Accidentally Engaged(7)

Reena poked a fingernail into the crust of her bread. She didn’t want to talk about Nadim anymore. She wanted to ignore the awkward fact that he lived too close to avoid. She took a bite, relishing the sensation of the acidic fruit cutting through the creamy cheese. The sourdough flavor was there, but this wasn’t her best bread. She had been distracted and overproofed the loaf last night, resulting in less caramelization on the crust. Oh well, lesson learned—don’t get sucked down the rabbit hole of looking at bread-baking courses online while actually baking bread.

“What’s going on with you? You still seeing that Celeste girl?” Reena asked Marley.

“Technically,” she said. “but not really. She’s been working nights all week and I’m on the early shift.”

“They’ve mastered simultaneous orgasms on the phone, though. So, there’s that,” Shayne said matter-of-factly before sipping his drink.

“Shayne!” Marley said, before falling back on her seat in a fit of giggles. Beer always affected Marley this way, and Reena found it adorable. She couldn’t believe she had once found her cousin cold and distant.

“Hey, this is a no-secrets zone.” Shayne smiled. “I also have some promising prospects for regular simultaneous orgasms. I hooked up last night. Anderson Lin. What a name, right? And he always goes by Anderson, never Andy. Oh, and Reena, you’ll love this, he works at FoodTV.”

Reena sat up straight. “Really? Can he introduce me to the Barefoot Contessa?”

Shayne laughed. “Unlikely. He’s a mere production assistant, and this isn’t the Hamptons. Anderson is young.” Shayne sighed happily. “I love them fresh out of college. So pure.”

“You shouldn’t just be meeting TV chefs, Reena, you should be one,” Marley said. “I can’t get over how good your stuff is. And you teach so well—my aloo gobi would be nothing without you.”

Shayne smiled. “Anderson did mention a search or contest or something they’re doing for new talent. I didn’t get the details because that’s when I noticed he had the tiniest earlobes I’d ever seen. Seriously, they were like little Tic Tacs attached to his ears. I half expected them to be peppermint flavored, but sadly…no.”

Reena snort-laughed before taking a long sip of beer. “You’re a doll, Shayne, and I’m happy you have some tasty lobes to suck on, but I have no interest in cooking on TV.”

“Why not? This is perfect for you,” Marley said. “At least get the details. Shayne, call him now.”

Shayne recoiled. “Oh, my god, I can’t do that!”

“Why not?” Marley asked.

“I called him first thing this morning, I couldn’t resist—I love sexy, sleepy voices. So now”—he checked his watch—“I can’t call him for at least thirty-six hours. Minimum. Forty would be better, but I absolutely cannot go past forty-two.”

“What?” Reena frowned. “Why?”

Shayne tilted his head knowingly. “Seriously, Reena? I know you’ve sworn off dating, but it hasn’t been that long. I’m in the most delicate time. Going from hookup to relationship is the hardest maneuver in modern love.”

“I’ve had twelve boyfriends and I never followed such strict rules.”

Shayne raised one brow. “Exactly. Twelve ex-boyfriends.”

Reena winced. It was true, but she didn’t need it pointed out.

Marley picked up Shayne’s phone from the coffee table and thrust it at him. “Shayne, you’re being ridiculous. Just call him.”

Shayne rolled his eyes at Marley. “Fine. But if I get friend-zoned, your vintage McQueen scarf is mine. I’m doing this privately.”

He took the phone into Marley’s room and shut the door.

Marley chuckled. “Honestly, I’ve never seen him like this. He’s so smitten with this guy that he’s talking out of his ass.”

“Well, I hope we don’t mess up his chances. I’m pretty sure I don’t want to do this FoodTV thing anyway.”

“Why not? You’d be great at this. You’ve done other contests, haven’t you?”

“Not for a while.”

“Well, let’s hear what Shayne has to say before you make a decision.”

Reena smiled blandly, but she couldn’t imagine any more information that would tempt her. After everything that had happened to her blog, she did not want to be put in the spotlight again in the food world.

Ten minutes later, Shayne wordlessly sat back down on the couch, eyes glistening with excitement.

“Well?” Marley asked, leaning forward.

“Anderson…” Shayne sighed and fanned his face with his hand. “I just absolutely can’t with him. You know what he just told me? He said I was the first person who’d ever—”

“Shayne, the contest!”

He seemed to snap out of his daze. “Right. Yes.” He scanned the room, then grabbed a pad of paper from the coffee table. “Here…this is complicated, you’ll want to take notes.” He tossed the paper and a pen at Reena. “So, this is the most Reena thing that I’ve ever heard about, and if you don’t do it, I will no longer be able to gloat that my friend is the savviest blogger out there. This thing is made for you.”