"My compliments to the chef." ~~~ Twenty-six year-old Kahlia Obisani is the youngest chef to have won the title of Food Doyen in the nation's toughest televised cooking competition. Overseen and judged by the biggest names in the culinary industry around the world, Kahlia became a national sensation when she won the title at the tender age of twenty. With her instant success and prize money, she set up her restaurant, a Michelin star establishment with her leading the helm as head chef. Her winning dish, now her signature dish, is the best selling item on the menu; a sweet dessert with root vegetables as the base ingredients. Thirty year-old Dorian Bankfurth is what most restauranteurs would consider the toughest food critic in the cooking scene. He's built and destroyed restaurants with a single review, putting multitudes of establishments on the map and driving even more into bankruptcy and closed doors. He's cold, judgemental, and cynical, but above all things he's fair. He gives reviews as honestly as he can, and has no problem giving credit where it's due. When his friends take him to award winning Obisani restaurant for his birthday, he's faced with a dish he never thought he'd encounter in his life; a dessert made from root vegetables. The kicker? Dorian hates sweet things. The moment he finally meets the chef behind the meal, both their worlds are rocked in a shocking contrast of sweet and sour. Kahlia's sweet disposition and Dorian's cold glare clash, sparking tension and whispers in those around them. Still, despite his abrasive attitude, Kahlia keeps smiling, infecting the man with a sweetness he hadn't known he was missing, and opening his palate to a whole new world he quickly became addicted to. When life gives you lemons, you make lemonade. Could he accept the one ingredient his recipe was missing?

Deen and Paislee Vanilla and chocolate Day and night. Hot and cold Colored | White "You know we could never get married, you just flipped your lid. We would be a closet case." "Why couldn't we get our rings, babydoll?" His green eyes danced with confusion as he stroked my cheek softly. "Because you're white and well, I'm a negro. Everyone knows whites and blacks don't bash, that's just how it goes unless you like death. So marriage, that's-that's an odd ball, Deen." ° ° ° Nothing could go wrong in the busy town of Jackson, Mississippi, for everything was splendid. Absolutely splendid. Except for the occasional riots, or lynching of innocent colored girls, the heads hanged in the city square, or the burning cross' across the street from houses. The ear wrenching screams heard from dark alleys, the glares from men as you walked into "their" diner, going through the back doors at movie theaters, or standing on the bus after a day's long of work. This was all nothing to Paislee Miller, for she was your typical colored girl in the eye of the beholder. Living in Jackson all her life had brought her many things that she wouldn't trade in the world, even the constant racism and hate that flowed through the city's air. That is until she meets Deen Rivera. He was nothing far from perfect if you asked, and everything grand. As Deen and Paislee cross paths many times she starts realizing that her solid heart was starting to open up for this green-eyed, winsome country boy. As for Deen, well he fell in love the minute he casted an eye to her. After that, he couldn't stop seeing her, touching her, loving her. Even if that meant breaking a 'WHITES ONLY' sign, it would all be worth it. Hopefully. . . Catch 22 © 2018 RyChristina