Holiday Coffee ✓︎

Chapter 4

"This party is amazing!" Naomi squealed as she danced her way over to me, glass of champagne in hand.

I laughed and raised my champagne glass in turn.

"Have you tried one of the canapes? They're sooo good."

I shook my head, realizing I hadn't eaten anything at the party yet.

"I'll get you a plate of one of each for you to try, but everything is so good, honestly," Nomi told me.

I nodded, suddenly feeling a loss of energy. I took a deep breath and straightened up. So far, everything was going well, and my team had done a great job of getting every last detail perfect. The reveal had been great and uneventful, and the party was going well. I could go home and relax, I told myself. I just needed to get through this last part.

"Here you go!" Naomi's voice interrupted my thoughts.

"Thanks, Ny!"

She nodded with a smile as she fell into easy chatter with me. As she spoke, I took a bite of the food she had brought over for me. She was right. It was good, really, really good. Until I bit into a macaron.

I moaned.

"Oh, yeah. That one's better than sex, isn't it?" Naomi asked, smiling in understanding.

I nodded, too indulged to care about what she had just said.

"This is...heavenly!" I exclaimed, my taste buds exploding. I could feel myself drooling as I took another bite, savoring it.

"You should meet the man who made it, then."

I nodded in agreement. "I want to learn how to make these. They are so freaking good!"

Naomi laughed and led me to the back by the hand. Though there were a few servers and cooks, the kitchen wasn't super busy because we had given a quantity beforehand. They were here to make sure we didn't run out. I looked around for the man who had made the best macarons I had ever tasted.

"Come on, he's back here," Naomi told me.

I followed her to where a man had his back to us, his suit tailored to perfection. I frowned in momentary confusion. Why was he wearing a suit?

"Vinny!" Naomi squealed in excitement.

She couldn't mean him, could she?

The man turned around, and I took a step back in surprise. He had made those macarons? The last time I had seen him, he'd been wearing leather jackets and causing chaos everywhere he went. There was no way this man had made something as good as those macarons.

"Ny! It's good to see you again," he greeted my best friend with a warm smile.

A smile, not a smirk, I noted.

"Vin, you remember Ella, right?" Naomi asked him as they pulled away.

He looked over at me and the smile transformed into a smirk.

I fought the urge to roll my eyes.

"How could I ever forget the Ariella Valentine?" he asked, emphasizing the 'teen' in my last name.

"Vincent," I greeted politely. "I'm surprised to see you here."

"You didn't know, Ella?" Naomi interjected. "Vin's one of the top bakers, ever. His specialty is patisserie."

I shook my head. "I haven't been keeping up with the food world lately."

"Don't stress it, Ny. It's a recent thing," Vincent assured her. "Is there anything I can do for you ladies? Is something wrong with the food?"