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Something Buried That She Doesn’t Know!

Something Buried that She Doesn’t Know

"Here we are." Leon turned off the engine of his car after parking it smoothly in the dedicated parking lot, in front of an elevator with a uniformed officer already waiting.

Ever since being told that they would be having dinner at Leon's place, Nora had thought they would be going to the house or apartment where Leon lived.

Her heart was pounding in her chest, she felt like it was going to jump out.

She wondered why they were having dinner at his place. ‘Did he have something planned? Was it just a normal dinner, or…’

As the yacht sailed back into the harbor,

Nora couldn't shake the curiosity that was now mixing with tension.

Her mind was filled with questions, but she couldn't express them to Leon.

So she kept quiet, until they finally arrived at the hotel.

Nora knew the hotel, although she had never stayed there. Hotel Baccarat was famous for its luxury and super exclusive service.

Therefore, only certain people can stay there.

The elevator attendant escorted them until the elevator stopped at the top floor.

That was the floor where the grand suites were located. It is famous for offering spectacular views of the City through its large arched windows.

The elevator doors opened directly on the suite, and Nora was amazed at how grand the interior was.

The interior is very elegant with luxury and modern furniture.

She was still rooted to the spot when Leon stepped in front of her into a sitting room with comfortable furniture to relax in.

Leon realized he hadn’t heard Nora’s footsteps, and turned around. “What’s wrong?” he asked. “Come here. They’ve prepared dinner in the dining room.”

Nora swallowed. Feeling a little sad about how far Leon’s life was from hers.

“You don’t have to worry. We’re just going to have dinner.” Leon seemed to have the wrong idea.

Nora immediately realized her amazement and moved towards Leon.

“I’m not worried,” she said. “I was just admiring the suite.”

Leon smiled slightly at Nora’s reply and continued his steps to the dining room.

Nora followed behind him with slow steps, occasionally stopping to admire a painting or a decoration in the glass cabinet.

“This suite is named after my family, Suite Carusso.”

“I guess because the hotel belongs to your family?” asked Nora, no longer surprised.

“No,” Leon replied. “Because we’re the most loyal customers, and my father is an old friend of the owner. My family always stays in this grand suite, unless there are other tenants. The owner then renamed the suite after my family. He said it would bring good luck. Now, this is the dining room.”

They arrived at the dining room which had been decorated with candles and fresh flowers. A man in a chef’s uniform emerged from a doorway.

“Good evening.” He greeted politely.

“Dinner is ready.”

“Thank you, Pierre.” Leon nodded.

Casually, as if he had done it a thousand times, he pulled out a chair and helped Nora sit down, and then he himself sat down across from her.

Pierre approached. “If I may ask, what wine would you like, sir?”

“The usual, Pierre. But serve the food first, please. I’m afraid Miss Williams is already hungry.”

“Yes, sir. I will ask Jane to serve it.”

Pierre disappeared again into a doorway, which Nora assumed was the kitchen.

Soon a maid appeared with a large plate of food.

“Pierre is the chef at my parents’ house. Jane is also on the kitchen staff there.” Leon told Nora. “I borrowed them for tonight. Besides, my parents aren’t home. They’re on vacation in Lake Tahoe celebrating their wedding anniversary.”

The fact that Leon's family had a private chef made Nora wonder how rich the Carusso family was.

She had only heard that they were wealthy, but never imagined the luxuries they had.

Even though she had always pretended to be rich and befriended rich people, her experience with wealth had never reached this level.

Pierre reappeared after Jane’s task was completed to explain the dishes served.

“Do you agree with the menu, Mr. Leon?” he asked.

“I have no problem, Pierre. I already know what you’re serving. But please explain it to Miss Williams. I’m giving you a chance to show off to a beautiful girl.” Leon smiled broadly, showing that he and the chef were used to joking around.

The chef smiled back without losing his French elegance. “My pleasure, sir. Now, let me explain our menu tonight, Miss Williams. For the appetizer we have Kobe beef carpaccio, which is paired with a fresh black truffle sauce. Then you can enjoy the grilled foie grass with pomegranate sauce. Tonight’s main course is fillet mignon with Cabernet sauce, as well as truffle mashed potatoes and grilled asparagus. For dessert we serve panacotta with raspberry sauce. We hope you both enjoy tonight’s meal, Mr. Leon, Miss Williams.”

Leon nodded appreciatively, while Nora gazed at the dishes in front of her.

“Did he cook all this alone here?” Nora whispered after Pierre passed in front of them.

Leon nodded. “He brought the necessary cooking utensils from home. The kitchen in this grand suite has been adapted to my family’s habit of sometimes bringing Pierre along to cook and take him on vacation. He’s my parents’ favourite staff. And my mother often misses Pierre’s Yorkshire pudding.”

Nora raised one eyebrow. “Your mother isn’t English, is she?”

“No, she’s not. She’s a true Yankee. But she went to school in England in her youth.”

Nora almost said ‘like me’, luckily she held her tongue.

They started eating without much conversation. Nora realized that she was very hungry, and enthusiastically enjoyed the food.

“Did you like the dish?” Leon asked.

“Yes, very good. You’re lucky to have such a good chef.”

“Your family doesn’t have a cook?”

Nora remembered her mother’s delicious dishes. Her father always said that he was lucky to marry her because of that.

She shook her head. “My mom always cooked for us.”

“Great,” Leon said. “My mom hasn’t been in the kitchen for a long time. That’s why she was so happy when my father hired Pierre.”

Nora smiled. Since Leon had mentioned her mother, she imagined that she was actually a good mother, because Leon’s eyes always lit up whenever he said something about her.

“But I’m sure she must have cooked for her children. Is her cooking good?”

“Yes. Very good. She used to make cookies when we were kids. Every Christmas, she would make us snowman-shaped chocolate cookies with icing on top. She would add strawberry jam as the snowman’s scarf.”

Suddenly, Nora thought of the Christmas cookies Leon had told her about. She thought she had seen cookies like that somewhere, sometime.

The change in her expression caught Leon’s eye.

“What’s wrong?” Leon asked.

“It’s nothing. I ... I just remembered my childhood. I ate snowman cookies once, like years ago.”

Leon looked at her with a serious face. “Sugar-coated chocolate cookies with a strawberry jam scarf?”

“I don’t know. My memory isn’t that detailed.” Nora smiled. “But when I was a little girl, my sister and I did like funny-shaped cookies.”

Before Leon could respond, Pierre reappeared with a bottle of wine in his hand. “Wine for the main course, Mr. Leon.”

“Of course, Pierre. Is that the stash from home?”

“Ah, no. Too bad we’re out of stock on this one at home. But I can always order it from our favorite store. They deliver the wines at lightning speed.”. Pierre smiled as if proud of his own quickness.

He then began to pour the wine with the grace of a trained wine steward. As he filled Nora’s glass he said, “This is Chateau Lafite Bordeaux, Miss Williams. A favorite of the noble families of France. I hope you like it.”

“Thank you, Pierre.” Nora thanked him sincerely and took a sip. Her tongue tasted elegant and delicate.

And she immediately understood why the wine was favored by the rich people.

They continued eating accompanied by light, meaningless conversation.

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