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The truth of it was Rachelle liked that part of the show, too. She liked getting caught up in the drama the television crew faked between them. She liked the way Eddie’s eyes lit up when Rachelle entered a room.
Was it really like that? Were they really falling in love? No. It was laughable. Wasn’t it?
But a part of her dared to hope.
Throughout the next few days of filming and tireless, backbreaking work, Rachelle tried to pay attention to the vibes between herself and Eddie. But she was really too busy to notice. News of the reality television show stuffed the restaurant to the gills. The kitchen was frantic and overcrowded with kitchen staff and television crew members. Diana and Rachelle were both up to their ears in plating, presentation, and taste-testing. Not once did they yell at one another. In fact, at one point, the TV crew asked Diana to say something stern to Rachelle, and Diana said, “We’re too busy for that right now. We can film something later.”
Rachelle’s heart swelled with appreciation. Later, as they wrapped up for the night, Diana told the crew she was too tired to film that. “And besides. Rachelle is good at her job. We can only fake all that to a point. What else is there to say?”
Rachelle sat at the bar for a little while after her shift, sipping wine with Benny and Paul as the TV crew put their gear away. Eddie was in the corner, chatting up one of the producers in a way that suggested he’d been hired to act in the show. Rachelle had overheard some of the crew members saying they’d “lucked out” that Eddie was already working at the restaurant. He had “real charisma.”
Rachelle hated how much she was drawn to his arrogance. That’s what life was, she reminded herself. It was a matter of saying what you wanted aloud. It was about claiming your space.
Perhaps she could mimic Eddie’s arrogance on occasion. Perhaps she could use it to get ahead.
“I have two thousand already,” Paul told Benny, showing him how many social media followers he’d gotten since the show. “I think it’s because I yelled at you after you broke the plate.”
“Will you please break something soon?” Benny begged. “I want to return the favor.”
“We can have a little kitchen feud if you want,” Paul suggested. “Our feud can mirror Diana and Rachelle’s feud.”
“We’re not feuding,” Rachelle said, rolling her eyes. “That’s obviously just for the cameras.”
“What? You expect people to be interested in two female chefs who actually get along?” Paul asked. “Get real, Rach.”
He laughed, even though there was truth to what he said.
Rachelle considered heading over to Eddie to say hello. They’d hardly spoken without the cameras rolling since the entire world had decided they were falling in love. There was a strange tension between them, one that kept her awake at night, dreaming of kissing him.
Perhaps, after the show was over, he would become an actor. And she would become a top chef somewhere. Los Angeles, maybe. They would move there together so he could audition for roles.
She was getting ahead of herself, but it felt delicious to dream.
Rachelle had Sunday evening off. Darcy canceled her date with Steven and suggested they do something “just the two of them.” Rachelle was touched. Ever since filming had begun, it was rare that she and Darcy saw one another one-on-one. It was a surprise to learn that Darcy had kept dating Steven—a guy she’d said she wasn’t that interested in after their first date.
Darcy’s eyes glowed when she talked about him. “I’m not serious about him,” she said yet again, although Rachelle wasn’t sure if she was telling the truth.
Maybe that summer, Rachelle, Darcy, Steven, and Eddie could all go out together. They could picnic on the beach. They could laugh about the silly reality television show and how it had opened up so many doors.
Darcy and Rachelle met on the sofa with a bottle of wine and a big bar of dark chocolate. It was three thirty, and rain splattered across the windows of their apartment. Rachelle wrapped herself in blankets as Darcy flicked through streaming sites, looking for something cozy to watch. Once, when she clicked back to the Cooking Channel, they glimpsed the brand-new commercial for this week’s episode of The Nantucket Factory. It hinted at yet another problem between Diana and Rachelle.
“They’re never going to give that a rest, are they?” Rachelle said.
Darcy grimaced. “People love to pit women against one another.”
Rachelle took a small bite of chocolate and let it melt across her tongue. “I keep thinking about when I first met Diana. I was just looking around, wondering where her husband was. I was so sure she was this rigid, boring chef, whereas he was exciting and vibrant and alive.”
Darcy arched her eyebrow. “You think that was all fake?”
“Now that I’m behind the scenes, I suspect everything’s fake,” Rachelle said.
“Crazy.” Darcy twirled a curl around her finger. “Has Diana mentioned where Ryan is?”
“She warned me about my supposed romance with Eddie,” Rachelle explained, “and told me not to end up like her.”
“She was probably just acting for the cameras?”
“Who knows.” Rachelle sighed and got up, stretching down to touch her toes.
