Heard the invitation.
The invitation he hadn’t refused.
A week ago it wouldn’t have bothered her. Now?
“Merde.” She tugged a pan out of one of the cupboards, sending others crashing.
It didn’t bother her now, either. He was a free agent and he could sleep with whomever he wanted. So what if he’d pretended to be all kind and sensitive and it had all been a sham? That wasn’t what upset her. No, what really upset her was that he’d broken his solemn promise to Sam.
He’d promised Sam he’d stay until he woke up but it was obvious that promise had come with conditions and one of those had been not getting a better offer from a sexy-looking blonde nurse who had no sense of timing or appropriate behaviour.
So he lied when it suited him. Why was she surprised? She’d spent long enough with a man who had done just that to know what people were capable of.
She slammed a pan onto the burner and saw Poppy jump.
“Everything okay, Chef?”
“Everything is just fine.” She poured in oil and waited for it to heat before adding garlic and ginger. “Couldn’t be better.”
She didn’t care about herself. She had no interest in whether Sean O’Neil slept with the whole damn female staff in the hospital, all she cared about was that he’d broken his promise to little Sam.
How could he do that?
How could he lie to a child?
That was the lowest of the low. There was no excuse.
“Are you sure you’re all right?” Poppy was by her shoulder, looking anxious. “It’s just that you’re burning the garlic, Chef.”
Élise glanced down at the pan.
It was true. The garlic was dark and had that bitter aroma that offended her sense of smell.
She’d burned it, like an amateur. It was years since she’d done that.
With an exclamation of disgust she pulled the pan off the heat and stepped away, hands raised. “I should not be cooking tonight, I am too upset.”
“Of course you’re upset.” Her voice soothing, Poppy reached across and switched off the burner. “You’ve had a traumatic day. We’re all worried about Sam. I’ve been asked a million times how he is. Sometimes you think people are only interested in whether their steak is perfectly cooked, but then something like this happens and you realize they do care. Restores your faith in human nature to be honest.”
Did it? Her faith in human nature had been shattered years before and nothing she’d seen today had done anything to restore it.
It was like Pascal all over again.
Poppy nudged her out of the way and started with a fresh pan. “Go and talk to the guests, Chef. We’re fine here. I’ve got everything in hand.”
Talk to the guests.
Élise blinked. Breathed. Yes, she’d do that.
And she’d stop thinking about Sean.
If anything she should be pleased he’d shown his true colors. For a moment when he’d saved Sam’s life she’d been ready to lay down her own life for him. She’d been in awe. Totally overwhelmed by how amazing he was.
But she had no admiration for a man who broke promises to a child.
She wandered between the tables, a smile fixed on her face, her mind elsewhere.
“Any news on little Sam, Élise?” A family staying in one of the lodges looked at her with somber faces as she walked into the elegant dining room.