I shrugged.
“It was just work.”
The chef smiled sadly.
“No, Mrs. Hayes. It was more than that.”
He looked around the table.
“Most people know this restaurant because of its awards. They know the chef. They know the investors. They know the people whose names appear in the papers.”
He paused.
“But very few know who kept this place alive when nobody thought it would survive.”
Claire’s fingers tightened around her fork.
“And that was Eleanor?”
“Yes.”
The chef turned toward me.
“You taught me how to make every ingredient count.”
I smiled faintly.
“You were already a good cook.”
He shook his head.
“You taught me something more important than cooking.”
“What?”
“That people deserve dignity, even when they have nothing.”
The words landed harder than any accusation could have.
Ethan looked down at his untouched lobster.
The chef turned toward the waiter.
“Bring Mrs. Hayes her dinner.”
Claire suddenly spoke.
“That won’t be necessary.”
The chef looked at her.
“I wasn’t asking you.”
The table became completely silent.
A few minutes later, the waiter returned carrying a beautifully plated lobster dinner.
He placed it in front of me.
The chef personally adjusted the plate.
Then he brought out another small dish.
“Compliments of the kitchen.”
I looked at it.
Strawberry cake.
The same kind I used to make for Ethan when he was a child.
My throat tightened.
“I brought one for Lily.”
The chef smiled.
“Then we’ll make sure she gets it.”
Claire looked at the cake.
“She isn’t here.”
“I know.”
I gently touched the box beside my chair.
