Whisk Me Away

Chapter Fourteen

Nice work today, chefs.” Liza Bennett-Schmidt clasped her hands in front of her and smiled, like she hadn’t browbeaten Vienna into the ground earlier or called Maia’s scones what they would taste like if a four-year-old made them on the beach. I hope you find your lucky bandanna soon . Harsh. Jesus. And Regan had been noticing lately that the smile was somewhat…cool. Almost a little icy. She’d been noticing a lot of things about Liza lately. She’d thought about saying something to some of the others, but if she was the only who felt that way, she didn’t want her opinion getting back to Liza.

If you don’t have something nice to say, don’t say anything. A lesson from her mother, and it had served her well for the most part. She should probably stick to it. The last thing she wanted was to be singled out. Again. It was bad enough Liza somehow knew about her and Ava. God, that was mortifying.

“Seeing that tomorrow is a holiday, I’m going to give you some time away from the kitchen.” Liza continued with the icy smile as she strolled down the aisle, and murmurs ran through the workstations. They’d been working nonstop for over a week. Liza held up a finger. “But…there’s a catch.”

“Of course there fucking is,” Hadley whispered standing next to her, and Regan had to bite back a grin. She liked this girl more and more, that was for sure. She’d gotten lucky in the assistant draw.

“I’m going to set you loose,” Liza went on, turning on her heel and heading slowly back toward the front of the room. “I want you to create your own project. Something representing…” She reached the front and turned to face the six retreats. “What July Fourth means to you.”

Well, this’ll be interesting.

Regan glanced across to Ava, who gave a subtle shrug.

“I suggest you keep your ideas to yourself rather than brainstorm, and those of you in the same rooms, don’t share your notes with anyone but your assistants.” Did she look specifically at Regan and Ava? Sure seemed like it. “I’m going to judge this project by originality, creativity, and flavor. You’ll have all day tomorrow to come up with your ideas, and then on Saturday, you’ll bake.”

Nods all around, a few excited faces and murmurs of anticipation.

Liza held up her hands, and the room went quiet again. “Also, I almost forgot. There will be a fireworks display tomorrow night when it gets fully dark. One of my staff will set them off down over the pond, and we’ll have cocktails and appetizers on the back patio. You are all invited.” She clapped her hands together once, then turned and left the kitchen.

As had become the habit of the attendees, there was a moment of quiet, as if they were schoolkids waiting to make sure the teacher had actually gone before they cut loose. The moment passed and a collective breath was exhaled.

“Fireworks sound fun,” Madison, ever the positive one, said with a smile.

“They do,” Ava added, then glanced over to Regan and raised her brows in expectation.

“I love a good fireworks display,” she said and got a little thrill in her tummy when Ava grinned her approval.

“Not exactly a unique topic for the Fourth of July,” Vienna said, untying her apron. “What July Fourth means to me?” She sighed and shook her head as she pulled the apron over her head and folded it neatly.

Bethany, her assistant, seemed to want to make it better. “Well, maybe she kept it broad so we could come up with more ideas?”

“Maybe,” Vienna said. “I’ll meet you all at dinner.” And without another word, she was the first to exit the kitchen. Bethany stood for a moment, clearly unsure of what to do, then opted to follow Vienna.

The others followed, one by one, until Ava, Becca, Hadley, and Regan were left. They finished cleaning up their stations, left their chef’s coats on the counter for the staff to launder, and headed out.

Hadley turned to Regan. “Text me when you want to meet tomorrow. I’ve got some ideas, so maybe we can brainstorm.”

“Perfect.”

“Same,” Becca said, pointing to Ava. Then she turned to Hadley. “I think our ride’s here.”

They said their goodbyes and hurried to the front door where the van could be seen out front.

In the dining room to their left, a couple of the attendees were sitting around the table. Snacks had been left out, as well as sodas, bottled water, beer and wine. Madison and Paige were picking at cheese and crackers. Maia was peeling a banana. She had dark circles under her eyes, and Regan knew her missing lucky bandanna was weighing on her. Vienna was sitting at the table with a beer, which surprised Regan. She looked tired, and Regan wondered if all the stress and snark from Liza was taking a toll.

Vienna raised her bottle, not even bothering to use the pilsner glasses provided, and took a long pull. Regan sat down next to her.

“You okay?” she asked.

Vienna gave one nod, then took another slug. “Just ready to get the hell out of here and go home.”

“Eight weeks is a long time,” she agreed. “I feel you.”

Ava sat down across from them, popped open a can of Diet Coke, and poured it into a glass of ice. “She was rough on you,” she commented.

“They say not to meet your heroes, don’t they?” Vienna said with a bitter laugh.

“We have less than two weeks left,” Regan reminded her. “That’s it.”

Vienna nodded. She didn’t look like she felt much better, but she nodded. “Yeah.” She sighed and took another swig of her beer before adding, “I miss my kid.”

“You have a kid?” Regan asked. “I had no idea.”

“I do.” A tender smile.

“Boy? Girl? How old?” Regan could see that talking about her child seemed to ease Vienna’s stress at least a little bit.

Vienna turned her bottle in her fingers as she said, “James. He’s seven. FaceTime has been great. I talk to him every day. But man…it’s not the same, you know?”

Regan nodded. “I do know.”

“He misses me, but he was all about my coming here. He knows that I watch Whisk Me Away constantly. He knows what an opportunity this is for me.” Vienna looked up at Regan, then across at Ava. “He’s really wise for his age.”

Ava smiled at her, the soft smile that Regan loved. “He sounds like a super-cool kid.”

“Are you guys talking about James?” Maia asked, joining them. “I see them FaceTime all the time. He’s fucking adorable.”

Vienna’s smile grew, and Regan could tell they were slowly cheering her up, pulling her back from the dark corner in which she’d tried to isolate herself.

“I can’t believe we didn’t know you have a son,” Ava said.

Vienna lifted one shoulder. “I guess I’ve been trying to keep my private life separate from”—she waved a hand around—“all this. You know?”

“Privacy is important,” Ava said with a nod of agreement.

Maia obviously took the cue. “Speaking of privacy, what’s going on here?” She waved a finger between Ava and Regan. “How are things?” Regan immediately blushed. She felt it shoot up her neck and settle into her cheeks, confirmed when Maia laughed and said, “Oh, okay. I see. That good, huh?”

Risking a glance at Ava only made her blush more. Ava sat with her elbows on the table, her glass of soda held in both hands, and she grinned over the rim as she took a sip.

“Uh-huh. Uh-huh. And is this just a retreat thing? Back to reality in thirteen days?” Maia’s gaze went back and forth between the two of them, and Regan watched as Ava’s grin tempered and then was gone. Maia was clearly looking for gossip, and being the subject of it didn’t sit well with Ava. That was painfully obvious.

“Um…we haven’t really gotten that far,” Regan said, shocked by her honesty in this room of four other people she really didn’t know—and one she wanted to know every single thing about.

“And it’s nobody’s business,” Madison said, stepping in. She kept a smile on her face as she touched Maia’s arm, as if wanting to rein her in. It seemed to work, if the quick flash of realization and embarrassment that zipped across Maia’s face was any indication.

“Right. Right. Sorry.” She sort of bowed her head quickly at the two of them. “I just think you guys make the cutest couple, and I’m invested is all.” She waved a dismissive hand. “Anyway. Apologies. Never mind. You do you.” She felt bad, Regan could see that, but she was also grateful to Madison for putting a stop to the direction of the conversation, given how uncomfortable it was making Ava. “But just know that I ship you guys.”

That made Regan grin. She couldn’t help it.

An hour later, the two of them were in their room, Regan sitting against her headboard, laptop in her lap, researching ideas for her Fourth of July bake. When Ava came out of the bathroom, she was wearing jeans and a black tank top. Her hair was down and loose, and was that eyeliner?

“I was going to ask if you wanted to watch a movie,” Regan said, “but it looks like you’ve got other plans.”

“Yeah, I’m gonna go grab dinner with Vienna.”

“Oh. Okay.” She watched as Ava opened her small bag and checked for her credit card, then stepped into her sandals. She looked fucking hot, there was no denying that. “You all right?”

Ava nodded and finally looked at her. She smiled, but it didn’t seem to reach her eyes. “Yup. Fine. You?”

No, I’m not fine I want you to stay here with me I want you to only want to spend time with me I want to undress you and have my way with you and I want you to touch me and I want to talk about how we can keep seeing each other after this retreat is over because I really, really like you probably way more than you like me which terrifies me and there’s so much I want to say to you… It all flew through her head in one giant run-on sentence, begging to be said out loud.

Instead, she smiled, gave Ava a nod, and said, “I’m good.”

“Great. See you later.” And she left the room, closing the door behind her with a click that sounded much louder in Regan’s head than it actually was.

* * *

Ava and Vienna took an Uber to a small, out-of-the-way Italian restaurant that Vienna had read about online.

“I’m tired of sports bars and mixed drinks,” she’d said to Ava earlier. “I want a nice dinner and a glass of red wine. What do you think? You in?”

If Maia hadn’t sidled up to them in the dining room and said what she’d said, if she hadn’t shined a spotlight on Ava and Regan, Ava might have declined. Or she might have accepted but asked if Vienna would mind Regan tagging along. But that spotlight had illuminated other things as well, mainly the uncertainty and trepidation Ava felt around everything that had to do with Regan.

She was confused and floundering, and she didn’t like it. Not one bit. Because Ava wasn’t a person who let her feelings rule her. No way. She was practical. Logical. She followed lists. And rules. And being swamped by emotion was bullshit, as far as she was concerned. Having her brain be clouded by feelings? Bullshit.

The look on Regan’s face when she’d told her she was going to dinner with Vienna—and didn’t invite her to go along—was like something sharp poking her in the heart. And that was also bullshit, thank you very much.

They were seated at a small table for two in the corner, which was perfect because they could see the entirety of the small restaurant. There were maybe fifteen tables total and a small bar to one side. About half the tables were occupied, and the waitstaff bustled around, delivering drinks and baskets of bread—fresh bread, Ava noted, detecting the scent of it in the air, along with those of tomato sauce, basil, oregano, and parmesan. Damn, Italians knew what they were doing when it came to food.

Vienna seemed to melt into her chair, and the breath she released was huge enough to make Ava grin.

“All good now?” she asked.

“I will be once I have a glass of the Montepulciano in my hand.” She shook her head. “I’m ready to be done with this thing.”

“Really? Don’t you want to see if you get the money?”

Their waiter arrived at their table, told them the specials, and took their wine order. They decided to split a bottle.

Forearms on the white tablecloth, Vienna leaned forward. “I don’t even care about the money. I just want to go home. I’ve learned everything I’m gonna learn from her, and I miss my family.”

Ava understood. “I get it. I don’t blame you. It’s been a long six weeks.”

The waiter came, uncorked, and poured their wine. Once they each had a glass, Vienna held hers over the table. “But you…here’s to finding”—she tipped her head to the side, as if unsure of the right words—“a date? Extracurricular activity? Love? What are you two exactly?”

It was Ava’s turn to sigh heavily, and she felt it in the very depths of her lungs. Touching her glass to Vienna’s, she said, “I wish I knew.”

Vienna sipped. “Haven’t talked it out yet?”

“I mean, no?” It was kind of embarrassing to say, and she didn’t realize just how embarrassing until she said it. She grimaced and took a gulp of her wine.

“How come?” Vienna then waved a hand like she was erasing an invisible board in front of her. “You know what? That was nosy of me. You don’t have to answer that. It’s none of my damn business.”

“No. No. It’s okay.” And it was somehow. “I actually kind of want to talk about it ’cause…” She shook her head, and the smile that came to her face was one she actually felt blossoming. She couldn’t help it.

“Oh, I see,” Vienna said with a soft laugh. “There’s some things happening there.”

“Some things . That’s a good way of putting it.”

“And, what? You’re on board? In doubt? On the fence? What?”

“I’m terrified.”

There. There it was. She’d blurted the words quickly, said them out loud, and the walls hadn’t come crumbling down. The roof was still intact. Nobody in the restaurant gasped and whipped their head around in horrified wonder.

Then the waiter was back, so Ava had to sit with those words hanging in the air over their table while he took their orders, refilled their glasses, and went on his way. She grabbed her wine and took a long sip, part of her irritated she’d said anything to somebody who was essentially a complete stranger, another part relieved that now she had no choice but to talk about it.

“What’s terrifying you?” Vienna asked, her face open and welcoming as she sipped. “Regan seems pretty awesome. I heard you two have some history. Did you date before?”

Ava shook her head. “No. Oh, no. That was never even an option. I don’t date people I work with. Did that once. Disaster.”

Vienna’s laugh was hefty. “Oh, I hear that. I hear that. You do not shit where you eat, as my daddy would say.”

“Exactly. No, we worked together at the same restaurant I’m at now. Years ago. She was new. I’d been there for a year or two and thought I was all high and mighty.” She shook her head as she remembered the attitude she’d had back then, somebody at her young age a success in such a high-end place. “A little full of myself, that’s what I was. I was given a lot of leeway by my boss back then, when I first came on, but I did not pay that forward to the people who came after me.” She sipped her wine. “Not proud of that.”

“We are stupid when we’re young.” Vienna’s soft laugh rolled around the table as she broke off a piece of the warm bread the waiter had left and dipped it in the little saucer of olive oil. “We all have things we’re not proud of.”

“True.” Ava followed suit with the bread, and oh my God, it was delicious. Yeasty and crusty and soft on the inside, the olive oil’s flavor warm and subtle. “Damn, that’s good,” she said, and Vienna nodded her agreement. “So.” She pointed her bread at Vienna as she continued her story. “Regan was younger than me. And so, so nervous. It would’ve been cute if it hadn’t affected everything she did.” A shrug. “She couldn’t cut it. Couldn’t keep up. That being said, I didn’t cut her one single millimeter of slack. I was an asshole. Horrible to work with. Again, not proud of it.”

“You get her fired?”

“I pretty much got her fired. Yeah.” She glanced down at her bread plate, then back up. “I had no guilt around it then, but I do now. I was such an asshole.”

“She forgave you?”

“Then? No. She was devastated.”

“Yeah, but you’re sleeping with her, so I’d say you’re forgiven, wouldn’t you?”

The waiter arrived with their meals, giving Ava time to absorb what Vienna had said. He gave them each cracked black pepper and parmesan cheese, then left them to their dinners.

“I think I am most definitely forgiven,” Ava said with a grin as she spun her linguine on her fork.

“I would agree with that.” Vienna had ordered the lasagna, and the piece on her fork stretched some fresh mozzarella for miles. “Wow. Look at this.” They spent several moments eating and humming their approval of their meals before Vienna asked, “So, what’s terrifying you? You haven’t answered that yet.”

No. She hadn’t. And it was time to face that demon.

“My feelings. That’s what’s terrifying. The feelings I’m starting to have for her. They scare me to death.”

Vienna set her fork down and dabbed at her mouth with her linen napkin and nodded. Then she took a moment, seeming to collect her thoughts. “I think we all figured you guys were just…having fun, you know? Like summer camp or something.”

Ava had thought something similar, so the comparison made her smile. “Yeah. That’s how it started. But now…” She took a bite, chewed, and swallowed before adding, “I don’t love how we’ve been called out, though. Especially by Liza. God, so embarrassing.”

“That bitch.” Vienna shook her head. “They say never meet your heroes, and I finally get it. She’s horrible. That was so not cool, what she did to you guys.”

“Or you. Or Maia. Or any of us.”

“Right? I came here to learn, not to be browbeaten by somebody I admired. I went through that in culinary school, thank you very much. I didn’t need to go through it again.” Vienna was worked up, and she took a sip of her wine, which seemed to calm her. She waved a hand. “Sorry about that.”

“No need.”

“So, these feelings. You gonna tell her about them?”

“God, I don’t know. In less than two weeks, we go back to our own lives.”

“You live in the same city, though.”

“We do.” Another bite of the stunningly good linguini. Perfectly al dente. Definitely homemade. She could tell by the taste, the bite. She forced her attention back to the topic at hand. “You know, I’m looking for a reason for things to not work. Like, searching for one. What is that?”

Vienna pointed at her with her fork as she chewed, then said, “You know, I have a theory about that, because I did the same thing with my husband.”

“Tell me. Please. I will take any and all theories if they’ll help me understand.”

“Well, I don’t know anything about your childhood, but mine was…difficult. Absentee father, mom who worked two jobs, so was hardly around. I took care of myself and my little brother and sister. Not a lot of time to focus on me, you know?”

Ava nodded, eating and listening, struck by the similarities, minus the siblings.

“When I was in culinary school, I met Jay. He was amazing. Handsome. Smart. Empathetic.” She lowered her voice. “Sexy as hell, my God.” They both laughed. “He was everything I had ever dreamed of in a guy, and he wanted me. Oh, how he wanted me. He tells the story to this day of how he knew he was gonna marry me from the moment our eyes met.” She waved a hand. “Anyway. We started dating, and the closer he got, the more scared I got. See, I wasn’t used to somebody else looking out for me. And I certainly didn’t know how to let somebody else look out for me, since nobody ever had. So the easier thing to do was to run the other way. And I did.”

“You broke up with him?”

Vienna nodded, gesturing with her wine glass. “Ripped his heart out, threw it on the floor, and stomped on it.” She blew out a breath that was clearly filled with regret. “I am so incredibly lucky that he refused to give up.” When her eyes met Ava’s, they were wet with unshed tears. “He’s an incredible man, and I know how blessed I am. But my God, I did everything I could to sabotage us.” She shook her head, clearly disgusted with herself. “Sound like a boat you might be sitting in?”