Her Holiday Fling

“What are you doing?” Vincent demanded, a menacing scowl contorting his face as he strode across the kitchen.

For the past two days, since the evening at the cottage, Angelique had ignored his presence. He clearly was not pleased she was staying out of his way. Angelique wondered fifty times a day whether she’d made the right decision in keeping him at arm's length. She was only going to be here for another few months. Why shouldn't she enjoy his body while she was here? He was a stunning lover.

On the other hand, the aphorism, “taking a tiger by the tail” often sprang to mind. At any moment, he might turn around and bite her, or at least demand more than she was prepared to give. Like her heart, for instance.

“I am dunking the biscuits to make tiramisu. You can see what I am doing!”

The sharp interchange between the two drew the attention of every other team member in the kitchen. This was a harmonious place. Even at the most challenging times, Vincent's calm though demanding leadership kept everything running smoothly.

“You do not dunk the pavesini, you soak them. I'll show you.” He slammed a row of biscuits into the tray and splashed liqueur and coffee espresso across the lot.

“Espèce d'idiot! Now you have ruined it. It will be too strong! Like you did on your television show; you were wrong then too.” Angelique swept the tray across the bench and onto the floor. The contents splattered on the tiled surface. “I will make the dessert. You go back to stirring your simple sauces. Dessert requires a delicate touch. You know nothing about it.” She fluttered her hand in dismissal.

Vincent grasped the upraised hand to still the criticism it threw around. Rather than try to pull away as he expected, she used his own force and propelled him backward.

He took a step to regain his balance, instead landing on a piece of sodden biscuit. His feet flew from under him. Grasping to find something to break his fall, he held tightly to Angelique's hand and dragged her with him into the mess of coffee amaretto, and pavesini. Reflexively, he tucked his chin onto his chest for his shoulders to take the brunt of the impact.

Tumbling on top of Vincent wasn’t a soft landing for Angelique, but preferable to hitting the hard tiles. Her eyes blazed at him in anger.

“Homme des cavernes, let me go!” She grasped a handful of the ingredients scattered on the floor and pushed it into his face.

Not to be outdone, he shoved her from on top of him in retaliation. Angelique sprang to her feet.

He grabbed the leg of one of the benches to maintain his balance as he came upright with his own handful of weaponry. Angelique saw what was coming and dodged quickly enough for the gunk to hit her cap rather than her face.

She turned back to him triumphantly, forgetting his hand would retain residue. He smeared it across the area under her nose. The action changed everything for both of them. His touch stilled on her mouth and his eyes grew dark as her lips parted with desire.

She raised her hand to his chest and he lowered his mouth to hers. They lost all sense of where they were as the kiss deepened.

A cheer erupted from the team behind them.

Vincent lifted his head and gave one of his half-smiles. “I think the cat is out of the bag now,” he said.

“I don't know what you mean about cats, but you’ve made sure everyone thinks we are lovers.”

“Hmm. So they do.” He leaned forward to whisper in her ear. “No point hiding it anymore. I'll drive you home tonight.” He gave her a private wink and stepped back.

Angelique's eyes sparked with anger at his high-handed assumption. She shoved one finger into his chest. “I do not do your bidding because of a kiss from un espèce d’imbécile!”