Читать книгу The Ingredients for Happiness - Lucy Knott - Страница 13

Ingredients:

For the dough:

(A bit of this and a bit of that as Grandpa would say, until dough forms.)

Flour

Sugar

Unsalted butter

Milk

Egg

Baking powder

Salt

Vegetable shortening

Vanilla

For the filling:

3 tbsp cornstarch

½ cup sugar

1–1 ½ cups whole milk

2 egg yolks

1 tbsp butter

1 tsp almond extract

What to do:

For the dough:

Combine dry ingredients then add in butter and shortening like you’re making a crumble.

Mix together wet ingredients then add to dry and make a dough.

For the filling:

Like Nanna’s custard, make a roux with cornstarch and sugar. Add milk and eggs and almond extract and keep whisking until thick.

Roll out dough and make shells that fit a cupcake tin.

Spoon in two tbsp custard. Then layer a circle on top.

Refrigerate for 30 mins.

After 30 mins sprinkle with a splash of egg wash and bake for 12–15 mins at 22 degrees.

Once golden, remove and leave to cool.

Serve with a dusting of powdered sugar.

Sabrina began to stir. The golden rays of sunshine had no respect for the current time of 4.30 a.m.; it barged its way in through the curtains without any apologies. Sabrina stretched out her arms and legs so she resembled a starfish, and jumped at a sudden cry of ‘ouch’ as the blanket next to her started to shuffle.

She let out a laugh and a feeble ‘sorry’ as Levi reached under the blanket and grabbed at her daisy print pajama shorts. She tried to smack his hand away, but it was no use – even in his sleepy state she couldn’t match his strength. He pulled her on top of him and snuggled into her sandy blonde hair, breathing her in.

‘How do you smell so good in the morning?’ he asked, playing with her locks as they fell around his fingers. ‘You smell like sunshine and flowers.’

Sabrina laughed. ‘Why thank you,’ she replied, kissing his nose. ‘I see your charm is never switched off, even at four-thirty in the morning.’

‘You’re the one that woke me at four-thirty in the morning to have your way with me! And I’d be a fool to say no to that.’ Levi’s cheeky tone made Sabrina laugh even more. She actually giggled as he smothered her with kisses. She loved the way he made her feel.

‘No,’ she cried through her laughter. ‘The sun was too bright, it woke me.’ She paused as Levi sat up, causing her to move with him so that she ended up sitting on his lap as he leaned his head against the head rest. ‘And I must admit, I’m nervous about today. Are you nervous?’

Levi touched the tip of her nose and traced her jaw with his thumb. ‘I wouldn’t say I’m not nervous,’ he said, with a soft shrug. Levi was the most laidback of the group. He and James were like double trouble, always the life and soul of the party, never taking anything too seriously. It was no surprise. Levi’s older brother had taken the more conventional route in life; good at school, left to get a great job, married by twenty-five, two kids. Levi’s mum had never had to worry about Chase, but Levi had certainly made up for that. Dan wasn’t exactly a troublemaker but put him and Levi in a class together and they never got any work done. Records were constantly spinning in both their brains and if they weren’t whispering to each other about guitar riffs or band names they were doodling on desks or in the back of their schoolbooks. Levi’s mum had to deal with her fair share of meetings in the principal’s office and grounding Levi whenever him and Dan snuck out of the house to see a gig. Dan had mellowed out the older he got, Levi not so much, especially when side by side with James.

When Sabrina had first met Levi’s mum, Joanne, while the boys were on tour in San Francisco for their first album, the first thing Joanne had said to her was, ‘Thank you for giving him focus sweetheart. It makes a mother’s heart happy to see her baby living his dream.’ Then she’d added with a chuckle, ‘That and I thought he’d be sleeping on my couch until he was forty.’ Sabrina had instantly warmed to Joanne and though back then her relationship with Levi was strictly professional, she’d felt a kindred spirit in Joanne. They had Skyped often over the years. Joanne liked to check in on the boys, but would always spend an extra ten minutes catching up on Sabrina’s news, asking if there was anyone special in her life yet, dropping hints about Levi being single and ‘that boy would be too daft to notice if love was right under his nose’ then telling Sabrina to keep a close watch on him. Of course, Sabrina had never told Joanne about the time she had kissed her son or how much she wanted to be with him, but she always sensed Joanne knew. Sabrina guessed it was a mum superpower.

It had been a pure delight to inform Joanne via Skype over the holidays, that they had finally taken the risk and become an item. Joanne had rolled her eyes noting, ‘It took you both long enough. What did I tell you? Right under his nose.’ Though Joanne often teased Levi for his goofy manner, Sabrina could see where he got it from. Levi’s dad hadn’t been around much when he was growing up, so while Joanne had had to step it up and look after her two boys on her own – keeping them in line and out of trouble as best she could – where Levi was concerned, there was definitely an element of fun to her. She always added a touch of lightness to any situation, having never wanted her sons to grow up in a miserable environment just because their dad wasn’t around. Sabrina had never experienced Levi feeling sorry for himself; it was rare that he mentioned his dad, but he doted on his mum. Sabrina sensed that his humorous nature was a way of keeping that sparkle in his mum’s eyes. Whenever the two of them were together you could bet there would be laughter.

As she gazed at Levi now, his face lit up by a sliver of sunrise coming through a crack in the curtain, his chestnut brown eyes flittered over her face, his jaw relaxed and a slight curve to his red lips teased a playful smile. ‘How about you take my nerves and look after them for a bit?’ Sabrina said sweetly, pulling the duvet up over her shoulders to ward off the chill.

‘Baby, nerves are for wimps. Today is going to be epic. We have the best manager there is and Dylan’s one hell of a bass player – he makes the rest of us look good. And if they want us to find a new lead, we can just replace Dan with another mysterious San Francisco hippie, and no one would know the difference,’ Levi stated, trying to keep his lips straight but his eyes were glinting with cheek. Sabrina burst out laughing and shoved him in his bicep.

‘Do you ever behave?’ she asked through her laughter. In reply he yanked the duvet up and over both of their heads and tickled her until she was screaming, tears of laughter soaking her face.

In that moment, Sabrina felt eternally grateful that they had found their way back to each other and that their book of love had been reopened ready for a rewrite. Yes, she thought, borrowing some of Levi’s confidence, today would be epic.

*

The office was spacious, clean-cut and very LA, but with a refreshing pop of colour that pleased Sabrina. Anyone that cared for bright yellows and pastel pinks was sure to be someone that Sabrina would get along with. Sabrina sat on the chair directly opposite the solid mahogany desk while Dan, Levi, Dylan and James sat behind her on the couch. Levi and James sat back against the cushions and Dan and Dylan sat on the edge, elbows on their knees, hands clasped. Dan, Sabrina could see, was ready to talk business. He would have her back if she needed him to step in. Sabrina cared greatly for Dan, and not just because he was her big sister’s boyfriend, but because they shared a similar mind for business and, ninety-nine per cent of the time, were on the same page and had been since the day San Francisco Beat had walked in to Lydia’s office over three years ago. Dan challenged her to be her best and she loved him for that.

A rustle at the door signalled the start of the meeting as a tall lady with shoulder-length black hair, red-rimmed glasses and Chanel ballet slippers bounced in. The lady was elegant and screamed retro chic and those shoes – seriously, Sabrina was having trouble tearing her eyes away.

‘Hello all, how are we doing today? My names Keira and I’m thrilled to meet with you,’ Keira said as she walked over to the couch to shake hands with each of the boys, all of whom stood up to greet her. ‘It’s a pleasure to meet with you too,’ Dan said, speaking on behalf of the band, his husky voice confident.

Sabrina stood to greet Keira when she made her way over to shake her hand. Both women paused for a moment as Sabrina got a close-up of Keira’s Chanel shoes and flashed her Chanel bag that she had splurged on last summer – much to Louisa’s delight and Amanda’s disapproval. ‘Think of how many truffles you could have bought with that,’ Amanda had said, to Sabrina’s amusement. She hadn’t wanted truffles, she had wanted the pastel pink Chanel bag with a gold clasp.

Sabrina beamed. ‘Thank you for meeting with us. We’re interested to hear the marketing strategies you would propose for a band like San Francisco Beat and we have heard nothing but wonderful things from Tyler,’ she said, as both ladies took their seats. Keira was a sharp contrast to what Sabrina had been used to in Lydia. Whereas Lydia was icy and poker-faced, Keira was warm and had a smile permanently at her lips. Her mascaraed lashes fluttered when she spoke and she spoke with such passion, that Sabrina finally felt like this could be ‘the one’; the record label she had been searching for when scouring her emails each day.

‘Your work speaks for itself. You’ve been doing a stellar job so far and we don’t wish to barge our way into an image and sound that has clearly been working for you all – that, and I can sense there would not be much use in me trying to persuade such creative and smart minds into my way of thinking.’ Sabrina noticed Keira give Dan a small smirk as she said this. ‘The way we would like to move forward is to allow you the platform to continue as you wish and give you our full support and encouragement to create an album you want to create. We want to see what it is you are all truly capable of and then, should we see room for changes once the first year is up, we can possibly renegotiate terms and market accordingly. For now, there is a rapid fan base waiting on your next move, and I have full confidence in you, Sabrina, that you know exactly what you want that next move to be.’ Keira finished with a bright smile that made Sabrina sit up straighter and feel like she could take on the world. This woman could be a motivational speaker.

‘I appreciate your confidence not only in myself but in the band too. Your offer is the best one we have received so far.’ Sabrina smiled, then turned to Dan for confirmation to make sure he was happy with what he had heard too. Dan rubbed his hand over his chiseled jaw and gave Sabrina a small nod. This day was certainly shaping up to be epic.

Keira stood. ‘That’s what I like to hear. I should expect you will want to talk over the offer in private. All I ask is that you get back to me this afternoon. You’ll understand this business moves at a rapid rate and we don’t wish to be kept in the dark. The offer will only stand for a short period,’ Keira noted as Sabrina and the boys followed suit in standing.

As they each took a step closer together to thank Keira, Levi casually placed his arm around Sabrina’s waist. Sabrina felt her palms grow sweaty instantly. She never wanted to hide or deny her relationship with Levi, especially not after the years they’d wasted due to Lydia putting the fear of god into her. She loved Levi and was proud of their relationship. However, that didn’t stop a flurry of butterflies exploding in her stomach as Keira spotted this intimate movement.

Keira opened the door and one by one the boys filed out, with nods, handshakes and sincere thanks. Before Sabrina could shake Keira’s hand and step out of the office, Keira half closed the door and gently placed a hand on Sabrina’s elbow. Sabrina turned to face her, grateful to see that her face was still rosy and friendly.

‘I have to ask. Are you and Levi an item?’ Keira queried, one hand resting on the door, the other still on Sabrina’s arm. Sabrina took in a deep breath to steady her nerves and remind herself that she could be both a professional and in love and if the record label didn’t like it, well … well, she wasn’t quite sure what she would do. All she knew for certain was that she was not giving up on Levi again.

‘We are, yes, and you have my word that it does not get in the way of our business. I do what is right by every member of the band – he receives no special treatment when it comes to work,’ Sabrina said boldly, then cringed at the last bit. That was way too much information, Keira did not need to know what special treatment she gave Levi outside of work. She bravely attempted a smile when Keira’s brows furrowed. After what felt like an eternity Keira’s features relaxed, her pink-stained lips curved upwards.

‘I will warn you – the label as a whole doesn’t think too fondly of talent and managers mixing. There’s been trouble with it in the past.’ Keira shook her head and waved her hand away as if it had all been a silly mix-up and shouldn’t have been a big deal. ‘I like you and I’d really love to work together with these guys and take them to the next level – not with fame, I can see that’s not a priority for them, but with their music and the reach it can achieve. However, I’m not going to sugarcoat it. Our publicists are tough and I like to keep everyone working together on the same page and running like clockwork. There will be compromises for all parties involved. So, think about it and get back to me as soon as you can.’ Keira squeezed Sabrina’s arm and opened the door once more. Sabrina thanked her again and took a step into the corridor where Levi and Dan were waiting. James and Dylan had walked further up the corridor. Sabrina appreciated them looking out for her.

She glanced back at Keira when she heard a small chuckle. ‘I can see it,’ Keira started. ‘You make a cute couple, but be smart,’ she said with a wink before waving them off. Sabrina ignored the prickle in her throat. This was the offer that they couldn’t resist; freedom when it came to recording and writing. It was time to celebrate. Sabrina was certain that if she could handle Lydia Jones for all those years at Jones Records that she could handle whatever the publicists would throw her way here at City Heights Records.