walked into the kitchen, and I was pleasantly surprised to see a pretty woman standing by the stove.
“Hello, sir,” the woman called. “Your food should be ready in ten minutes.”
“Told you,” Marco smirked.
The chef smiled at me. “Is there anything else you might be craving?” she asked me.
Everything. It was amazing how no matter what food was in front of me or suggested, it sounded delicious. “Uh, some spicy pickles?” I mean, could you really eat a burger with no pickle?
The woman smiled wide. “We happen to have a few jars in the fridge. They happen to be a favorite of mine, too.”
“I’m Royal.” It felt right to introduce myself to her. I wasn’t sure if that was proper etiquette, but honestly? I wasn’t someone like Marco who was used to having a chef or a staff.
“And I’m Bristol.” She flipped the burgers on the griddle. “It’s nice to meet a guest of Mr. Marco’s.”
I raised my eyebrows at Marco. I was a guest, huh? That was news to me. “Uh, yes. It’s nice to meet you, too.”
“Do you want something to drink?” Marco asked.
“Do you actually know where the fridge is?” I asked. Marco seemed to be pretty clueless to most other things about the house, so I wasn’t sure if he actually knew what a fridge was.
Marco grunted while Bristol muffled her laughter with the back of her hand.
“I think I can manage getting you a drink,” he grumbled. He moved to the fridge and opened the doors. “Water? Tea?” He grabbed a pitcher from the fridge and held it up to the light. “And whatever this pink shit is.”
“Lemonade with strawberry puree,” Bristol called. “I just made it.”
“That sounds amazing.” Homemade strawberry lemonade? Wow.
Marco set the pitcher on the counter and reached into a cabinet for glasses.
“I’m rather impressed you know where the glasses are.”
Marco set two glasses next to the pitcher and glared at me. “You act like I can’t even tie my own shoes.”
I pursed my lips and glanced at Bristol. “Uh, well, I’m sure you know how to do that.” I glanced at his bare feet. “I mean, I assume you know how.”
He filled the two glasses and set the pitcher back in the fridge. “Your long nap seems to have agreed with you.” He nodded to the stools under the kitchen island. “We can sit here.”
“Dinner will be ready in five minutes,” Bristol called. “I just need to drop your fries in the fryer.”
My stomach growled at the mention of actual deep-fried fries.
I pulled out a stool and managed to hoist myself up on it. “A girl could get used to this kind of service,” I laughed.
Bristol winked and dunked the basket of fries into the hot oil.
“Whatever you need, you can have, Royal,” Marco mumbled. He set my glass in front of me and then sat in the stool next to mine.
I knew there were a ton of things I needed, but at the moment, the only thing I could think of was food. Lots of yummy food.
A few minutes later, Bristol set a steaming hot cheeseburger in front of me along with a pile of sweet potato fries. She grabbed a jar of spicy pickles out of the fridge and added them to the feast. “I try to always make everything, but these are some of the best pickles ever. I can’t seem to duplicate their deliciousness.” She twisted off the top and laid a fork next to the jar. “Enjoy.”
She disappeared from the kitchen, and I was left alone with Marco.
Without a glance at him, I grabbed my burger and took a bite.
“Oh my,” I moaned. “Maybe I should have asked for two.” This was the best burger I had ever eaten in my whole life. The meat was a juicy medium rare and all the veggies were fresh and crisp. I wouldn’t even go into the amazing creaminess of the cheese.
“How is it?” Marco asked.
I gave a thumbs up and reached for a napkin.
“So good you can’t even talk,” he chuckled.
I wiped my mouth and smiled. “This is the best thing I have ever put in my mouth.”
We sat in silence while we both ate our full plates of food.
I shoved the last French fry into my mouth and groaned. “Wow.”
Marco chuckled. “I think that’s a good word to describe that burger. Bristol always seems to make the simplest things taste amazing.”
I leaned back in my chair and rubbed my stomach. Little baby had finally stopped moving around and