At least she knew she was loved, and at least they’d taught her to be strong and independent. It was so much better than them either not caring at all or not preparing her for the world. When she saw many college-age kids with no idea what they were going to do with their futures, she could appreciate her parents so much more.
“You always have had quite the sweet tooth. It’s a good thing you have your mother’s metabolism,” her dad said. He carefully set the dish down on the counter and pulled out two plates. She waited.
He scooped a generous roll onto each plate, then reached into a dish behind them and settled a mixture of nuts, cinnamon, shaved chocolate, and sliced fruit on top of the already-gooey dessert.
When he was finished, it was picture perfect, ready for the cover of a food magazine. She was sure it wouldn’t take long for it to go right there. He made some things for only his restaurants, and some he shared with the world. This would be a world dessert that few would be able to replicate.
Those who thought cooking was as simple as following a recipe didn’t truly have a joy of cooking. Most people could read instructions and make a decent dish. But a few select people could create magic.
“All ready,” he said. She didn’t need any further invitation than that. She picked up her fork and knife and cut her fist bite. She didn’t even need a knife, it was so soft and pliant. But that was the best way to ensure she got a little taste of all the ingredients in each bite.
Flavor exploded in her mouth as she savored the amazing creation. Her father nibbled on a few bites as he jotted down some notes in his book. She polished off her plate while he was still writing.
“Any suggestions?” he asked her.
This was a normal question in their household. How could the dessert be improved? He wouldn’t be insulted by anything she came up with. As a matter of fact, he’d be impressed if she could make it even better. She desperately wanted to come up with something, but she loved it.
After a few seconds she laughed, her stomach a bit bloated, she’d stuffed so much down. “I really want to come up with some powerful words of wisdom like ‘More cinnamon, less nutmeg.’ But seriously, Father, I can’t imagine tweaking this recipe even a little bit,” she finally said. “I wouldn’t mind taking the leftovers home, though, so I can work on that later tonight,” she added with a big grin.
Her father might’ve normally lectured her about always striving to be better, but her blatant excuse to get the dessert actually made him laugh.
“That’s such a good way to get the dessert I think I shall let you have it,” he said. “But you do have a task. I want you to find some way you could improve upon it. If you can’t, then I guess you won’t get to be my taste tester anymore.”
That was a real threat. She’d hate to never get to sit there with him while he made his creations and be the first person to take a bite. That would be the ultimate punishment.
“I guess I have no choice but to figure something out, then,” she said. “Are you going to give me the recipe?”
He shook his head. “You know that would be cheating,” he told her. Then he heard students in the hallway. “It looks like your class is here. You’d better go relieve your mother.”
“Yes,” she said, her smile falling away. It wasn’t that she didn’t love her mother. She very much did. It was just that her mother very rarely loosened up like her father just had. She never did when it was all of them together.
Yes, her father wanted perfection, but her mother wouldn’t accept anything less than that. Which meant she didn’t have time to joke or play. Chloe was a bit jealous of the dynamics of the Anderson family. They were so different than her own. Brandon didn’t truly realize how lucky of a man he was.
He’d lost his mother, which was beyond horrible. And he’d lost his father when he was young, which had been a blessing since the man was so terrible. But he’d inherited a family unlike anything she’d ever seen before.
The Andersons were beyond wealthy, but they were also filled with love and happiness. They were the family everyone wanted to be a part of. They made mistakes and weren’t belittled because of it. They were encouraged to forge their own paths. She wasn’t sure who she would’ve turned out to be with a family like theirs. Would she still have been a chef? Would she have been married with children? Would she have ever been happy being mediocre?
She didn’t know, because she hadn’t been raised in a home like that. She’d been raised with love, of course, but she’d been raised with drive and ambition. Could a person fight against that?
If she’d been brought up in a different home, would her competitive nature have been squelched? It was an interesting theory. It was something she hadn’t really thought about—not before meeting Brandon and all of the Andersons.
They were obviously filled with just as much, if not more, drive as her parents—as her, as well—but they did have a loving, wild, almost crazy family. Would they be rulers of the entire world if they were as strict as her parents? She wondered if research had been done on that.
Maybe somewhere out there twins had been separated at birth. One given to a set of easygoing sleep-on-Sundays-all-day-long parents, and one given to a type A, go-go-go set of parents. And then the babies were followed, watched, observed, day and night. Maybe it was a Truman Show type of experience.
Even if someone had done something like that, they’d never admit to it, so there wouldn’t be a way of showing studies. It would be unethical—unlawful in most places. She wasn’t quite sure why her mind worked the way it did or why she thought of things like this. Maybe because she was always trying to achieve more. And most people did that by constantly thinking.
She kissed her father goodbye and made her way to her assigned classroom. She was going to put away her thoughts and enjoy her day. If it was a good group of students, it would be fun. If it wasn’t, then she could tell herself at least she might learn something new she could use in her restaurant.
If she was positive about each moment in her life, then she’d have no regrets when looking back—just plenty of wins and a lot of learning experiences.
CHAPTER FOUR
Brandon sat on his back deck, his thoughts on Chloe. Of course, that seemed to be where his thoughts were every second of the day. It was now interfering with his work. He wondered if he was truly as into this girl as he felt he was or if the thought of having to chase her was what made him chase her that much harder.
He didn’t normally chase women—not even when he was younger and didn’t have much to his name. It had taken him time to make a name for himself. And he wasn’t talking about the Anderson fortune. He’d built a successful career long before he’d found out he was one of those Andersons.
He had gone to trade school, gotten his electrical license, and owned his own business by the time he was thirty-two. He’d worked hard at building trust with clients, and they’d gladly followed him when he’d branched out on his own. Now with the veterans center under his belt, he felt as if the sky was the limit. Not because it was with the infamous Anderson collection of projects, but because the world’s eyes were going to be on it and see that everything had been done right and fast. He didn’t slack because of who he was. That only made him push that much harder.