Part 13 (1/2)
”That's so amazing,” I whispered. ”I was worried I hadn't done enough.”
Kai broke through. ”Carol Channing. Or is she dead, too?”
”So, here's the thing,” Avery said, and I leaned in to hear his lowered voice. ”They are having a private party at their new house outside the city next week. And they want us to cook.”
Kai kept guessing. ”I can't believe I didn't say this before. Of course. Mario Batali.”
I could hear Kai evaluating his most recent theory, but I was too distracted to respond. All I could think about were the promises I'd made myself on the plane from Seattle to New York; how I'd told everyone-Carlo, Manda, even my mother-my singular goal with this cross-country move was to put myself in the position to be a recognized pastry chef. Kai's voice seemed suddenly distant, our little game something that was charming and sweet but that would also have to wait. I cleared my throat and took my hand off the phone. ”Kai, I'm sorry, but I think I'd better go.”
”Too close to the truth?” he asked, sounding victorious. ”Can't hold your tongue any longer, eh? I knew it was Batali. Wow, I can't imagine having him stop into my restaurant. Did you freak out?”
”No,” I said, hurriedly. ”I mean, yes. I'm a little freaked out. But it wasn't Batali. And I can't really say any more.”
”Oh,” he said, subdued. ”All right. I get it. What happens at Thrill stays at Thrill, right?” The bitterness in his tone was unmistakable and sudden.
I bristled. ”That's not fair. You know I'm in a tough spot here.”
He exhaled long. ”You are. That's true. We both are.”
We were quiet a beat, and I saw Avery do a little twirl with his fingers, prodding me to wrap it up.
”Listen,” Kai said, more gently, ”maybe discussions like this aren't best on the phone and after midnight. Let's shelve it and talk tomorrow. Sound good?”
”Sounds really good,” I said, already letting my finger creep around to end the call. ”Sleep well,” I said and hung up while Kai's goodnight still sounded in the quiet air.
”They want us?” I turned fully to Avery and felt my eyes widen at the thought of such a personal request. ”Don't they have their own chef?”
Avery shrugged. ”Probably. But when you're that rich and famous, you don't need to get bogged down by little details like loyalty. They are having about seventy people, they said. The party is at their house in Medina. The place was in Architectural Digest last month, Charlie! They play backyard bocce with their neighbors, Bill and Melinda Gates! This is huge!”
He didn't need to tell me that, of course. We'd had our fair share of celebrities popping into L'Ombre when I lived in New York, and they always received undivided attention and set Alain into a dither every time. But the end of the meal was always the end of the relations.h.i.+p. n.o.body had ever asked Alain and Felix over for a playdate.
I felt a quickening in my pulse that pushed aside the clouds of my exhaustion.
”Well, come on, then. Let's talk menu.” I grinned at him. ”I'm never going to fall asleep now.”
He grinned back. ”Who says workaholics don't have any fun?”
17.
MANDA waved to me from under a giant, red metal sculpture. Actually, she s.h.i.+mmied while jumping up and down in some conspicuously new running shoes. Her hair bounced with each return to earth.
”Isn't this fantastic?” she said as she gathered me into a quick hug. ”What a beautiful day! The sun is so warm! The Sound looks amazing! I love my new shoes! And there are no children anywhere around here that have pa.s.sed through my birth ca.n.a.l!”
I rubbed one clammy hand over my eyes. ”I'm really trying to be awake right now, but last night was not my longest night of sleep. I'll just keep sipping and listening to you talk about this very large, very bright focal point of the Olympic Sculpture Park.” I cupped my Grande Caffe Americano and let its caffeinated loveliness seep into my bloodstream. Manda could have launched into a dissertation on insects and worms, for all I cared. I was having trouble rousing myself after menu planning with Avery until four that morning.
Manda frowned. ”Ten in the morning is not early. Your life is so bizarre.”
”Agreed,” I said gruffly into my coffee.
”This is called The Eagle. Iconic to this part of Seattle.”
I squinted and gave it time but finally shook my head. ”I don't see it. It looks nothing like an eagle to me. Not even remotely.”
Manda nodded. ”Me either. But I love the color and the shape. Plus, if you stand between his legs, you can get a great photo of the s.p.a.ce Needle. Let's do it!” She pulled me over to a s.p.a.ce between two red supports.
”This is vaguely obcene,” I muttered.
”Oh, stop being so difficult. Let's try a selfie. I've never done it but I know all the young people do these things.” She held her iPhone out in front of her and started rotating it very slowly, smiling the whole time.
”We are the same age,” I reminded her, s.n.a.t.c.hing her phone out of her hand and pulling her head close to mine. It took us six tries, but we finally caught one that captured some red from The Eagle, our faces, and the s.p.a.ce Needle sprouting in a confident trajectory between us.
”Well, Miss Sophistication, you suck at selfies, too. So there.” Manda zipped her phone into a small pocket on the back of her shorts. ”Let's walk down to the water.” She led the way down a path that angled toward Puget Sound.
”You would have been a good collie,” I said when she put two sharp fingers on the small of my back to guide me around a sharp turn. ”I feel very well herded.”
”Sorry,” she said with a short laugh. ”I'm so used to accident prevention. I can't believe how easy this is! This walking without a stroller, without a diaper bag, without a bag of snacks, without extra changes of clothes for four people.” She grinned at me and started pumping her arms. ”It's so easy! Let's break a sweat!”
I groaned. ”Let's not. Let's a.s.sume a leisurely pace.” I tossed my empty coffee cup in a public bin.
Manda screwed up her face in disapproval, but she slowed down. ”What happened to a-thousand-push-ups-a-day-or-the-day-is-wasted? You're the runner here, sis. I thought I'd be the one begging for mercy.”
I shook my head. ”I haven't gone running in weeks. In fact, I still haven't been on any of the trails I was so excited about when I read about them in New York. The closest I've come to an accelerated heart rate is when we have a packed house and I'm hustling between ovens and the walk-in.”
”I wouldn't say that's the only time you've had a reason for your heart to race.” I had to hand it to my best friend. She had waited an entire seven minutes to bring up the subject of my love life.
I felt my sullen mouth break into the start of a smile. ”I'm so impressed with your restraint. I thought you'd holler, 'Does he use too much tongue?' when you saw me approaching The Eagle.”
She laughed. ”I don't even need to ask that question. Kai does not strike me as a sloppy kisser.” She waited, and when I didn't rise to her bait, she said, ”And this is the part when you tell me what kind of kisser he really is.”
”He's perfect,” I said, not even trying to hide the information because one of the many merits of best friends.h.i.+p is that there are no limits on honesty, tears, insecure lines of questioning, or bad karaoke.
”I'm not surprised,” she said and did a little hop of joy. ”He seems like he was made for you. I'm so excited!”
”He's smart, he's funny, he's incredibly good-looking, he loves his family, he loves good food ...”
”He doesn't break up with you when you can't ever see him and when you call him in the middle of the night and wake him up.” She arched an eyebrow in my direction.
”How do you know these things?” I demanded. ”Are you two dis.h.i.+ng about me?”
”We are totally dis.h.i.+ng about you.” Manda rolled her eyes. ”And I absolutely saw him this morning when he was taking out his trash and I absolutely interrogated him until he was so uncomfortable, he pretended he had something burning in the oven.” She made a face. ”Amateur excuse. He left for work two minutes later, so there was definitely nothing in his oven.”
”You are unstoppable,” I said, starting to breathe heavily with all the exercise. ”I hope he doesn't think I'm a total freak.”
”Oh, I wouldn't worry about that. He seems to have jumped that hurdle and stuck around anyway.”
I shoved her to the other side of the path. ”I did wake him up. I really wanted to hear his voice. But the b.u.mmer is that I couldn't actually tell him anything.”