopped, looking for an excuse not to go that far, but she didn’t have one other than she didn’t want to hurt Jack anymore than she already had.
“Tell Jack nothing. Just help me handle these first few shows of ‘Baker’s Dozen’ so I don’t have to use my knives on him.”
“Like you’d go after Jack with knives…” Luke said, grinning from ear-to-ear. “I just watched you eviscerate him with cold words and an uncaring stare.”
Knowing Luke’s observation was more true than she’d like to admit to herself, Trudy sighed and turned to leave.
“I haven’t been that close to Jack Dozen since the day he walked out of my cooking class. That was over fifteen years ago, Luke. We just need to get over our little emotional… bump. Things will get more friendly between us. You’ll see.”
My words held more conviction than I felt, but my mind was now made up. Jack would have deal with me. Together we would save his show.
It was about to get hot in the kitchen. Hopefully both of us could handle the heat.
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Excerpt: The Wrong Todd
What is the craziest favor you would do for a friend?
Book Description
What is the craziest thing you would be willing to do for a friend?
After winning her bid at the bachelor auction, Sabine vows she is never doing another embarrassing favor for a friend. This is especially true for favors that involve spending large sums of money and buying men whose last names she doesn't even know.
In twenty bachelors, Sabine maybe expected to find several Davids, Mikes, or Johns. But what were the odds of two Todds?
And now what is she going to do on a very expensive date with the wrong one?
www.donnamcdonaldauthor.com
Chapter One
Though she hadn’t openly flirted with a good-looking man in a
long time, Sabine smiled at the one smiling back at her. Then as casually as she could, she turned her attention back to her emergency phone call.
“So here’s the deal. There’s a cute guy sitting across from me just out of earshot. He smiles every time he catches me chair dancing to the canned music they’re playing. Should I go over and say hello? Do women get to do that now?”
“Depends, babe. How old is he?”
Joe’s excessively loud demand vibrated her eardrum and had her holding the phone away from her head. She glared before pulling it back, but didn’t press it against her head again.
“Stop yelling, Joe. There’s no crowd here.”
Glancing at the guy, Sabine saw him smile into his coffee. She hoped she was right about him not hearing her conversation. This could get embarrassing fast.
“It’s hard to tell how old he is, but he’s definitely not a kid. Judging by his clothes, he went to work today. But then what do I know? I haven’t dated in over a decade. Maybe he’s hanging out and hoping to pick up chicks,” Sabine reported.
Her description elicited a snarky male chuckle. The phone ended up on her shoulder again as she listened to Joe’s rumbling baritone as he lectured her.
“Listen to me to me carefully, Sabine. If he’s as young as the others you’ve been scoping out lately, they’re hotties or babes to him, not chicks. Saying ‘chicks’ automatically means you’re way too old to talk to him.”
Sabine laughed at the critique. “Point noted . . . oh shoot. Never mind. Some teenage girl in a microscopic skirt just came in and sat down with him. My left leg is larger in circumference than her entire body. I’m hanging up now so I can cry in my coffee.”
Never A Dull Moment Page 13
