Fire In the Kitchen

by Donna Allen

  Cooking heaven.

  How could he ever have thought her appearance was merely attractive?

  She was beautiful.

  The smell of sautéing mushrooms, onion, and garlic made his mouth water. How could those ingredients go with coffee? Or was she going to serve that afterward?

  She started doing things with the ingredients and the coffee machine he’d never seen anyone do in combination before. The rude conversations about her ceased. As though she were a spaceship landing in the middle of the studio, everyone, including the judges, watched her intently. Her cooking style was as unique as her personality.

  She was a gourmet enigma.

  Chapter 9

  Cassidy wondered where the fifteen minutes had gone. Juggling her internal mantras to breathe through it had unnerved her—remember all the ingredients, try to forget how good Dante was with his starter—until she’d started cooking. After that, she was the only person in the room and she enjoyed what she was doing.

  Dante defending her had been appreciated, but awkward. She didn’t want any special favors. She looked at the mess she’d created.

  Oops, hope they don’t deduct marks for a sloppy counter.

  She was proud. She’d soldiered on, surrendering to her dish instead of everyone’s negativity.

  She placed a delicate offering in front of each judge. The cream foamed on top, and she’d sprinkled it with grated truffle to make it look like chocolate. Each one looked like a babycino in a shot glass. But her invention was anything but a child’s drink—it was a sophisticated flavor explosion.

  “Please explain what you’ve cooked for us today, Cassidy,” the older judge said, sitting back in his chair and settling his hands on his large stomach.

  “A foaming mushroom shot.”

  She gave them a genuine smile. It didn’t matter if they liked it or not, she knew she’d done the best she could. “For the best effect, you need to drink all the contents at once, like a shooter.”

  The four judges picked up their glasses and swirled the contents around. Each took a long sniff and then swallowed it in one shot, as suggested. They looked at each other with indescribable expressions. It was either really, really good, or really, really bad.

  Darn these cooking show judges.

  The thin female judge picked up a teaspoon and scraped out as much of the leftover truffle cream as she could. Then, as if it had not been enough to satisfy her, she put her finger in it and licked it. She closed her eyes and groaned.

  “Extraordinary,” she said.

  “Amazing.” The redheaded host from hell had tasted one as well, and now had angel wings.

  “You’re in,” the judges said in unison.

  “What do you mean?” Cassidy’s mind whirled.

  “You’ve made it to the next stage. Congratulations.”

  Cassidy whooped and punched her hands in the air, as though she’d just won a fight in a boxing ring. Kitchen staff shook their heads as they worked quickly to clean up her mess before the next audition.

  “Thank you, thank you, thank you.” She shook the hands of the judges and the kitchen staff and plastered a kiss on the cheek of the man behind the camera.

  Cassidy learned it was the last night she had before lockdown. She had to go home and pack her bags with enough clothes to last a couple of weeks, just in case. At this point she was so proud of her achievement, she was happy just to have made it through the first stage.

  Unable to restrain herself, she skipped out of the studio and into the car park, where she allowed the rain to fall freely on her face.

  “Woo hooooo,” she yelled to the sky and did a rain dance. Who cared what anyone else thought?

  She stopped what she was doing when a car pulled up beside her. It was Dante. Her feel-good hormones went up another notch. He lowered his window to speak to her.

  “Looks like our day got significantly better,” he called out.

  “Significantly.” Cassidy’s laugh was uninhibited. “Unbelievably. Unreal-ly…Is unreal-ly a word?”

  “It is now.” He laughed back. “How are you planning to get back to your car?”

  “I’m going to fly.” She flapped her arms like wings. “Care to join me?”

  He leaned over and pushed open the passenger door. His lips twitched. “Get in.”

  Cassidy considered his invitation. “I think I’ll savor the moment and walk a while and then catch a bus back to the car. Thanks anyway.”

  “Good luck, Cassidy Summers,” Dante said as he pulled the door shut. He waved as he drove into the street, and Cassidy checked to see if he’d look back at her in his rearview mirror.

  He did.

  Chapter 10

  The late morning breeze prompted Cassidy to pull her vivid purple scarf tighter around her neck. She stood at the entrance of the building that could be her home for the next few weeks. The large structure had been purpose-built in an exclusive area, the interesting curved architecture designed to be a talking point before people even went inside. She looked at the focal point of the water feature, a metallic sculpture made of two oversized letter Cs. One of them was reversed, so the pair of them together formed a disjointed letter O. She thought it was clever and visually stunning, accentuating the higher caliber of her fellow competitors. She could only pretend for so long she wasn’t out of her depth in such a distinguished competition.

  The fountain was the centerpiece of a beautiful garden. The curved building shaped like a half moon surrounding it added to its aesthetic appeal. She watched the water shooting skyward through the center of the letters, enjoying the rippling effect when it cascaded down their sides into the pond below. She looked from left to right and then produced a gold coin from her pocket. She felt like she was entering the cooking Olympics, so she clasped her hands to her chest and wished for gold as she dropped the coin into the water.

  She felt excited, nervous, ready to pop. She wanted to do somersaults on the perfectly kept lawn, but that could come later, if she made it through the next stage. And she’d consider wearing trousers for it, instead of her pink, yellow, and green flowing dress.

  A deep voice interrupted her thoughts.

  “Have you ever seen a garden like it?”

  Dante. A small thrill went up and down her spine. She savored the sensation before turning around.

  It wasn’t Dante.

  But he was damn close. This man was tall, dark, and hot, hot, hot.

  “It’s gorgeous.”

  She looked around, taking the entire garden in as a distraction, and then returned her attention to him.

  “Gorgeous,” he repeated, his eyes fixed on hers, “like you are, Cassidy Summers.”

  “Sorry, have we met? How do you know my name?” He was too familiar, too soon. He was no longer hot, he was tepid at best.

  “We haven’t been introduced, but I’ve heard all about you from my fellow competitors. You’ve intrigued us all.”

  “In a good way, I hope.” Cassidy fiddled with her bracelet. The charms jingled. “You remind me of another chef in the competition.”

  “Perhaps you mean another chef reminds you of me?” He squeezed her forearm playfully, but the game was one-sided. “My name is Carlos Cristiani.”

  Cassidy dislodged his hand as tactfully as she could and leaned back to create some distance.

  “You’re Dante Cristiani’s brother?”

  He squinted as he stroked his throat.

  “Cousin.”

  Cassidy’s mind drifted to the man who’d gotten her to the audition with no time to spare. This man seemed to be in his shadow, and judging by the workout the nerve in the front of his neck was getting, he thought so, too. She broke eye contact and walked away to inspect a prickly pear plant, hoping Carlos wouldn’t follow, but he did.

  The recent transition from winter to spring had welcomed a row of flowering fruit trees. Cassidy admired the floral backdrop and the bouquet of the fruit blossom, reading the labels as she neared them: red flowerin
g quince, ornamental pears, amber jewel plums, Tahiti lime tree.

  Ignoring Carlos hadn’t helped. He spoke to her as if silent minutes hadn’t passed.

  “Everything planted here is functional.” He picked a lime leaf and rolled it in his hand, releasing the oil and gently waving it under her nose.

  “Very nice,” Cassidy replied. She felt her body tense. If he got closer again, she’d have to speak up.

  “They’re going to encourage us to use whatever’s here for our challenges,” he said.

  “Can’t wait.” Cassidy felt the thrill of the competition returning and decided to ignore his unrequited attention. “I’ve already heard about the herb and vegetable gardens. I’ll check them out after I’ve settled in.”

  He put the crook of his arm out to her, nodding toward the entrance. She forced a cough and put her hand over her mouth to smother it.

  “Excuse me,” she said, smiling inwardly as his arm dropped back to his side.

  There was a quality about Carlos she couldn’t define. It was as though he was trying too hard to be liked, while attempting to hide his various shades of gray.

  “Nice to meet you, Carlos. I guess I’d better find out where I’ll be sleeping.”

  “I’ll walk you over there,” he said. This time he didn’t offer physical contact.

  As they walked through the main entrance, Cassidy saw the same woman working the desk who’d been the registrar the day before. She waved to her, but Pearl didn’t appear to notice. Between Cassidy and the desk were several men with loud voices to match their confidence. Cassidy knew the dynamics would change when they saw her, so she stood back to absorb what she was up against. Carlos stood beside her and feigned interest in an oversized picture of a garlic bulb.

  “There’s thirty of us,” an overweight chef announced. “Pretty good odds.”

  “Heard that could be seriously culled by the end of the week. Harsh judges.”

  “Where’d you hear that?”

  “Around.”

  “There are two of us to a room.”

  “Johno snores.”

  “I bags shacking up with Blondie.”

  “That’s all she’ll be good for.”

  “You’ve got to admit, she’s pretty inviting.”

  “Can’t believe the judges chose her, though. I thought this was a serious competition.”

  Cassidy coughed loudly and the lobby went silent. Considering she was the only blonde female in the competition, she knew they were talking about her. They weren’t worth it, she thought. Without missing a beat, she held her head high and deliberately walked through the group instead of around them.

  “What’s cookin’, guys?” she said. “Sautéed egos?”

  The few steps she walked toward the reception desk seemed to cover a few miles. She grasped the desk to steady herself and her nerves and smiled weakly at the registrar.

  “I’d like to go to my room ASAP, and please please tell me I don’t have to share with any of those Neanderthals, or it won’t be pretty.”

  Pearl pursed her lips.

  “It’s not going to get any easier, you know. Toughen up.” She handed her a large envelope. “You’re in room 12E, which is a single room. You’re lucky, the other dozen girls opted to share. Please read the information carefully. It contains your schedule and, more importantly, the rules you must adhere to.”

  “What sort of rules?” Cassidy scrunched up her nose and opened the flap to glance inside. “Please don’t tell me I have a bedtime. That would be just too disgusting.”

  “It’s all in the envelope, but I do believe you have to get up at five most mornings, so that should dictate what time you go to bed, if you’re sensible.” She pushed her glasses down her nose and looked at Cassidy. “Mary Poppins isn’t going to tell you when that should be, so don’t blow it.”

  “Yes, boss.” Cassidy held her hands in a praying position. “I seem to be outnumbered and in need of some non-competitive company to keep me sane. Wanna catch up for coffee later? I do a great macchiato.”

  “And that would really put you to sleep, wouldn’t it? I’m not allowed to socialize with the contestants, so thank you but no.” Pearl pursed her lips. “Most of those chefs enjoy receiving praise, so if you don’t want to be alone through this, just tell them how fantastic you think they all are. Fake it to make it.”

  “Not my style.”

  Cassidy saw the glint in the older woman’s eyes and knew there was more to come.

  “Well, it’s either that, or the promoters have given you all butcher knives as welcoming gifts,” she whispered. “You could use them early.”

  “Thanks, Pearl, that sounds more like it. I’ve brought a few of my own—even sharper than their supposed wit.”

  The woman wrote something on a notepad, tore the sheet off, and folded it twice before handing it over. “I forgot to include one last piece of information in your pack. Read it later. Your room is up the stairs, third floor, second door on the left. Now get out of here, missy, I’ve got work to do.”

  Cassidy went back to the entrance for her heavy suitcase, delivered by her future stepfather when he’d dropped her off. She pulled it to the staircase and looked up, wondering if there was a lift she could use instead of dragging it up one long step at a time. If there wasn’t an elevator, the stairs were going to become her torment, along with the delightful chefs behind her. She put down her bags, unfolded the note Pearl had given her and read it.

  Don’t let the bastards get you down.

  *

  Whenever Dante was near Cassidy, he felt a protective pull. He wanted to look after her, but she’d already made it clear she didn’t need a caretaker. He stood unnoticed and watched the scene before him. He’d heard what they’d said about her and had been about to join them to defend her, but he’d seen she didn’t need his help. She’d spoken to the chefs with such a pleasant tone, he was sure her insult had gone over some of their heads. Creative cooking wasn’t her only talent.

  His cousin Carlos was taking center stage for all the wrong reasons. He was bragging about his latest challenge that had a name. Cassidy.

  Dante saw her dragging her suitcase up the stairs, so heavy it must have contained a hundred cookbooks. He made his way toward the stairs to assist her when Carlos saw what he was about to do.

  “Cassidy.” Carlos’ loud voice carried far. “Want to catch up some more later? Just you and me?”

  Cassidy took a few more steps and turned. Dante felt a whoosh of sunshine spread through his body. She had something over him, around him, and inside him that wasn’t going to go away.

  “I think I’m going to be a while,” she called back. “Maybe some other time.” Her voice had a hesitant edge.

  “Need a hand?” Carlos passed Dante to the base of the stairs and held onto the end of the banister.

  “No thanks, I’m good.”

  She made her way up the first flight, her suitcase thumping down hard on every step. At last, she reached the top of the first set and pulled her case around a corner and out of everyone’s view. The sound of the banging suitcase started up again and Dante realized she must have reached the second set of stairs. The sounds became further and further apart, the gutsy lady had obviously let her guard down once out of sight and was moving up the rest of the stairs at a slower pace.

  “I’ll catch up with you, young lady, after lights out,” Carlos said for the benefit of his male audience, knowing she would be out of earshot. They patted him on the back and continued to make derogatory comments about her.

  Dante ignored them and turned around to walk to the registration desk.

  “Good morning, Pearl. Nice to see a delightful face in an unattractive crowd.”

  “Why, Dante, you’re a pleasure for my old eyes.” She put out her hand and Dante dutifully kissed it before she retrieved it. “Aren’t they horrible?”

  He leaned over and spoke conspiratorially, “Only when off-camera. You’re looking lovely as ever.”
>
  Pearl laughed a long, raspy laugh, suggesting she may have been a chain smoker in her day. “Just say the word and I’ll divorce George,” she said. “We’ve only been together for forty years, he won’t notice.”

  Dante smiled. “Do you have my cell key? And who are my inmates?”

  “Oh, Dante, you are terrible.” Pearl smoothed back her tinted blue hairdo. “We’ve done it in alphabetical order to avoid complications.”

  “Does that mean I’m sharing with my cousin?”

  Pearl looked at her clipboard. “Sure does. He hasn’t checked in yet. He’s too busy making a fool of himself.”

  Dante frowned. “He has a habit of eating foods that…er…don’t agree with him, if you get my gist. He can get a bit noisy at night. Any chance of…”

  “How disgusting.” Pearl shook her head. “I can’t help you with that I’m afraid. It came from up above, from what I’ve heard. Maybe it wasn’t a random decision after all.”

  “Don’t let the truth get in the way of good ratings?”

  “Something like that.”

  “Um, can you tell me what room Cassidy Summers is in?”

  Pearl’s rasping laugh returned. “Ah,” she said. “I’ve been traded in for a younger model. She’s on the top floor like you, but on the opposite side of the building. Let me see.” She pointed to the rooms on the floor plan. “You are on the other end of the building. If you look out your window, because the building is curved, you should be directly opposite and able to wave to her.”

  Dante thanked her and collected his information pack. He turned toward the staircase and almost bumped into his cousin because he was standing so close.

  Eavesdropper.

  Carlos crossed his arms.

  “So glad you could join us. Not. This competition’s a bit below your league, isn’t it? Couldn’t stand to let me have this one simple thing?”

  “You threw down the gauntlet,” Dante said, feeling the vein in his neck start to throb. “All I’m trying to do is repair what you broke.”

  “Can’t stand for me to be in the spotlight?” Carlos replied. “Wouldn’t want me to shine without you?”