Gwen slipped on a hoodie draped over the back of a chair. I’d fetched it out of my closet at some point during the past twelve hours, and now she’d claimed it.
“No way. I want to put that kitchen of yours to use. Do you ever cook?”
I laughed at the thought. “Yeah, no. My chef takes care of it. He comes once a week, stocks me up, and then all I have to do is reheat as needed.”
“Well, today you can skip whatever he made for you, because I’m cooking.”
Despite my control-freak tendencies, I was more than happy to let Gwen take the reins.
“Do you have real food? Like, ingredients?”
I shrugged. “I don’t spend much time in my kitchen. But Pierre does, so it’s a safe bet that it’s fully stocked.”
“Acrime,” she scolded me. “Outta my way, let me get my hands on that Viking stove.”
“Actually, it’s a La Cornue Château.”
Her eyes nearly bugged out of her head, and she sprinted out of my bedroom.
I pulled on sweats and a T-shirt and made my way to the kitchen to find Gwen spinning in a circle like a Disney princess.
“This is paradise! You haveeverything!”
I laughed at her enthusiasm. “You’re this excited over appliances?”
She scowled. “Don’t you dare call these works of art appliances. You’ll hurt their feelings. Now, sit down, shut up, and let me do my thing.”
I did as I was told and watched Gwen acquaint herself with my kitchen.
“What are you making me?”
“Quiche,” she answered as she pulled eggs and butter from my glass-front refrigerator. She pointed at it. “That’s a restaurant-quality fridge, you know.”
“I’m aware,” I laughed.
Gwen narrated every step of her process, taking time to freak out about every tool and appliance she touched. Even my mixing bowls were worthy of a swoon. Meanwhile, I couldn’t stop staring at her as she chopped, stirred, and rolled. Gwen excelled at everything, and when she was faced with a stumbling block like too-cold butter, she quickly found a workaround.
Resilient, creative, and—if the aroma in my kitchen was any indication—adamngood cook.
My phone rang, and I felt an immediate surge of guilt as I realized I’d barely thought about work, which meant that Gwen was also a damn good distraction. But to my surprise, it wasn’t Susan but my brother Logan.
I steeled myself for the conversation to come. These days, he felt like a stranger to me, which meant that my father’s party this weekend was going to require getting reacquainted.
Which wouldn’t be the worst thing. Maybe it was time for us to try to find a way back to being a family?
Gwen glanced at me as I answered.
“Hey, what’s wrong?” I said into the phone.
“Nothing, why would you assume something’s wrong?” Logan laughed. “Damn, dude, you sound miserable. As usual.”
I frowned at the countertop. He thought I soundedmiserable? It showed how little he knew about me. Although talking to him probably did bring out the worst in me, despite the amazing time I was currently having.
“What do you need?” I asked, because the call certainly wasn’t a social check-in.
“Yeah, uh, I just wanted to see when you’re arriving. Drew and I want to connect with you to go over some last-minute details before Dad gets in.”
I’d barely given the party any thought.
