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I took a huge bite of omelet to prove a point. “Whatever. Enjoy your toast, dickhead.”
After that the talk turned to business. Gio ran down a quick checklist of everything that needed to happen before the grand opening, and I reminded him of a few things. We’d always worked well together that way; whatever one of us forgot, the other was bound to remember. The next big chore would be getting the right staff for Espo 2. When Melanie’s name came up, my brother eyed me carefully.
“Look, Dom,” he said, “I know handing over the reins on anything that concerns the restaurant is tough for you. But I also know how much you hate paperwork. We’ll be managing two stores now, so between that and our pipe dreams for future valley-wide expansion—”
“I get it,” I interrupted.
Gio raised an eyebrow. “Do you? Seriously man, you look like you haven’t slept in days.”
I stifled a yawn. “So what? Thought you were a fan of crossing all the t’s.”
“Not if you fall asleep at your desk and wind up with a pencil through the eye.”
I grunted. “I never sit at a desk.”
Gio smiled. “You understand me anyway.”
The waitress walked by, and I motioned for a coffee refill. I really did understand. Gio just didn’t want me running myself into the ground, taking care of small-time issues that could be better handled by someone else. Someone smart and competent. Someone like Melanie. And if he assumed that my hesitation in welcoming Melanie Cruz with open arms was solely due to stubbornness, then I was happy to let him keep thinking that.
Gio paid the bill over my objections and then we returned to Espo 2 to finish setting up the office. I could have easily done it myself, but it always felt good working closely with my brother. Now that we were split between two locations, I missed the everyday hustle of being side by side with him. I’d be a damn fool to complain about success, though.
By eight o’clock we had everything pretty well situated. Gio was expecting a delivery over at Espo 1 in an hour, so he wanted to get going.
“Hey, Dom, be cool, all right?” he said on his way out the door.
“Always,” I answered, but I knew what he meant. He was asking me to help Melanie get settled and avoid being a dick.
Gio had said she would show up for work around nine, and at 8:59 a.m. Melanie Cruz breezed through the door.
“Good morning, Dominic,” she said.
“Back at you,” I said, hammer in hand. I’d been searching for the best spot to hang a giant black-and-white framed photo.
“Mind if I go right back to the office?”
I glanced at her. She was standing barely inside the door, chin tilted up defiantly, like she was bracing for an argument.
“Please do,” I said, hoping I sounded polite.
Melanie offered a thin smile and glanced down at herself. “I took your advice about following the Esposito’s dress code, at least for today while I’m working at getting the office set up.”
I looked her over, my eyes lingering on the curve of her hips. She was wearing some fairly tight, dark denim capris and a white T-shirt with the company logo. She looked less uptight, not like she spent two hours in front of the mirror this morning, a stark contrast to the absurdly professional clothes she usually wore. I liked seeing her like this. Her long hair was tied up in a ponytail, and an oversize, black laptop bag was slung over one shoulder. Overall, this version of Melanie seemed younger, more vulnerable, than she usually did. I tried to remember if she’d ever mentioned how old she was, but nothing came to mind.
“Good for you,” I said. I used the hammer to gesture down the hall. “Desks, filing cabinets, Wi-Fi, it’s all set up. Restrooms are in working order, and the days of dust and dirt are over. I like to keep it cold in here, but if it’s too much, just let me know. You want anything moved, don’t be afraid to ask.”
Melanie was looking around. She nodded when I finished talking. “You’ll be keeping a desk in the office as well?”
“I’m not really an office dweller. You’ll notice that I usually prefer to be on the floor where the action is. On the whole, I won’t be bothering you much.”
“Good,” Melanie said and then winced like she hadn’t meant to say that. “I mean, I’m sure you’ll have your hands full out here.” She flashed an uneven smile. “Gio’s trained me well. Rest assured I’ll take care of everything behind the scenes.”
“Okay.” I turned back to the wall and started measuring.
Melanie lingered by the door for another few seconds like she was waiting for me to say something else, then she started slowly circling the dining room. She wasn’t wearing heels today, just plain white running shoes. Though her perusal made no sound, I was aware of her every move. Using a chalk pencil, I marked the place on the wall where I planned on drilling the first hole for the picture.
“It looks amazing,” Melanie said. She was dawdling over by the counter where the registers would be lined up. I watched out of the corner of my eye as she ran a hand along the exposed brick on a neighboring wall.
“What year was this place built again?”
