“Good question. I honestly don’t know.”
34
Clara laid the ivory lace tablecloth over the mahogany Victorian-style table. She took a lighter and carefully lit the orange candle first. She brought it up to her nose and inhaled the heavy, rich nutmeg scent of pumpkin pie. It brought her back to Thanksgivings at her grandparents’ house, warm memories. Those were exactly the kind of feelings she was trying to evoke in this room.
Ezra had fallen in love with the dining space from the moment he saw it, so he didn’t want to make many changes to it. But he shared Clara’s desire to bring some warmth to the snowy room with all its white, silver, and blue touches. They both envisioned the ambiance of diners walking into the cool colored room and congregating around tables that radiated warmth, encouraged memories to resurface, while making new ones as they ate homemade food that had been prepared with lots of love. They wanted to make their guests feel comfortable and cozy. They wanted to touch that subconscious level of the mind that longed for something familiar and nurturing in a world that could often be anything but.
Clara put the candle down on the table, then glanced at the others. She was only going to be setting one of the tables today, to allow them to fully experience what their guests would experience when they ate here. But she wanted to be able to smell what the room would smell like with the assortment of candles laid out, though there’d only be one on each table.
So, she took out the red one next. Cinnamon joined apple to create visions of apple pie through smell alone. It reminded her of Christmas, laughter, and love. She set it on the table to the left, then took out the final scent. Sweet sugar cookies made her mouth water. She wanted to dig into dessert right away, but she set the candle on the table on the right and continued setting up the room.
They’d spent a bit of extra money on elaborate, vintage gold silverware and ivory napkins with gold prints embedded in the fabric. She finished the look off with an ornate heating plate that would host a small loaf of Irish brown bread, then sat down to wait for the food to come out.
Clara was nervous. She had debated if she should even come to the menu tasting. She didn’t want to be around Nathaniel for so long, and she was a little wary of eating anything he would be cooking. She didn’t trust him one bit. But she knew this day was important to Ezra. He had worked hard on this menu and he was excited to show it off. Besides, she wanted to play an active role in everything that had anything to do with the bed and breakfast. She was curious to see what the menu would be like, and she wanted to throw her input in there. She wanted to see for herself the kind of dining experience they’d be offering to their guests.
She reminded herself she was safe. Ezra knew enough to be careful now, and there wasn’t anything poisonous near the kitchen at all. It’d be bold of Nathaniel to even try to poison them so early on. And if Nathaniel did poison the food somehow, Ezra would certainly eat the poison and Clara wasn’t sure she wanted to survive his death anyway. They were in this together, no matter the outcome.
Ezra was still going to have a discussion with Nathaniel, but they agreed that he’d have that discussion after the menu tasting. They could talk while they cleaned up, or as they simply let the food digest. People were usually more pleasant when they were full of good food.
Clara tried her best to tuck her worries away as she admired the dining room and brought their vision to life.
Meanwhile, Ezra focused on cooking his incredible dishes. This was important to him. One of the most important parts of starting this was figuring out the menu, and he had put a lot of thought into it. This was his chance to have control over everything, and it was freeing and nerve-wracking. He needed this to go smoothly. Yet, he was still a little distracted.
He didn’t think Nathaniel was a bad person, nor did he think he had bad intentions. But he couldn’t ignore everything he learned about Nathaniel’s family’s past. And with Clara’s safety on the line, he had to be careful. So, he watched Nathaniel as much as he could. He made sure he hadn’t brought anything into the kitchen with him. He made sure he wasn’t reaching for any ingredient the recipe didn’t call for.
It was a tough balancing act. For the most part, Ezra did well but he did mess up a few times, and he knew those mistakes were simply the result of having to look out for something he wasn’t even sure was a threat. It was frustrating, beyond frustrating. But finally, the food started coming together, and they were able to start plating their sample-sized dishes.
After the first bite of homemade bread, Clara was grateful she had joined them. “This is delicious,” she said as the slightly sweet bread melted in her mouth. “I honestly don’t think I’ve ever had bread this good.”
“It’s an old recipe my father used to make,” Nathaniel explained. “It honestly makes the best sandwiches. Though of course, it’s great on its own too.”
Ezra and Clara paused. Ezra watched their interaction carefully. He knew the first thing that would come to Clara’s mind, and he was right. She didn’t need or want this reminder of Nathaniel’s father and the access he had to feeding the family.
“It’s admirable, really,” Nathaniel continued. “He’d come home from a long day at work on Friday and make up some homemade bread, every single week unless he was horribly sick. I’m telling
