Chapter 16

ASHER

I take Jade’s hand and slowly guide her out of the elevator. She tried to protest against the blindfold, but somehow I managed to get my way. I want to be able to be in the right position so I can see her face when everything is revealed.

“Just a few more steps,” I say.

Even though I’m holding her hand and leading the way, she still uses her free hand to flail around.

“You don’t trust me to get you inside in one piece?”

She smiles and continues to blindly reach out in front of her. “I trust you completely, but I just want to be sure.”

After opening the door, I help her inside before getting in position to see her reaction.

“All right,” I say. “You can take off your blindfold now.”

She takes off the mask and covers her open mouth with both hands. Walking forward cautiously, she looks down, dropping her hands as she smiles at the rose petals coating the floor.

“Asher, this is beautiful,” she whispers.

“Let’s go, these petals lead to the next surprise.”

We follow the trail to the kitchen and I watch as her face comes to life all over again. There’s ingredients spread out over the counter and the private chef I hired stands in front of the stove smiling.

“Welcome, I’m Chef Bradley, and I’m going to prepare dinner for you tonight. I have a bottle of red wine resting for the two of you, and if you’ll have a seat, I’ll pour a couple of glasses and get started on the meal.”

Jade turns around and wraps her arms around me. “Nothing can top this surprise.”

“Nothing at all?” I ask.

“You have no idea what this means to me. I love cooking more than anything,” she gasps, her eyes glistening brighter than ever.

The chef steps forward and hands us each a piece of thick cardstock detailing our meal for the evening.

“Well, madam, you are in luck. I have several delicious courses planned for tonight,” says Chef Bradley.

Jade looks down at the paper and smiles. The excitement is all over her face, and I love knowing I’m the reason for her joy.

“Can I help?” she asks. “I know you’re the chef for tonight, but I’d really love to help if I may.”

Chef Bradley smiles and shrugs his shoulders. “I don’t see why not. In fact, both of you can help and we can make this a couples cooking class. I teach couples all the time. All we need to do is divide the work and get started.”

I nervously take the apron handed to me and slip it over my head to protect my clothes. Cooking isn’t my thing at all. The closest I get to the stove is walking by to put my dirty dishes in the sink, and even that’s a rarity, being that my maid usually handles that as well. But for Jade, I’ll do anything. Listening intently, I follow both Chef Bradley’s orders as they call out to me, often in unison.

“Jade, how long have you been interested in cooking?” I ask.

She hands me several vegetables to cut into tiny pieces, seemingly the only task they find me qualified to complete, and even then, I see both of them re-chopping my work into finer chunks once I finish.

“I’ve loved food and cooking since I was a child. I spend most of my days experimenting in the kitchen. That’s one of the better perks of working for Magdalene. I get the chance to buy whatever ingredients I want and play with different recipes.”

I nod, trying to focus on the vegetables. I’m sure a fingertip in the salad would not be appreciated. Besides, the last thing I want to discuss is Magdalene or what I know about her. It’s still unsettling knowing Jade works for her.

Jade quickly finishes making the dressing for the salad as well as a pale-yellow sauce for the salmon. She walks over and picks up a knife next to me.

“That apron fits you nicely, but it looks like you could use a little help,” she says.

I look down at the haphazardly uneven chunks on the cutting board. “You’re right,” I admit. “I’ve never done this a day in my life, so I’m willing to take any help you have to offer.”

She grabs a carrot and slowly demonstrates the proper technique I need to use for more uniformed, bite-sized pieces.

“That’s it,” she says after returning the knife and watching me mimic what she’s showed me at a much slower pace. “You’re doing great.”

I take a quick break from my slicing and dicing to give her a quick kiss.

“Both of you are doing an amazing job,” says Chef Bradley. “Jade, for someone with no professional training you definitely have some skills. I’m sure you’ll go far in this industry if it’s something you really want to do.”

She turns bright red and smiles at the chef. “Thank you, I’ll certainly give it some thought if this nanny job doesn’t work out the way I want.”

As we finish dinner, Jade excitedly describes the recipes she’s tried and the ones she wants to attempt eventually. Who knew preparing food could make someone so happy? I think I understand how she feels, because I get the same type of rush of adrenaline when I work on a business deal. The numbers and equations may not mean very much to someone else, but each one is like a tiny rollercoaster for me. Every little nuance of closing a deal takes me on a new adventure, and I look forward to it every single time. It’s one of the reasons I work so hard, because I’m fighting to recapture that feeling until it grows old.

We take the last of the food out of the oven and plate our masterpieces. Chef Bradley congratulates us on our hard work as he packs up his knives and exchanges information with Jade.

“If you ever want to consider opportunities in the industry, I’ll gladly do what I can to help,” he says to Jade. “You have real talent that can’t be taught, but with a bit of fine tuning you’ll be running your own spot in no time. I’m going to use that lemon parsley sauce you made tonight. Now you two hurry up and dig into that food while it’s still hot, and enjoy the rest of your evening.”

I escort the chef to the door and thank him for his time before joining Jade back at the table.

“Everything smells so good,” I say. “I’m still full of ice cream, but I’ll find room for this somewhere.”

Jade smiles sheepishly as she picks up her fork. “If I would have known we were having dinner, I wouldn’t have suggested eating the ice cream first. I’m still so excited to try everything.”

We both dig in, but I pause before putting the fork to my mouth so I can see the expression on Jade’s face. She takes a big bite of the seared fish and closes her eyes.

“This tastes amazing. It’s flaky and buttery, with just enough spice,” she says before opening her eyes, fixing her gaze on me. “What’s wrong?”

I shake my head and smile. “Nothing at all. I wanted to see the look on your face when you took that first bite.”

She drops her fork on the plate and laughs. “I do that too,” she says. “I love watching people eat my food.”

I laugh along despite how she misinterpreted my words. My staring has nothing to do with the food. I like watching her, seeing her happy. Somehow her happiness has superseded mine in my priority list.

During dinner, Jade fills me in on her dream of owning a restaurant one day, and I can’t help but be further amazed by this woman. Her ambition makes her even more attractive. How could I ever fear she could be a gold digger?

“What’s stopping you?” I ask. “You clearly have natural talent, Bradley even said so.”

Jade chews for a moment as if she’s searching for the right words. “Well, I didn’t think I’d like being a nanny so much, and right now I get the best of both worlds. I spend a lot of time with an amazing little boy, I get to cook using only the finest ingredients, and I live in this amazing neighborhood I’d never be able to afford on my own. Being a nanny is what affords me such a shift in lifestyles.”

I put down my fork and reach across the table for her hand. “In all seriousness, I really want you to know that no matter what you do, I’m behind you one-hundred percent.”

Her transparency is so refreshing. In my world, no one would ever express such vulnerable honesty. We all pretend to have everything in control, always wanting to appear stronger and better off than we truly are. For Jade, it’s the exact opposite. She’s humble and unashamed by her profession and the perks it affords her. Perks that I tend to take for granted, but those that she would never experience without the position with Magdalene.

“Thank you,” she says, giving my hand a tight squeeze. “That puts me at ease about something else that’s been on my mind.”

“What?” I ask. “Tell me about it.”

“Well,” she says, “I know I’m just a nanny and I’ve been wondering about your thoughts on how unequally matched we are in terms of position and finances.”

I drink a sip of water and lean back in my chair. “Well, first, you’re not just a nanny. You do so many things throughout the day. Saying you’re just a nanny is selling yourself short. Now that we have that out the way, I’ll be honest with you, the thought of our differences crossed my mind in the very beginning, but they’re certainly a non-factor to me now. And you’re right about us being unequally matched, because you’re so much better than me. Everything about you is a bonus that no amount of money can buy.”

“Thank you,” she whispers bashfully. “I really like spending time with you, Asher. You add a dash of excitement to my life, and it makes me feel good, hearing how appreciated I am.”

This woman is everything I could ever ask for and then some.

“Let’s clear off the table and get the kitchen cleaned up,” says Jade, reaching out for my plate.

“All right,” I say, rising to my feet. “I’ll load the dishwasher.”

Cleaning the kitchen goes by rather quickly, and I’m convinced Jade gets it cleaner than the lady who comes in three times a week. The chrome appliances practically sparkle under my overhead lights. We finally retire to the living room after everything is put back in its proper place. I don’t know about her, but I’m tired and full.

We kick off our shoes and get comfortable in each other’s arms, stretching out on the sofa. I figure now is as good as any to give Jade the other little gift I picked up for her the other day on my way home from the office. The tiny box has been in my pocket all evening, waiting for the perfect time to give it to her.

“Listen, I know you said I didn’t have to do extra stuff for you and buy you things, but I wanted to get something small as a token of how special you are to me.”

I dig into my pocket and hand the small light blue Tiffany and Co. box to Jade.

She opens the box and her mouth drops open for the second time this evening. “You really didn’t have to do this,” she says, looking at the sparkling diamond earrings.

“I know,” I say. “I wanted to. I couldn’t stop thinking of you the other day, and I wanted to get you something to let you know you were on my mind. Hopefully whenever you wear them, I’ll be on yours.”

Jade leans over and brings her lips to meet mine. “Thank you.”

She kisses me again and I press my lips harder into hers, deepening the kiss. My tongue doesn’t have to tap her lips for permission this time, she willingly invites me inside. Our tongues do their familiar dance as my hands explore her body.

Jade pulls back for a moment and puts the tiny box on the table. “Tonight you’ve given me one surprise after another. I’ve been waiting to give you a little surprise of my own.”

She moves back to me and instead of cuddling up next to me, she throws one leg over me and straddles my lap. My dick springs to life as I knew it would, pressing against the fabric separating us.

Jade leans down and flicks the tip of her tongue on my earlobe. “Jacob is with his grandmother and I can stay all night if you’ll have me.”

“If I’ll have you? Is that even a real question? There’s no ‘if’ involved. I’ll have you, and then some.”