Zelda despised having dinner at Peach's mansion. Of all the people in her very exclusive financial bracket the blonde was one of the few she could tolerate, but she hated the traditional Mushroom Kingdom style food always served by her people. There Zelda sat, at the fancy but intimate table set on the back patio, the sprawling acreage of Peach's land set ablaze in the setting sun. "Well," Peach sighed as she sipped a bright pink cocktail, "I feel I should warn you now that Toad and my entire cooking staff ended up sick with the flu so I had to hire a new guy for tonight."
"Is he any good?" Zelda asked, curious about this unknown element to her routine Thursday nights.
"Well he was the head chef at the second highest rated restaurant in the city."
"He worked at La Luma?" Zelda asked, her tone impressed. "Wait, why isn't he there anymore?"
"Oh you know how Rosalina is," Peach laughed as she twirled the garnish, a pink berry, around with the tip of a manicured nail, "he probably wouldn't sleep with her." Peach giggled at her own gossipy way and Zelda resisted the urge to roll her eyes, instead looking back to the interior of the mansion to see a man approach them. He stepped onto the patio and Zelda felt her breath catch in her throat. His dark blue hair was spiked, his body obviously muscular under his white button down and black slacks. His handsome face was set in a neutral expression as he stepped up to them, two plates balanced perfectly in his hands.
"To start the meal," he said in a low deep voice, his eyes locking briefly with Zelda's as he set her plate before her. She made her eyes look away from his strong facial features and down to her plate; a dark green salad topped with fancily cut radishes, purple cabbage sliced thinly on top, yellow pear tomatoes cut in half, and strips of cucumber. There was a light vinaigrette drizzled sparingly on top and Zelda found her mouth watering at the sight. "The main course will be ready momentarily," he told them before turning on his heel and retreating back into the mansion, both the blonde and brunette watching him go.
"He's really hot," Peach remarked and Zelda laughed at her blunt words.
"If his food is half as good as he is looking-"
"I will be fat within a week," Peach declared and Zelda stared at her for a moment. "What? I've hired him on until Toad is back on his feet." Zelda mused over this bit of information as she stabbed her fork less than gracefully into the leafy greens.
"I've been thinking of hiring on a chef for me," she said aloud and Peach rolled her eyes.
"If he's any good he'll want to open up his own place, not be a personal chef," she said as she pierced a tomato.
"Still," Zelda brought her fork to her lips and tasted the dressing. A moan threatened to leave her lips as it washed over her tongue. Obviously Italian inspired, this had a note of something she wished she could name to it that made her realize she wanted this chef to be hers.
"Wow," Peach said in shock as she tried the dressing, "he's good." Their salads were consumed in silence, a very rare occurrence when one dined with Peach, and Zelda was happy to see Ike appear with a plate in each hand once more.
"The main course," he said in his deep voice Zelda wanted to hear say her name in the middle of an intimate act. He set the plates before them, a sliced and topped steak, the sautéed onions placed gently on top of whatever creamy looking sauce he had drizzled over the meat she had no doubt was cooked to perfection. To the side sat a fancy looking slaw, an odd choice in Zelda's mind, but for some reason she trusted that it would pair perfectly. The aroma of spices hit Zelda's nose and she hummed in approval, the chef glancing her way as he straightened up, their salad plates in his hands. Without a word he went back inside, Peach already cutting into her steak.
"Ohmygawd," Peach said around the bite the second it was in her mouth and Zelda watched the always prim and proper young woman tear into her plate with gusto. Zelda smirked to herself, convinced not to do the same, until the creamy sauce hit her tongue, a slight spice to it but not too much for her delicate palate, then she was just as bad as Peach. Before she knew it her plate was empty save for thin trails of sauce she was tempted to dip her finger into to get.
"Peach," Zelda gave her a winning smile, "I'm going to pop into the restroom right quick." It was a lie, the second Zelda was inside the mansion she made a beeline for the kitchen, pushing open the door to find the chef bent over a decadent looking dessert, adding a red sauce to the pale pile of creamy looking goodness, the golden brown crust climbing up the side in tendrils from the bottom.
"What's your name?" she asked and he jumped slightly, his eyes flicking to her.
"Ike," he said in that deep voice that soothed her soul. "I'll have dessert out in just a moment," it was obviously meant as a dismissal but Zelda moved farther into the kitchen, watching him drop a fancy design of the sauce onto the plate. She stared at the perfect swirls, amazed by his talent.
"Peach said you worked at La Luma," she said and he looked up at her quickly before turning his eyes back to his dish.
"I did."
"Why don't you anymore?"
"Creative differences," he said as he mimicked the first design perfectly, pausing to nod at his work before he plucked a mint leaf from a sprig growing on the counter and moved to set it on the plates as garnish.
"Are you looking for work?" Zelda asked and he straightened up to his full height, Zelda watching his muscles as he stretched.
"Peach has me for the next few days until Toad gets better," he said as he locked eyes with her. "Do you own a restaurant?"
"No," Zelda bit her lips together nervously, "but I was thinking about hiring a personal chef... If you're interested I'd like to set up a test meal in my home." He stared at her for a minute and Zelda decided to sweeten the deal. "I'll pay you ten percent more than you made at La Luma."
"I made quite a bit," he said with a tilt of his head. Zelda watched his hair catch the light and she suppressed the urge to whine at the sight.
"Money's no issue for me. Are you interested?" He stared at her a moment longer before nodding once. "Excellent," she said with a smile and moved over to him. She plucked a pen from the small cup on the side counter and scribbled her name and number on a scrap of paper. "Call me and we'll set it up." He took the paper, their fingertips brushing before he pocketed it. Zelda left the kitchen with a bounce in her step. She'd pay any amount of money necessary to have that man in her kitchen.
XxX
Zelda sat down at her seat on the patio, hiding her giddiness with a calm smile, and not a moment later Ike opened the door and they both smiled at him. "You're incredible Ike," Peach said with a flirty smile that made Zelda tense. "What was that sauce on the steak?"
"Just a simple thing," Ike said dismissively in his low voice as he set the plates of dessert before them. He locked eyes with Zelda as he picked up her empty plate and she smiled at him.
"It was amazing," she admitted, watching his lips twitch momentarily into a grin that made her heart speed up.
"Enjoy your dessert," he said with a nod of his hypnotic hair, vanishing once more into the house.
XxX
Three days passed from that fateful Thursday, Zelda unable to shake the blue haired Ike from her mind. She was busy with work over the weekend, a small trip out of town to a company she was buying just because she could, but even as she dined at the finest restaurant in town she thought of Ike and his glorious cooking.
The second she got home she called Peach, inquiring on the wellbeing of Toad. "Hey Peach, how's Toad?"
"Oh he's better... He'll be back in my kitchen tomorrow," Zelda tried not to jump in the air like a little kid at the news.
"That's great," she said simply instead.
"Indeed, I've missed my traditional cuisine... Honestly though I could get used to Ike serving me."
"I think anyone would," Zelda admitted with a laugh. A yawn pulled it's way from her throat and she sighed. "I need to get some sleep but I'll call you tomorrow okay?"
"Sure! Bye Zellie." Zelda set her phone on her counter in her shining and spotless kitchen, her mind on a bottle of wine she'd purchased while out of town. She moved to grab the bottle opener, humming aimlessly, before going to the bottle currently beside her empty glass. She stabbed the cork with the screw and began to turn, startled when her phone chimed. Zelda moved over to the device, her eyes lighting up when she saw the message.
'You still interested in setting up that test dinner?'
'Very.' She sent back as she moved back to the bottle and turned the corkscrew slowly, already imagining Ike doing that for her.
'Does tomorrow night work for you?'
'Yes, what are you going to make?' she typed carefully, wishing she knew something better to say.
'Any requests?' The response caught her off guard and she smiled.
'Something homey... Comfort food.' She sent that as a challenge. Fancy food was great, but some nights all she wanted was a big bowl of mac and cheese. Could he stand doing something so simple?
'Challenge accepted. What's your address?' Zelda sent him her manor's address, watching the dots as he responded. 'I'll be there at six thirty to start cooking.'
'See you then.' Zelda hated that this was the obvious end of their conversation, but knew that continuing it would seem odd. A heavy sigh left her lips as she poured herself a glass, wondering if he'd like her kitchen. It was fitted with everything a chef would need, she rarely hosted any dinners... A buzz from her phone pulled her from her musings and she picked it up, a curious smile coming to her lips as she read the text from Ike.
'How many people am I making dinner for?'
'Just me. I'm not married or anything so it's always just me.'
'Alright, I'll be there.' With that their conversation seemed done and Zelda sighed as she sipped her wine. Six thirty the next day couldn't get there quick enough.
XXX
Nope, not a long story, just another short chapter thing from me because my brain is overactive and if I don't give in I'm haunted by my ideas until they hit the paper (or screen in this case...) Special thanks to my babe for being patient last night and letting me type this up (I wasn't watching him be a badass on God of War, but he was understanding as always. I love you babe!) Let me know what you think so far! Much love, Leigh