Savor You (Fusion #5)(32)

“Just like it did during rehearsal,” Camden adds with a wink.

“Yeah, Camden set the place on fire.” I laugh and gently set my chicken in the hot oil.

“It wasn’t me,” he says, shaking his head, also placing his chicken in his own skillet.

I walk over to pull some oregano out of the cupboard, but it’s too high for me. As always. Trevor had a step stool brought in, but I’m feeling particularly flirty today, so I set it aside and look at Camden.

“I could use some help.”

“Of course.” He reaches up for the herb and hands it to me. “Need anything else?”

“Not right now.”

He nods and returns to his skillet and I wink at the camera. “Here’s a good rule to have in your kitchen: Never use a step stool when there’s a perfectly capable, tall man in the kitchen with you.”

“I see. You’re just using me.” Camden laughs and points out his technique for deciding when the chicken is done to the camera.

We spend the next thirty minutes like this, playfully bantering and cooking. Frankly, it’s the most fun I’ve had in a kitchen in a long time.

Well, when sex wasn’t involved.

“Now, we’re going to ask the crew to come over here to give our dishes a taste and decide on a winner.”

A cameraman, a sound person, and the makeup artist all gather around and take bites off our plates.

“Camden’s wins for me.”

“No, Mia’s chicken is more tender.”

We all stare at the makeup artist in anticipation. She grins. “Camden can cook for me any time.”

And now I want to kick her in the vag, but I just smile and shake Camden’s hand.

“Looks like we have a winner,” I say and shrug at the camera. “If you want any of these recipes, you can find them on our home page on the Best Bites TV website. Take care, everyone.”

“Cut.” Trevor walks over, a wide smile on his handsome face, and pushes his glasses up his nose. “That was fantastic, you two. I don’t even think we need to reshoot it.”

“You’re happy with one take?” Camden asks in surprise.

“I am. You were professional, but a little flirty, and there were no snafus with the food. We’ll be back here again tomorrow morning to film the dessert course.”

“Why are we doing them out of order?” I ask.

“Because Riley’s craving sugar.” He winks at us and turns away. “I’ll see you both tomorrow.”

I pull my hair up in a messy knot on the top of my head and sigh. “I need to wash this crap off my face. I don’t want it to melt into the food today.”

“That’s disgusting,” Camden says, wrinkling his nose. “Do you need anything?”

He’s always asking me if I need anything, or want him to do something. It’s sweet, and not something I’m used to.

“I don’t think so. I’m going to head into the restaurant for the day.”

“I have a couple of calls to make. I can come help this afternoon.”

“Actually, my other chef hasn’t called out yet, so I’ll have plenty of help. Take the day off.”

He narrows his eyes. “Really?”

“Absolutely.” I stand on my tiptoes and he still has to bend down to kiss me. “I’ll see you later.”

Seduction isn’t far from the studio. I march straight into the bathroom to wash my face before walking into the kitchen. Once I get there, all I can do is look around the room at everything I have to do.

Nothing is prepped for today yet. It’s Monday, so we won’t be sold out today, but I do still need to get things ready. Not to mention, someone left some dirty dishes in the dish sink, and that’s never okay. My dishwasher doesn’t come in until noon. There’s no need for him to arrive earlier than that.

Which means I get to do some dishes.

But suddenly, as I’m standing here looking around, I realize that I’m just so fucking tired. We filmed for four hours this morning. We were in the studio by six, and filming by seven. I’ve cooked and flirted and had to turn it all on for the cameras.

And now I get to pull a full twelve-hour shift here.

I can’t do it.

I turn on my heel and march into our offices, happy to see Cami sitting at her desk.

“Good morning,” she says with a smile. “How was filming this morning?”

“It was actually really good.” I plop down in the chair across from her and rub my hands over my face. “Camden is great in front of the camera.”

“So are you.” She grins and sets her spreadsheet aside. Just looking at a spreadsheet gives me hives. “What’s up?”

“We need to hire someone,” I reply and watch as her eyes widen in surprise. “What? I didn’t just say that I want to move to Tibet.”

“That’s just the last thing I ever expected you to say. But I’m glad you did. Let’s talk about it.”

“Here’s the thing. I need someone really talented. Someone who knows their shit, and that I can trust to take over the kitchen when I can’t be there. It’s just too much lately, with the show and the restaurant being as busy as we are.”

“Not to mention you’re trying to have a personal life,” she adds with a grin. “I get it.”