Mince Finely

Julia receives a spicy offer.

 

            ‘And then you just sprinkle the Parmesan like so...’ Hugo Millie, the renowned chef, grinned like a widely as Julia leaned over his casserole and took a deep, appreciative whiff. ‘Is delicious, no?’

            ‘Absolutely sublime, as always, Hugo,’ Julia said, placing a friendly hand on his arm and turning to the camera. ‘Hugo’s newest cookbook, Cook Like Me, is on the shelves today. It’s brilliant, just like this man. America’s going to fall in love with you, Hugo.’    

            ‘All well and good, but it’s not her love I want,’ he said, and smooth as butter, took her hand and kissed the knuckles. Julia raised her eyebrows.

            ‘Oh my,’ Julia said. ‘Well, thank you for joining us, Hugo, and thank all of you for joining me.’ In the tradition of her show, she lifted her glass of red wine and toasted the camera. ‘Here’s to your future as a Domestic Diva.’

            ‘...and cut. Great take, Jules. Nice ad-lib Hugo,’ the cameraman said, and went off to do more technical stuff. Sighing, Julia took a sip of the red wine. It was room temperature, having sat out on the counter the whole show, but it still tasted great.

            ‘You’re a wonderful hostess.’

            ‘And you’re a brilliant cook, as I said earlier.’

            ‘I can make a chocolate mousse that will make you undress at my will.’ He murmured, keeping his eyes on her. Instead of frowning or blushing like several women would, Julia just smiled. It was intriguing.

            ‘I’m sure you can, and you have.’ She glanced over her shoulder, only to spot her boss, Flipside TV’s founder and owner. He owned a couple of other networks, a kids’ channel and a sports station. He quirked his brow at her, his mouth unsmiling but eyes undeniably amused. ‘But I’ll probably be busy.’

            ‘Ah,’ Hugo dropped her hand. ‘I see.’ He smiled. ‘Well, I’m not one for poaching.’ He lifted his hand and waved at Jacob, who waved back, then moved his gaze onto Julia. ‘I’ll see you.’

            Jacob walked up to the counter and tapped his hands on the marble slate. ‘I need to talk to you, Jules.’

            ‘Don’t call me Jules. My friends call me Jules, and you’re not my friend.’

            ‘We still need to talk. About divasdude94,’ he said. He noticed the way she closed her eyes briefly, hands pausing on the casserole she was dishing out. She liked to serve the food to the cast and crew after the show – since they often had two of everything and the staff was small, there was mostly enough to go around.

            ‘Ah, what about him?’

            ‘He’s sent more emails, and a few more packages.’ Jacob looked her in the eye, frustrated when she immediately averted her gaze. Julia, this isn’t just another regular stalker. He’s potentially dangerous.’

            ‘So I’ll buy some mace,’ she said casually, getting out some more plates.

            ‘You’re not taking this seriously. I told you to move out of that apartment building. It’s in a bad neighbourhood –’

            ‘A beautiful neighbourhood,’ she corrected.

            ‘With little to no security, an eighty-eight year old doorman and a fire escape that a five year old can climb into,’ he said. ‘Julia, you’re the best host this channel has. I only want your safety.’

            ‘If I didn’t make didn’t make you as much money as I do, you wouldn’t give a damn that this guy was following me.’

            He looked at her for a full beat with anger flashing in his eyes, but when he spoke, his voice was quiet and measured. ‘That’s a terrible thing to say, Julia.’

            ‘I’m sorry, Slater. That really was bad, I apologize. It’s just -- ’ She closed her eyes, placing both of her hands on the counter and breathing deeply. ‘I’m so scared.’

            He watched her, puzzling about the concern that had lodged itself in his throat, and about how the anger had just flipped itself on his head. How dare this guy scare her, make her worry? He suggested something that made her eyes fly open.

            ‘What?’

            ‘Move in with me,’ he said, so smoothly and casually that if she hadn’t been paying close attention, she wouldn’t have caught it. He continued easily, twirling a fork in his fingers. ‘My house is too big for one person, and it’s secure enough to be an army base. It’ll set off fewer alarms than if you suddenly commanded your apartment building to up its security – plus it’ll help the cops classify what kind of guy we’re dealing with.’

            ‘What do you mean?’

            ‘If he figures that we’re a couple, he could be reasonable and stop the pestering, but if he’s criminally insane – well, that’s for the cops to decide.’

            ‘Oh,’ she said, overwhelmed. ‘I could really use a chair right now.’

 

 

Author's Note

Be brutal. Critique, criticize -- but please don't tell me it's sappy or too romantic. It is a romance novel, after all!

Reviews

[Jules]

i LOVE it so far :D it my name woot! bonus :D the story line is great :D im intrigued so im going to keep reading :D of course! :D