Catherine leaned against her kitchen counter, a large wooden spoon in one hand and the other resting on the edge of the linoleum. Her straightened ginger hair was pulled back into a pony tail, and she wore almost no make-up at all. She stood still, a smile spread wide across her lips as she watched the man at her kitchen table.
David swallowed the pasta in his mouth and looked up at his friend. "This is fantastic, Catherine."
She set the spoon in the sink and grabbed herself a plate, "Do you think your fancy chicken can beat my pasta dish?" Catherine placed David's homemade garlic chicken on her plate and sat down across from him.
About a week earlier, the two friends had made a bet. Both of them had claimed to the crew on the set of Doctor Who that they were a better cook than the other, so they decided to settle the dispute once and for all. David would cook something for Catherine, and Catherine would cook something for David. Whoever cooked the best meal would come up with a consequence for the other.
Catherine cut a piece of the chicken with her knife and stuck the cut in her mouth. David watched the woman as she chewed. She tilted her head to the side and closed her eyes, savoring the flavor.
"Oh, wow." She said as she opened her eyes and looked at David. "This is amazing David. I didn't know you were such a great cook!"
He looked at her and smiled slyly. "Does this mean I won the bet, Catherine?"
She looked up from the glorious food in front of her and said, "If you winning this bet means I get to finish this chicken, than yes! You won this one, David!" She cut another piece off the chicken and eagerly placed it on her tongue. She sighed with pleasure as the flavor burst in her mouth.
David sat back in his chair and crossed his arms, watching the beautiful woman eat the meal he had prepared. "Then I get to choose your consequence."
Catherine stopped the fork that was headed towards her mouth, and set the piece back on the plate. Her eyes got wide in mock horror and she set her elbows on the table, leaning in towards David. "Oh, no! What are you going to make me do?"
David sat up in his chair and did the same as Catherine. He lowered his voice to a whisper as he asked, "I want to take you out to dinner."
Catherine gave him a puzzled look and sat back, resting her head on the top of the chair. "You…what?"
"I want to take you out to dinner." For some reason, the man suddenly became shy. "It doesn't have to be a date, unless that's what you want."
Catherine stared at the man in shock. She shook her head slightly, trying to gather in her brain the words that had just left David's mouth. Lifting herself from the table, she said, "I was not expecting this at all, David. That's not much of a consequence. You know how much I love and appreciate you. I guess I was expecting something more…David-like."
The man stood and walked over to Catherine placing his hands on her bare arms. "Well, this is me asking a beautiful woman to dinner. Will you go with me?"
She looked into his eyes and crinkled her nose. "Of course I'll go with you, David. How could I possibly say no?"