Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 75770 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 379(@200wpm)___ 303(@250wpm)___ 253(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75770 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 379(@200wpm)___ 303(@250wpm)___ 253(@300wpm)
A breeze drifts over the deck and whisks the paper out of Evangeline’s hand.
I hold back a gasp as I realize my heart is racing. Do I actually care who wins this? Our callaloo was a great success, but does it have a chance over Chef Desi’s perfect jerk chicken or Chef Pierre’s smooth and creamy sweet potato pudding?
Doubtful.
Brett rises, grabs the paper from the ground, and takes a look, his eyes widening. He hands it back to Evangeline. “Please. Do the honors.”
She doesn’t bother looking at the paper. “Our winner is Chef Katie’s team. Emily and Misty for their callaloo greens!”
“What?” I gasp out.
Alex reaches for my hand and squeezes it. “Congratulations! And you thought you didn’t have a prayer.”
“I’m stunned,” is all I can say. I didn’t even vote for myself. Not that I didn’t enjoy the dish. It was lovely. I assumed we had two votes in the bag—Misty and Katie—but I didn’t think we had a shot in hell at winning. I didn’t want to give Misty any extra shot at River though.
Which is silly, since he’s acting like a child having a tantrum.
I look across the table at him. He’s rubbing at his forehead, and his face is twisted into a scowl, which doesn’t make him any less handsome, damn him. It’s obvious he knows what’s coming. Misty will choose him.
But Misty’s not the only winner.
I get to choose a date with someone as well.
A few short hours ago, I’d have chosen River. Now? I’m not so sure.
Misty has jumped to her feet and is embracing Evangeline. She whispers something in her ear, and my heart drops.
Uh-oh.
Did we truly win? Or did Misty work it out with Evangeline that we would win no matter what? And if that was the case all along, why did she insist on sabotage?
Ariel gives Misty a smile once she unclenches herself from Evangeline. “Congratulations. The greens were delicious.”
“Emily and I owe it all to Chef Katie,” Misty gushes. “We weren’t sure we had a chance against lobster and jerk kitchen, but Katie made this dish amazing.”
Katie is beaming, of course. She is an excellent chef, and I’m quite happy for her. Her dark eyes are dancing with glee as Evangeline asks if she’d like to say a few words.
“I only want to thank you all again. Especially all of you who voted for our dish. Misty and Emily did a wonderful job.”
“It was your recipe.” Misty gives Katie a quick hug. “You’ve shown us all that simple greens can be something truly special!”
Misty’s exuberance is nauseating, but I force a smile onto my face. After all, I’m a winner as well.
And I get to choose a date for tomorrow evening.
I glance again at River, who hasn’t looked my way all evening.
Does he realize I could pick him as well as Misty?
Does he care?
Apparently not.
“Emily,” Evangeline says, “would you like to say anything?”
Not really, but that wouldn’t be a good look, so I rise. “Just thank you all so much for voting for us. And thank you to Katie as well. I have to admit, I didn’t think simple greens could compete against these other spectacular dishes—and everything was fabulous, so kudos to the lot of you—but you made the callaloo brilliant.”
Katie gives me a warm smile. I almost wish she could choose a date as well. She certainly earned it.
Unless…
I can’t get the idea out of my mind that this whole thing was rigged. Perhaps I imagined that Misty whispered something to Evangeline. She could have just been giving her a hug.
Then again, this is Misty—the same woman who wanted me to help her sabotage the others.
Who the hell knows?
I may as well bask in the joy of victory, I suppose.
Evangeline clinks on a glass to get our attention. “I know you gentlemen are all wondering who these two gorgeous ladies will choose for their dates tomorrow evening.”
“Hell, yeah!” Sebastian roars, holding out his wine glass.
“Easy, Seb.” Alex lets out a guffaw. “Who says they’re going to choose you?”
“Who says they’re not?” Seb says back.
River, of course, says nothing.
Does he know his fate? Perhaps Misty won’t choose him. She already had a private date with him last night, which, of course, ended up with him in my bed.
No. I won’t second-guess Misty. She’s clearly a mess in the head. She could choose any one of the four and it wouldn’t surprise me.
“So, ladies,” Evangeline continues, “have you chosen?”
“I have, Evangeline,” Misty says with a smile.
“Care to enlighten us?” Evangeline asks.
“Of course.” Misty is still standing at the head of the table next to Brett. “I’ve given this a lot of thought. You’re all amazing, and I’m thrilled to be here, so thank you so much for inviting me.”
Bloody hell. I think I might toss that sweet potato pudding right back onto my plate.