Of course, she sought to shroud her interview technique in a veil of light-hearted conversation. She had to - to try and make her interviews look off-handed and unrehearsed. It was, after all, still a date where she was searching for love instead of merely filling the position of a husband.
If she had wanted just a husband, Nikki knew that she could easily have found that by now. There were enough men on both ends of the social spectrum – from desperate to conceited – who would pick up the first attractive and willing blonde that they could find. This was New York City – a concrete jungle of intentions. No, Nikki wanted more. Love was her lofty goal, and she knew it took work. Again, to her, it was a numbers game. It would happen, eventually.
Her dating technique naturally required precision and experience. By now, this was a well-rehearsed performance to Nikki. She’d become a pro at reading each different situation and speaking with energy and engagement to make it sound as though she had not been through the process countless times before. And by the end of her first summer doing this, Nikki had enough experience to read each situation, each date, and each guy like a well-studied play. So much so, that she could often predict how the date would end. And it never ended with a second date – yet - for a multitude of differing reasons.
Finding new guys to take on dates was never an issue. After all, New York City was the largest city in the nation. It was an endless well of candidates. She’d found setting up dates extremely easy, too. In this day and age, men often welcomed a woman stepping up to show initiative to ask him out – especially a spunky, personable, caring, and attractive woman. And Nikki checked each of those boxes.
The field of candidates was scheduled from a multitude of sources. Dating apps were no doubt prevalent, but she didn’t stick to just those due to men on them often having intentions which were not conducive of really finding love. And those intentions of the men from dating apps were not among the traits that would make Nikki want a second date with them. She wanted to find love, not lust. So instead of using dating apps as her main source to meet men, she’d also meet guys through friends or family, from the gym, and just generally from being out and about in the city. But most frequently, she’d meet guys through her work.
But these men that she’d met through work weren’t co-workers. Nikki worked in catering, a field dominated by women. She’d received her culinary arts degree with her sights set on opening her own kitchen. But not just any kitchen – one focused on specialty pastries, and desserts, and cakes. Even though Nikki truly believed she would encounter love by happenstance with hard work, she had the opposite opinion of actually opening her own specialty dessert and cake business. She just didn’t think it would ever happen. Opening her own business was too impractical, especially for having chosen to live in the most expensive city in the nation.
So instead, she took a well-paying job in catering. She figured that it was at least related to her real interest. And it even got her close to her dream. She’d constantly help cater and serve at a wide range of events from reunions, work parties, corporate functions, and bah mitzvahs. But her absolute favorite events were weddings. Hands down.
It wasn’t just that weddings were full of men whom she’d meet and easily schedule into her weekly interviews. And it also wasn’t that weddings radiated love, which Nikki sought like a desired treasure. Rather, weddings were Nikki’s favorite part of her job because of the one thing that was always at each one: the wedding cake.
Sometimes wedding guests would catch her staring at the cakes. Many times, this resulted in the bride feeling complimented about the cake, having incorrectly assumed that Nikki was gawking at how fabulously it was done. Nope. That was definitely not why Nikki would be caught staring at them. Rather, she would easily drift off in dreams about how she wished she had been hired to design and make the wedding cakes. She desperately dreamt that she was a professional, full-time wedding cake and dessert chef instead of being stuck in the remedial position of server and caterer. And she knew that she could match – if not exceed – the way each of the cakes at the weddings looked.
Unfortunately, Nikki’s employer was never hired for the pastries, and especially not for the wedding cake. Nikki had once tried to approach her boss to allow her to start a cake-making service to include within his catering business. But he declined. Apparently Nikki was too valuable at what she already did for her to branch her time out elsewhere.
Once, at a wedding, Nikki had overheard a bride tell her guest how much she had paid for her wedding cake. It’d left Nikki speechless. It was a significant amount, which Nikki assumed was because weddings in New York City were big business. This added fuel to Nikki’s dream of one day opening her own pastry and cake business. And this was even more fuel compared to the confidence that Nikki already had in knowing that she could easily make the wide range of decorated cakes that she’d been caught staring at. But still, she had bills. Real life responsibility. And those all kept her from taking the leap to start her own company.
So, Nikki had two dreams in life: to find love, and to actually become a dessert chef. To her, though, one of those dreams was realistic, while the other was unattainable. Luckily, she figured that love was the realistic one. This was because if she had to choose between those two goals, she easily chose love. That was why Nikki kept her routine of interviewing to find it – she knew it would happen eventually.
Being Wednesday evening, Nikki entered Fate’s Kitchen and waited at her usual table right next to the restaurant’s large window. She knew the owner from having catered his son’s graduation party, so she had the fix for her twice-weekly table in the happening restaurant.
And just like every other time, Nikki arrived about twenty minutes early. She also did this on purpose. Just as an interviewee who was truly interested in a position would arrive a little early, Nikki did the same thing for her dates. One benefit to her table always being right next to the restaurant’s large front window was that it looked out at the sidewalk. This way, she might be able to spot her date in his natural state before he entered the restaurant. So, being early was key. But mainly, Nikki’s early arrival was to actually see if the guy was so interested that he’d be early. And sometimes, they actually were early. That always checked a box for Nikki and gave the guy a head-start at showing his potential.
But not tonight. As the minutes approached 6:00 pm, it became clear that this guy wasn’t going to be arriving early. That never rubbed Nikki wrong, though. She always wanted to remain open to each guy being the one, so she did everything she could to give each man his fair chance. Tonight was no different.
No matter how many times she’d done it before, one thing always remained the same: Nikki’s anticipation was through the roof. She really did want to find love – and, for all she knew, tonight could be the night.
Her heart skipped a beat when she saw the man approach her table. He was definitely cute. Extending his hand to shake hers, the man introduced himself.
“Hi Nicole, I’m Lucas.”
Chapter 2
For just a brief moment, Nikki’s attraction to Lucas made her forget all of her rules. She was instantly drawn into his boyish, but still handsomely mature, good looks. But beyond that, his smile radiated with a genuineness that she’d learned was rare. There was a light in his eyes, too, which she interpreted as meaning he was energetic and fully engaged – something which was definitely not common.