Finally, she approached us, carrying a gigantic circular tray that I assumed held our food.
Once she arrived, her hands seemed a bit shaky; she was most definitely still on edge as she placed the hot dishes in front of each of us.
When she got to mine, though, somehow the tacos slipped off the plate—and right into my lap. I looked down to find a hot mess of red sauce saturating my crotch. And then came the burn.
Hot.
Hot.
Hot.
Sigmund broke out into hysterical laughter. “Not exactly the fire crotch you wished for from her, is it?” he whispered.
* * *
Felicity
Track 4: “Rock the Boat” by Aaliyah
My heart raced. “Oh my God. I’m so sorry.”
Instinctively, I grabbed a cloth napkin and began wiping his lap. When it hit me how inappropriate that was, I whipped my hand away.
“Felicity, it’s really all right.”
Before Leo could say anything more, I ran to the kitchen and grabbed a towel. Taking it over to the sink, I wet it and added some dish soap.
“Gino, I’m going to need another order of the snapper tacos. The last one accidentally fell…onto someone. I’m so sorry.”
The chef didn’t look too happy, but what choice did I have but to ask him?
I took the wet cloth back to Leo’s table and handed it to him. “Again, I’m so sorry.”
“No need to apologize. It was funny, actually,” he said, placing his hand gently on my wrist.
The contact sent an unexpected blast of arousal through me. “It’s not funny to me.” I pulled my wrist away. “I’ve put in another order. And it’s on me. Not on you this time. By on me, I mean I’ll cover the cost.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
I walked away again before he could say anything further.
When I returned to the kitchen, I took a few moments to compose myself before Gino announced the replacement snapper tacos were ready. Sweating, I took the plate off the counter and headed back into the dining room.
Placing the plate down carefully in front of Leo, I refused to make eye contact with him, instead looking over at a smirking Sig.
The rest of the evening, I did my best to avoid the table of doom altogether. I suppose that made me a terrible waitress, but I couldn’t risk making an even bigger fool of myself. Sometimes when I’d glance over at them, I’d notice Leo’s eyes on me. He must have felt sorry for my pathetic ass tonight. Yes, this was my first shift, but I was mostly nervous because I hadn’t been able to stop thinking about him since he’d asked me out that day at his house. And now, seeing him on a date with a gorgeous girl was jarring. But that’s the way it goes, right? You snooze, you lose.
The following morning at breakfast, Mrs. Angelini seemed to sense that something was bothering me.
“Is everything okay, Felicity?”
I put my coffee mug down. “Why do you ask?”
“You haven’t said a word all morning. How did your first night at the restaurant go?”
“Oh.” I shook my head. “It was…weird.”
“Why is that?”
“You know the neighbors across the bay? They dined at Jane’s last night.”
“The handsome boys from Britain? What’s wrong with that?”
“Well, for one, I dropped a hot plate of tacos on Leo’s crotch.”
Her mouth dropped. “You what?”
“Yeah. It was a total accident, but nevertheless awful. I ordered him a replacement and left the tacos off their bill, but after they’d gone, there was a mound of cash on the table. They left me a huge tip.”
“That doesn’t sound like a bad thing.”
“It’s not. But…”
Mrs. Angelini’s brow furrowed. “Did something happen when you went over there for tea the other day? You never filled me in. I feel like I’m missing part of the story.”
I exhaled. “They were on a double date last night with two gorgeous women. It threw me off, particularly because Leo asked me out that day at their house.”
She frowned. “So, you agreed to go out with him, and now he’s dating someone else? The nerve!”
“No, no. That’s not it. I told him I wasn’t interested.”
Her eyes narrowed. “You did?”
I hesitated. “I find him extremely attractive and charismatic. But I don’t think it’s a good idea to get involved with someone who’s only on this side of the Atlantic for a few months. That would be a recipe for disaster.”
“But he’s not looking to get involved. He just wants to have some fun.”
Her response shocked me a little. It also made me doubt again whether I’d made the right decision.
“That’s not my thing.”
“Fun isn’t your thing?” She chuckled.
“I like…fun. Just not with charming men who are leaving the country.”
“That’s fair. You’re trying to protect yourself. I understand.” She got up to pour herself another cup of coffee, then looked back at me. “You know, one of the biggest regrets I have about my youth is that I always played it safe. Henry was the best thing that ever happened to me, but I always wished I’d had a bit more fun before getting married.”