Desserts & Dramas

Chapter 10

 Tomás, who had been talking to the girls's father before, had reached the middle of the conversation about Gabriel's girlfriends and didn't want to interfere, choosing only to hug Alice from behind, resting his face on her shoulder.

"I am calm. And I'll be even more relaxed by keeping my distance from him," Sofia declared.

"Sofia, there's no need for that," Tomas replied.

"Yes, there is. Yesterday I spilled coffee on him," Sofia clarified.

"You spilled coffee on him?" Tomas was fast to show his surprise, but Alice added quickly:

"And wine."

"Wine?" Tom couldn't stop laughing.

"It wasn't on purpose, neither of them!" Sofia exclaimed. Tomas and Alice just looked at each other. Then Tomas asked:

"Sofia, is spilling things on him your way of getting closer? We could go out together and get to know each other better. He's not as unreachable as he tries to make himself look like, he's a nice guy."

Alice clapped her hands.

"Yes! Double date!" As Sofia exclaimed, "Noooo."

"Guys, I'm not trying to get closer. Both times happened by accident and won't happen again because I'll keep my distance from him. Don't worry that I will fulfill all the obligations and rehearsals for the wedding, but I can pair up with Eric, or Daniel."

"Or Arthur." Tomás added.

"No way," the two sisters said at the same time.

"Love, I wouldn't want your cousin to be anyone's date, you know how he can be. But Sofia, as my sister, deserves better, even if Jade will try to kill me if she pair up with him."

"Maybe Cecilia can handle him, after all, they are from the same family." Sofia suggested.

"Sissy won't be at all happy about this arrangement of yours and you, my dear," Tomás added, turning to Alice, "will be the bearer of such bad news."

Alice wasn't shaken.

"Talking to the groomsmen and bridesmaids is the couple's duty, not just the bride's." And she stuck her tongue out at him. Tomás hugged her tightly.

"I'll think about your case."

At this moment Marta called everyone to lunch.

"Come on children, lunch is ready. Alan, you too. And turn off that television so we can talk."

After everyone sat down at the table, Marta placed a huge platter in the center of the table.

"The smell is wonderful, dear," Alan complimented.

"The taste should be too," added Tomás.

At first Alan and Marta were worried about his involvement with Alice. Gradually they accepted the relationship, and today they had a good relationship between father-in-law and son-in-law. So Marta knew that the compliment was sincere.

"Scottish meat pie," Marta clarified. The menu of the day was a family tradition with double pasta and mincemeat, served extremely hot and accompanied by fries, beans and salad.

"I think everyone has tasted this recipe at some point."

"And we all love it. Especially with the fries," Alice confirmed. " Do you need help serving, Mom?"

"If you want to serve everyone, I'll sit down and rest my legs."

"Mom, you shouldn't cook so much on the weekend." Sofia advised.

"Don't worry, Sofi, this doesn't compare to the shifts we did during our career. Being on our feet for several hours was the least of our problems." Marta smiled.

"Those shifts were endless," Alan added. "However, we really enjoyed it. Alice might follow in our footsteps."

"I don't think so, Dad, with my major in genetics my place will be sitting comfortably in a lab. But I've been through too many shifts in college and internships to know that it's not easy to work all those stressful hours, with lives passing through our hands."

"Nothing like the calmness of the microscope," Tomás said with a smile.

"You know exactly what I mean, my love," Alice replied.

"I still prefer the kitchen," Sofia opposed.

"Very obvious, Sofi." Alice scoffed.

"So do I," Marta soothed. "And if it weren't for my culinary skills, maybe Sofia would never learn or enjoy cooking."

"And we wouldn't have the best desserts in town in the house," Alan winked at Sofia.

"I don't know if they are the best, but I am trying hard." Sofia put her hand on her father's shoulder in gratitude for the compliment.

"They are to us, and you can't change that," Alice confirmed.

Alice didn't need to speak twice. In a matter of seconds, all that could be heard in the dining room was the sound of cutlery on plates. After everyone was satisfied with the main course, Sofia went to the kitchen to get dessert.

"I must warn you that this is a new creation for the future franchise, not yet tried by anyone. I need you to be honest and act like customers," she looked into each of their eyes, "and not family."

Everyone mumbled incomprehensible answers, not wanting to commit themselves to criticizing Sofia's invention.

"The idea is that the recipes can be served in individual portions, or medium and large sizes. In this case, since you are all greedy," Sofia added, "I made a large one."

"It's beautiful, Sofi," Alice complimented, "Shall we taste it first or are you going to describe the flavors?"

"What do you prefer?"

"Finding out with each bite, I guess " Tomás shrugged.

"Yes," Marta agreed, "As if it were a challenge. Whoever gets the most ingredients right wins a second piece."

Everyone agreed, and Sofia began to serve each one on the dessert plates from her mother's dinner set. The dishes were beautiful, with designs of gray foliage that highlighted the bright colors of the dessert.

"No one tastes until everyone is served," Alan warned.

Sofia looked forward to the comments. She knew they were her family and that they would never hurt her, but each new tasting was like showing a little piece of her soul. All this exposure could make anyone nervous. She was even more anxious when she presented her sweets to Chef Eva. She had no shame in telling the truth, no matter who it hurt. However, receiving a compliment from such a critical person also meant that she was on the right path to success.

"Who will start with the description?" Tomás asked.