Free Spicy (Palate #1) by Octavia Wildwood Page B

It wasn’t much in the grand scheme of things, but it would keep my bills paid for another week.
    And I was that much closer to the grand prize.
    By the time my stage makeup had been scrubbed off and I climbed into Gavin’s sports car, my face was starting to hurt from smiling so much.  The validation felt great.  I didn’t consider myself to be an optimistic person – not after the past few years of my life.  In fact, I was probably the opposite.  But I could practically taste victory and was it ever delicious.
    Driving with Gavin felt different today.  Last night we’d had chaperones, even if they had both been sleeping.  Today we were alone together.  But different wasn’t necessarily a bad thing; I liked being close to him and I liked the quiet. 
    It was like Gavin and I didn’t need words when we were together.  I wasn’t sure I’d ever had that with anyone else.  Sometimes it was nice to just sit in silence, conversing without ever uttering a single word.
    “You seem happy,” he observed.
    “I am!”  I hesitated and then asked, “Was it hard to decide who should go today?”  That wasn’t what I really wanted to know, of course.  What I was actually asking was whether he’d played favorites with me despite his warning that he couldn’t.
    “Not really,” he replied.  “Janessa’s crème brûlée was atrocious.  The only hard part was sugar coating the rejection.  I’d have liked to tell her it was the worst dessert I’ve ever tasted in my life, but I guess it’s only the music competition shows that want a villainous judge.  I’m so glad to be off the stupid show with its absurd expectations.”
    “Why did you sign up to be a judge if you hate it so much?” I asked, relieved that I’d retained my spot in the competition fair and square.  
    He shrugged.  “I’m a celebrity chef.  Being on TV is what I do.”
    “That’s not really an answer,” I pointed out.
    “Maybe it’s not the answer you wanted me to give, but it is an answer,” he insisted as he pulled out of the studio parking lot.  He was being argumentative again.  Maybe that would be okay if I was passive and easily dissuaded.  But that wasn’t me.  If anything, when he got that way, it just made me more determined to make my point.
    I tried again.  “Aren’t you past the point of doing things you despise?  I mean, your restaurant is wildly successful.  If you’ve had enough of the TV shows and producers and contracts and scripts, then why not leave it behind?  I know it’s none of my business, but everyone knows you’re rich…you must be set for life by now, no?”
    “Sometimes it isn’t about the money,” Gavin pointed out.  God, even when he was being irritating and vague, he was sexy.  What did it say about me that I got turned on by arguing with him?  Maybe he wasn’t the only one with issues!
    After considering what he’d said for a moment, I relented.  “Okay, fair enough.  But if it isn’t about money then what’s it about?  Do you do it for the fame?” I guessed.
    “Fame?” he repeated with a snort.  “ No.  Hell no.  If you must know, it’s about spite.”
    That was an answer I hadn’t been expecting.  I raised an eyebrow and looked at Gavin inquisitively, but he stared straight ahead, keeping his eyes trained on the road.  “I’m not sure I understand,” I told him when he refused to meet my gaze.
    “It’s better if you don’t.”
     

Chapter 09
    That Wednesday had been a long time coming.  It was my first day off in…well to be honest, between filming the television show and working at Palate, I couldn’t even remember when I’d last had a day to myself. 
    On Tuesday night I let Joel stay up late , happy to finally be able to spend time with him.  We’d played games and eaten snacks and giggled well into the night.  By the time I’d put him to bed he’d been completely tuckered out.  Hopefully that meant he’d sleep late so that I could as