Alice Audrey

Suzie’s House 9: Dinner!

• March 9, 2007,
• 17 Comments,
• Author: aliceaudrey
• Categories: Suzie's House

Drawn by the smell of Italian food – garlic and tomato and bell pepper – Drew drifted into the kitchen.  That afternoon Suzie had said the hamburger in the glorified crock pot would be supper.  He guessed she’d turned it into spaghetti and meatballs. 

She stood at the sink, spilling the contents of a stockpot into a strainer.  Spaghetti.  Bingo.  But where were the meat balls? 

Though her arms held steady, they were trim enough to make her look delicate, matching the gently curved, slim body.  Her cotton dress with the small flower print lent even greater vulnerability to her appearance.  He could see she wasn’t helpless, yet found himself compelled to rescue her from the weight of the large pot. 

“Here.  Let me help.”  He took the stockpot from her hands.  Too late.  She’d already dumped out all the water.  He ended up foolishly holding an empty pot.  Some big hero he made. 

“Put it in the dishwasher.”  She waved a hand toward the appliance without looking up from the sink.  With quick, efficient movements she transferred the spaghetti noodles from the strainer to a bowl.  “We can run a load right after supper.  We’ll be eating in a few minutes.  Would you mind calling the others to the dining room?” 

“Certainly.”  He upended the stock pot, which just barely fit in the dishwasher, it’s bottom scraping against the top shelf.  Then he walked through the central hall of the house to the base of the stair case and bellowed “Dinner!” 

When that got no response, he started calling names until people appeared.  Suzie popped her head around the corner to look down the hall with a strange expression on her face.  She didn’t really expect him to tramp up the stairs and issue a personal invitation to each person, did she?  If so, she didn’t say anything, merely popped back around the corner. 

They all tramped into the dining room through the door at the base of the staircase.  It looked like Suzie was expecting a dinner party.  There was an antique, mahogany dinner table in the middle of the room set with a light yellow cloth, Suzie’s second best china, linen napkins, and bowls of food.  There was a lot of space around the table, so he was sure she’d removed a few leaves from it.  The chairs were all mahogany carved to match the table.  He felt under dressed in his blue work shirt and slacks. 

Funny, she didn’t seem the least frazzled now.  She had seemed stressed out at lunch time when everything had been much more casual.  You’d think having gone to so much effort would have her on edge.  It looked like the food was going to be better, though the soup hadn’t been bad.  It certainly smelled good. 

Suzie set a salad down on the table, then waved toward the chairs placed around the table.  “Be seated.”  She took the foot of the table, which was closest to the kitchen. 

He and Vin went around to the far side of the table while Miranda and Ben took the other, all leaving the head of the table empty.  Within minutes the only sound to be heard with the click of silverware on china, the gentle thud of glasses hitting the table, and the occasional slurps or the contended smacking of a well fed guest. 

Which was wrong.  All wrong.  They weren’t guests.  They were boarders.  They should be getting boiled cabbage and yelled at to pay the rent by a hatchet faced landlady.  Not fêted by a beauty. 

“This is more like it,”  Miranda said.  “Much better than lunch.  So what’s for lunch tomorrow?” 

“You’re planning on lunch tomorrow?”  Suzie looked at a loss.  “Isn’t it easier to eat at work?  I suppose I could put together a sack lunch.”  She didn’t look the least enthusiastic with the idea. 

“Sure.  Can you get a nice lunch box for me?  I don’t want to brown bag it.” 

Suzie’s eyes narrowed.  “You know, I never once said meals were included.” 

“Well of course they are included.  Why wouldn’t they be?”  Miranda looked completely perplexed, clearly seeing no problem with lumping the job on her friend’s shoulders. 

“Because it’s a lot of extra work,”  Drew said reasonably. 

“Well…  No…”  Suzie countered him.  “I mean I’d be cooking dinners for Ben anyway.  Half the time Miranda drops in and Vin too sometimes.  So it’s only a matter of making more of it.  But…”  They all waited with baited breath for her to explain herself.  “I’m not that good!” 

Vin and Miranda looked surprised, then both burst out laughing. 

“The woman wins bake off competitions constantly.  She puts head chef at The Fess to shame.  No one is a better cook.” 

“Not all the time!  What if I flop?  Remember the egg plant and celery medley?” 

Miranda nodded gravely.  “That was awful.  But so what?  It’s not like we haven’t eaten your flops before.” 

“But that was before, when you weren’t paying me for it.  Now I have to be professional about it.  I just don’t know if I can do that.” 

Drew considered for a while.  “I have a suggestion.  I think Suzie should only be expected to make supper.  For every other meal we fend for ourselves.  And each of us will take one day a week in which we will be the cook.” 

Suzie looked at Miranda and shuddered. 

Miranda took no notice.  “All right, but she cooks both lunch and dinner on Saturday and Sunday.” 

“Unless she has other plans.  It isn’t fair to tie her so tightly to the house that she never gets to go out or have any fun.”  Drew looked around the table to see if he was making his point. 

“He’s got you there, Miranda,”  Vin put in.  “Sounds fair to me.” 

“Suzie?  What do you think?”  Drew asked. 

Almost grudgingly Suzie nodded.  “All right.  So long as no one complains when I cook something they don’t like.” 

“Aww, Mom,”  Ben said.  “You take all the fun out of eating.” 

“You’re on Tuesday, boy.”  Suzie pointed a spoon at her son. 

Miranda and Vin started arguing over which of them would get Wednesday.  While they were distracted Suzie gave Drew a wan smile. 

“Thank you.” 

“For what?” 

“Standing up for me.” 

Drew nodded warmly and smiled.  He suspected Suzie would need a champion in the days ahead.  His smile broadened. 

<>

The previous was Suzie’s House 8: If You Can’t Stand The Heat, What Are You Doing In The Kitchen
This is Suzie’s House 9:  Dinner!
Next is Suzie’s House 10: Rub A Dub Dub

Suzie’s House 8: If You Can’t Stand The Heat, What Are You Doing In The Kitchen

• March 2, 2007,
• 17 Comments,
• Author: aliceaudrey
• Categories: Suzie's House

Suzie put two pounds of hamburger in the slow cooker, thought again, and added another pound.  With any luck the spaghetti sauce she made today would last a couple of meals, buying her enough time in which to figure out what sort of food she should be making. 

.

Glancing at the clock, she decided to make refrigerator soup for her lunch.  She could do it quickly, which agreed with her stomach as it was already well past noon.  With Ben at school, Miranda at work, and both Vin and Drew off somewhere she assumed she could simply throw it together to suit herself. 

.

Hmmm…  left over baked cod, meat loaf, baked potatoes, the ever present frijoles beans, a little chili con carne, and a wilting salad.  All right, not the kind of combination she normally enjoyed, but sometimes these odd combinations came out well.  She threw them all in a medium sauce pan and brought it to a boil.

.

 “What’s for lunch?”  Miranda walked in the back door. 

.Suzie startled, then remembered that Miranda had a right to walk in without knocking.  It wasn’t really so different from walking in after Suzie called out for her to enter, but it still caught her off guard.

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 “I thought you went to work.” 

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“I did.  I’m home for lunch.  What ya got for me?”  Miranda dumped her purse on the counter. 

.

She wore a gypsy outfit today – peasant blouse in crushed red cotton with a neckline so scooped it was almost off the shoulder, a broomstick skirt with lots of reds, blues, and golds, and a wide black belt.  She walked over to the stove, and took a deep sniff.  She wrinkled her nose. 

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“That’s for me,”  Suzie hastily assured her. .

“I don’t see anything else.”  Miranda looked truly baffled as she checked in the oven. 

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“I didn’t think I’d have to fix lunch.  You’ve never come over for lunch before.” 

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“Well of course I’ll be coming home for lunch now.  You fix the best food in town.”  She spoke with calm assurance, but gave the soup a dubious look. 

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“I’ll see what I can come up with.”  Suzie went back into the refrigerator, regretting that she’d used up the left overs for the soup.  The meatloaf could have been turned into a sandwich or something. 

.

Catching sight of the jar of crushed garlic, she decided to go with garlic bread instead.  Luckily she still had a loaf of French bread from the day before.  She pulled out the garlic, some butter, and an earthen ware bowl, and began crushing the garlic into the butter. 

.

While she worked, Miranda launched into a detailed story involving the unreasonable expectations of a new client at the advertisement agency where Miranda worked.  It was something involving billboards and radio spots that Suzie didn’t quite follow.  But she certainly understood unreasonable expectations and the inability to say no. 

.

It wasn’t merely the money Suzie needed either.  Although Suzie could put her foot down when she felt the need, she really preferred to get along with people.  Or even please them. 

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One thing about Miranda, when you pleased her she let you know.  And if you didn’t she’d tell you that too, so you knew when she complimented you, it was sincere. 

.

“Gah!  What is in this stew?  It positively reeks!” .

“So it’s a good thing you don’t have to eat it.”  Suzie sniffed the stew, and had to agree it could use a little improvement.  She grabbed a bottle of Cajun seasoning, measured out a small mound of it into the palm of her hand, then tossed it in. 

.

While she washed the seasoning off her hand, the door to the kitchen slammed open.  Vin and Drew walked in.  Suzie’s blood pressure went up a notch or two. 

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“Let me guess.  You told them to come home for lunch too?”  Suzie glared at Miranda 

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“Not me.  Why would I have to?” 

.Suzie quickly cut thick slices of French bread, smeared garlic butter on, then popped the sliced into the toaster oven.  It wasn’t enough to feed them.  What else could she come up with on no notice at all? 

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 “All right!  Our first meal together as a household,” Vin said as he sauntered over to Miranda. He had a sexy walk, a swinging, cock-of-the-walk sort of strut that went well with his boyish good looks.  Suzie had always admired the sheer sex appeal of the man, even if she didn’t necessarily fall under his spell the way some women did. 

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He looked at the stew, wrinkled his nose and said,  “Smells… interesting.” .

Drew walked over to the slow cooker and lifted the lid. 

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“That’s for tonight!”  Suzie intercepted him. 

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The mostly still raw hamburger inside didn’t look very appetizing.  She gave it a turn so the meat would cook evenly and sighed in relief when Drew joined the others around the stove. 

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More than anyone else in the room, Suzie didn’t want Drew to see her as a poor cook.  Miranda and Vin had both eaten good and bad food at her hand, but Drew didn’t know her yet.  She didn’t want him to think poorly of her. 

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After putting the lid back on the slow cooker, Suzie rushed to the refrigerator for something more.  She found apples and oranges, which she quickly sliced and arranged on a small tray, hoping no one notice her air of desperation. 

.The phone rang while she was putting the next batch of buttered bread into the toaster oven. 

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“Suzie!  It’s me, Cindy.  Can a borrow some Habanera sauce?  I’m burning down the house with Cindy’s Atomic Chili  and ran out.”  Burning down the house was Cindy’s way of saying she was cooking. 

.

Cindy lived in an apartment on the top floor of the building next door.  She was a writer known for her wild Paranormal Romances, gift for gab, and tendency to make up her own words and phrases.  Suzie always got a kick out of her.  But maybe not right this minute. 

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“Cindy, I’m a little busy right now.”  Suzie glanced at the clock, then realized she needed to add tomatoes if she expected them to be done in time. 

.“It’s all right.  I’ll come over to get it.” 

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“Sure.  Fine.  I have plenty of Habanera.  It’s time I lack.” 

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Suzie glanced at the stove, and found all three of her boarders standing around the stove with bowls and plates in their hands.  She rushed forward to get them all settled around the kitchen table, came to the end of the phone cord, and was forced to retreat. 

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“Suzie, do you have any splendiferous jalapeño?” 

.“No, sorry.  I’m out.” She watched Vin eat the last of the fruit plate she’d set out, then drop the dirty platter into the sink.

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“All right.  Look, forget about the habanera sauce.  I have to go out and buy jalapeño anyway.” 

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“Sorry,”  Suzie said.  She couldn’t quite reach the cutting board to make more garlic bread.  Tomorrow she was going to get a longer cord for the phone. 

.Drew set his bowl in the sink, followed shortly by Vin.  The two of them waved and nodded to Suzie as they went out the door.  Brushing crumbs off her peasant blouse, Miranda also waved as she left. 

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“No need to apologize.  I’m making a big batch.  Are you making spaghetti?” 

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“Oh!  The sauce!  I forgot.”  Suzie eyed the slow cooker,   If only she could add the tomatoes now.  Of course, she couldn’t reach it either. 

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“Tell you what.  If you have any left over, we can swap.” 

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“Great!  Thank you, I would love that!” 

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“Bye then.”  Cindy hung up. 

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Finally alone again, Suzie could sit down and eat.  She went to the pot to get some of the stew no one had liked.

It had all been eaten.

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The previous was Suzie’s House 7: There’s No Place Like Home
This is Suzie’s House 8: If You Can’t Stand The Heat, What Are You Doing In The Kitchen
Next is Suzie’s House 9:  Dinner!