AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Jack apparently had no intention of answering her, but Damian had recovered enough to respond.
“Cremini and sausage pasta and fish with buttered cabbage and potatoes for the mains. The choices for the appetizer are a salt cod salad or roasted carrots in herb butter.”
She nodded, already reaching for an apron.
“The quick rolls for the fish and carrots, then the flatbread for the other two dishes.” She flashed an entirely too appealing smile at a bemused Nereus, and he had the oddest urge to growl. “Are you free to help me?”
“No,” Jack snapped. “I need him to prepare the vegetables and make the pasta.”
“They’re already done.” Nereus was still staring at Wendy. “I can help you.”
Jack opened his mouth again, but Damian didn’t give him a chance to speak.
“Then that’s settled. Cody, you can fill in for Nereus if Jack needs something.”
“It’s Kai, dude, but that’s cool.” The brownie grinned at Jack. “Looks like we’re going to be partners, bro.”
Jack gave him an outraged glare before turning to his prep work and ignoring Cody as the brownie began peppering him with questions.
Damian wanted to linger in the warm kitchen and watch Wendy work. More accurately, he wanted to kick everyone else out and have her cook just for him. His mouth went dry when she bent over to retrieve a set of mixing bowls, her jumpsuit straining across her luscious ass. He could easily envision her in that exact position, only without the clothing. This time he couldn’t prevent his fangs from descending.
All he could do was mutter a vague excuse and rush out of the kitchen before he disgraced himself.
CHAPTER 8
“What’s up with him?” Wendy muttered, a little hurt that Damian hadn’t thanked her for coming to help.
Then again, Flora had warned her that he was stressed over another disaster. The old lady hadn’t exactly asked her to fill in, but it had definitely been implied. She didn’t really mind. She enjoyed baking and she was at a loose end since the festival wasn’t until Saturday. Her blog posts for the next two weeks were already prepped and ready to go and, as much as she didn’t want to admit it, she wanted to see Damian again.
Well, she had seen him but he clearly hadn’t wanted to see her, striding out of the room with his long, graceful strides.Not that I care. It was bad enough that she’d spent the whole night replaying their kiss in her dreams. But she was here to do a good deed, not lust after an arrogant vampire.
Pasting a determined smile on her face, she turned to the sous chef. His pale blue skin flushed a darker blue when she looked at him. His hair was still down around his shoulders, but as she’d thought the day before, it didn’t look like hair. More like…seaweed? But as long as he was willing to help her, she didn’t care if he had strings of fish hanging from his head.
“I didn’t get a chance to introduce myself yesterday. I’m Wendy.”
“I’m Nereus.”
“And I’m Kai,” the busboy said. “My partner here is Jack.”
“Not your partner,” the chef muttered, not looking up, but she ignored him.
“Pleased to meet you all. Let’s start with the rolls, Nereus, so they’ll have time to rise while we make the flatbreads.”
He gave her a shy nod and they set to work. Even after three years, it was surprisingly easy to fall back into the routine of a working kitchen. But other than Jack glowering on the other side of the kitchen, the atmosphere was far less tense than it had been in the high-end restaurant where she’d worked after culinary school. It reminded her of the happy time she spent hanging out in her grandparents’ restaurant as a child—times that had originally inspired her culinary ambitions.
When Kai mentioned the small herb garden they had growing on the enclosed back porch, she decided to pick some fresh rosemary to infuse the oil for the flatbreads. She only made it two steps down the hall before two strong, cool hands seized her waist, and pushed her against the wall. Damian stared down at her, the red sparks flaring in his eyes as he cupped her shoulder, his thumb caressing her pulse again.
“You are driving me crazy,” he growled.
“Me?” she asked indignantly, trying to ignore her rapidly beating heart. “I was just trying?—”
His mouth came down hard over hers and she forgot all about her protests. She whimpered and parted her lips, his spicy taste exploding across her senses as he deepened the kiss. Her hands clenched on his shoulders as he pressed her against the wall, the soft curves of her body cradling his much harder one.
“Fuck, you’re sweet, kitten,” he muttered against her mouth when he finally broke the kiss.
He kissed along her jawline, then down to her neck, small sucking kisses that made her want to writhe against him. Her nipples were so tight they ached. Then he was gone, moving away as abruptly as he’d left her the previous night. Before she could demand an explanation, Kai wandered out of the kitchen. Was that why he’d moved?
“Chef told Nereus he can’t use any of the iron skillets to fry the flatbreads,” Kai announced cheerfully, either not noticing or not caring about her flushed face and rapid breathing.
