A Cross to Bear Read Online Free Page B

rummage through the cupboards. “Just a spoiled politician’s kid with his own personal detail. You can relax. If that dickless wonder comes here, Sven’ll put him in a body bag. Want a shot?”
    She laughed. Sven or not, she felt safe around Victor. “Dickless wonder. You sound like my sister.”
    “Do you want to talk about what happened?”
    “Never, as long as I live.”
    “Fair enough. You hungry?”
    She raised a brow to that. “You cook too?”
    He offered her a delicious smirk and grabbed the makings of an omelet out of the refrigerator. “I eat, therefore I cook. But the question is, what goes good with ham and Swiss cheese omelets?” He snapped his fingers. “Ah! Mimosa. Aaand . . . we need music.”
    He ran over to the computer and gave it a few clicks. As he hurried back to the kitchen to start his cooking, the music began. Gabby couldn’t help a laugh. “Sarah McLachlan?”
    He tied off Maggy’s “Kiss the Cook’s Ass” apron and extended his muscled arms wide. “What?”
    She could only shake her head and giggle at his absurdity. It felt good to laugh.
    For the next ten minutes, she watched him masterfully prepare the food with a passion seldom found in your average rich-boy hunk.
    What was she thinking about?
    She put down her glass and tried to clear her head. Remembering the danger she was in, she went to the kitchen sink and spread the blinds. Sven was still standing there like a statue.
    “How long can he keep that up?”
    Victor squeezed by her to toss some eggshells into the sink, and she caught the scent of a well-groomed man.
    “At a hundred thousand a year with full benefits, he’ll stay there until he drops. C’mon, watch this.”
    He pulled her close.
    She was surprised how natural it felt after what she’d been through. His scent was intoxicating. She tried not to breathe him in but found that she couldn’t help it.
    “Now a big mistake is to use butter. While awesome, it is completely unnecessary here. Coconut oil works much better. It is soaked up less easily, and tastes just as good.”
    He poured the beaten eggs into the pan, and they instantly bubbled. With a shake, he loosened the mixture, causing more bubbles to form in the middle.
    “See how the eggs begin to solidify on the edges? Now watch this.” Victor pushed the edges in with his spatula, forming folds in the middle and causing the liquid egg to fill in the empty spots. He lifted the pan and flipped the eggs perfectly. They landed with a satisfying sizzle. “Now we dress!”
    Gabby couldn’t help a smile. She tossed on ham, cheese, green peppers, and a pinch of smoked sea salt. Victor gave the pan a shake. Just then the toaster popped up two perfectly browned pieces of peasant bread. “Now this, of course, is where the butter comes in.”
    Soon Gabby was seated at the small table, enjoying the best omelet she had ever eaten.
    “Who taught you to cook like that?” she asked.
    “We always had cooks working for us. I liked to watch them work. One of them, Oscar Vilantra, he was this Spanish dude, funny as hell. He taught me all kinds of stuff. Like how to cook the perfect omelet.”
    “Maggy is a lucky girl.”
    He eyed her with that mischievous smile that made her chest red. “I’m a lucky guy to know her. But she doesn’t want anything serious.”
    “And you do?”
    “Depends. Yeah, some day. But it’s hard finding someone on the same page as you. And too often people grow apart. I think that people need to want the same thing or else they’re just setting themselves up for disaster. In the meantime, I try to have a little fun. Hell, I might not meet Miss Right until I'm sixty. You never know.”
    Stop staring at him, you idiot! she thought to herself.
    Gabby stuffed her face to avoid his beautiful eyes. For some reason, she felt dirtier than ever.
    “Victor . . . you mind watching out for me while I take a shower?”
    “Sure,” he said with a shrug.
    “Thanks.” Gabby left him at the