‘They love it,’ Aidan said with a shrug.
Lou quickly forgot to be self-conscious as they got down to work and she became completely absorbed in the food. It was fascinating to see how a dish was created and developed and she felt privileged to get this insight into how a top chef worked, thrilled that Aidan wanted her opinion and ideas. Hewas working on a crab pasta dish. She helped with the prep and pasta-making and he showed her how to shape perfect agnolotti. Then she sat at the counter watching him design and build the dish, taking it all in as he made adjustments to the sauce and played around with different accompaniments and plating. The dish went through several iterations and she got to taste them all.
He put a plate on the counter between them and handed her a fork, then they both leaned over the plate and ate.
‘What do you think?’
Lou closed her eyes, concentrating on the flavours. It was delicious – silky soft pillows of pasta stuffed with a sweet crab meat mixture flecked with chilli and herbs. ‘It’s gorgeous.’
‘I think it needs another texture.’
‘Yeah, some crunch would be good. Pangrattato? Or maybe some toasted pine nuts,’ she mused.
‘Fennel shavings?’
‘Oh, how about samphire?’
‘I like that idea,’ he said, pointing his fork at her, and Lou felt a little burst of pride.
‘And maybe a different acid? Swap the lemon for lime?’
Aidan nodded thoughtfully as he chewed. ‘Yeah, and then coriander oil instead of the parsley.’
He made another plate of pasta and they tasted again. He was satisfied with the dish in its final incarnation, and Lou was thrilled that some of her suggestions had made it into the final version.
They were clearing away as the evening crew started to arrive. When Shane came in, Aidan gave him what was left of the pasta to try.
Shane nodded his approval. ‘I like it.’
Aidan was about to say something when his phone rang. He strode out of the room, holding the phone to his ear.
‘That was Dmytro,’ he said when he returned to the kitchen moments later. ‘His mother’s had a stroke and she’s in a bad way. It looks like she might not make it, so he’s on his way home.’
‘Oh no, poor Dmytro!’
‘That’s awful,’ Shane said. ‘I hope he makes it in time.’
Lou frowned. ‘He’s not going back to Ukraine, is he?’
‘No, his whole family’s here. But they’re in Dublin.’ Aidan pocketed his phone. ‘I told him to take as long as he needs. So we’ll be a man down for a while. I can juggle the shifts around tomorrow, but for tonight we’ll all just have to muck in as best we can.’
‘No problem, Chef.’ Shane headed for the larder.
‘Maybe I could stay tonight,’ Lou offered. ‘I could see if Fiona’s free to babysit after Sheena drops Jack home.’
Aidan paused, seeming tempted to take her up on it. ‘Thanks, but we’ll manage,’ he said then. ‘I can’t ask you to work on your night off.’
‘I’m volunteering,’ Lou said. ‘I’m happy to do it, if I can get a babysitter. It’s a bit of a long shot, though, at such short notice.’
‘Well, if you’re sure… that’d be great.’
‘Totally.’ Dmytro was a sweetheart and Lou would like to feel she was doing something to help in his moment of crisis. But when she called Fiona, she’d gone to stay with a friend in Tralee for the weekend.
‘I could ask Jack how he feels about having a sleepover at your parents’ house,’ she said to Aidan. ‘If they’d be okay with that.’
‘They wouldn’t have any problem with it.’
‘Okay, I’ll see what Jack thinks.’ She went into the break room to make the call. She spoke to Sheena first and explained the situation. As predicted, she was happy to have Jack stay with them overnight. When she put Jack on the phone, he was full ofbeans, and Lou listened to him babbling away about Aqua Dome before asking him if he’d like to stay there for a sleepover.
