14. Not a Miracle Worker
NOT A MIRACLE WORKER
Axel
Our first official outing as a couple, and I’d barely seen my girlfriend.
After we walked into the extravagant mansion, surrounded by flawlessly cultivated gardens, Lorelei vanished in a swirl of pink and gold silk.
I caught her a few times fluttering around the enormous space like a busy bee, ensuring everything was impeccable.
That girl did not tolerate anything less than perfection. It was kind of cute.
A smile hitched the edges of my lips while I grabbed a flute of champagne from the passing waiter’s tray.
Antiques glittered under the chandelier lights as Copper Cove’s high society—dressed in overpriced formalwear—perused the tables set up for the silent auction to raise funds for breast cancer.
A sea of pink decorated the grandiose marble ballroom, from the tablecloths to the flowers, the curtains, and even specialty cocktails Lorelei had designed.
As the perfect boyfriend, I had enough foresight to add a pink bow tie to my black tux. Lorelei’s beaming grin when she noticed had my knees a little weak. If blondie flashed that smile more often, she could rule the world.
The champagne fizzed over my tongue and down my throat as I searched for Cordelia. Where the hell was she, and who was her plus one?
Micah Preston materialized in front of a long table of bronze figurines and statues that had probably been collecting dust in some millionaire’s mansion before donating them to the auction.
I sauntered toward the new Serpents & Daggers brother, attempting to keep a casual air. Maybe Cordi came with him.
“Preston, how’s it going?”
He flinched at my loud voice and then relaxed when he realized it was me. “Oh, Axel, what’s up?”
I covertly peered around for that purple-hair vixen. “Who are you here with?”
Micah pushed his glasses up his nose and sighed. “Some Vanessa girl Cordi set me up with.” He shrugged. “This is the third blind date she’s forced me into. I think she’s trying to make sure I’m not still pining for Lexi.”
“She’s a persistent one.” I gave a dry chuckle and then cleared my throat. “Speaking of Cordelia, is she here?”
He sipped his champagne and nodded. “She and her date, Grant, disappeared a few minutes ago.”
I grew sick as I imagined what they could be doing.
“Who are you here with?” Micah asked.
Just as I was about to reveal my relationship with the beautiful sorority president so he could scamper off to tell Cordi, a flustered Lorelei emerged from one of the hallways. She looked like she was either going to murder someone or collapse to the ground and bawl her eyes out.
I downed the rest of my champagne and set it on a nearby table. “I’ll catch you later, Micah. It looks like I need to stop an impending disaster.”
Before the guy could respond, I marched toward Lorelei.
“What’s wrong?” When she didn’t respond, I rested my hands on her shoulders and shook her. “Lore, what happened?”
Her big brown eyes finally met mine, a storm of rage brewing in them. “The caterers brought the wrong food!”
Every word burst from her gritted teeth like she wanted to turn each of them into bullets and slaughter this catering crew.
My brows furrowed. “But they did bring some food, right?”
“Oh, yeah, they brought something.”
“Show me.” I jerked my head toward the hallway. “How bad can it be?”
Once Lorelei towed me into the giant gourmet kitchen, she gestured at all the delectable, mouth-watering food lining the white marble counters and cooking in the huge stainless-steel ovens. “What in the fuck am I supposed to do with this?”
My stomach immediately growled at the heavenly scents of pulled pork and sweet, succulent barbecue chicken. “Eat it.”
Lorelei grabbed my face to yank my attention away from the food as my hand reached for a piece of chicken.
“I can not serve backyard barbecue food to Copper Cove’s elite and expect them to open their fat wallets and buy a bunch of expensive junk.” Her voice had risen to an octave I didn’t think humans were capable of, making me wince as my ears crackled.
“But it’s delicious, Lore.” My words distorted as she squeezed my cheeks. “If you plate it nicely and give them some fancy names, they’ll eat it.”
She released me and snatched a beautifully designed gold and pink menu.
“This is supposed to be served.” Her perfectly manicured nail pointed to the items. “Mushroom risotto. Roast duck with a blackberry orange sauce. Seared scallops and baby spinach with a pomegranate glaze. Elegant strawberry panna cotta and salted caramel chocolate tart for dessert.”
Blondie kind of had a point. Most of those elitist pricks would turn their noses up at food like this, even if it was fucking amazing. Because it didn’t cost a fortune, they’d considered it beneath them.
Lorelei stabbed her finger toward a guy in a pristine white chef coat, his pale gold hair slicked back and chin held high. “I want what I paid for, Hugh.”
I turned to Hugh and gave a charming smile. “Obviously, you prepared the wrong food. How about you and your team hustle and make the correct dishes?”
The man crossed his arms over his chest, his hook nose lifting while the wrinkles around his mouth deepened into a scowl.
“Like I told this irate woman, we prepared the menu we were given.” He motioned his hand over the food, the rest of his crew in black and white uniforms watching with rapt attention. “This is what we were instructed to prepare.”
My eyes narrowed at the contempt in his tone. Lorelei had worked her ass off to plan this event, and I didn’t appreciate this fucker being a dick to her.
All politeness and charm vanished from my body as I turned toward the chef and rested my hands on his shoulders, my fingers digging in. The color drained from his face when he realized he’d pissed off the wrong guy.
“You’re going to make the food she ordered,” I demanded, voice low and controlled.
He shook his head, eyes filling with tears from my painful grip. He’d definitely have bruises tomorrow. “I-I can’t. We don’t have the ingredients. It would take us hours to properly cook that menu.”
“Fine.” My grip tightened. “Since you’re absolutely useless, you’re going to return all of Lorelei’s money and make a very charitable donation today. How’s that?”
Hugh nodded, all of his bravado gone. “Sure. Of course.”
“But what are the guests going to eat?” Lorelei screeched.
I released the chef and plucked the menu from her as I dug my phone out of my pocket. “I’m going to make sure they get everything on this pretty piece of paper.”
“How, Axel? You’re not a miracle worker.”
“No, but I am a Lord.” A grin curved my lips. How hard could it be to get some fancy food here on time?