Chapter 2
LAILA
I didn't necessarily love working in the office, but sometimes it was required, particularly when my boss wanted to see me. I hoped she wasn't about to fire me over my review of Il Cavalluccio Marino. It had been a good one, but I hadn't been entirely uncritical about Poseidon's cooking.
I straightened my blazer and made my way to her office, knocking a couple of times.
"Come in," Caroline called from the other side.
I took a deep breath and held my head up high. I'd told my truth in my review. If that wasn't what my boss wanted of me, then this wasn't the right place for me to be working. My integrity couldn't be bought, and I was going to make sure that she knew that.
She didn't look particularly annoyed to see me as I stepped inside, which was reassuring. Maybe she didn't have a problem with what I'd written about Poseidon's restaurant after all.
"Ah, Laila, it's good to see you. Why don't you take a seat?" She gestured to one of the empty chairs.
"Thanks," I said, sitting down and running a hand over my skirt to make sure it hadn't ridden up, but everything seemed to be in place the way it should be.
"I read your review," she said.
"Oh?"
"An excellent piece," she said. "Thoughtful and detailed, it's just the kind of thing we like here at Paranormal Gourmet."
"Thank you. I was just trying to be truthful about the food we were served."
"I could tell," she said. "And your descriptions of the food were excellent. I think that's what made it stand out to me. It takes skill to make food jump off the page like that," Caroline said.
"Hopefully, the readers agree," I responded.
I knew I could write well, and food was a passion I'd picked up from my parents, who had travelled all around India to learn about the different cuisines there before they moved here and had me.
Ma started teaching me how to cook when I was old enough to be in the kitchen, while Baba was the one who got me into fine dining when he'd take me to restaurants with him while Ma had been away for work.
"There's been good feedback online already," Caroline said. "Which is excellent. And my contact at Il Cavalluccio Marino has said that they've had a couple of bookings mentioning that they've read your review, which is just the kind of thing we like to hear."
"I'm glad people are resonating with my review.
" This was better than I could have imagined for my first piece.
I'd actually thought it would take a few before I was hearing any kind of praise about the quality of my observations.
Then again, Caroline had sent me to Poseidon's in the first place.
It had been a prestigious assignment, and one that anyone on the team would have been glad to take.
"They are," she responded. "Which is why when I got a request from the Jinx Dating Agency, you were the first person I thought of."
I frowned. "What does Jinx have to do with food?"
"They have a new hotel," she said. "I think they're trying to increase bookings."
"Oh, yes, I know about that," I said. "I have a friend who works in the matchmaking department."
"Excellent, then you won't need a full briefing on what to expect at a Jinx event." Caroline leaned back in her seat, looking fairly pleased about the revelation.
"I've been to a Jinx event before," I admitted. "My friend got me tickets."
"Well, you won't need her to get you any for this one." She leaned forward. "They've asked for one of our reporters to head to the event and write a review about the food specifically."
"It's an interesting angle for a dating agency," I mused.
Caroline laughed. "I don't disagree. But they've got a large marketing budget, and I'd like them to keep spending it with us."
I chuckled. This wasn't the kind of conversation I was used to having with superiors, but maybe it was just the way Caroline was with her employees. I hadn't been at this job for long enough to know for sure either way.
"Anyway, are you up for the challenge?" she asked.
"Of reviewing a Jinx event?" I asked.
"Yes."
"I look forward to finding out what they're serving," I said.
"Excellent. I'll tell my contact to put the tickets under your name. There are two of them, so you can bring a guest."
I nodded, already wondering if I could talk to Eloise once I got the tickets and see if she could get one of her own so that the three of us could go together. "Thank you. Is there anything else?"
"No, I don't think so," she responded. "I look forward to seeing what you have to say about the event."
I got to my feet and said goodbye to her, trying to process exactly what had happened. I always strived to be good at my job, but this was beyond what I'd imagined for my first couple of months here.
And completely aside from that, there was a part of me that was curious about finding out what another Jinx event was like.