a splash of colour.
Noodle boxes had been made up to match, and not only were these to be used during the evening, but also as gift boxes to take home with a selection of Sam’s desserts made in mini version. The idea was to give them some taste sensations to delight their palate to remind them of their very first visit to Montgomery’s.
The breezy, yet efficient, floor staff were dressed in black, with the kitchen staff in white, and all wore the Montgomery’s black and white striped aprons.
Chilli was out the front of the restaurant, when Sam spotted her. She had chosen a lemon, sunray pleated cocktail dress with fine straps and a trail of fabric flowers trailing over one shoulder and down across a breast, and she looked stunning. With her dark shoulder length hair and olive skin, she wore the colour well.
“Mum, where’s Dad? I have been trying to catch the two of you together all day. It’s been impossible.”
Chilli admired her son in his dinner suit. Both he and Miranda had decided on a formal dress code for the evening and on seeing him, Chilli was glad that they had. And it had given her the perfect excuse to purchase the silver strappy heels heavily adorned with Swarovski crystals.
“Dad will be along in a minute, Sam. He’s just raced home. He had on mismatched cufflinks. Can you believe it? He must have been flustered when he was getting dressed and didn’t notice.” Chilli gave a small laugh and then noticed that Sam appeared agitated. “What’s up darling? Is something wrong?”
“No, nothing’s wrong. But I did want to talk to you both together before the guests arrived,” he said, running a finger under his collar. “When Dad gets back, please come and find me. It’s important,” he stressed.
“Okay. Do you want to tell me anything now?” Chilli straightened his bowtie. He was such a good looking boy. Smoothing his lapel, she picked at an imaginary piece of lint.
“No,” he said touching her hand. “I’ll wait for Dad. Don’t look so worried, it’s nothing bad.”
“You’re probably nervous. Take a few deep breaths.” She touched his arm, feeling the solid presence of him. “I’m glad you found me out here, I wanted a moment alone with you.” She paused for a couple of seconds. “I want to tell you how incredibly proud I am of you. You have turned into a wonderful young man and you are in a wonderful time of your life. Enjoy the journey sweetie and remember to stop and smell the roses along the way.” Her voice broke a little and she put her arms around him. In return, he embraced her, and even through his jacket, she could feel his heart pounding. They stood that way for a few seconds, until they were interrupted by a call from one of the kitchen staff.
“Chef, we need you for a minute?”
“Coming Dom!” Sam made to leave and then turned back and kissed her cheek. “Love you Mum.”
As she watched him go, she saw Miranda rearranging the orchids yet again. Never had Chilli seen her looking more beautiful, dressed in an ivory Collette Dinnigan beaded number, with her black hair piled loosely on top of her head.
Earlier in the week, Miranda had asked if Chilli had any earrings that she could borrow. They had both decided on a pair that Chilli had bought in Paris some time ago. Chilli thought they looked perfect with her dress tonight.
She watched as Rob parked his silver BMW. Some people looked like their cars and Rob was no exception.
Walking towards her, she had to admit that at 49 he was still a handsome man. Although, his blonde hair peppered with grey had just begun to recede, it took nothing away from his looks. In fact he was like good wine; he got better with age.
But she barely had a chance to catch him as the first of their guests arrived.
On the front deck, to the background of the string quartet, waiters received guests with sparkling wine poured over a closed wild hibiscus. There was something hypnotic about the way the flowers, preserved in syrup, unfolded in the flute.
Guests were ushered in to admire the restaurant and treated to a bevy of canapés, designed by Sam. The first canapé to tantalise their taste buds was seared scallops with lemon pesto and cucumber. All at once, they were tasty and refreshing.
The four hosts floated from one guest to another making sure everyone was enjoying themselves. Every now and then Sam would dash back into the kitchen to oversee something and put out fires. Chilli saw him attempt to catch her and his father’s eye numerous times, but they didn’t seem to be able to get a moment together.
Finally, an hour into the evening, Sam caught up with both of his parents. “Guys I really, really need to see both of you together for five minutes. Miranda will look after everything here. Come downstairs.” Sharing furtive glances with each other, they followed.
Downstairs, as he turned to face them, he used the back of his hand to wipe at the beads of perspiration on his forehead. “Mum, Dad, I have something to tell you. I thought keeping it a secret until the last minute was the right thing to do, but now I’m not so sure and I’m a bit nervous.” He ran his hands through his hair and began to pace. His face was pale.
Chilli caught his arm. “What is it?” she asked, feeling a little ill.
Stopping he exhaled and nervously placed a hand on his head. He looked between his parents. “In a couple of minutes Miranda and I are going to be married.”
There was deathly silence. Rob was the first to find his voice. “What are you talking about mate?” His voice couldn’t hide his shock.
With her arms folded across her chest as if to protect herself, Chilli asked, “What do you mean?” Her voice sounded strange.
“I asked Miranda when we were in Hawaii and she said yes. We were going to ring you and tell you, but the more we talked about it, the more we decided that there wouldn’t be time for a wedding for the next year at least. You and Dad had paid for our holiday and you’ve invested so much money and time in this place. We didn’t want to ask you for anything else. We knew if you knew, you would have planned something grander with Miranda’s parents and we didn’t want that. We’re incredibly grateful for everything you’ve done for us and this is the way we want it. When we officially open in two days time, we want to do it as a married couple.”
Rob and Chilli were speechless, trying to digest what Sam had just told them.
Sam continued, “That was one of the reasons that we decided not to open tomorrow. We thought that after the wedding tonight, we would all need a day to recover.” He paused. “Mum, please say something. Say it’s okay.”
Chilli realised that she had covered her mouth with her hand. Pulling her hand away, she took his. With a dry mouth and a hammering heart, she let out a huge breath and spoke slowly. “Of course it’s okay. I’m sorry darling, I’m stunned. Too much is happening. We love Miranda of course.” Placing a hand on her chest, she shook her head, still in shock, and glanced across at Rob.
His face said it all; he was far too emotional for words. He put his arm out and drew his son to his chest. Chilli just stood there, and nervously rubbed her forehead. She felt like a bolt of lightning had come down and struck her on the forehead. She wasn’t ready for this. She did love Miranda, but they had given no clue that this was going to happen. Putting his other arm out, Rob pulled her into their embrace. The three of them clung to each other, the last time for them to be a family of
