Chapter Thirteen
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Emma had basically been wrong about everything. She was not smart when it came to Michel Chevalier. One date with him only made her want to spend more time with him. No, her little self-indulgence did not get him out of her system. In fact, it did quite the opposite.
Their date had been more than fun. It had made her happy. And the way he looked at her made bubbles rise inside her, fizzy and tingly like champagne. Even though she had Auntie Soo’s reputation and her culinary school to worry about, she was sorely tempted to see the sweet, considerate, and sexy-as-hell man again.
“Wrong, wrong, wrong,” she sighed under her breath.
“Oh my gosh. I’m so sorry,” Jiyeon said, stepping away from the cutting board. She looked like she was about to burst into tears. “I’m hopeless at this.”
Startled out of her thoughts, Emma glanced at the green onions she’d instructed Jiyeon to slice thinly at an angle. The poor thing had cut them into long, fine ribbons, which had to have been a slow, painstaking process. Emma couldn’t believe she didn’t catch that. Michel Chevalier . The man was trouble… sweet, buttery trouble.
“That is actually an advanced technique I planned on introducing in later lessons,” Emma reassured her client. “I’m very impressed you already mastered it.”
“Really?” The younger woman looked at her with wide, hopeful eyes.
Jiyeon was barely out of college, and her mother was already pressuring her to marry into a jaebeol family. She was exquisite and her family was stinking rich, but Emma didn’t envy her the stress of trying to live up to her mother’s expectations.
“Yes, really. I can hardly believe that you’ve never cooked before,” Emma said gently. “You’ll be a fine cook of royal court cuisine once you complete your lessons. But for this dish, let’s cut the green onions like this.”
She demonstrated with a new stalk of green onion and watched her client mimic her movements. Satisfied with the results, she next showed Jiyeon how to cut the carrots into small, thin rectangles. With practiced ease, she continued cutting the carrots as her client followed her example. Preparing the ingredients was one of her favorite parts of cooking. There was something reassuring and therapeutic about the repetition of slicing, dicing, and chopping food. It also provided ample opportunity for her mind to wander.
Emma might not be right all the time, and she might not be as smart as she would like where one particular man was concerned, but she was without a doubt proficient at adapting. She was exceptionally good at taking stock of changes and adjusting her strategies to fit a new set of facts. She knew how to make the best of any situation life threw her way.
Case in point, rather than wasting her remaining five matseons—and they would be wasted while she remained so thoroughly distracted by Michel—she would put her quest for a perfect-on-paper husband on hold until she got said distraction out of her system once and for all. She would see Michel Chevalier a few more times, but only to confirm that they had nothing in common. Once she proved to herself that they shared no common background and were utterly incompatible, she could put him out of her mind forever and give her matseons her full, undivided attention.
A short reprieve wouldn’t hurt anyone. Auntie Soo’s reputation could withstand some more bad-mouthing by the Crones—she didn’t linger on how much her godmother wanted to sign the YogurtBerry family—and Emma already had enough clients to maintain the projected growth of her business for at least another two months. Not that she had any intention of letting this little detour go on for two whole months. God, no.
To prove to herself how wholeheartedly she believed in the transient nature of their relationship, Emma hadn’t even given in to the temptation of googling the filthy-rich visiting professor. But now that she thought about it, maybe looking him up on the internet would give her ample proof of how utterly different their lives were… No, it would be best for her to experience their incompatibility in real life. Besides, she couldn’t trust everything she read on the internet.
“Is this any good?” Jiyeon asked, chewing on her bottom lip. “Or did I butcher them? My mom says I have the grace of a hippopotamus.”
“What? They look fantastic.” Emma kept her thoughts about her client’s mother to herself.
“I don’t know.” The younger woman sighed, absently stacking the carrot slices on the cutting board. “I don’t… I don’t think I’m jaebeol bride material. I’m not sure I even want to be.”
“My godmother is very good at her job,” Emma said pragmatically rather than telling her she didn’t have to be a jaebeol bride if she didn’t want. “She would never match you with someone who isn’t compatible with you.”
“I… I’m sure you’re right.” Jiyeon nodded slowly. “Is your godmother going to find a match for you, too?”
“Um… yes, of course.” Building a carrot tower suddenly seemed like a great idea. She focused on laying one paper-thin slice over another, then shook her head. “Let’s continue to the next step.”
Jiyeon did have a talent for cooking, and her dish came out beautifully. After showing her out, Emma returned to the kitchen to tidy up, only to find her dad doing the dishes.
“Appa.” She tried to pull him away from the sink. “I can do that.”
“I know you can.” He shrugged off her hand and resumed washing the pot. “But so can I. You shouldn’t have to do everything.”
“But this is literally part of my job.” Emma couldn’t keep the exasperation out of her voice. She’d been taking care of her dad ever since her mom left them. And he’d let her because he knew it was her way of coping with their divorce. Now, they were just used to their roles. So what had gotten into him?
“Well, taking care of you is my job,” he said with a stubborn jut of his jaw. “You—and sometimes I—forget that I am the parent. I should be the one taking care of you.”
“You have.” She leaned her head on his shoulder. “You do.”
He grunted unappeased and started on the second pot, his hands slipping on the handle and spattering soapsuds on his shirt. Finally, he muttered, “I know you’ve been going out on matseons.”
“Is that what this is about?” She straightened up and planted her fists on her hips.
“I want you to know that I can take care of myself.” He heaved a ponderous sigh. “I’ve relied on you for too long. But you don’t have to worry about me.”
“Of course I don’t have to worry about you.” Emma rolled her eyes. “Because I’m not going anywhere without you.”
“What do you mean you’re not going anywhere without me?” Her dad finally gave up the ruckus and rinsed his hands.
“I told Auntie Soo not to match me up with an only child or the eldest son.” She gently maneuvered her dad away from the sink and pulled on the rubber gloves. She needed to rewash all the pots. “I didn’t want there to be an issue as to whose parents my future husband and I live with.”
“No man is going to want to marry you if you and I come as a set.” He threw his hands up. “What are you thinking?”
“I’m thinking I have everything figured out.” She felt her jaws jut the same way her dad’s had. She was just as stubborn as he was. “I got this, Appa. You can stop worrying.”
“I guess it might be okay if I lived in a detached in-law suite.” His shoulders drooped in defeat—and maybe a little in relief. “I would be the father- in-law, after all.”
“It would be more than okay, Appa. It would be right . Besides, I’m going to take a little break from the whole matseon thing.” Emma dropped that last detail in casually even though her heart pounded at the implication of her words. Was she really doing this? “I need to focus on my business for the next few weeks. Finding a suitable commercial kitchen is turning out to be a bit of a headache.”
“That makes complete sense.” Her dad nodded enthusiastically. “You should focus on your business. There is no need to rush into marriage. No need at all. Take all the time you need.”
“Okay, I will.” Emma ducked her chin to hide her smile and finished rewashing the dishes.
In the quiet of her room, Emma sat on her bed and fidgeted with her phone. Spending a little time to get Michel out of her system would be worth the detour in the long run. Until she got rid of that distraction for good, forcing herself to sit through matseons would be a waste of time for everyone.
But she had to tell Auntie Soo she wanted a break from the matseons as soon as possible. It wouldn’t be a long break, but her godmother needed to formulate a contingency plan in case Emma’s marital status came up while she courted the YogurtBerry family. Hopefully, the Crones’ inane chitter didn’t reach them yet. Emma also needed to tell Michel that she accepted his indecent proposal to have a… fling?
She clapped a hand over her mouth, but a loud, unladylike snort snuck past her anyway. She didn’t even have a prospective husband to chase off. What a waste. She promptly dissolved into giggles—part glee and part major nerves. A fling? Me? Pressing her lips together, she drew her eyebrows into a deep frown and swallowed her laugh.
Give me two months to prove you wrong… I’ll prove to you that you don’t want perfect on paper. Her heart swooped from the memory of his heated gaze and the conviction in his voice. No . She took a deep breath. He wouldn’t be the one to prove anything to her. After a few dates, she would have proof of their hopeless incompatibility. Then she could put him out of her mind for good.
Emma nodded to herself and unlocked her phone. She’d made her decision. There was no reason to wait. She typed two messages with quick, impatient taps.
Emma:
I want a break from the matseons.
Emma:
I want to see you tonight.
There. That wasn’t so hard. Before she could pat herself on the back, her phone buzzed twice in a row.
Michel:
A break? I’m not sure I understand.
Auntie Soo:
Tonight? What’s wrong?
“Ahhh!” Emma buried the offending phone under her pillow, but it wasn’t enough to save her from the mess she’d created. When her phone started ringing, she sat on her pillow for good measure.
“Why me?” she implored, but her ceiling gave no answer.
The ringing stopped but resumed with almost no pause in between the calls. If she didn’t answer this time, Auntie Soo would just come to her house in person. With a drawn-out groan, she retrieved her phone from under her pillow.
“Hi, Imo.” Emma took a deep breath, ready to dig deep for some bullshit to serve her godmother.
She couldn’t tell her the real reason why she wanted a break from the arranged first dates. I met the hottest man alive after chasing away the guys you matched me up with, and I’m going to have a fling with him. Oh God. A fling? Was that what she wanted? Was that what Michel meant when he all but growled at her that he wanted to be with her?
“What’s wrong?” Auntie Soo said without preamble. “Why do you need to see me tonight?”
“What? I can’t just miss you?” Emma defaulted to sweet-talking. A part of her wished she could tell her godmother everything so she could help her figure things out. But it wasn’t worth the worry the news might cause. “I didn’t mean that I’ll literally barge into your house tonight. I just meant that I missed you.”
“Well, aren’t you a dear,” Auntie Soo cooed.
“Okay. Remember that feeling, because I actually have something to tell you.” Emma cringed, closing her eyes. “I want to take a brief break from the matseons.”
There was a long pause. “A break? How brief?”
“Maybe a couple of weeks? Three weeks max?” Emma braced herself for Auntie Soo’s reaction.
“Three weeks ?” her godmother all but screeched. “Why would you want to do such a thing?”
Emma held the phone away from her ear. “I’m a dear . Remember?”
“Dear, my ass,” Auntie Soo muttered.
“Imo,” Emma gasped. “ Language .”
“You still haven’t answered my question. Why do you need this… break?”
“My dad needs some time to come to terms with his only child getting married.” Emma went with the partial truth so she wouldn’t have to lie more than necessary to her godmother. “And it wouldn’t hurt for me to take a little time as well. I rushed headfirst into this whole matseon thing. Marriage is a huge step, and I need to be sure that I’m ready. Two, three weeks should be enough time for me and my dad to become comfortable with the idea, but it’s not so long that irreparable damage will come to your reputation. I know you want to sign the YogurtBerry family…”
“Emma, your well-being is so much more important to me than my reputation. And don’t worry about the YogurtBerry family. If they’re smart—and they are based on the success of their frozen yogurt franchise—they’ll sign with me,” Auntie Soo reassured her. “I’m sorry if I pushed you into this, my dear.”
“Please. That again? I’m the one who suggested this.” Emma’s stomach twisted with guilt. “I mean it, Imo. It’s not your fault. I just have a feeling the matseons will go much smoother once I’ve acclimated myself to the idea that this is the right time. I’ve always planned on asking you to find my match for me when I was ready.”
“Really?” Her godmother sounded so relieved that she had to smile.
“Yes, really.” And she meant it.
Her phone dinged in her ear, and she took a quick glance at the screen.
Michel:
Emma?
She knew what her message sounded like. You’ll be my little break from matseons. She squeezed her eyes shut. Everything was fine. She would deal with this.
“Very well then.” Auntie Soo sighed. “I only want what’s best for you.”
“I know, Imo.” Her godmother was the loveliest person alive. Emma would be ready to settle down with one of her matches after this break. That was what she’d always wanted. She ignored the queasy flutter in her stomach. “Thank you for understanding.”
“So you’re not coming over tonight, right? Because I have a book club meeting…”
“No, but I’d love to see you soon,” Emma said in a rush. “Let me know when you’re free to have lunch.”
“I’m free as a bird all next week. Except for Tuesday… and Wednesday. Friday might not work either.”
“Monday or Thursday, then.” Emma laughed. “I’ll touch base with you next week. Talk soon.”
Her laugh died in her throat as she stared despairingly at her phone screen. Would it be so terrible to let him think that he would be her little break from matseons? Wasn’t it kind of true? She gave herself a firm nod. He could make what he wanted out of her text message. She would focus on getting him out of her system as soon as possible. And that started by going on another date with him.