The Perfect Holiday

Katharine eyed me with cold amusement as she set two dishes down on the table. One of them was vaguely familiar – brie baked in a puff pastry crust, served with fruits and crackers. But the other, a small white dish with nine round holes, was something I’d never seen before. Tiny little lumps of meat filled each hole. Melted butter and herbs covered the dish and it smelled heavenly.

“Escargot,” Thomas said, nodding to the white dish.

I nodded. “Oh,” I said.

“Would you like to try?” Thomas took a small fork with three tines and dipped it into the dish. He speared one of the small hunks of meat and lifted it to my lips. Obediently, I parted and let Thomas feed me.

“Delicious, aren’t they?” Thomas asked.

I chewed. The meat – whatever it was – was surprisingly tender and it fell apart in my mouth. The butter and herbs soaked into my tongue in a sensual blend. I closed my eyes, savoring the small morsel of meat.

“That’s incredible,” I said. “Wow.” I opened my eyes and smiled at Thomas. The sexual energy was still flooding my body, and all of my senses were heightened. When I tasted my wine, it tasted different than before – richer, with more body. It was almost like being incredibly turned on just made things more delicious.

“I’m glad you like,” Thomas said. He speared another tiny piece of meat on the fork and popped it into his mouth. “No one makes escargot like Daniel does.”

I nodded. “It was really good,” I said. I dabbed my lips with the napkin. “What was it?”

Thomas gave me a puzzled look. “Escargot,” he said.

I blushed. “Yeah,” I said. “But, um, I don’t know what that is.”

Thomas raised his eyebrows in amusement. “Snails.”

My jaw dropped. The delicious, buttery flavors in my mouth turned to ash and I spit some wine back into the glass.

“Oh, June, I’m sorry,” Thomas said. He looked apologetic this time. “I assumed you know.”

The blood drained from my face and I wiped my lips with the napkin, not even caring that I’d likely smeared lipstick all over my face.

“Snails?” I gasped. “You fed me snails?”

Thomas chuckled. “They were good, though,” he said. He smirked at me. “You were fine with it before you knew what they were.”

I blushed. “It…was good,” I admitted grudgingly. “But that’s so gross! How can anyone eat snails?” I shuddered.

Thomas speared another on his fork and popped it into his mouth. He gave me a devilish smirk. “Because they’re delicious,” he said. “And come on, you can’t tell me you didn’t enjoy them.”

I wrinkled my nose. “You’re right,” I said. “But I think I’ll stick with the baked brie.”

Thomas laughed heartily. “Fine with me,” he said. “More snails for me.” He wriggled his eyebrows at me and I burst out laughing.

The brie was heavenly, and thankfully it didn’t contain a single trace of escargot. I smeared some on a cracker and topped it with the fig preserves that had come with a tiny dish. Already, despite Katharine’s bitchy behavior and the discovery of escargot, I loved Daniel. I loved the posh opulence, I loved the attention to detail in every dish.

Most of all, I loved being there with Thomas.

When our lamb came, I couldn’t believe how delicious it was. Every bite seemed to melt in my mouth.

“I’m glad you like lamb,” Thomas said. He took a small bite, then a sip of wine.

“Why?”

Thomas shrugged. “It’s one of those things, people either love it or they hate it.”

I laughed. “Whoever hates it just hasn’t tried the lamb here,” I said, raising my eyebrow. “It’s incredible.”

Thomas nodded. “It is,” he said. “But I’m often prone to liking things that many people don’t.” He raised an eyebrow at me and I bl

ushed.