1. Katja

Schei?e.An email notification.

Lies es nicht. Lass es sein. Don"t read it.

I"m too busy for this. I"ve got a flat to pack into boxes. My neighbours are here helping, or rather, they"re in the kitchen eating the Apfelkuchen I made earlier. I simply don"t have time to read emails.

But what if it"s about the move? Maybe my train"s been cancelled. Maybe the Airbnb booking has fallen through. Maybe some other disaster has occurred and I need to know about it right now.

Nein, Katja. Lies es nicht.

I read it.

Dear Katja,

We appreciate this is extremely late notice but we have just been let down by one of our chefs, who was due to cater a private dinner in Vauxhall beginning at 19:00. They have just been admitted to hospital with appendicitis and so now we are looking for another chef to take their place. According to our database, you are one of the closest chefs to the address and if there is any chance you can step in and cook for our clients, we would be very grateful to hear from you at your earliest convenience.

Attached is the full brief for the job, including the negotiated rate, which will be paid immediately upon completion.

Kind Regards,

Elite Connections

A job. Tonight. I can"t do a job tonight. I have to pack up my flat. I have to try to take cake away from my neighbours and ask them to help box up all my pots, pans and kitchen utensils. I have to ask them if they think I"m making the biggest mistake of my life by leaving London behind and going to live by the sea.

Don"t do it, Katja. Lass es sein.

My finger hovers over the attachment link.

Nein, Katja, nein. ?ffne's nicht. ?ffne's nicht. Don"t open it.

I open it.

And I read it, my eyes bulging in their sockets when I see the agreed rate. Verdammt, I"ve been underselling myself.

There"s no denying this amount of money would help me relax a lot more about this move. It"s what I usually earn doing two or three jobs, and that translates to at least one, if not two months' rent down in Margate.

But I"ve not got all day to plan a four-course private dinner, even though the clients" stipulations, requirements and dietary restrictions are all pretty simple and the instructions say they've got a vast fine wine collection for me to choose from so I don't need to worry about pairing. They"ve even specifically asked for a sushi course so I"d only have to get creative about three other courses, one of which they"ve requested be influenced by Italian cuisine. But shopping for all my ingredients and packing it all up in - I glance at the time on my phone - just under four hours, that's next to impossible. Especially considering I typically run late for things anyway.

"Verdammte Schei?e!" I call out to the empty bedroom, but unsurprisingly none of the half-packed boxes I"m surrounded by have a response or advice for me.

"Schei?e, Schei?e, Schei?e!" I say a little louder, collapsing on the bed.

"Did you say something?" Radia asks as she comes to stand in the doorway. A second later her girlfriend Chloe appears at her shoulder, holding a plate of cake and a fork in her mouth. They make a striking couple with Chloe"s dark brown skin, full afro and voluptuous curves, and Radia's dark olive skin, shorter and slimmer physique. Not to mention Radia's many colourful hijabs like the one she is wearing today, which has a butterfly pattern featuring countless different shades of orange, white and pink.

"Shnn sem sheuhp," Chloe mumbles around the cake in her mouth.

"What?" Radia looks back at her girlfriend perplexed.

Chloe swallows. "She said shit, in German."

"I did say Schei?e. Schei?e, Schei?e, Schei?e!" I repeat, bringing a hand to rub at my forehead.

"Katja, relax." Radia puts her hands on her hips. She"s wearing one of her trademark tailored suits, very likely one of her own designs because Radia is a professional tailor who works on Saville Row. "It will all get done. Once our sugar rush kicks in, we"re going to be unstoppable and your kitchen will be packed up in no time."

"It's not that. I just got an email about a job," I say, lifting my phone half-heartedly.

"Okay?" Radia asks, still perplexed.

"A job for tonight," I clarify. "It"s for nearly four times as much as I normally earn for a job."

"Maybe you should put your prices up then," Chloe suggests before scooping up another forkful of Apfelkuchen.

"It will cover my rent for a month or two, which takes the pressure off me finding work down in Margate for a little while. It makes sense to go," I tell them, but I know I"m talking to myself.

"But what about packing?" Radia asks.

"It can wait. I was never going to take everything tomorrow. Not on the train. I need to come back during the week with a van to pick up the boxes, so it"s not crucial I get everything packed up before tomorrow."

"Then why are we here?" Radia asks.

Chloe swipes at her partner"s arm and tuts at her. "Because we want to help. And Katja makes the best cake in the world."

"Do you want to do the job?" Radia asks me.

"I don"t know," I say. "No, not really. I worked at the restaurant last night and I"m pretty tired but it"s… It"s a lot of money. And the brief sounds kind of fun."

"What is the brief?"

I swipe up on my phone, waking up the screen and start to read. "Our client is a high-profile professional business owner who requires a private chef and bespoke dining experience to celebrate her relationship with her spouse. Both she and her spouse have been very busy with work recently and wish to set aside some time to focus solely on each other while also enjoying a private dinner in the comfort of their own home. Their first date was in a sushi restaurant in So-Ho so they"d like for one of the courses to be sushi, but aside from that they are both open and flexible to the chef"s ideas and creativity."

"Ah, they"re queer," Chloe comments with a smile.

"And easy to cook for with no food allergies or intolerances," I note. "Basically my favourite kind of people in the world."

Radia and Chloe share a look I can"t read and I feel a sharp pang of jealousy witnessing it. I do love hanging out with Chloe and Radia. I was so pleased when they finally got together after Radia was pining over Chloe from afar for over a year, but it still stings when I see their bond up close and personal. I don"t think it"s because I"m still bruised from my break-up with Bev almost a year ago. We broke up for good reason; we were moving in different directions. I wanted to leave London, go live by the sea and have the dog I've always dreamed of. And Bev wanted to stay put in East London where she has her independent bookshop, her friends and family, and her vehement aversion to dogs, which I always found a bit odd.

Truth be told, this private dinner is exactly the kind of thing I would have loved to have tried with Bev to see if we could have got the spark back. If I can be part of another couple"s chance to reconnect at a time when they need it most, don"t I want to do that?

"You look like you"re thinking hard about something," Radia"s comment brings me out of my thoughts.

"I feel bad I asked you here to help me pack and now I"m about to bugger off to," I look at the brief again, "Embassy Gardens."

"Wow, they must have some money living there," Chloe says.

"All the people I work for have money." I roll my eyes.

"Don"t worry about us," Radia says, stepping into the room. "We can stay and pack while you go do the job."

I stand and blink at her. "You"d do that? For me?"

"If it means having more of this cake, I"d do a lot more than just pack up your pots and pans." Chloe giggles.

"I should probably be worried about you saying something like that," Radia says but she is giving Chloe nothing but a look of complete adoration.

"You know I"m yours and only yours." Chloe wraps a hand around Radia"s waist now she"s finished eating her cake.

"Das reicht! Enough!" I demand. "You"re making me feel very single right now."

"Single is good!" Chloe drags out the double O.

"No, it"s not. Being single sucks," Radia says turning her head to peck Chloe"s cheek. "This is so much better than being single."

"Thank you so much, Radia. You really know how to make me feel better." I deadpan.

"You"ll feel better when you"ve got rich from this job and come home to a packed-up kitchen," Radia replies and any unease I may have felt about being single is replaced with a surge of love for my friends.

"Really?"

"Yes, really. And I"m not offering again so take it or leave it."

"I"ll take it."

"Well, send the email and tell them you"ll take the job," Radia says, and I"ve never noticed before how bossy she can be. But I need it sometimes. At least in my professional and home life. As for my personal life… well, I love nothing more than being the boss there.

Not that that matters now. I"m so very far from dating again let alone making someone fall to their knees in front of me.

"Actually," I say as I quickly type out an email to Elite. "How do you both fancy coming to the supermarket with me? I need to get ingredients for this dinner."

"Can I push the trolley?" Radia asks, for reasons that are beyond me.

"Can I have another slice of this cake when we get back?" Chloe requests.

"Yes and yes."

"Deal," they say in unison.