What Holly's Husband Did: A laugh out loud romantic comedy with a twist! by Debbie Viggiano

Author:Debbie Viggiano
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781786813893
Publisher: Bookouture

31

Dinner parties are not really my thing. It’s one thing to cook your family a basic meal ‘from scratch’ every evening, but I was no Jamie or Delia. My cooking was of the straightforward fare. Plenty of roast dinners mixing-up the meats, a hearty Shepherd’s Pie, the occasional steak with side salad or, on a night when the winter winds were howling around the rafters of the house and the temperature dropped to zero, comfort was to be found in bangers and buttery mash with chopped red cabbage in a flavoursome red wine jus. Much as I would have liked to spend ages titivating with a Hollandaise sauce to accompany a baked salmon, I didn’t want to be fretting about stinking the house out with the smell of fish, or getting into a panic about the sauce splitting and fats congealing. I settled on a simple slow-cooker version of coq au vin accompanied by a crème fraîche mash, with melon balls and homemade mint ice-cream for dessert.

On the Friday night I prepped everything, left the coq au vin in the fridge overnight and popped a tub full of newly made mint ice-cream into the freezer. Easy peasy. A part of me was very aware that Jack would be sitting around my dining table and I wanted to impress him, to come across as a hostess who wasn’t tied to the kitchen labouring over steaming pots and pans thus leaving her guests to make small talk amongst themselves, but instead got stuck into the conversational thick of it. Therefore, I chose to opt out of messing about with starters and instead to conclude with a large platter of cheese and biscuits with coffee and brandy.

Sophie was still Tabitha’s new girl crush, and was having a sleepover on Saturday night, which was something of a relief. Izzy had already been on the phone gushing about Sophie being a charming influence on Tabitha, so at least I wouldn’t have a bored daughter to worry about and, if things got a bit boozy and raucous, nobody would be disturbing my teenager’s zen or, as Alex preferred to call it, bloody mindedness.

On the day of the dinner party, I took a great deal of care with my appearance prior to our guests’ arrival. I hoped Alex would look at me with eyes that lit up like a Christmas tree’s fairy lights. I might not have Jeanie’s gargantuan chest, but equally my breasts could in no way be likened to two fried eggs on an ironing board. As I stood back from the full-length mirror to assess the ‘overall effect’, I sternly addressed my reflection.

‘You are a fine-looking woman, Holly Hart. Tonight, you are going to wow everyone with good food, good wine and your good looks. Know it. Believe it. Be it.’ It was all very well making affirmations, but sometimes a prayer helped. ‘Please God,’ I added.

I had let Sophie do my eyeshadow before she left. A pair of seductive smoky eyes stared back at me, and my lips were slicked with a light plum colour filched from my daughter.

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