“Okay. I’ll see you soon.”

She walked away, her stomach already a jumbled knot of nerves. She hoped this went over well for Flynn and that she didn’t do anything to screw things up.

On her way into the kitchen she met Blaine Hurst, the director, who told her what time they were going to start the shoot.

“We’ll interview Flynn about the restaurant, then move into the kitchen to film you and your crew preparing the meal.”

She had been informed in advance that’s how it was going to work. She wasn’t thrilled that she was going to be on camera, but since it was all part of the deal, and all for Flynn and Ninety-Two, she accepted it.

She nodded. “I’ll need to do my prep in advance. That way when you’re set to film, my team will have everything ready to go.”

“Great,” Blaine said. “Thanks for being so cooperative, and so coolheaded about it all.”

She smiled at him. “We do have our customers coming in tonight as well, so we’re prepping to feed them, too. This is just a little addition to our typical evening.”

Blaine smiled. “I like you, Amelia.”

She laughed. “I’m glad to hear that. Let’s hope it stays that way, Blaine.”

She hurried off to meet with her staff and battle plan for tonight’s event.

THIRTY

It was chaos, but at least it was organized chaos. The restaurant was quickly filling with customers. Flynn had closed the restaurant tonight to the public and invited some of the regulars who came in all the time, making it a VIP event. Since there was filming involved, everyone would have to sign a release and he wanted to make sure his regulars were okay with that, so he’d put that on the invitations.

He wanted the evening to be fun. God, he hoped it was going to be fun. Plus, tonight’s meals were on the house.

Once the restaurant was full, the cameras were turned on him and he did his spiel about why he’d wanted to open Ninety-Two. He hoped he hadn’t sounded like an asshole when he talked about his love for cooking and how involved he was with the restaurant. The cooking show host—Ray—was a big name who had several shows and restaurants of his own. He asked Flynn why he hadn’t put his name on the restaurant, and Flynn explained that he wanted the draw to be about the food and not his name. Hopefully he hadn’t insulted the host by saying that, but it was the truth.

After the interview, Ray moved into the kitchen and it was time for Amelia and her crew to shine. Flynn stayed back while Amelia showed off her and her team’s skills in preparing the sea bass, lobster risotto and snap peas. He’d argued with her about fixing the Cassidy, the signature dish he’d created, but she’d told him customers loved it, she thought it was an elegant dish and she felt it would present well for television.

In the end, he’d capitulated because she was the chef and she could decide what would be served.

* * *

He watched her prepare the dish, though he was watching Amelia play to the cameras more than anything.

“We call this dish the ‘Cassidy’ in honor of Flynn Cassidy, the owner of Ninety-Two. It’s a pan-seared sea bass, accompanied by a lobster risotto and crisp snap peas.”

As Amelia moved around the kitchen, Flynn noticed she was relaxed and natural with the camera in her face. She showed no sign of nervousness and reacted to the camera—and to Ray—as if she was cooking for one of her friends. Amelia and Ray chatted amiably about cooking, about her background in cooking, the ingredients and Amelia’s cooking process. Flynn couldn’t be more proud of her. They only had to do a couple of takes until the director called for a final cut.

It had been perfect. He was so proud of her. Everyone stepped out so Amelia and her staff could continue cooking the rest of the meals for the customers.

“She’s good,” Paul said as he moved up beside Flynn.

Flynn smiled and nodded. “Yes, she is. She’s an excellent chef.”

“She’s more than that. She’s a natural in front of the cameras.”

Flynn couldn’t be more relieved hearing the producer’s praise. “She’ll be happy to hear that. She was nervous about tonight.”

“She shouldn’t be. Blaine said she did great.”

“Good.”

Dinner turned out perfectly, and the crew ate as well. He knew Amelia would make sure everyone had a meal, so that didn’t surprise him.

He hadn’t had a chance to talk to her yet because she was busy and he’d made sure to stop by all the tables to see how his customers enjoyed the meal. They all seemed to have a great time and didn’t mind at all being filmed, which was a relief for Flynn.

All in all, the night had gone perfectly.

He finally spotted Amelia talking to Paul and Blaine and Ray right outside the kitchen. Flynn turned toward them, but then he overheard a bit of their conversation.

“You’re a natural in the kitchen and in front of the camera,” Paul said. “You’re attractive, you have an ease about you and you weren’t nervous.”

Amelia smiled. “I’m so glad to hear that it all went well. Thank you.”

“Have you ever considered hosting your own cooking show?” Paul asked.

Flynn stalled and moved around the corner so Amelia couldn’t see him.

“Oh. No. That’s not my area of expertise.”

Ray chimed in with, “Trust me, Amelia. As someone who has done this for years, you’d be a shoo-in for a network show of your own. You and I hit it off right away, and as someone who’s hosted cooking show competitions, I can tell you most people fumble and are nervous. You weren’t nervous at all.”




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