Series: Paige Michaels
Total pages in book: 48
Estimated words: 44898 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 224(@200wpm)___ 180(@250wpm)___ 150(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 44898 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 224(@200wpm)___ 180(@250wpm)___ 150(@300wpm)
“Let me at them!”
Nora took another bite of her burrito and met Mateo’s eyes. She quickly chewed and swallowed before telling him, “This is so good. You don’t have to stay with me. I’ll eat.”
“Promise?” he asked and she could hear the stern tone in his voice.
“I promise,” Nora answered, crossing her heart with her burrito.
“Good girl.”
When he turned to leave, she tried not to notice his muscular butt and failed miserably. Taking another bite of her burrito, she knew he was taking care of her. Nora vowed to take him up on his offer to visit for dinner soon.
Chapter Three
The following week, business was still brisk but not crazy. Craftastic closed on Sunday evening at five p.m. There were a million things to do inside, but Nora decided to celebrate. She locked up the store and headed down the covered walkway to La Havana.
Opening the door, she met Mateo’s gaze. His expression went from surprised to pleased. She loved the slow smile that transformed his features from polite restauranteur to a private welcome.
“Nora. Are you here to have dinner with me?” he asked, walking forward to take her hands.
“I thought… Is this a good time?” she stuttered over what to say.
“It is the perfect time. Come with me.” He waved over a younger man to take his place. “Nora, this is Caesar, my youngest brother.”
“Nora, I am delighted to meet you.”
From the twinkle in the man’s eyes, Nora had the feeling that Mateo had mentioned her in the past. “Hi, Caesar. I’m glad to meet you as well.”
“Caesar, you are the host tonight. I have a lovely dinner companion. Send Guille in to speak to us about the menu, please,” Mateo requested.
She repeated that name to herself. Gii-yay. I wonder how that’s spelled. Giving Caesar a self-conscious wave, she allowed Mateo to steer her from the desk.
Mateo tucked her hand under his arm and escorted her through the dining room to a small private room. He pulled out one chair and helped her into it before sliding the chair forward. With a flourish, he snapped the cloth napkin out of the fancy folded shape before her and laid it in her lap. Taking the seat next to her, he smiled. “Thank you for joining me tonight.”
“It’s my pleasure.” Nora turned her head as someone else approached them.
“Mateo, I hear you have a special guest tonight,” said the newcomer as he turned toward Nora. “I am Guillermo, but everyone calls me Guille. Thank you for visiting La Havana tonight. I’m ready to create a masterpiece for you.”
“Hello, Guille. I’m Nora. You don’t have to make anything special for me,” she protested.
“Of course I do.” He leaned forward to whisper, “You’ll indulge me?”
Completely enchanted, Nora agreed, “Of course.”
“Perfecto! Now, are you allergic to anything? Is there anything you don’t like?” the chef asked as he pulled a long lighter from his pocket to add a flame to the candle in the center of the table.
“I’m not allergic to anything that I know of. I’m not a big fan of spicy foods, but I like everything else,” she assured as she glanced over at Mateo to make sure she was handling this correctly. His smile encouraged her to have fun.
“Guacamole?” Guille asked with a glimmer in his eye.
“One of my favorite things on Earth,” she answered honestly.
“Then we will start with guacamole before we switch to some traditional, pure Cuban dishes. Mojo chicken with tostones and rice. Cuban churros and hot chocolate for dessert,” Guille announced with a flourish.
“I don’t know what some of those are but it sounds delicious,” she complimented, completely enchanted by the chef who loved to showcase Cuban dishes.
“You are spoiling us, Guille. She will love everything,” Mateo commented.
“Of course. She will come back, and I will feed her more delicacies,” Guille demanded, looking at Nora for her agreement.
“Of course I will. If Mateo invites me again,” she added, giving him an out.
Laughing as if this were the funniest thing anyone had ever suggested, Guille strode out of the room. Before he disappeared, she noted him rubbing his hands together in excitement.
“Why did he laugh?” Nora asked.
“I’ve been prepping him since we met to be ready to knock your socks off,” Mateo admitted. “I wanted to make a good impression.”
“You’ve already been wonderful. I’m glad we’ve met, Mateo,” Nora said honestly.
A young man swept in with two glasses of water and two gorgeous red cocktails in crystal glasses.
“Thank you, Enrique. Nora, this is my cousin.”
“Hi, Enrique.”
“Nice to meet you, Nora.”
When the young man disappeared, Nora asked, “Does all you family work here?”
With a laugh, Mateo nodded. “It seems so some days. Not everyone works at La Havana. I have a very large family. My mother prepares some special dishes. My sister, Maya, is very shy and likes to work in the background. I’ve asked her to start working in the front. I don’t want her hiding in the kitchen all her life.”