Cocotte

Cocotte    ~<3

     The glorious smell of freshly baked bread drifted around the high class restaurant. Sounds from the kitchen rang throughout Cocotte, which was already loud with the buzz of the many customers. Despite how busy it was, the place had a warm and comfortable ambiance. 

     In a more peaceful, somewhat secluded corner of the large room sat the successful author of a New York Times bestselling series. No one directly noticed the singular lady, which was perfectly fine with her. She was happily rewarding herself for her recently finished book tour by returning home and treating herself to an expensive meal. 

     As she contentedly propped up the tall menu to read it, she noticed that a couple was being directed to the table right in front of her. They must've been locals or familiar with the restaurant because, while she was still lost in discovering what she would like to eat for dinner, they had notified the hostess of their individual orders. 

     For several minutes the author ignored their incessant babbling until the lady addressed the man with a statement that would catch the ear of any nosy person. "Mr Kendale," she began, "you should tell me about your love life." The author found herself snapping to attention. She was always looking for possible subplots to put into her next book. And, according to her editor, she needed more real feelings in the character's relationships. To her, this gave her permission to eavesdrop on the couple's conversation. 

     When the the lady's dark haired partner hesitated the author realized that he probably had an interesting past. But instead of answering the woman's words he replied, "Please, Amanda, call me Joseph." 

     The author, who had put down her menu and subtly ordered an entire meat pizza and a glass of red wine, listened in as the blonde haired lady, Amanda, continued speaking. 

     "Well then, Joseph," Amanda leaned closer across the table to him, "you really are - as your friends dutifully explained to me - a catch. Forgive me if I'm curious as to why on earth a man like you would be set up for a blind date. Not that I mind." She quickly added. Her eyes glittered as she gave a small smile. 

     "Okay. That's," Joseph paused to think of the right word to use, "understandable. I've never really done this dating stuff before, so I wouldn't really know." 

     Amanda's mascara framed eyes widened. "What? Haven't you've been in love?" 

     Joseph laughed miserably. "In love? Maybe. Just one time though. But I never dated her, or anyone else." An additional, unspoken sentence stated 'until now'. Joseph's positive attitude fell as he sighed out loud. "I don't even know how my friends even got me into this." 

     "I'm not that bad!" Amanda protested. 

     "I know," Joseph tried to appease her. "I know. I've just never been interested in anyone besides her. I never had feelings for anyone else." 

     The conversation was halted as the food was delivered to both the couple's table and the author's. She had been sitting quietly in the corner, inconspicuously paying close attention to the couple's banter. She achieved this by scribbling away in the notebook that she always carried with her.  

     The author muttered under her breath. "Come on, keep talking." 

     Thankfully, Amanda had the same train of thought. "Tell me about your girl. What was her name?" 

     Joseph bit his bottom lip. "Olivia Lee. Or Livvie." He answered. The author paused before she wrote down the name in her notebook and circled it.