United States of Love

‘Which is?’

‘Have lunch with me.’

She sighed and her shoulders drooped. ‘I don't think it's a good idea. Under any other circumstances I would love to, but not when you're my client. It's a bad idea. Really bad.’

‘Would it be bad if it was a business lunch?’

She appeared to be contemplating what he had said. ‘Just business you say?’

‘Just business,’ repeated Tex. Personal business, he added to himself.

‘Okay, I accept.’ She smiled a shy smile up at him.

‘Thank you. I am now a very happy man.’ Tex fought the urge to kiss her there and then. He was going to have to work his charm to win her over. Still, he liked a challenge. Then her brow furrowed and she had a confused look on her face.

‘I thought I heard you say to Graeme that you had a lunch appointment.’

‘I was hoping that would be you,’ said Tex, a sheepish grin crossing his face.

‘That was rather presumptuous of you,’ said Anna, folding her arms and raising her eyebrows playfully.

‘Not presumptuous. More like hopeful.’

‘That will do,’ Anna smiled. ‘So can I have my phone back now?’ Tex nodded. ‘Well, that's the only reason I'm agreeing. That, and it being a business lunch. You do understand don't you?’

‘Yes, Ma’am.’ He gave a quick salute. ‘I understand completely.’ He wasn't entirely sure he did, but she had agreed to lunch, which is what he had wanted. He didn't usually have to work quite so hard. Normally it was much easier and much more straightforward – a bit of flirting, a little bit of fun, nothing serious, no obligation. He liked it that way.

He drove her back to the hall in silence, cranking up the car's heated seats to help dry Anna's coat which was soaked from her walk down to the station. Having just spent five minutes standing on the platform with no jacket and the rain blowing under the canopy, Tex wasn't faring much better himself.

‘Not very nice weather for public transport. Do you always travel on the train?’ he asked, as they pulled up outside the hall.

‘No. I have the car but I let Mark, my sort of ex, borrow it. He was supposed to come back at the weekend but didn't.’

Tex ushered Anna through the internal doors into the main hall and then guided her to the room on the left at the back of the hall. There was a small square table in the middle of the room with a simple white linen tablecloth on it, at its centre, a vibrant red gerbera in a tall drinking glass. The table was set for two people.

‘Presumptuous,’ said Anna as she took in the scene.

‘Hopeful,’ corrected Tex. He walked up behind her and gently rested his hands on her shoulders. ‘May I take your coat?’ He took a deep breath as he momentarily flirted with the idea of kissing the back of her bare neck, before checking himself. Slipping Anna's coat from her shoulders, he hung it on the back of the door before pulling out the chair for her to sit down.

‘I'll be back in one minute,’ he said and disappeared into the adjoining room to warm up the soup he had prepared that morning. Whilst that was heating, he cut some French stick then took the bread together with a bottle of Perrier water back into Anna.

‘It's nearly ready. Just some humble soup. I only have two gas rings at the moment,’ he said as he put the bread down and poured a glass of water for each of them.

‘I'm sure it will be lovely.’

Tex switched the radio on. Hopefully, a bit of background music would help her relax.

‘This isn't looking very businesslike,’ commented Anna.

‘Let's talk business if it makes you feel happier.’ Hmm, this was going to be harder than he thought.

‘Have you always been a chef?’ she asked.

‘Yes. I never wanted to be anything else.’

‘Where did you train?’

‘France, of course. That is where the best chefs in the world are and I was fortunate enough to have some very good teachers. I worked for some of the great chefs in France.’

‘Any I would know?’

‘Edward Le Manquais. You have heard of him no doubt?’

‘Of course. He's a bit more than just a chef now, he's something of a celebrity in his own right,’ said Anna. ‘Didn't he do a reality restaurant show on TV recently?’

‘Ahh yes, the celebrity chef. I am afraid that is not for me.’

‘By choice?’

‘By choice,’ Tex affirmed. ‘Does that make any difference to you?’

Anna looked surprised by the question. ‘To me? No. No, it doesn't make any difference. That doesn't worry me the way you think.’

‘What way do I think?’ probed Tex. He waited patiently whilst she took a sip of water. He wasn’t letting her off the hook that easy. Experience told him if he said nothing for long enough, the other person would carry on speaking.

‘Okay, here goes,’ she said. ‘You probably think I would be impressed and pleased that I had landed a famous client. That I would be imagining fancy parties, champagne, rubbing shoulders with the rich and famous, but the truth is, I couldn't be less interested in that.’

‘Go on, I'm still listening,’ coaxed Tex.

‘Don't say you didn't ask,’ said Anna with wry smile. ‘Mark was a professional footballer. We married when we were very young; I was pregnant. Mark had a lot of temptation in the female stakes. He hasn’t got much willpower. Part of it was because he was a bit famous, and as a footballer there were plenty of offers from a slew of female fans. So my experience of being with someone well known isn't a particularly good one.’

‘You said the other night that you were separated but not divorced.’

‘That’s right. He went off to America and we have just never got round to it. Part of me doesn't want to become a statistic, but to all intents and purposes we might as well be divorced.’

Tex smiled reassuringly at her. There was obviously a lot more to it but now wasn't the time. He'd established that Mark wasn't a threat.

‘How did we get onto the subject of my personal life?’ asked Anna. She leant back in her chair. Tex couldn't help noticing the button of her blouse had come undone, revealing a glimpse of white flesh encased in black lace. He forced himself to look at her face, keeping his eyes level with hers to answer her question.

‘It's important if we are going to work together that we know each other properly. It's not a regular sort of office job, there may be times when you have to accompany me on social events. It’s real important that we know each other well so we’re comfortable together.’

Anna didn't look convinced, but didn't challenge him either.

‘When do I get to find out about you?’ she asked.

‘I will get the soup and then you can ask me anything you like.’

Tex returned to the makeshift kitchen. Leaning against the work surface he took a deep breath as he recalled her open blouse. Reappearing a few minutes later with two bowls of soup, he placed one in front of Anna. Her blouse now done up, he ignored the self-conscious look on her face.