“Go on.” He motioned to the chair I had sat in before.
I sat my ass in the seat, never uncrossing my arms. “Don’t you open soon?”
“Yup.” He typed on the computer keyboard, pulling a form up. “Did you hear Brandt tearing into me out there?”
I snorted. “I’m pretty sure the entire world heard that. Is he always that way?”
His shoulders dipped into a shrug. “Mostly at me. Don’t worry about him. Anyway, he was mad because of an inventory mistake. The meat truck came earlier, and we only got half our usual stock.”
“Oof.” I winced.
“You can say that again.” Price sighed as he ran a hand through his short beard. He clicked a few buttons, making the printer on his desk whir to life. “I don’t believe in blame for this. It was a simple mistake. It could have been me, one of the cooks, or one of the servers. They’ve all helped when I’ve been too swamped to do it. Unfortunately, we need to figure out what we’re going to do. I’m going to show you how I would figure this sort of problem out. I’d like your feedback as we make a game plan, and next time this happens, you’ll know what to do, so I don’t have to fuck with it.”
Now I was blinking at him. My arms fell easily to my side as the feeling in my toes returned. “That’s what you wanted to talk to me about?”
“Yes?” he questioned.
“Oh.”
“Was I supposed to talk about something else?”
“No.” I shook my head and grabbed one of the papers that came from the printer. They were still warm, reminding me of a hug. Not that I’d know, really. The only person I’d hugged in a long time was Willow, and that was rarity in itself.
Numbers swirled in my mind,and fuck, if it wasn’t liberating. I loved numbers. The only thing I could breeze through in school was math. Price seemed pleased with my ability to sort out the numbers part and make a comprehensive plan for the inventory issue.
We went through different warehouses with delivery availabilities nearby that Matt had partnered with before and checked the numbers on a rushed delivery. Nothing could be done today, but a new truck with the correct quantity would be arriving in the morning with a fee for the short notice. Thankfully, it just barely fit into The Arch’s monthly budget.
The restaurant was officially open. Price had gone back and forth between me and the employees he had to watch over. I’d been so invested in the math that half of the time, I wouldn’t notice Price walk in until he pointed something out to me on the budget sheet.
Sex work was all about money. I was excited about that when I first started.Though I would never admit it, all the classes I’d taken in school had helped me tremendously.
Price sat the phone down after finishing up with the delivery people. He had an apron on now, and I could see how hard he’d been working, the white stained with different colors, his hair damp with sweat as he pushed it off his forehead. “I am so glad I hired you. This shit stresses me out the most. I can’t deal with numbers.”
That surprised me. “Really? Don’t you use it when cooking?”
He shrugged. “Somewhat. Here, yeah, I measure shit and have to pay attention to time or temperature. I’m not sitting down to do complex math equations to fit expensive shit into a small budget.”
“You don’t cook at home?”
“Hm?”
“You said here. Do you not cook when you’re home?”
“Oh, I do.” His posture straightened, his shoulders squaring with the rest of his body. “It’s different, though. I shouldn’t do this with the type of food I cook at home, but if I’m being honest, I eyeball most of it.”
I didn’t have an issue with math, yet I couldn’t cook for shit, so I didn’t have enough experience to question it. “Do y’all open every day?”
“No, we’re closed Monday and Tuesday each week. Can’t do the weekends because we get so much traffic, and everything would go to shit if I wasn’t here for a day.”
I hummed in agreement. “I can tell. Brandt doesn’t help much, I’m gathering.”
“Nope.” Price laughed.
Oh, fuck.
Oh, shit.
Price laughed and smiled an open, full-tooth smile. I was fucking mesmerized. Despite the sexy, perfect dimple on his left cheek, his top canines were what stole my attention. They were naturally pointed and sharp-looking. My skin prickled with want, a shiver rushing down my spine. I bet he could pierce my skin with them.
