‘Are you going to wait right there?’
‘Yes.’
‘Right.’
I pace back and forth the length of the room until finally I hear the toilet flush, the tap run and then a moment later Bill comes out and grimaces at me. There is a warmth to his skin tone, and his eyes are much brighter. A good day. And that’s a relief, because today I need him.
‘What the Dickens is going on?’
‘The reviewer is coming tonight and Roxy isn’t here, and I need someone to go over the wine list with me, to make sure I don’t fuck it up,’ I say. ‘For Irene and James, and for everyone.’
He looks at me for a moment, and I see something flash across his face and I’m not sure what it was. Pity? I think it might have been.
‘Calm down,’ he says and motions me to the seat in the corner of the staffroom.
I thrust the wine list out to him. ‘Test me. Ask me about any wine on the list.’
‘Memorizing the wine list is one thing, but that’s not what you need to be confident about. You just need to do your thing. Charm him,’ Bill says, shaking his head at me. He sits and tries again to get me to do the same, by patting the seat next to me.
‘I can’t sit down. Please test me. Start anywhere.’
He takes the list off me and flicks it open. ‘Well, okay, I can do it if it makes you feel more prepared.’
‘It will,’ I say, because I can feel my heart beating hard and my chest begin to tighten.
‘The 2014 Perricone del Core,’ he says and I start to pace back and forth.
‘Intense,’ I reply, biting on the edge of my thumbnail. ‘Rich, thick, with white pepper on the palate.’
‘Yes, itisall those things,’ he says. ‘It doesn’t say that here in the wine list, though.’
‘We need to cross-reference with my notes,’ I say. Then I panic as my hands reach the notebook in my apron. Will the contents looksuspicious? They won’t, will they? Won’t it just look like I’m really prepared? Fuck it! I toss the book towards him. ‘Everything is in the same order as the wine list. Can you check I got it right?’
‘Heather,’ he says, shaking his head at me. ‘Keep it brief, you’ll be fine.’
‘Check, please,’ I say, trying to steady my breathing.
‘Okay.’ He flicks through the notebook and finds the matching wine. ‘You said white pepper? Intense? That’s correct. Also says here it goes well with game, because of the berry notes.’
‘Yes, I knew that. Game,’ I nod. ‘Okay, next one.’
‘The 2016 Pinot Gris, Man o’ War, from New Zealand,’ he says.
‘Waiheke Island, technically. Ginger and citrus fruits. Thirst-quenching. Delicious,’ I say. ‘Is that right? Serve with anything spicy, probably. Chilli and seafood works. Have you got it yet?’
‘Hang on, love,’ says Bill as he flicks through my notebook again, then nods. ‘You know it.’
‘Heather should know about more than simply the wine. Ask me some pairing questions, as if you were a reviewer,’ I say, glancing up at Bill as I realize the mistake I just made, and he looks back at me with deep concern etched across his forehead and mouth. ‘Sorry for the third person. I’m in the zone,’ I say quickly. ‘Come on, ask me.’
‘Okay, well, tonight we have lobster and summer leaves: what would you recommend? I don’t like the Meursault it’s been paired with on the tasting menu.’
‘Good. Good question,’ I say, nodding furiously. ‘May I suggest a glass of one of our vintage champagnes?’
‘I don’t like the Chardonnay grape at all. But I do want something equally fabulous.’
I nod at Bill, to let him know I’m very pleased with the second test, and stop to breathe out slowly and fully, before recalling, ‘Our rosé from Provence then. Can I recommend the Bastide de la Ciselette 2016? It’s rich and elegant.’
‘With a long finish,’ Bill says, as he finds my notes. ‘And it says here these need drinking right now.’
