A Taste of You Read Free

Garrett, who had turned to see what was going on. Before Andi could intercept the guy, he whipped out his phone and snapped a picture of Giancarlo and Garrett as they stood side-by-side.
    Stupid tourist. Carlo was not in the mood to deal with an uninvited interloper, but he maintained a polite smile. Andi would eject him soon enough, and she would be a lot politer about it than he could be right now.
    “Oh god. You’re actually eating a street dog.” Disgust dripped from Garrett’s voice.
    “What? I told you I was going across the street to get one. It’s New York City. It’s mandatory.”
    And, Holy Mother, could this day get any better? The cocky punk with the camera and tight bod was neither an early diner nor a tourist. He was here with Garrett.
    First. Day. Back.
    “Matt, come meet Giancarlo.”
    Garrett gestured him over, and Andi shifted course to follow behind, eyeing the guy like he might steal the flatware.
    The kid stuffed his phone back in his pocket and stuck out a hand. “Matt Armstrong. Pleasure. Garrett talks about you all the time. It’s an honor to finally meet you.”
    So he had manners. When Matt tacked on a winsome smile, Carlo had to admit he was cute. That smile probably opened a lot of doors. What worried him was he couldn’t return the compliment. Garrett had never mentioned Matt at all.
    The kid got more points when he greeted Andi by name, adding, “Of course I recognize New York’s most famous maître d’.”
    Andi accepted the compliment graciously, but Giancarlo could tell she was as pissed as he was because who the hell was this guy and why hadn’t Garrett told them to expect an extra person?
    Not that it was unusual for Garrett to spring surprise guests on them. Carlo and Andi had rearranged seatings last minute more times than he could count to accommodate Garrett’s celebrity friends, producers, lovers, you name it, during a fully-booked dinner service. They always got the full show. VIP treatment at the door, Andi would make a production of seating them despite the lack of reservation, Garrett would come out of the kitchen to greet them at their table, make them something special off the menu….“Celebrity Chef” was Garrett’s favorite game.
    No one ever saw behind the curtain, though. He didn’t let friends stroll in off the street with him pre-service. So what made Matt Armstrong so special?
    They did the polite chitchat for a few minutes. Yes, Matt came from California originally; yes, he surfed, but he didn’t have much time for it these days. He’d spent some time bumming around Europe, but this was his first time in New York, which was why he had to have the hot dog.
    “I know it’s crazy, but, hey, New York City? It had to be the first thing I ate.”
    Garrett rolled his eyes at this, but Matt just laughed. Despite himself, Carlo found himself starting to like Matt. He had a sense of humor and wasn’t afraid to be silly around Garrett.
    He liked him, in fact, right up until the moment the kid slid his hand down Garrett’s arm.
    “So, Garrett, can I see the kitchen now?”
    The kitchen. And that touch, just a little too familiar, said everything. Carlo’s smile stayed firmly in place, despite the blood pounding in his ears and the sweat he could feel breaking out along his forehead.
    Matt and Garrett were lovers. And that would be fine because Garrett changed lovers more often than his specials, but….
    “Andi, Matt is a chef, and I promised him he could play in the kitchen. You can introduce him to Hector, can’t you?”
    “Of course.” Andi slid into her maître d' voice, rich and cool as heavy cream, but, when her gaze met Carlo’s, the expression in her eyes wasn’t calm at all.
    “Come on back, Matt. Hector loves to meet a new chef.”
    Hector did love talking shop with other chefs. He might not consider having one sprung on him right before service a huge thrill. Thank goodness they had Hector. A more temperamental chef wouldn’t stand the