“Oh, sorry. Hi—hello.” I stutter, standing up.
“No worries.” He lifts his hand. “I can only imagine how busy you are. You probably have people coming in all hours of the day.” He flashes a knowing grin, making me smile.
“Is it that obvious?” I laugh, then remember I have no idea who this man is. “Sorry—have we met before?”
“No, we haven’t. Hartman. Paul Hartman.” He extends his hand, which I take and firmly shake.
“Please, sit.” He gestures toward my chair.
“Tobias Voss.” I sit back in my chair. His name sounds so familiar. “Hartman…like Hartman & Company?”
Why is one of the top businessmen in this province here in my office? Hartman & Co. is known for the corporations that flow through this and the surrounding cities. What could he want with a little family-owned restaurant?
A smile creeps onto his lips. “Exactly.” He nods as he walks around my office, taking in the plaques on the wall and books on the shelves. After the fire last year, we put as much as we could from Elijah’s house into this office. Books, pictures, memories. It’s all Jude Thorne’s. The reminder may sting, but I’ll never let any of it go. This office willforeverbe his.
As though he can hear my thoughts, Paul stops at the picture of Jude right beside the door. It’s a beautiful shot of him when this place became his. Everyone is outside, surrounding him. It’s a picture of love and family. It’s everything he was.
“Well, what do I owe the pleasure? You must be a busy man yourself,” I say, clasping my hands on the desk.
“That’s exactly why I’m here, actually.” He turns back to me and strides over. “Jude’s Placehas really captured the attention of a lot of folks around here. My guess is it had something to do with you.”
My cheeks burn. “Well, I wouldn’t say that. Jude put in a lot of work before he left us. I’ve just maintained.”
“Maintained ornurtured?” He stands by the door, looking out at the restaurant. “The way I see it, you made this place come alive. You gutted it and flipped it, and now the age of the clientele has completely changed.”
My brows lift high, eyes wide with surprise.Has he been watching us?
“Y-yeah, well.” I stand up from my desk and walk up beside him. “The bar section helped with that. And I guess the paint job. All it needed was just a little modernizing.” I shrug.
Paul studies me quietly, his gaze sharp.
I swallow thickly. “Why are you here exactly?”
“I think you’ve got an eye for this, kid. You really do.”
I look down at my feet. “That’s really nice of you to say—”
“I also think you’re just a kid.” He adds.
My eyebrows draw together. “Excuse me?”
He rests his hand on my shoulder, the energy between us shifting. “This is a lot to take on at your age. You’ve got school, parties, and girls to worry about. Why would you want all of this pressure?” He looks at me with concern.
“I’ve been handling it just fine,” I say, shifting out of his reach.
He throws his hands up in surrender. “Oh, it looks like you have. But I also think you don’t have to—alone.” He takes out his card from his back pocket and hands it over to me.
“Jude’s Placeis just the beginning. Imagine someone helping you and watching it become something bigger…”
Help me?
Like, by handing it over? My chest locks up as panic spreads within me.
This isn’t mine to give…it’s Jude’s.
I look down at the card in my hand as he continues.
“I’m talking about multiple locations, commercials, hell, even endorsements.Jude’s Placecan become everyone’s place.”
