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“The slogan will be; Where diners can eat like royalty,” Alex said.
“And will you cook as well?” asked Cody Walsh. The young man was barely past his quarter life but looked like he could easily pass for forty.
Alex had also known his fair share of tech millionaires who couldn’t handle their newfound fortunes. Cody, with his blood-shot eyes and twitchy fingers, looked like he was on the verge of crashing and burning. From overwork, excessive play, or too much recreational substances? Alex would’ve put his money on all three.
“I know my way around a kitchen—” Alex began but was interrupted by Cody.
“I’m sure you do.” The young man waggled his brows, but it came off looking as though his eyes were irritated.
“I’ll have a hand in the daily menus,” Alex said. He knew he’d be the face of the business, mostly. He was fine with that, so long as it was Jan in the kitchen, and he could discuss each day’s meal with her. And maybe chop up a few veggies and toss in a couple of pinches of spice every once in a while.
“I hear you’re quite the adventurer,” Cody continued as though he hadn’t heard Alex. “If you ever want to spice it up …”
The young man handed Alex a card which read that he was a CEO followed by an unprofessional expletive.
Alex smiled and went to place the card in his pocket. At the last second his fingers slipped, and the card fell to the floor. Luckily no one saw it.
Alex was done with his wild days. He was a business man now. Just like he’d promised Jan. The thought of her made him smile, just like the first bite into a newly baked loaf of bread straight from the oven.
“Speaking of spices,” he turned the conversation away from his past and toward his future. “I’ve found an amazing chef. I’d love to bring you to her restaurant for a taste test. Lunch if you have no other plans. It’s not far.”
“A female chef?” said Cody. “How women’s lib of you.”
Phoebe grimaced at the younger man. “I’m free and famished. I’ll get my coat.”
“Hey, Alex, let me get a selfie with you to post on the Gram.” Cody whipped out his phone, wrapped his arm around Alex’s shoulder, and clicked off a few shots.
Gordon shot Alex an apologetic frown. Alex gritted his teeth and smiled for the camera. It was tough to do both. The unnecessary flash of the cell phone camera in broad daylight sent him back to last night.
He’d been able to shield Jan from the paparazzi. He’d shut her in to the shop and made his getaway. The paparazzi followed him back to the hotel, and he’d left them in the street. Of course, they’d been up and at it early that morning and had followed him here. It was par for the course. They’d get bored when they saw he wasn’t sneaking off to see any actresses, socialites, or super models.
“I’m very excited about this,” said Gordon once Cody let Alex go to send off his Instagram posts.
“I have to admit, I’m a little confused,” said Alex. “I thought I’d get to work with you directly.”
“All of my deals are done using investment groups. You want to
spread your money around and not put all your eggs in one basket. It mitigates any potential loss.”
“I’m sure that by the end of the year, you’ll see a positive return on your investment.”
“Oh, I believe you. This is a very low risk investment that’s why I’ve only brought in two of my partners.”
“I’m humbled that you have this much faith in me.”
“Oh, it’s not just the business idea, which I believe in. But if this does fail, and you can’t return the investment, your inheritance will be collateral.”
Alex froze. He had to swallow a couple of times before the words would rise to the surface. “My goal is to do this as my own venture and, apart from the name of the restaurant, keep the venture separate from the crown.”
“I admire that. But I’m also a realist. You can’t expect me to put all my eggs in the basket without any security.”
Yes. Yes, Alex had actually thought that. How was he going to tell Rogers that he never had any intention of getting married, which was a necessary step in acquiring his inheritance?
“I assume this female chef, what was her name again? Jan Peppers, was it?”
Alex had never said Jan’s name out loud. How did Rogers know?
Rogers tapped at the face of his cell phone. He pulled up a gossip blog. The picture showed Alex and Jan locked in an embrace. The hug had been innocent. Mostly. Though Alex couldn’t admit that his body had warmed through holding Jan close. But theirs could only ever be a business relationship.
