“I just figured it out,” I said. “I think they’re beautiful.”

“I’m glad.” We kissed and sat down. Throughout dinner we enjoyed the occasional kiss and holding hands across the table. But I hadn’t gotten completely comfortable with public displays of affection.

Elliott and I were easily recognized with Elliott’s blond good looks and my long hair—plus we had distinctive accents. His was British, mine was Southern. Almost immediately, a scotch and sidecar arrived followed by an amuse-bouche prepared by the chef just for us.

The owner came over. The chef came over. Many people I did not even know came over. Plates of food came and went at a dizzying pace. If Elliott and I had wanted an intimate, quiet evening, this was certainly not it. Many of the people stopping by our table were fellow patrons wanting a reservation at our place.

Then Julian strolled over. “The chef here is excellent but no match for you, Elliott. You are the best. As for you, young lady, I think the student just may have surpassed her teacher. Your abilities and your patience to search the internet serve you well. But you will never enjoy my reputation because you are far too nice. It’s good to see her smiling. You bring out the best in her,” Julian said, winking at Elliott.

“Forgive me, but I was trying to learn from the master. What about my brother?” I said.

“Henry is good. The second best. Elliott is a natural. You were always so serious, Bailey. I found it utterly charming and challenging. You were my best student. You two represent the pinnacle. I am so glad you found each other. Elliott, show the girl a little fun.”

“I’ll do my best. But she is a little stubborn taskmaster.” And we all laughed.

At the end of the evening, there was no check. Compliments of Lucius Conrad. As we were sipping our drinks, we nibbled on the assortment of sweets they brought to our table. We quietly reflected on the evening, our eyes and hands meeting briefly from time to time. We then simply shook our heads in agreement. Julian had been right. Conrad’s was no match for us. We clearly had something special. We walked hand in hand outside to our waiting car and went home to take Julian’s advice and have some fun.

It was a little after nine o’clock the next morning when I woke up. Elliott was still asleep. He looked so peaceful. His face was relaxed, his body in repose. I noticed the bottle of Ambien, and I was glad he was able to finally sleep. It was a wonderful thing to behold. I quietly groped around, found the bathrobe, and made my way to the kitchen.