Free Project Detour (Castle View Book 3) by Lynn Cahoon Page A

own, he’d enjoyed cooking for himself, especially using higher end product that now filled his cupboards, just waiting for him to cook again.
    “My mom worked two jobs. We did a lot of TV dinners and macaroni and cheese with a can of tuna dumped inside. I’m pretty sure that’s not the correct way to make tuna casserole but honestly I have no idea what else I could do.” She moved the brownies onto a plate and set them on the table in front of Brad. “Unless you want a sandwich.”
    Brad had an idea. One that would keep him from being bored out of his mind. He waved his fork. “Tonight, you’re learning how to pan-sear scallops. We’ll still order our sides from Maggie, but I’ll have her send up stuff so we can make a salad and the scallops.” He grinned. “By the time you leave this house, you’ll be a strong cook. Or at least, you’ll be able to make more than boxed dinners.”
    “I don’t know, maybe you’ll not be feeling well enough to show me what to do. Then you’ll be stuck with sides only.” She frowned, and the lines on her forehead crinkled. “That won’t be healthy. Maybe we should just let Maggie deal with the food part.”
    “If I let you burn the scallops, I’ll dump a can of tuna into my mashed potatoes for protein. No harm, no foul.” He pointed a fork at her. “Don’t tell me you’re chicken.”
    “I’m not scared. I just think—”
    He interrupted her with a few bock – bock – bock sounds. “You’re chicken. I dare you. Heck, I double dare you.”
    “You don’t have to dare me. If you want to ignore the fact we have access to the best restaurant north of Boise for what you think I can cook, You deserve what you get tonight.”
    “You’ll be fine.” He dug into the pasta. This would be fun. He could feel it. Besides, it would give him something to think about instead of just watching that damn television. He was beginning to look forward to the faked conflict on the talk shows, even when the subject was my father read a secret murder plot in my ten-year old’s thank you note. People were weird.
    He dug into the last of his lunch, feeling happier than he had in weeks. He could deal with all of this for a month. Then he’d be back to normal and back to his real life. He glanced over at the woman sitting next to him at the table who seemed to be brooding over her own plate. Yes, Destiny Brooks needed to be gone and out of here sooner than later.
    Most definitely before he decided he really needed her.
    ***
    Destiny called the restaurant and was put on hold while they went to find Maggie. When she finally answered the phone, she was out of breath.
    “Sorry, we had a staff meeting I had to finish before I could leave.” Destiny heard the pop of a soda can being opened. “What’s up?”
    “Brad wants to teach me to cook scallops and make a salad. I don’t think it’s a great idea, so if you tell me you can’t send up the raw ingredients, I’ll just tell him it was a no go.” Destiny held her breath. For the first time since Brad had announced at lunch that he was going to teach her how to cook, she had an ounce of hope that maybe the lesson might be postponed. It wasn’t like she didn’t want to learn; she just knew there was no way she could pull off something so technical as scallops. And a salad? She’d probably chop off one of her fingers, then Sandy would have to replace her, and the money she’d been counting on to close up the business would disappear.
    “That’s a great idea.” Maggie bubbled over the phone. “It will keep him busy. Are you sure you can’t cook? Maybe this is all just a ploy to get my grumpy brother up and out of that bed and his depression.”
    Any hope of getting out of this lesson vanished with Maggie’s excitement. “Nope, it’s true. I can’t cook. So if you get an emergency order for pizza or something quick later tonight, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
    “We’ll send up a quart of soup and some French bread