Tom sipped his drink and said, ‘You always get like this when something’s bothering you. Are you sure there’s nothing going on? The last time you were like this you cut all your hair off in a pixie crop because the redecorating wasn’t going as quickly as you hoped. You said it was because you loved what’s-her-name’s hair in that film you like—’
‘Ginnifer Goodwin in He’s Just Not That Into You,’ she mumbled, knowing full well he was right.
‘But really it was because you were stressed out that you were letting your mum and dad down by changing the hotel. Are you sure you’re not stressed about Cat and Kieran’s wedding? Or the wedding fair stuff?’
Sometimes, she really hated that he knew her so well. That haircut hadn’t suited her at all as her ears stuck out a bit too much, and she’d been growing it back ever since. Luckily, she was partly yeti or something, because her hair grew very quickly. ‘Maybe it’s a bit to do with Cat too.’ She told him about the wedding dress situation. ‘But she knows her own mind and I don’t want to press too much. I’ve tried a couple of times, but she just turns the conversation to something else.’
‘Do you want me to have a word with Kieran?’
‘No, don’t do that!’ The table nearby looked over again and Nell lowered her voice. ‘Cat wouldn’t want him to know anything about the dress. It’s fine. I’ll speak to her again and see if I can change her mind. I am excited for the wedding fair though. All those couples at the hotel will fill the air with romance.’ It was going to be a magical day, but she really needed to get the brochure finished. It was only just over two weeks away, but all she needed was some photos.
As if by magic, a hand delivered two menus to the table. They were absolutely enormous A3-size sheets of thick, dark blue paper with indecipherable fancy gold lettering. The only thing her eyes could make out for sure were the enormous prices. Next to the small blocks of virtually illegible text were giant pound signs and extortionate numbers.
‘How the hell am I supposed to read this?’ asked Nell, manoeuvring her menu so she could see Tom over the top. He was squinting too.
‘I know what you mean. I can barely make it out.’ Nell popped her head up over her menu again to see Tom blinking at it. His eyes were the colour of russet autumn leaves with hints of amber and flooded with warmth. ‘We can do this. We’re grown-ups, we can read words. Even squiggly, upside down words.’
Nell laughed and turned her attention back to her menu. ‘So, the first starter is basically a take on baked camembert—’
‘But with weird cheese from Mongolia.’
They quietened as Tallulah delivered their drinks and Nell thanked her before taking a sip. It was nice, but a little watery and she wondered what brand of gin they were using, or if she’d been making hers too strong. She didn’t have many but when she made one, she didn’t always bother measuring. ‘Next is … well, it’s basically a scotch egg, isn’t it?’
Tom guffawed. ‘It really is. Except it’s Himalayan breadcrumbs and a quail’s egg. Why on earth do you need breadcrumbs from the Himalayas. I’m sure Asda ones are just as good. So, the third, veggie option is …’
‘Carrot soup,’ Nell exclaimed with a giggle. ‘It’s basically just carrot soup.’
‘Umm, no it’s not. It’s small-farm, hand-grown, organic, French baby chantenay carrots roasted with a whimsical dressing and then made into a savoury liquid. What’s a whimsical dressing?’
‘I don’t know. Maybe it tells you jokes before you eat it.’ Nell chuckled and took another sip of her gin.
‘What are you going to have?’ he asked, rolling the gigantic menu up into a tube and placing it on the table. There wasn’t quite enough room for it no matter which way he laid it.
‘I think I’ll go for the soup. I want to find out more about this whimsical dressing. You?’
‘Baked cheese without a doubt. You can never eat enough cheese.’
Nell made a mental note to buy him a cheese-related gift for Christmas. Tom took a sip of his wine and scrunched up his face. ‘What is it?’
‘The wine’s just a bit sharp.’
‘Not as outstanding as you’d expect?’
‘Not really. So, shall we try and decipher the mains?’
‘Go on then.’
After a lot more giggling, the two of them decided what they would have just as Tallulah returned to take their order. They’d been given a lot of time to decide what they wanted and that was one thing Nell liked. They weren’t pounced on as soon as their drinks had been delivered in an effort to get everything moving along. Nell hated it when that happened. If she opened the dining room of an evening, she’d have to hire a good chef first of all, but she’d also make sure the waiting staff gave people time to enjoy their time. Maybe she could hire different chefs for different evenings. Cat’s caterer for the wedding was really good, and that way the menu could always be different. The chefs could decide the food and cost out what they need, then Nell could agree charges with them.
‘What are you thinking about?’ asked Tom. ‘You’ve gone all quiet. Back in your imaginary world?’
‘Ha ha. I was just thinking about chefs and how I could make the dining room idea work. I was thinking I could get a different chef every night—’
‘Or just open a few nights a week.’
‘Good idea.’ Nell explained about the different menus, and from across the table Tom studied her. She pretended not to notice at first but when he was still watching her as she finished speaking, she said, ‘What?’
‘Nothing.’ Tom ran his hands over the smooth surface of the tablecloth. ‘You just … you always crinkle your nose when you’re thinking.’
‘Do I?’
Nell bit the
