"You can have it if you want," he finally said.
"No, but I'm giving you some of my duck." I speared one of the thin slices of sweet and tangy duck with my fork and held it out to Mace. I wondered if he would bite it off, but he took the fork from me. His hand was warm where our fingers touched.
"Don't you love how it just melts in your mouth?" I gushed. "I love food. I love cooking it and eating it!"
I hadn't had the money to eat at nice places since the Anke debacle, and I'd forgotten how awesome it was, especially if someone else was paying.
Henry ate most of his lamb and some of the pasta. Mace watched him, amazed.
"I can't believe he finished all of that," he said.
"It was good. We should come back here," Henry said.
"I mean, if he's going to eat vegetables, we might have to," Mace muttered.
"Are we interested in dessert?" the waitress asked as she set down boxes for the leftovers.
"No," Mace said.
"Yes," I told him. "You can't skip dessert."
"The coconut cream pie is very good," the waitress said. "It's from the Grey Dove Bistro."
"Chloe's shipping stuff all the way out here?" Mace asked, obviously impressed.
"You know Chloe?" I asked him seriously. Watching theGreat Christmas Bake-Offover Christmas had been the only thing keeping me from completely falling apart after Anke left me with all that credit card debt.
"She's my brother's cofounder's girlfriend," he explained. "When Jack comes to Harrogate, he always brings food that she's made."
"Okay, see, you should have led with that," I told him. "Chloe is so cool! I follow her on Instagram. You should see her kitchen. It's amazing."
"I've been to their penthouse."
"What? You're killing me!"
The waitress set down two pieces of the pie.
"See?" I showed Mace. "You would probably actually like it. Chloe said she developed a new recipe that doesn't have all the cream. It's denser and less sweet. She puts salt on the coconut before toasting so you can really taste the flavor."
I cut a piece off with my fork.
"Try it," I demanded. This time, he didn't take the fork, letting me feed him.
* * *
"So the nexttime Chloe comes to Harrogate, you have to let me know," I said as we walked out of the restaurant. "I want to casually be there for some fake reason. I feel like we would be friends after I finish fangirling all over her shirt."
Mace laughed. It was a nice deep chuckle that ended in almost a purr.
"Are you ready for a nap?" I asked Henry as Mace opened the car door.
"He's going to be up all night," Mace said with a sigh. "You need to stay awake," he told Henry as I buckled him into the car seat.
"You just want a siesta after you eat that much." I yawned and stretched. "Ah, I forgot—"
"Your purse and your leftovers." Mace held out the bags to me. I took them sheepishly.
"Is this a regular occurrence? Your leaving stuff lying around?" Mace asked, a hint of a smile on his lips.
