A Sip of You(95)

“So?”

“My big secret,” Beckett said. “Remember? I told you I was working on something but I wasn’t allowed to talk about it yet?”

The puzzle rearranged itself again. So this meeting was about Beckett and William doing business? Together? I glanced at Beckett again. He was dressed in a suit. Of course it was a slim pastel blue suit with tight trousers, much different than William’s classic charcoal wool Armani, but like me, Beckett tended to dress creatively. If this was business, the suit made sense.

“What does he have to do with the NDA?” I asked, pointing at William.

But William answered before Beckett could. “I’m a financial backer in a new restaurant venture.”

“Cat, I’m going to run a bakery,” Beckett said. “That’s the big news. And it’s not just any bakery.”

I stared, trying to take in what Beckett was saying. This was huge. “Do you remember Emil LeClerc?” William asked.

“No.” The name sounded familiar, but I was still reeling from the news that Beckett was finally going to get the chance to bake. He would finally achieve his dream.

“Emil LeClerc catered the Art Institute dinner we attended,” William said.

I remembered that dinner very well. It was my first date with William and my absolute worst date ever. William had been sweet and charming in the car on the way there but had changed completely once we arrived. He’d been cold and distant and completely ignored me. I’d ended up walking out without even saying goodbye. But I remembered William had praised Chef LeClerc, and I’d wanted to try his food. I’d run into Ben Lee that night, and Ben had remarked that he’d trained in France under LeClerc. Ben had given me a bite of a blini, but other than that I’d mainly drank my dinner. I never got the chance to eat much of the beautiful food.

“I do remember,” I said. “Ben said you’d backed LeClerc’s New York City restaurant.” Suddenly my heart clenched. “Beckett, you’re not moving to New York, are you?”

“No. LeClerc is opening a restaurant in Chicago.”

“Not quite,” William added. His hands were still on my arms, and his thumbs were moving in circles, sending waves of warmth through me. “LeClerc is the name behind a French bistro concept restaurant that I and several other investors back. We’ll be rolling it out in Chicago in a new luxury boutique hotel opening in Lincoln Park. Bistro LeClerc will be in the hotel, and next door to Bistro LeClerc will be Patisserie LeClerc, a bakery.”

“Pastries, Cat,” Beckett added. “Just like Paris.” His eyes shone brightly, and his face was flushed with excitement. I couldn’t help but smile.

“The kind of delicacies you’re so good at making,” I said.

“Exactly. And the patisserie is going to have a storefront and offer lots of fabulous confections. But we’ll also supply the bistro with all of its bread and desserts.”

“And what Beckett has been wanting to tell you is that he’s been tapped as the head pastry chef for Patisserie LeClerc. If the concept succeeds here, similar outlets will open in Las Vegas, Miami, and Los Angeles. Beckett will oversee all of that.”

“Cat, I’ve been dying to tell you,” Beckett said, moving toward us. “I’m so bad at keeping secrets, especially from you. But I couldn’t take the chance I’d fuck it up.” He held his hands up. “Not that telling you would fuck it up, but I had to sign the NDA, and I’d never signed one and was paranoid. Everything happened so fast.”

“Once we knew LeClerc wanted Beckett, we moved quickly,” William added.

“Forgive me, Cat?” Beckett pled. “It’s not the same if I can’t celebrate with you. Don’t be mad, okay?”

“Oh, Beckett.” I stumbled away from William and gave Beckett a huge hug, my eyes welling with tears. I was so glad things were okay between us again and so happy for Beckett. I squeezed him tightly. This was an amazing opportunity. I could see that quite clearly. It was exactly the kind of opportunity I’d always wanted for Beckett and the kind he had never dared dream of. He was so talented, though, and he totally deserved this. I pulled back and looked Beckett in the eye. “I’m so happy for you. I’m sorry I was such a complete ass. Again. Let me make it up to you. I’ll throw you a huge party to celebrate. It’s going to be awesome.”

“No parties yet,” Beckett said. “Technically, I still can’t talk about it. But I really wanted to tell you, and that’s why I came to William’s office. I just signed the contracts at the lawyer’s offices a few blocks from here. I came over to plead for leniency.”