Spice by Seressia Glass Page A

café instead of a restaurant?”
    â€œRestaurants have a higher fail rate than cafés, which aren’t much better. Besides, Siobhan and I know our limitations. The last thing either one of us needed was the stress and long hours of trying to get a restaurant up and running. The café lets us indulge our love of cooking and baking and trying out new recipes, and not having to handle a dinner crowd means we don’t have to overextend ourselves and we can still have lives. Mostly.”
    â€œCan I ask why you didn’t try for another cooking show or writing cookbooks after you got out of rehab? For some of those Hollywood types, being in rehab is almost a fashion accessory.”
    A shadow crossed her expressive features as she slid off the barstool. “For some it is. Rehab might even boost their careers, giving them a weird sort of street cred. But for some of us it’s impossible to recover from and the only option is to burn the bridges and leave town.”
    He remained silent as he watched her pull a bottle of red out of her wine fridge, then uncork it to breathe. “You think you wouldn’t have recovered your career.”
    She placed a set of wineglasses on the counter, her moments measured. “Honestly?”
    â€œAlways.”
    â€œI didn’t try. I saw the writing on the wall. Even if I hadn’t, I didn’t think I’d be able to hack it. It was a grueling life and I got caught up in it and lost myself in the process. I didn’t want to face that sort of stress or temptation again.”
    He gave her a considering look as he tested the doneness of the fish. Nadia was a survivor. He knew that by the matter-of-fact way that she admitted her shortcomings and took responsibility for her actions. Beneath her passion was a core of steel. Once she learned from a mistake, he doubted she’d let herself get trapped again.
    â€œYou didn’t think you could handle Hollywood, so you decided to become a small business owner instead. Sounds like you can handle more than you give yourself credit for.”
    The smile she gave him lit the room. “Thank you for that. But it helps to have a solid network of support. I doubt Siobhan and I could have been as successful as we are if it weren’t for our friends and chosen family.”
    â€œSo no expansion plans outside of the business district?” he asked as he plated their food.
    â€œGod, no,” she replied with a laugh, taking their wine, glasses, and silverware over to the dining table. “We like our little place, like being part of the community and knowing our regulars. If we do any expansion, it’ll be to open for a longer stint on Saturdays, but that’s about it. We’re making a decent enough amount of money to support the café and ourselves, and we’re happy with the way it is. I’ve had enough of letting ambition drive my life and make my decisions. Now the decisions are based on what’s right for me and Siobhan, what can we handle. It’s worked pretty darn well for us for the last handful of years.”
    â€œSounds like it.” He shut off the grill then followed her with their plates. “If you hate it, you won’t hurt my feelings. Much.”
    Nadia snorted. “Somehow I doubt your ego is that fragile, Professor Sullivan.”
    â€œYou’re right,” he said as they settled at the table. “It comes from being confident in knowing what I’m capable of.”
    â€œWhat are you capable of?”
    He gave her a long look. “Whatever I put my mind to.”
    She saluted him with the wine bottle and a lopsided grin before pouring. “Here’s to discovering everything we’re capable of.”
    â€œI’ll drink to that.”

EIGHT

    â€œS o what made you go into the field of human sexuality, when you could have so easily been a chef?” Nadia asked as she dug into the delicious meal. “It’s not like