“Yes to both.”
She laughed. “I’ll have it out to you shortly.”
“Thanks, Amelia.”
He could have sat and had one of the waitresses take the order back, but he wanted to see Amelia. After the other night at Tara’s party, he realized there was something between them—something he wanted to explore further.
He stopped at the bar to grab a beer, then found a seat at a small table in the corner to sip his beer and observe. He was happy to see the restaurant busy. His staff was good at what they did so he didn’t need to hover. Ken knew what he was doing, as did the managers who worked under him.
Grace, one of the waitresses, brought his burger out and set it in front of him.
“Amelia wanted me to tell you that she’s trying something new tonight with the sweet potato fries. She hopes you like them.”
“Thanks, Grace.”
He dug into his burger, which was delicious. Then he tried the sweet potato fries, which came with a side of dipping sauce. It surprised the hell out of him because the fries were sprinkled with something hot, and the sauce was sweet. The combination was excellent.
He savored the meal, which went well with his beer. He could have eaten the entire meal twice. In fact, he just might since he’d burned a lot of calories during the game.
Amelia came out after he’d eaten the last fry.
“What did you think?” she asked.
“My mouth is on fire from these fries. What’s in them?”
She gave him a half smile. “That’s a secret.”
He laughed. “No, seriously. They were really good.”
“Some jalapeño and red peppers, along with maple syrup and caramel in the sauce. A little mix of sweet with spicy.”
“Holy crap, that was such a good idea. You’re adding it to the menu, right?”
“I’m trying it out on a few select customers over the next week to see how it plays out, but if you think it works, then yes, I’ll add it to the menu.”
“Good. Oh, and speaking of caramel—but not really—there’s a caramelized bluefin tuna recipe I’ve been meaning to try. I thought maybe we could incorporate it here.”
“Really. I’d like to hear more about it.” She looked over her shoulder toward the kitchen.
“You go back to work. We can talk about it later.”
“Okay. But you’ve piqued my interest.”
His lips curved. “Have I? Good.”
She wandered off and he got up and decided to do a walk around the tables. He liked to keep a low profile, but it was his job as the owner to make sure his clientele were all satisfied. And a little PR every now and then wasn’t a bad thing. Some people had no idea who he was, which suited him just fine. Others knew and wanted to chat football, and that was okay, too. The important thing was the food and the ambiance of the restaurant, and that’s what interested him.
All in all, everyone seemed happy, and if his customers were happy, then so was he.
He returned to his table in the corner and made some calls to his brothers. It was a little late on the East Coast for Barrett, but that never stopped him before. Barrett told him he was up late watching sports anyway.
Barrett had won his game today as well, so they talked football. Grant’s game was tomorrow night, and they talked about how Grant had to win so they’d have the trifecta of Cassidy football wins.
“It’s too bad Tucker’s baseball team is out of the postseason,” Barrett said. “Otherwise it’d be perfect.”
“They made it to the division championships, though.”
“Yeah, but Tucker was pissed when they got knocked out.”
Flynn remembered that conversation. He’d called Tucker after the game. They all knew what it was like to get close but fall just short. His brother wasn’t in the mood to be told what a good pitcher he was and how his team would come back even stronger next season. Not then, anyway. “Tucker’s pissed unless he wins the whole thing. You know how he is.”
Barrett laughed. “We’re all that way.”
“It’s in the Cassidy DNA. We don’t like to lose.”
“He’ll come back next season. But for now, it’s all football, all the time.”
Flynn cracked a smile. “Hell yeah. And besides football, how are things with you and Harmony?”
“They’re good. She’s all settled into my house now and pondering other things to renovate here.”
He laughed. “That’s not a surprise.”
“Right? She already gutted my entire place and it’s practically brand-new, but she can still come up with new ideas. Then when I told her she’s obviously not busy enough at work, she gave me that look. You know that look.”
“Yeah, I’ve seen that look from her before.”
“But then I kissed her and she forgot all about expanding the guest bathroom.”
“More info than I needed, Barrett.”
Barrett laughed. “Anyway, things are good here. How about you? Any new girlfriends I need to know about?”
“That’s not going well.”
“Sorry, man. The right one is out there for you.”
Flynn glanced into the kitchen and caught a glimpse of Amelia. There was something about her that made his stomach tighten. “Yeah, maybe.”
“Don’t give up. And quit choosing the wrong ones.”
“Right. Like that part’s easy.”
“It’s never easy, Bro. But when the right one comes along, you’ll know it.”
“Hope so.”
After he got off the phone with Barrett, he checked his messages and saw he’d missed one from Mia, so he called her.
“Shouldn’t you be studying or asleep or something?”
He heard Mia sigh on the other side of the line. “I’m a night owl and I do my best work late. Congrats on your win. You looked tough out there today.”
“Thanks. How’s school?”
“Tough as always, but I’m nearing the end of the road, so I can see the light at the end of the tunnel and all those other metaphors signaling graduation isn’t far off.”
Sometimes he couldn’t believe his baby sister was close to getting her master’s degree. She was all grown up and time had seemingly flown by. It didn’t seem all that long ago that he had carried her in his arms while she sucked her thumb and laid her head on his shoulder.