“Bob.” Daniel crinkled his nose. “You may want to bring that whole bottle.”
“What are you up to?” she asked.
“Oh, I almost forgot. I wanted to see if your internet connection is down.”
She clicked on her mouse, and sure enough the same error message popped onto her screen. “It’s down,” she said.
“Great.”
“Look on the bright side. At least you’re not meeting with Bob.”
“True.” Daniel stood up. “I’m going to go grab lunch. Can I bring you back anything?”
“No thanks, I’m good.”
“Hey.” He paused at her door. “Can you really put any scent you like in one of those things?”
“Why? You thinking of getting one for yourself?”
“Very funny,” he said. “Seriously, could you put vanilla in there?”
“I suppose. I think they sell vanilla essential oil, in which case you definitely could. Ask someone at the store, I got it at that new age shop down the block. Someone there will know. This for Justine?”
“No, a friend.”
Christina’s eyebrows went up.
“Just a friend,” he said.
She sighed. “Sorry, I was hoping for some juicy gossip.”
“I got nothing.”
“In that case, bring me back a chocolate chip muffin from the Waverly. I need some excitement.”
Daniel laughed. “See you in a bit.”
****
“What’s this?” Marienne asked, looking at the small brown bag Daniel had placed on her countertop.
“Consider it a belated Christmas gift.”
She furrowed her brow.
He chuckled. “Just open it.”
She unfolded the top of the bag and peeked inside then withdrew the little bottle of vanilla oil, pausing to read the label. “Cool.”
“There’s more.”
She removed the small velvet pouch. Her delicate fingers loosened the drawstring, and she poured the contents into her left hand. The locket lay sparkling in her palm.
“Oh my God,” she said, clearly surprised. “It’s beautiful.”
“Do you know what it is?”
“A necklace?” She looked up at him with a confused expression.
“Well, yes, but it’s a special kind of necklace. It’s called a scented locket.”
She tilted her head, her brow crinkled again.
“Oh good,” he said. “I thought I was the only one who’d never heard of them. Look.” He reached over and took the necklace, then opened the locket and removed the small piece of cloth. “You put your favorite fragrance on this piece of felt, then you pop it back into the locket, and it releases the scent while you wear it. I got you the vanilla thinking maybe it would make you feel like you’re baking when you’re not baking.” Explaining it that way made him feel foolish. His words weren’t coming out the way he wanted. Marienne didn’t seem to notice.
“That is the nicest gift anyone’s ever given me.”
“Well, I certainly hope that’s not the case.” The look on her face made him think she might have been serious. She reached for the vanilla oil and tried to open it but the lid remained stubbornly sealed.
“Here.” He held out his hand. “Let me try. It seems they practically glue them shut. That’s how I learned about these necklaces. My friend Christina has one, and she couldn’t get her bottle open. Got it.” He placed a drop onto the fabric, and then snapped the locket closed.
Marienne took a tentative sniff. “Mmmmm.” Her eyes closed and she breathed in deeply. “Smells wonderful.”
He smiled, pleased she liked it.
She slipped the chain over her head. “Now every time I smell vanilla I’ll think of you.”
Chapter Twenty
Marienne was dicing carrots when the phone rang. Justine’s voice crackled across the line the second Marienne answered. “What’s the most spectacular dessert you can make with only forty-eight hours notice?”
“What?” Marienne had no idea what Justine was talking about.
“I have ten extremely important potential investors coming to my house on Friday night, for a dinner party, and I just found out an hour ago. I need to impress them. I can’t serve standard catered food. I have to show them I can put together something unique and different. What’s the best dessert you can whip up on short notice? I don’t want bakery crap. I need one of your knock-your-socks-off specialties. I’ll pay you.”
Justine’s voice had an excited edge to it that Marienne had never heard before, a cross between glee and mania.
“You don’t need to pay me.”
“I want to pay you,” Justine said. “This is business. I’ll write it off. Name your price. All I’m worried about is the time frame.”
“It doesn’t take that long to make anything. What kind of dessert do you want?”
“I don’t know.”
“Okay, well, what are you serving for dinner?”
“Actually, I want your input on the menu, too. Daniel will be in the city Friday, but he only has one early morning meeting. I was going to send him to Dean and DeLuca to pick up food. They’re good, right?”
“The best,” Marienne said. “I worked there for years.”
“Oh my God, that’s perfect. You must know the store really well. Could you go with him?”
“To Dean and DeLuca?”
“Yes. Then I wouldn’t have to worry about him getting the wrong things. You know how awful he is at shopping. I’ll ask for golden tomatoes and he’ll come home with Meyer lemons. Would you go?”
“I guess.” Marienne opened the coffee table drawer and pulled out a notebook and pen.
Dean and DeLuca
she wrote at the top of the page.
With Daniel.
She shifted the phone away from her mouth so Justine wouldn’t hear if she giggled.
“Unless you think you won’t have time. I still need you to bake.”
“Don’t worry. I can do both. Now, what did you have in mind for food?”
The next hour was spent discussing dinner menu options. Marienne was thankful her morning sickness was finally over; now that she could eat again, she enjoyed thinking about all the possible food combinations. She wrote down a basic list of Justine’s wants and don’t-wants and decided to base the specifics on what Dean and DeLuca had on Friday.
Marienne rattled off a dozen dessert possibilities. “You have a lot of variety in your dinner menu so you should mirror that in your dessert choices. I’d suggest something chocolaty, something creamy, something fruity and something crunchy. That way people can take what they want and try a little of everything.”
“Shit,” Justine said. “You’ve got way better ideas than the catering menus. You should do this professionally.”
“Thanks, but I don’t want to do this as a business, at least not now.”
“You’re sure you can make any of these things in that time frame?”
“Positive.” Marienne was certain, but Justine’s question made her nervous.
Half an hour later the menu was set. They had agreed on truffle loaf with crème anglaise and caramel sauce, assorted fruits, chocolate fondue, and butter cookies. Marienne whipped up a batch of the cookie dough, rolled it into logs and tucked them into the freezer. They needed to chill at least six hours before she could slice and bake them, so she decided to head to the grocery store to pick up the rest of her supplies.
****
Frank came home late, but Marienne was still cooking. Racks of cookies cooled on the countertop, some plain, others covered with chunky sugar crystals, and a third coated in fluffy confectioner’s sugar. The house smelled like caramel.
“What’s all this?” Frank pulled off his jacket and tossed it onto a kitchen chair.
“I’m helping Justine.”
“Helping Justine what? Gain weight?” He surveyed the kitchen table which was covered with supplies, blocks of chocolate, tins of cocoa, and bottles of vanilla beans.
She frowned. “She’s having a dinner party on Friday, a bunch of people who might want to invest in Just in Time. She wants to impress them. She asked me to make desserts for her.” Marienne rhythmically stirred the contents of the pot on the stovetop. “She offered to pay me.”
Frank looked pleased. “Everyone always raves about your desserts.”
“She also wants me to go do the grocery shopping, in the city, with Daniel. She’s afraid he’ll buy the wrong stuff.”
Frank laughed. “She’s right. Crazy Brit would probably come home with English muffins and marmalade, and Justine would kill him.”
“He would not.”
Frank raised his eyebrows. “Daniel’s a great guy, and he’s got a lot of talents, but I doubt planning a menu is one of them. That’s your strong suit. You know food, and you can cook.”
“Yeah, I know. That’s why you married me.”
He came up behind her. “That and a few other reasons.” He pressed against her.
She shifted away. “You’re gonna make me burn the caramel.”
“Yeah?” He kissed her. “What about after you finish the caramel?”
The kiss felt good. The pregnancy hormones were making her horny, and it had been weeks since they’d had sex. This was the first week she was feeling human again. She kissed him back, and then checked the caramel. It was starting to turn golden.
“Give me three more minutes. I’ll meet you upstairs.”
He groaned, rubbing against her one more time. “Hurry.”
Marienne finished the caramel sauce and poured it into a bowl to cool, then headed up. Frank was in bed, watching TV, naked and very much ready. She felt nervous as she undressed. The last time they tried had been a complete disaster. She’d been nauseated and kissing had made her even more so, plus she’d been painfully swollen. He hadn’t been able to enter her. The night had ended with him cursing under his breath as she ran to the bathroom to puke.
She climbed into bed still wearing panties and a tank top.
“What’s with these?” Frank ran his hand over her underwear.
She shrugged.
“We don’t need anything in our way.” He leaned over to kiss her and pulled them down.
He ran his hand briskly up her body, trying to insinuate his fingers between her legs. She tensed, pulling back.
“Slow. Please, if this is going to work we’re going to have to go really slow.” She kissed him, her lips brushing against his. She relaxed her legs, letting his hand slip between them.
Frank rubbed his hand on her. She knew it was killing him to go slow. It had been a while, way too long, as he’d kept reminding her. He pressed against her thigh. He stroked faster and she grabbed his wrist. Instead of pulling away she began ever-so-slowly rocking against his fingers.
He kissed her again, darting his tongue into her mouth. Her fingers remained clasped around his wrist. His cock left a wet trail at as it grazed across her thigh.
“If you don’t let me in soon, I’ll finish right on your leg.”
How romantic.
She closed her eyes tighter and tried to focus on the sensation of his hands. It had been a long time for her, too, and she wanted to come. She felt the pressure build then tumble out of her. A soft cry escaped her throat, and she quivered beneath his fingers. He realized she’d come and he climbed on top of her, pulling her tank top up over her breasts. The only thing he seemed to like about pregnancy was the increased size of her boobs. He sucked one nipple into his mouth and she yelped, jerking away.
“Sorry,” he said.
“It’s okay. They’re just sore.”
She kissed him, and he promptly forgot about her breasts. He tried to press himself inside her. He missed on the first try, running hard into her pelvic bone instead. She reached between them to guide him, determined to make this work.
Marienne held her breath, waiting to see if it would hurt. It felt snug, but there was no pain. In fact, it felt better than she expected. She moved with him, enjoying the feel of his chest rubbing against her sensitive breasts.
“Oh God.” He groaned. She moved against him in hopes of finishing, but it was too late. He slipped out of her and rolled onto his back, leaving her tingling, but unsatisfied. “Good thing we took care of you beforehand.” He patted her thigh. “Jesus that felt good. You’re tighter than a virgin.”
Marienne stifled a sigh.
It could have been much worse. It had been, many times.
At least she’d gotten close, and he was right, they’d taken care of her ‘before.’
She noticed Frank was already asleep. Typical. It didn’t matter. She had things to do. She crawled out of bed, grabbed a clean pair of pajamas, and walked into the bathroom, quietly closing the door behind her. After a quick shower she tiptoed back downstairs. The kitchen was a mess. Bowls were piled high in the double sink and the countertop was coated with a dusting of flour and powdered sugar. The bowl of caramel sauce felt cool so she put it in the fridge. Then she started to clean.
When she finished she took her notebook into the dining room and sat down on one of big mahogany chairs. She made a list of all the things she needed to cook then surveyed the hutch for platters. Justine’s taste and style were dramatically different from hers, but she was able to select a few pieces of crystal she’d received as wedding gifts. Those would blend in perfectly with Justine’s more modern décor. She hoped she’d get some rest so she’d have enough energy to do everything.