The Sweetest Temptation: A Black Romance Novel (Whitfield Brides) - Softcover

Alers, Rochelle

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0373831021 ISBN 13: 9780373831029

Verlag: Harlequin Kimani Arabesque, 2008

Inhaltsangabe

Once Faith Whitfield dreamed she'd find her prince, but enough frogs have dispelled that fairy tale. She's been too busy running Let Them Eat Cake and satisfying other people's sweet tooth to lament her own love life. Still, a woman's got to get out of the kitchen sometime and Ethan McMillan's seduction heats her passion to the boiling point. But even decadent weekends of romance and Ethan's sweet sensuality can't convince Faith to trust him with her heart. Does he really want happily ever after—with her?

Former air force pilot Ethan McMillan comes to the aid of a damsel in distress, but soon realizes he's the one in danger—of falling for luscious pastry chef Faith Whitfield.

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Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor

Hailed by readers and booksellers alike as one of today's most popular African-American authors of women's fiction, Ms. Alers is a regular on bestsellers list, and has been a recipient of numerous awards, including the Vivian Stephens Award for Excellence in Romance Writing and a Zora Neale Hurston Literary Award.  Visit her Web site www.rochellealers.com  

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Faith Whitfield smiled at the doorman as he opened the rear door to the taxi and extended a hand. Grabbing her gloved hand, he helped her to her feet.

She'd come to record producer William "WJ" Raymond's West End Avenue high-rise river-view apartment to prepare the dessert menu for his daughter's engagement party. Tonight's menu would differ from the traditional one because most of the candies, cookies, cakes and tortes would be made with chocolate. And those familiar with Savanna Raymond knew she was a diehard chocoholic.

It was January eighth, and the number of projects Faith had committed to had increased instead of slowing down as they usually did during the postholiday season. It wouldn't have been a problem if Faith hadn't signed a contract with a major publisher for a book featuring her cake designs.

She'd admitted to her cousins Simone and Tessa Whitfield that she was tired, but the truth was that she was beyond tired. She was worn-out, done-in and completely exhausted. Faith's next projects included two cakes for afternoon and evening Valentine's Day wedding receptions.

Her smile was still in place when she stood on the sidewalk under the maroon canopy. "Thank you, Thomas," she said, reading the name tag pinned to his greatcoat.

The doorman touched the shiny brim of his cap. "You're quite welcome, Miss Whitfield."

His gaze lingered on her tall figure in a pair of jeans, low-heel boots and black wool wrap coat. He'd made it a point to remember the name of the incredibly beautiful dark-brown-skinned woman who'd come to see William Raymond. New York City luxury-apartment-building doormen were notorious gossips, and a housekeeper for the Raymonds had let it be known that Miss Whitfield had been hired to create a specialty wedding cake for their daughter's Valentine's Day wedding.

Thomas rushed to open the door to the lobby as Miss Whitfield strode by with an oversize black leather bag slung over her shoulder. "I'll call to let someone know you're on your way up," he said to her as she walked past him.

Faith nodded, refusing to dwell on how long it would take her to bake and decorate a large heart-shaped chocolate and red currant torte for Savanna Raymond as she stepped into the elevator and pushed the button for the penthouse. Her newly hired assistant, a recent graduate of a highly regarded New York City culinary school, had spent two days collecting and cleaning orange, bay, citrus and beech leaves, using them as templates for the chocolate leaves that would top the torte.

She'd baked everything, with the exception of the heart-shaped torte and chocolate-covered fresh fruits in her shop—Let Them Eat Cake—carefully packaging and labeling the contents before they were delivered to the Raymond residence the night before. The Raymonds had invited forty guests, and Faith had created a special gift for each: chocolate candies in edible boxes.

The door to the household staff entrance was open as Faith exited the elevator. A tall man standing a few feet away mumbled a greeting when he recognized her. He worked security for William Raymond.

A sensor set off a soft chiming as Faith walked through the door and into the stainless-steel kitchen reminiscent of those in restaurants or cooking schools. The Raymonds had employed a live-in chef who prepared gourmet meals for his employer and their guests. The smell of freshly brewed coffee reminded Faith that she hadn't had her morning cup of coffee.

Placing her leather bag on a stool in the corner, she made her way through the kitchen to an area with walk-in closets to hang up her coat. Selecting a white tunic and toque from a supply stacked on a shelf in another closet, she covered her blouse and hair.

Returning to the kitchen, she opened the bag and took out a plastic container with the chocolate leaves and several others filled with sliced kumquat, kiwi, strawberries, mandarin oranges, star fruit and bananas. After a cup of coffee with a liberal splash of cream, Faith busied herself arranging the fruit on platters. She stirred a mixture of sugar crystals and sugar syrup until the soft icing was the consistency she sought for a fondant she planned to flavor with a rum extract. In the two hours it took for the fondant to dry, she mixed the ingredients for the torte and placed the cake in a preheated oven. Working nonstop, she coated the strawberries with fondant before dipping them into couverture, placing them on parchment paper to set. She repeated the exercise with the other fruit, sans the fondant.

It was late morning when Kurt Payton strolled into the kitchen. The tall, lanky chef had soulful blue-gray eyes that were mesmerizing. His natural culinary talent had flourished only after he'd completed an apprenticeship under the tutelage of a tyrannical master chef at a three-star Boston restaurant. Kurt had eventually set up his own catering business, but had given it up twenty-two years later to work exclusively for William and Linda Raymond.

The distinctive lines around Kurt's eyes crinkled as he watched Faith Whitfield put the finishing touches on the torte. She'd spread a chocolate ganache over the top, sprinkled it with finely crumbled pistachio croquant, then topped it off with fresh raspberries on puffs of meringue.

"I bet you'll never eat chocolate again," he drawled lazily.

Faith looked up. A hint of a smile played at the corners of her generous mouth when she spied the chef in a white tunic, black pinstripe pants and a pair of black leather clogs. He'd concealed his wiry salt-and-pepper hair under a black bandanna.

"No lie, Kurt."

"Are you finished here?" He wanted to start preparing for the party.

She nodded. "I will be as soon as I put these in the refrigerator." She pointed to half a dozen parchment-lined trays filled with the fresh fruit confectionery. The chocolate-covered fruit were turned into candies because their natural sweetness harmonized well with the bitter chocolate when dusted with a sugar coating in the form of a fondant or the base of sweet almond paste.

Kurt moved over to the counter. He pointed to a tray. "What are these?"

"Kumquats. Take one and tell me if you like it."

He picked up one without the grated pistachios, popping it into his mouth. His eyes widened in surprise as he chewed thoughtfully. "You used an almond paste and orange liquor. Now, that's nice."

She curtsied as if he were royalty. "Coming from you, I'll take that as the ultimate compliment."

Kurt waved a hand. "If I'd met you a couple of years ago I would've asked you to work with me. We would've been a dynamic duo."

Faith lifted a tray and made her way to one of two walk-in refrigerators. "It wouldn't have worked," she said over her shoulder. "I prefer baking to cooking."

"You would've been my pastry chef." Kurt picked up two of the trays and followed her.

Faith pressed the foot lever on the refrigerator, and the door swung open. "I like working for myself." She liked being her own boss even if it meant working long hours. It was much more gratifying because she set her own hours and earned much more than she could've working for someone else.

Kurt's cell phone rang as he helped put the last tray into the refrigerator. Excusing himself, he walked out of the kitchen to answer the call as William Raymond III, affectionately called BJ, shuffled in drinking a bottle of beer.

Faith watched him out of the corner of her eye as she washed her hands in a sink. He had on a pair of baggy jeans and nothing else. It was obvious he worked out because there wasn't an ounce of fat on his compact muscular frame. His shaved head, gold-brown coloring and trimmed mustache and goatee and strong features hinted of a sensuality that definitely wasn't lost on the opposite sex....

Details zur Ausgabe

• Verlag: Harlequin Kimani Arabesque
• Erscheinungsdatum: 2008
• Sprache: Englisch
• ISBN 10: 0373831021
• ISBN 13: 9780373831029
• Einband: Taschenbuch
• Anzahl der Seiten: 304
• Kontakt zum Hersteller: Nicht verfügbar
• Verantwortliche Person: HarperCollins Publishers Ireland; enquiries@harpercollins.ie; ; Macken House, 39/40 Mayor Street Upper; Dublin 1; D01 C9W8; Irland