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She’d shared every facet of herself with hiround Could he only deal with her when she was in his world? A transplanted city girl who had to rely on hi?
It didn’t matter if he didn’t want her to be this Ava Truth was, this was the real her
Chase had known her family had money
To think he’d been afraid a Hollywood actress was out of his league? That was a drop in the bucket co her as the billion-dollar baby
He needed a drink He correctly guessed which cabinet held thethe first beer he found Fucking Heineken He drank it anyway Da probably cost twenty bucks
Two knocks sounded and Ava went to the door “Co Chef Delacorte truly outdid hiement laid out for a member of the royal Cooper family
A small Asian man draped a pristine white tablecloth over the table and arranged the first rectangular platter “Pink sweet potato soufflé topped with tapenade”
Chase waited for the man to serve up more than two spoonfuls
But he revealed the next plate with a flourish “Arugula salad with roasted beets, feta and toasted pureens looked like wilted dandelion leaves That whole dish rese out the fridge
The Asian man said, “Polenta with shallot dill sauce”
A rubbery yellow disk hat looked like a splotch of ranch dressing and a skinny piece of ditch weed sticking from the center
What the hell kind of appetizers had Ava ordered? Where were the nachos? Chicken wings? Fried pickles, okra and cauliflower?
“Pulled pork sandith gingerthat one bite wonder a sandas stretching it Chase counted five more covered dishes Which probably equaled another five ounces of food
“Bruschetta with heirloom tomatoes and anise-flavored basil”
He snorted softly Chopped toave her an innocent look
“Spicy yellow fin tuna rolls with lime-pickled onions And salmon on a bed of black dia awesome
The waiter lifted the last two lids “Crimini mushroom ravioli with kale pesto Baked brie with cara of peanuts in the ushed, “This looks and s Give my sincerest thanks to Chef Delacorte and tell him I’ll pop into the kitchen while I’m here to thank him personally”
“Ah But he sent you one more token, Miss Cooper” From beneath the cart he presented a small plate and lifted the silver dome “Your favorite dessert Lavender-infused crèared pansy petals”
“Oh I can’t believe he remembered”
I can’t believe you don’t see this for what it is: a total suck up
Chase felt soht How could he fault people for liking Ava so much when he felt the same?
After she let the server out of the rooular plate and scrutinized the food “There’s so much to choose from”
She couldn’t be serious
He hoped the beer would drown out how loud his sto in,” Ava said
“Nah You go ahead”