Jade laughed. “That’s what the dish is called, Ryder. It's finely minced beef—served raw.”
“It's the best in the world—certified organic Angus beef from Australia. Thought my gir . . . er, Rebecca would appreciate something from the land Down Under.”
I raised a worried eyebrow. “Fuck, Rebecca, they don’t know how to cook in Australia?”
“No, silly. The beef is from Australia. The dish is a classic,” Rebecca said, educating me on fine dining.
I watched the others dig in, nodding their approval. Was I that hungry and desperate I’d eat raw fucking meat?
“Where’s your spirit of adventure, brother? You live on the edge every day, but you can’t stomach a bit of uncooked meat?” Max was having a great time at my expense.
“It's the fucking egg wobbling on top,” I said as I shook my plate to prove my point. They all laughed at me, enjoying my predicament.
“Certified organic too.” Max grinned.
I held up my hand and beckoned the hovering waitress to the table. I held up my plate to her. “Tell the cook to sear this on both sides, fry the fucking egg, place it between two buns, and bring it back here. With ketchup and real fries.”
Maxwell nearly choked on his raw meat. Or was it the egg?
The waitress swallowed hard and shot him a nervous glance. He broke into laughter and nodded. She scurried off with my plate, no doubt telling the chef of my unrefined tastes.
Max lifted his glass to make a toast. “You’re a classic, Ryder. That’s what I love about you, brother. You can take the biker out of L.A.—”
Jade pushed her plate back, grinning sheepishly. “That’s all I needed to do to get my meat cooked?”
“You used to love steak tartare, Jade?”
Jade held onto her stomach. “I know, but tonight it's just making me queasy. The smell—”
Rebecca’s curved eyebrows nearly shot to her hairline, but she didn’t comment. What was all of that about?
The waitress returned with the fucking domed plate and placed it in front of me. I pushed her hand away and opened the lid myself. My stomach was eating itself from hunger and whatever was under the dome smelled like heaven.
“That’s more fucking like it.” The best gourmet burger I’d ever seen sat on my plate, accompanied by dollops of ketchup swirled around it and a stack of hand-cut fries. I grabbed the burger with my hands and dug in, wiping the juice that ran down my chin with the back of my hand.
Real food. Yeah.
Chapter Eighteen — Jade
“So honey, tell me what’s going on with you and Maxwell?” Rebecca and I stood in front of the huge gilded mirror that covered the wall above the hand basins, applying fresh lipstick. After the starter, we’d excused ourselves and gone to ‘powder our noses’. It was the first chance we had to be alone since I’d met Max and I was more curious now than ever.
If she tells me ‘nothing’, she’s a liar.
Taking her time, Rebecca blotted her lips on a folded tissue, then opened it and stared at the red shape stained on the white paper. “I wish I could say there’s nothing going on, because there shouldn’t be . . . the truth is—we’re attracted to one another. I pretend I’m not; he on the other hand, makes no secret about it. It's fucked up, I know.” She applied lip gloss over the color on her lips.
I swallowed hard as I stared at her reflection in the mirror. I didn’t really know what to say to that, so I just nodded my head.
“The weird thing is that Maxwell doesn’t act as if he’s married and his wife never seems to be around.” She smacked her lips together before continuing. “If I hadn’t met Natasha at his office once, I would’ve thought he made her up. But the skinny bitch is very real.” The scornful frown between her brows deepened as she mentioned the mysterious wife.
“I've seen pictures of Natasha. She’s freaking gorgeous,” I said as I watched my cousin’s reaction to my words in the mirror.
“Yep, more in real life than in pictures. Bitch has a body to die for, and long blonde hair down to her ass that’s sexy even if it’s fake. . . and her complexion is fucking flawless. Nobody can compete with someone like her.” She smirked as she turned her head and looked at her rear in the mirror. “My ass is too big, I've got red hair, for fuck sake, and under this layer of foundation, I have freckles.”
I narrowed my eyes and let my gaze wonder over her body. “Babe, you’re perfect. You have curves in all the right places like a real woman should. Besides, Photoshop fixes every problem imaginable in pictures, so don’t be so hard on yourself.” I paused, holding the mascara wand in my hand as I appraised her.