years, Raphaël had fewer of those molten streaks in his hair than Gabriel did, a darker brown. Raphaël had been working with Gabriel since he was twenty, when it had seemed more normal to him that he should come on as chef cuisinier to his famous older brother and still work under him. These days, their unusual hierarchy was starting to chafe. Gabriel didn’t know what to do about it. He tried everything he could to share power equally with his brother these days, but old habits of control died hard. He was desperately afraid his brother was just going to up and leave him one day, and even more afraid that might be the best thing Raf could ever do for himself. Fuck. Why were people’s lives always better without him in them?
“Oh, is that why he came by this afternoon? He wanted a table?” Gabriel was spraying the dome of a chocolate dessert last second with a blend of cocoa butter and chocolate so that it would arrive at the table glistening, glossy, perfect, reflecting every light in the room in its darkness.
It was beautiful, and yet for once, his heart wasn’t really in it. Some nights, it was harder to keep forcing your heart out there for people to eat than others. She dumped people. She let men fall for all that pistachio and gold of her, and then she dumped them. She had probably boxed up more shirts and mailed them to clear the last remnants of a man out of her life than all his ex-girlfriends put together.
“He’s got that, what’s-her-name, Nathalie?”
Gabriel stopped. “ Bordel , is this going to her? You know she’s just going to run throw it up again as soon as she can get to the restroom.” He stared at the beautiful work of art, utterly deflated. Damn it, the very last thing he needed was to think of some wannabe actress throwing up this bite of his heart, on top of everything else.
“I think she only ordered coffee,” Raf said.
“What the hell is wrong with Matt?” Only ordered coffee. In his restaurant. If that wasn’t a sign a man should get out of a relationship with a woman while he still had a chance to survive, Gabriel didn’t know what was.
“She’s beautiful?” Raphaël suggested cautiously, in the tones of a man who had no idea but was making a wild guess.
“Raf. Remember her at his birthday party? I’ve never seen anyone insist on sucking up more attention for herself. It Matt even stopped to joke with one of us, she started worrying her looks must be going and that was why he didn’t love her anymore.” He wished Matt had never tried working up in Paris this past winter for Rosier SA, on his quest for something a little more adventurous than running a valley of flowers in Provence, his life destiny as the Rosier patriarch’s heir. In Paris, Matt had had to mingle with all those actresses and models with whom the luxury perfume houses packed their perfume launches, and it had turned out to be a very bad environment for a straightforward, wholehearted man who liked to fix things.
“I know. She’s as bad as a top chef,” Raf agreed, shaking his head in disgust.
Gabriel gave his brother a disgruntled look. “Well, at least we’re that way about our food . Not our actual bodies.” Fortunately, because he probably had chocolate spray all over his face right now.
“So that makes us better than she is?” Raf challenged wryly.
Gabriel sent the dome through the pass and scowled at his brother. “It’s not the same thing at all,” he said firmly.
Raf shrugged. “You know Matt’s an idiot. I think he tried to head-butt his older cousins into listening to him one too many times when he was little, and it did some damage.”
“She doesn’t even look at him! It’s like she literally cannot see him, only whether he is looking at her.”
“Yeah, but Matt’s a big man. He’ll pour himself out in the service of that need for a long time before he gets to the end of himself. Can we talk about something less depressing? How’s your love life?”
“Fuck
“Oh, is that why he came by this afternoon? He wanted a table?” Gabriel was spraying the dome of a chocolate dessert last second with a blend of cocoa butter and chocolate so that it would arrive at the table glistening, glossy, perfect, reflecting every light in the room in its darkness.
It was beautiful, and yet for once, his heart wasn’t really in it. Some nights, it was harder to keep forcing your heart out there for people to eat than others. She dumped people. She let men fall for all that pistachio and gold of her, and then she dumped them. She had probably boxed up more shirts and mailed them to clear the last remnants of a man out of her life than all his ex-girlfriends put together.
“He’s got that, what’s-her-name, Nathalie?”
Gabriel stopped. “ Bordel , is this going to her? You know she’s just going to run throw it up again as soon as she can get to the restroom.” He stared at the beautiful work of art, utterly deflated. Damn it, the very last thing he needed was to think of some wannabe actress throwing up this bite of his heart, on top of everything else.
“I think she only ordered coffee,” Raf said.
“What the hell is wrong with Matt?” Only ordered coffee. In his restaurant. If that wasn’t a sign a man should get out of a relationship with a woman while he still had a chance to survive, Gabriel didn’t know what was.
“She’s beautiful?” Raphaël suggested cautiously, in the tones of a man who had no idea but was making a wild guess.
“Raf. Remember her at his birthday party? I’ve never seen anyone insist on sucking up more attention for herself. It Matt even stopped to joke with one of us, she started worrying her looks must be going and that was why he didn’t love her anymore.” He wished Matt had never tried working up in Paris this past winter for Rosier SA, on his quest for something a little more adventurous than running a valley of flowers in Provence, his life destiny as the Rosier patriarch’s heir. In Paris, Matt had had to mingle with all those actresses and models with whom the luxury perfume houses packed their perfume launches, and it had turned out to be a very bad environment for a straightforward, wholehearted man who liked to fix things.
“I know. She’s as bad as a top chef,” Raf agreed, shaking his head in disgust.
Gabriel gave his brother a disgruntled look. “Well, at least we’re that way about our food . Not our actual bodies.” Fortunately, because he probably had chocolate spray all over his face right now.
“So that makes us better than she is?” Raf challenged wryly.
Gabriel sent the dome through the pass and scowled at his brother. “It’s not the same thing at all,” he said firmly.
Raf shrugged. “You know Matt’s an idiot. I think he tried to head-butt his older cousins into listening to him one too many times when he was little, and it did some damage.”
“She doesn’t even look at him! It’s like she literally cannot see him, only whether he is looking at her.”
“Yeah, but Matt’s a big man. He’ll pour himself out in the service of that need for a long time before he gets to the end of himself. Can we talk about something less depressing? How’s your love life?”
“Fuck
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