Secret Tastes (Secret Dreams Contemporary Romance 4) (20 page)

He opened his eyes, his lips curling in a satisfied smile. "Hmm?"

"Are you okay?"

"More than okay," he said with a grin.

With a sigh—of relief, he thought—Sam climbed off and lay beside him.

"Baby?" he asked as he wrapped his arms around her.

"Yeah?"

"Stay with me."

She peered at him. "I'm not going anywhere."

"I mean, let's live together. Instead of you going home this weekend, let's move your stuff here—well, what can fit anyway. We can put the rest in storage if you want to keep them. Then when the new house is finished you can furnish it however you like."

"But I still have four months to go on my lease at my place," she said.

"So? If the real estate agent doesn't find new tenants, we'll just keep paying the rent until the contract expires. It doesn't matter if we leave the place empty."

Sam fell silent and he knew she was analysing things. He didn't mind. He wouldn't push her to make a snap decision. Moving in together was a big thing—

"Okay," Sam said, smiling at him happily.

"Okay?" he asked, a face-splitting grin appearing on his face.

"Yes. I think I'll miss you too much if I'm not with you at nights," she admitted.

He squeezed her tight, kissing her face. "I'll ask Dylan for the number of that removalist he'd hired when he organised Ari's move in a week."

"You can't be lifting boxes and furniture until you've had your check up and the doctor's happy with your progress," she warned.

"Whatever you say, baby. You can be on top of me all week if you want."

Sam giggled, straddling him again.

Sam checked the time. It was already ten to seven, just ten more minutes to go before the most important clients in her short history as a private chef turned up for their special thirty-fifth wedding anniversary dinner.

She was ready for them. There was a round table in their house in the corner of the lounge room—a perfect size for two people—which she'd moved to the middle. With white table cloth, a narrow vase that held a single rose, and matching tea lights, it was now the centre piece in a room that had been tastefully adorned with strategically placed flower bouquets and glowing candles.

Once again, the florist she'd recently partnered with had done a great job in providing suitable floral arrangements for the occasion. They were a great mood enhancer for her romantic dinner packages.

She surveyed the kitchen, making sure she had everything all set up for the mouth-watering three-course meal for two she was about to cook. The only hiccup would be if Harry and Marie arrived much later than the anticipated seven o'clock start for their special dinner. She'd have to adjust her own timing for the night, which she'd planned to the nth degree, if that were the case.

Adam's parents were only her fifth clients since starting out. She shook her head fondly, remembering Harry's insistence on paying even though she'd told him this was her anniversary present to them. But Adam's father wouldn't hear anything of her giving her services for free. He'd said it was
his
surprise anniversary present for Marie, therefore, he must pay for it.

She couldn't believe how quickly she'd gone from ending her stint at Rowena's Kitchen to being fully booked as a private chef for the next four weeks. It was mainly due to Rowena. When she'd told her that she was resigning from her job at Rowena's Kitchen to start her own business, her old boss had been severely disappointed. But after fully experiencing the romantic dinner package she'd given to Rowena and her husband as a 'thank you' gift, they had raved about it to their friends and acquaintances.

It amazed her how her life had changed since she'd made that decision to quit her dad's accounting practice to follow her dream. She had no idea then how things would pan out, but here she was, finally starting to make a good living from what she loved doing. She believed she'd just been super lucky, but Adam had repeatedly told her that luck couldn't have played its part if she hadn't taken the necessary steps to make sure she was ready for it when it came. She'd 'made room for luck', were the exact words he'd used.

She smiled wistfully as she thought of Adam. The other day when they had drinks with all of their friends, she'd heard the boys chatting about Dylan and Ari's and Trey and Kris' upcoming weddings. Trey had asked Adam when he was going to pop the question, and Adam had said he hadn't even thought about it yet.

It had been a month and a half since she'd moved in with him and life had been bliss. In about three months, they'd be moving to Adam's new house, which he insisted was
their
house, not just his. But obviously, living together was all he had in mind at this point. To say that she was disappointed was an understatement. Well, she'd just have to wait… or better yet, propose to him herself.

She snorted. As if she'd have the guts to do something like that. No. She'd just give him hints. Plenty of hints. Then maybe one day soon, he'd—

Her rumination was interrupted by the doorbell ringing. She jumped out from her seat and adjusted her chef's uniform. That was Harry's signal that they'd arrived home.

She inhaled deeply, trying to calm the nerves that had surfaced. She'd be cooking soon for Adam's mother—the woman who was polite, but still distant toward her.

"Oh my goodness," she overheard a clearly surprised Marie say. "Harry, what's this?"

"There's more to today than just taking you out shopping, darling. We're having a romantic dinner right here in the privacy of our own home," Harry answered.

"You ordered food?"

"Ordered? No, Marie. I hired our very own chef for tonight." Harry glanced toward the kitchen entrance where Sam was standing. "Here she is," he said.

Marie swivelled and her eyes grew wide. "Sam!"

"Hi, Marie. Happy anniversary, guys," she said with a sincere smile.

"Thank you, Sam," Harry said. "This is a wonderful set up. I can't wait to start. We're starving."

"In that case, please have a seat. Would you like to start off with some wine?"

*

The dinner was a great success. Adam's parents loved the food and were awed by the way she'd presented it. While the couple were enjoying their dessert, she moved quickly to tidy up the kitchen. She didn't want to still be at clients' homes when they finished dessert. With romantic dinners, they should be alone by then.

Harry already knew she'd be letting herself out the back door. Once they'd finished with dessert, all the couple needed to do was place the remaining dishes in the dishwasher and turn the machine on.

She was just about to leave when Marie appeared in the kitchen.

"Sam?"

"Hi, Marie. I was just about to go so you guys can enjoy the rest of your night in private."

"I just want to say thank you. This dinner was wonderful."

Sam smiled, thrilled that Marie had sought her out.

"You're very welcome, Marie. It was a pleasure cooking for the two of you tonight. I'll drop by tomorrow to pick up the table cloth and vases."

"Sure. Maybe you and Adam can stay for afternoon tea then? Or even dinner?"

"That would be lovely," Sam responded. "I'll let Adam know."

"Great. We'll see you guys tomorrow," Marie said with a wide smile. "I'd love to hear more about your new business. It sounds very exciting."

*******

Sam couldn't wipe the smile off her face as she went home. That was probably the warmest Adam's mum had been toward her. She wondered what made Marie have a change of heart? Was it the food? The ambience? Harry's intervention? Whatever was responsible, she was grateful for it. It had been grating on Adam's nerves that his mother didn't like her half as much as Marie had liked Sandy. She knew Adam would be pleased with this turn of events.

Speaking of Adam, she couldn't wait to get home to him. One of the hardest parts about her new venture was to arrange her schedule so that she wasn't working every night. So far, half of her clientele were from the corporate sector. She was being hired to cook sumptuous lunches for executives while they negotiated large-money contracts. She planned to make those daytime orders eighty percent of her total work, with twenty percent being her romantic dinner nights. That way, she'd only be working nighttime once or twice a week. Her business was important, but quality time with Adam was her priority.

*

Sam inserted the key in the lock and pushed the door open. Her jaw dropped at the sight that greeted her. Rose petals were scattered on the floor, creating a path to their bedroom.

With a wide grin, she followed the trail. The bedroom was empty. Adam was nowhere in sight.

"Adam?"

There was no answer. She noticed that the bed covers were turned down and there were more petals sprinkled on the bed. She walked closer and tears sprung to her eyes. There was a message for her, written in perfumed rose petals—the one she'd been waiting for.

She felt Adam approach her from behind and she turned, tears already flowing down her cheeks. She caught how his expression changed from nervousness to relief as he took in her expression. Silently, he went down on one knee and took her hand.

"Sam, will you marry me?" he asked, echoing the message on the bed.

"Yes," she answered with a happy gasp.

Smiling broadly, Adam slipped a ring on her finger. She clapped her right hand to her mouth to stop a sob. It was
the
ring, the one she'd silently admired when thumbing through one of Kris' bridal magazines. How did he know she liked this one?

"I've watched you stare at the ad for that ring a few times," Adam said with a smile as he got up. "So I went and ordered it."

She frowned. "But that was about a month ago."

"Yes, it was," Adam replied, curving his arms around her waist and pulling her close.

"But you said the other day you haven't even thought about popping the question. I overheard you saying that to the boys," she said, her cheeks turning pink.

Adam sighed. "Trey had a big mouth. I didn't want you to know I was going to propose soon or it wouldn't have been a surprise, so I said what I said in case you were within hearing distance—which you were, Miss Eavesdropper."

She put on a mock pout. "Did you know how upset I got when I heard you hadn't even thought about marrying me?"

"Were you, baby?" Adam asked softly, grazing her cheeks with his lips. "I better make up for it then, huh?"

"You already have," she said with a big grin, pulling his head down to hers for a kiss. She felt Adam walk them to the bed and halted him. "Wait! We can't ruin that message yet, I have to take a picture."

In reply, Adam lifted her and dropped her on top of the rose petals.

"Oh," she said with disappointment.

Adam covered her with his body. "Don't worry, I already took plenty of photos. Now I want to make love to you on these highest quality, ultra-luxurious sheets embellished with soft, fragrant rose petals."

She giggled, wrapping her legs around his waist.

Adam stared at her, sincerity pouring out of his expression. "I love you, Sammy. I love you so much."

She cupped his cheeks, her eyes misting again. "I love you, too, Adam," she breathed.

Sam thought they could be in the most uncomfortable bed with the coarsest sheets in the whole wide world and she wouldn't care. She had found true love, and no amount of discomfort, hardships or challenges could ever make her let go.

EPILOGUE

Five Years Later…

Sam tried to lift a large insulated box full of food she'd prepared from the back of the car. That was too heavy, so she tried to carry the food warmers instead.

"Hey, I'll carry those," Adam said authoritatively.

"They're not that heavy. You carry the food box. It's heavier."

"I'll come back for the food. Just carry the picnic blankets. They're light."

Sam rolled her eyes. "I'm not exactly a weakling, you know."

"You're so stubborn," Adam said, glaring at her as he nudged her out of the way so he could get to the boxes. "Even more so when you're pregnant."

She grinned, finding his attempts to tell her off so cute. "I know what I can and can't carry, honey," she reasoned.

"These. Are. Heavy. You. Are. Pregnant."

"Okay, fine," she said, reaching up to give him a kiss on the cheek.

Adam sighed, angling his face so he could capture her mouth.

"Mummy, over there!" an excited voice said.

"Wait here, Adrian," Sam warned her almost three-year-old son, holding on to him so he wouldn't run off.

"Hi!!" Adrian yelled, waving his arms madly at his friends Jason—Kane and Jasmine's son, and Arden—Dylan and Ari's son. The two little cousins were having a joint third birthday celebration today, their actual birth dates only a week apart.

Sam grabbed the picnic blankets, then walked with her son toward the group who'd commandeered a perfect position in a shady, pretty part of the park near the fish pond. They crossed a quiet lane, then she let go of Adrian's hand. Adrian promptly ran to meet his friends who were rushing toward them. Before long, shrieks were heard from the three little boys as they raced on the grass, chasing after each other.

"Hey, Auntie Sam!" Jasmine called out, holding the hand of her thirteen-month-old daughter, who was learning how to walk.

"Hello, Katie," Sam said delightedly as she stooped and encouraged Jasmine's daughter to walk toward her.

Katie let out an excited sound and tried to walk faster, holding her mother's hand tightly.

Sam lifted the toddler in her arms when she got to her and kissed her cheek soundly. Then she turned to Jasmine and hugged her friend.

"I hope you didn't bring too much food, Sam," Jasmine commented, squinting at Adam who was walking with their big box.

"Well, it's better to have more than less. We could always take the leftovers home," she answered, putting down Katie who grasped Sam's finger as she toddled.

Jasmine chuckled. "I suspect there would be plenty to feed a whole town today. Everybody's bringing something. I heard that Kane and Dylan's mum had been cooking since yesterday."