lips. “Open up,” I instructed. For a second, I thought she would refuse, but then she shut her eyes and allowed me to feed her the small morsel. “Chew it slowly. Tell me what you taste. What it feels like on your tongue.” I sat back, watching her, already moving ahead in my mind to what I would feed her next.
“Well?” I prompted after she had chewed and swallowed.
She opened her eyes and looked at me sheepishly. “It was cheese?”
“Yes. How did it taste?”
“Um, okay?”
I shook my head, reminding myself to be patient. If she had replied it was buttery, rich, and creamy in her mouth, we wouldn’t be sitting here.
“Nothing else?”
“Soft?”
I nodded. At least she got that right. I offered her a piece of apple to clear her palate and watched as she nibbled on it.
“Aren’t you having any?” she asked.
Smiling, I obliged and picked up a piece of the juicy apple, enjoying its crisp texture. That seemed to make her more comfortable, and I saw her relax a little.
Next, I fed her a small piece of Swiss cheese, secretly enjoying the fact that I had neglected to bring anything to feed her with other than my fingers. A fact that I noticed she hadn’t objected to.
She chewed, and a slight frown appeared on her face.
“Well?”
“That was cheese again, right?”
“Yes.”
“It was harder than the other one.”
“Anything else?”
“It was dry?”
I fought back a groan. “You didn’t find it slightly nutty or sharp on your tongue? Whereas the first bite was smooth and rich?”
She looked at me as if I had two heads. “Neither one tasted like the cheese I get on my burger.”
I couldn’t help the groan that escaped my mouth this time.
She began to stand. “This is a waste of your time, Byron.”
My hand shot out, grasping hers, and I stopped her from leaving her chair. “No. It’s not. We’re just getting started. Trust me, Julia.”
She looked at me quizzically. “Why is this so important to you?”
For a minute, I was silent. I had no idea what to tell her, except that from the second I had seen her sitting there, looking so lovely with her uniquely colored hair swept away from her face and her pretty yellow dress, a vivid contrast to the black leather chair she sat in, she had captivated me. Her large green eyes darted around the room, and she looked uncomfortable and almost vulnerable in my dining room. I had felt drawn to her—she seemed lost, and I didn’t like that. When I had left the kitchen to find out why Melinda had not enjoyed her dinner, I was so focused on the full plate that came back, I hadn’t even noticed it wasn’t Mark sitting across from Melinda, but rather this appealing woman, until she had spoken.
Earlier, I had arranged for my maître d’, Gerard, to be the one looking after the table and that I was preparing their meal myself. Mark had told me he wanted the evening to be very special, and I was pleased to be able to help my friend, even planning a different dish for them. The fact that the dish was deemed passable and came back barely touched had shocked me, and I had immediately gone to find out why. Faced with Julia’s wide-eyed reaction instead of Mark’s calm gaze, I had been momentarily stunned. That he was called away was unfortunate. Although, right now I couldn’t find it in myself to really care, since I was sitting across from Julia, alone in my office. I shook my head as I realized she was now gazing at me warily, wondering why I wasn’t answering her question.
Looking at her, I knew the answer. Somehow, I knew she was going to be important to me, and I wanted to share this part of my life with her. I had a strange desire to feed her and look after her, but if I told her that, I had a feeling she would be out of the chair and gone before I could even blink, so I simply shrugged. “I enjoy a challenge.”
She shook her head sadly. “Some challenges are insurmountable, Byron.”
I realized I was still holding her hand, and I squeezed it softly before letting it go. Leaning forward, I picked up a small piece of melon. I wanted to see how she reacted to something slightly sweeter. “Not this. Open up.”
Two weeks later
“Well?”
“It looks good, Byron. But if you gave me a garlic stick to dip in the sauce,