“Yeah.” I taste the beef. Add another sprinkle of ground cumin and a touch of salt. “About the restaurant.”
When Poppy left earlier, she asked again—well, more like gave me a stern reminder—about the restaurant name. She worked hardtoday, scrubbing down the tables and chairs Herman and I dragged outside. Didn’t complain too much when I handed her a sponge and told her to do the same thing with the windows.
I owe her an answer. She’s been making all sorts of notes on her phone, sketching out plans that can’t go into motion until she knows what, exactly, she’ll be promoting. I know it’s not helping anything, but the more she’s pushed about it, the less I want to touch it. The restaurant might be in my name, but it doesn’t feel like mine. It’s still the Sailfish. Still Sal’s.
And yet, part of me wants to do this right. This might be my one shot at running a restaurant of my own. Even if I kept everything the same, it wouldn’t really be the Sailfish. That version died with Sal.
Maybe Kiara won’t agree. But after everything I’ve fucked up, the least I can do is get her opinion about it.
“What about it?” Kiara asks. She grabs placemats and silverware, setting the small table that folds down from the wall.
“I drove around town earlier.”
Kiara takes a sip of her soda, accepting the change of subject without protest. “Yeah? Was it weird?”
“Fucking weird.” I spoon the taco filling into a bowl, garnishing it with lime and chopped cilantro, then bring it to the table with the tortillas, the salsa verde I whipped together, and crema. “It looks the same, pretty much.”
Since I’ve been back, I’ve avoided town as much as possible. Most of my memories of this place aren’t exactly fond; I haven’t seen much point in dragging them up.
But the secondhand bookstore is still there, apparently. So is the hair salon Ki used to go to, and a jewelry store I got kicked out of because the owner thought I was trying to pocket one of the necklaces. I didn’t see the corner store that made a decent bacon, egg, and cheese, or the boutique Ki would drag me to some weekends, but the donut shop Sal loved is still in its old spot. Best café con leche outside of Miami.
I drove by the high school, too, and the park Chester and I used to hang out in, shooting hoops or throwing around a football or, once we knew where to get it, smoking weed. The surf shop whereI’d rent a board sometimes. Harrison Seafood, the store Chester’s family runs, an outpost of their commercial fishing business. Salty Joe’s, a bar that’s as much of an establishment in Diamond Bay as the Sailfish used to be.
Kiara makes herself a taco. “Well, it’s no Delray.” She takes a bite, eyes sliding shut. She dances in her chair. “Oh my god.”
“Good?”
She gives me a look. “You already know it’s delicious.”
“Doesn’t mean I’m immune to compliments.” I fix a taco of my own. It felt good to riff without a recipe in mind. Adding spices until the flavor hit just right. I haven’t done that in a while.
“I feel so honored to finally get to taste James Beard Award winner Jack Hartman’s food.”
I snort. “Fuck off.”
“Have you gotten in touch with Chester yet, by the way?” At my look, she sighs. “Of course you haven’t.”
“I’ve been working nonstop.”
“Dad would want—”
“Why does everything have to be about what Sal would want?” The words tumble out of me before I can think better of it.
Kiara presses her lips together. “I met Poppy earlier.”
That stops me short. Somehow, I hadn’t thought about their paths crossing—stupid, considering how small Diamond Bay can be. “Really.”
“She’s prettier in person.” She leans back in her chair, soda in hand. “Don’t you think?”
Of course she is, but like hell am I going to say that to Kiara. “Well, she’s single, if you’re interested.”
She just takes a sip of her drink, a grin playing over her features. “Uh-huh. She brought a cat she found at the marina into the clinic earlier. Decided to adopt him. She’s calling him Alligator.”
Somehow, that strikes me as completely in character for Poppy. “She adopted the stray cat from the dumpster?”
Kiara hits my shoulder lightly. “You saw him and didn’t help?”
“I’ve witnessed him murder lizards with gusto. He seemed fine.”
