The Wedding Gift

CHAPTER TEN

CHAPTER TEN

"I didn't think you'd come," Andrew said as Julie started to help with the dessert.

"You didn't think I would? Until I actually made it to the door, I wasn't too sure I would. I actually spent five minutes outside thinking I should just turn around, run for home and pretend you didn't exist."

Andrew smiled at her honesty. "I'm glad you didn't do that. And I'm glad you agreed to join my family for dinner."

"Me, too."

Together, they concocted a dessert that was part ice cream, part chocolate and a lot of random ingredients Andrew had in his refrigerator. There was no recipe. They barely even spoke as they worked together. Instead, the two of them simply threw things into a bowl and whipped them up into a sticky, gooey mess that had them both laughing as they finally scooped it into two bowls and attacked it with spoons.

"Well," Julie said as they ate, "your family is certainly...interesting."

"You mean the way they worry that I've made it to thirty-four without ever having a 'real' job?" Andrew smiled as he said it, but Julie could see the hurt in his eyes.

"We both know that isn't true," Julie said. "We both know how hard you work. How difficult this job is. And how good you are at it."

Andrew's smile turned genuine then. "Now so do my parents and brother, thanks to you."

"They needed to hear it. From what I remember, you're a big fan of telling people what you think they need to hear, rather than what they want to hear."

Andrew winced slightly. "Julie-"

She shook her head. "Let's just eat our desserts, all right?"

They moved over to the couch. For another minute or two they continued to devour the crazy dessert they had created together, then Andrew laughed. "This dessert is a total mess, isn't it?"

"Are TV chefs allowed to admit that about their own creations?"

"Definitely. If you can't laugh at yourself doing TV, then you won't get very far. That and confidence are what get you through when everything goes wrong during a live taping."

"No one could ever say you have too little confidence," she teased, before adding, "I wish I had more, sometimes."

"You should be full of confidence, Julie. You're amazing. And not just because of your cooking skills. You're kind. You're funny. You're beautiful. You're-"

"Who are you, and what have you done with the real Andrew Kyle?" Julie joked, trying to lighten the mood a little. "Besides, you're not so bad-looking yourself. You know, for someone on TV."

It was true, too. Andrew looked great tonight.

Or maybe it was the fact that she could see so many more sides to him now. He wasn't just the TV star with the strong opinions about cooking. He was also a devoted brother, a busy chef and an excellent kisser.

Those extra facets shouldn't have made a difference in how he looked, but it seemed to Julie that they did, and he'd been pretty fantastic looking to start with. It was just that now, he wasn't just a great-looking guy.

He was so much more than that.

"You have a little whipped cream..."

"Where?"

"Here," Andrew said, laughing, his finger snaking out to deposit a dollop of the stuff on Julie's cheek.

"Hey!"