Flynn nodded while Ken went over the seating. “Great plan. You have all the liquor stocked?”
“Yes. And extra bartenders and servers will be on hand. We’re in good shape.”
He always had confidence in Ken. The guy was a master at managing Ninety-Two. “I knew you would be.”
Amelia returned carrying a tray. She set bowls in front of Flynn and Ken, along with a basket of crackers and bread.
“None for you?” Flynn asked.
Amelia took a seat. “I taste while I cook. Trust me, I’ve had plenty.”
Flynn took the spoon and dug in, letting the spicy chili spark his taste buds as he swallowed. “This is really good.”
“He’s right about that,” Ken said. “It’s going to be a customer favorite, Amelia.”
“Thank you.”
“You should definitely serve it the night of the party,” Flynn said. “The guys will love it.”
She shook her head. “Chili is so messy, and a lot of your guests will be wandering about. It’s too hard to manage a bowl and slurp up chili while trying to carry on a conversation and walk around. Plus, it goes great with crackers. It’s not a good party food.”
“She has a point,” Ken said.
“Yeah, you might be right about that.”
“Though one of the things I wanted to talk to you about was doing a special chili night, especially during happy hour. We could set up a chili station at the bar. I know you have the games on the TV in the bar. I could make up several chilis with the appropriate accouterments and guests could sample the different ones. We could also do it in the restaurant as well. Kind of a chili sampler.”
Flynn thought about it for a minute. “We could offer it on the appetizer menu in the bar and in the restaurant.”
“I like that idea, too,” Ken said. “In fact, it would be great to have it on the menu on Sundays during the football games.”
Flynn loved that the people who worked with him had such great ideas. “Perfect. Let’s do it.”
Ken nodded. “I’ll add it to the menu.”
“And I’ll start creating some different chilis,” Amelia said. “When do you want to put this into effect?”
“I’ll leave it to you and Ken to work out the details. Whenever you feel it’s ready, do it.”
“Great.”
Amelia smiled as she made notes. He liked when she smiled. She was so damn pretty, but always so serious, which he supposed was good for his restaurant. Her focus produced great results, but there was nothing wrong with smiling and being happy about the work you did, either. He wasn’t sure he’d ever heard her outright laugh.
“You should do that more often.”
It took her a second to lift her head. “Me? Do what more often?”
“Smile.”
Now she frowned. “I smile.”
“No, you don’t. You always look like you’re in the middle of some horrible midterm exam.”
“I do not.”
Ken stifled a laugh. “Yeah, you kind of do. You’re always serious, Amelia.”
“This is my job. I’m very serious about it.”
Flynn pointed to her notebook. “But you smiled when you made notes about the chili.”
“See? I can smile. Therefore your point about me not smiling is moot.”
He rolled his eyes. Sometimes everything with Amelia was an argument. “Okay, so what else should we review before the party Thursday night?”
“We need an estimated head count,” Ken said.
“I have the RSVP list right here. We just finalized it. I’ll e-mail it to you both right now.” He forwarded the message from his phone.
Amelia checked her phone, scanning the list, then looked up at him. “You’re bringing a date?”
He nodded. “Yeah. Why? Is that a problem?”
Amelia looked over at Ken, then back at him. “No. No problem at all. So who’s the new woman in your life?”
“She’s a flight attendant I met on the way back from the game in Detroit.”
“Flight attendant, huh? That’s great. Is the press coming to the team party?”
“They usually attend these kinds of events. Just to get some sound bites and cover the team and the season so far. Plus, Irvin likes anything involving the team to get press.”
“Sure. Of course. Totally understandable.” Amelia quickly focused on the list, but her lips curved.
For someone who never smiled, she sure was smiling a lot now. So was Ken.
“What?”
“Nothing,” Amelia said. “I hope you have a great time at the dinner. We’ll make sure it’s perfect. You should finish your chili before it gets cold. I have to see to dinner.”
But that smile of hers lingered as she got up and left the table. Ken’s did, too, as he excused himself. And he’d sure as hell like to know what the two of them found so damned amusing.
FOUR
After a long night at the restaurant, Amelia went home, kicked off her shoes, tossed her jacket on the chair next to the front door, piled her purse on top of it and went straight to the kitchen. She pulled a wineglass out of the cabinet and poured herself a nice glass of cabernet, then walked through the kitchen and into the sunroom. It was a little chilly in here, but fortunately there was a heater. She clicked it on, then sat on the sofa. She pulled a blanket over her and reached for her tablet.
After a few sips of wine she felt the kinks in her muscles start to relax.