Tuesday Tales: From the word END

Welcome to the last Tuesday Tales post of 2023. It’s been an eventful year. Wishing you all the best in 2024. This week, fittingly enough, our word prompt is END. I still have several weeks’ worth of work on Listen to the Stones yet to complete. I hope you’re enjoying the story as much as I am researching and writing it. 

Marina chewed her lip. Was James just being friendly or had he asked her out on a date? Did it matter? The man was drop-dead gorgeous, and she wouldn’t mind getting to know him better. It wasn’t as if she had a lot of friends in the area, and since Lews Castle could well be serious competition for Fraser Hall, didn’t it make sense to check it out as soon as she could?

“I’d like that. I know what clotted cream is, but I’ve never had it. It’s not quite like whipped cream or even crème fraîche although they’re all made with heavy cream.”

Seriously? This is what I want to discuss with the hunky man who rescued me?

James nodded. “Aye, but your North American dessert cream is whipped into airy peaks, while our clotted cream is heated until clots form into an almost crunchy layer, while crème fraîche is cultivated with bacteria, in a similar way to yogurt. I used to watch my mother make it back in the day. With its ultra-thick consistency, clotted cream can even be mistaken for butter without the yellow dye in it. People do interchange crème fraîche and clotted cream, but the former is best used in soups, sauces, and similar French dishes, while the latter is a topping. Am I boring you, my lady? I tend to get carried away talking about food preparation.”

“Marina, please. No, of course not. I’m impressed.” She smiled once more. “I’ve spent most of my adult life working as a chef, even though I don’t have the paperwork to prove it, so I love learning all about new foods. Once I decided to accept my inheritance, I spent some time looking up traditional Scottish dishes. Since Fraser Hall is a bed and breakfast, I’ll be expected to serve that meal, but in time, I might like to add tea and possibly even supper to my services. As for our discussion, it’s been my experience that most men, chefs aside, would rather eat the food than discuss its preparation or the cleaning up required afterward. Do you have an interest in cooking and baking?”

Thank you, Fate. After years of making my life miserable, you really are coming through for me. This could well be a match made in heaven. Bob had never been interested in what happened in the kitchen. Most of the time, he’d scarfed down his food so quickly that by the end of the meal, she’d wondered if he’d even realized what he’d eaten.

That’s it. Come back next week for more. Don’t forget to check out the other Tuesday Tales.