“That looks amazing,” she gushed before pouring two glasses of cold brew. “How did you get so good at cooking? Did you go to school for it?”
She sat back down and dug in. I found her appetite—for everything—sexy as hell.
“I did. I studied to be a chef and then went back to school for hospitality. I always loved cooking, but I wanted to be my own boss and run things my way. Took me a little while, but I got there.”
She set down her glass and squinted at me. “A little while? You’re only thirty and already running a successful business. I saw the reviews on Yelp. The Beach Pub is a big deal around here.”
“So, you checked up on me?” I smirked around my fork.
An adorable blush spread on her cheeks. “Megan and Claire said they found The Beach Pub online, and, yes, I checked it out. You should be proud.”
“I am. It’s harder than I thought, but I’m managing so far. What about you? I know you said you worked in advertising, but you never said where.”
“My office is located near Grand Central Station.”
“Wow, so you’re in the thick of it all.”
She shrugged. “I guess. I went to college in Manhattan, so crowded subways and streets are all I know. I started as an account executive but was promoted to account manager this year. It’s stressful, but I enjoy it. I just need to learn to leave work at work and go home at a reasonable hour. My boss even gets on my case over my hours.”
“Why put in so many then? My mother works in advertising, too. She sometimes had the occasional late night or trip, but most of the time, she was home for dinner with us. Burning yourself out isn’t healthy.”
“I’ve actually been thinking about that. I had a day to myself at the rental before the girls came in.” She rested her fork on the side of the plate. “Your mother had reasons to leave work at a decent time and people she wanted to see. For the past year or so, I guess I didn’t. That, I promise you, is changing when I get home. There’s no reason to leave work later than six most nights, and I miss seeing my friends. I’m actually grateful for the fucked-up wakeup call I received.”
Caterina had the livelihood I ran like hell from. I was happy at the shore and couldn’t see heading back to the city for anything else but a visit. And, even if I wanted to go back, everything I had was here. The commitments and obligations of owning a business weren’t something I could just walk away from, but I hated not being able to offer her that normal she deserved: a man waiting for her every night. Even if we tried this long-distance, she wouldn’t have that. At the end of the week, I had to decide how selfish I was where she was concerned.
She rose and planted herself in my lap. “Can I tell you something that’s going to sound crazy?”
I wrapped my arms around her waist and pulled her to me. “I’d say we passed crazy a few days ago. You can tell me anything.”
“I loved last night.” Her nails scraped along the bristles of stubble on my chin. “It was incredible. All of it.”
“That’s not crazy.” I brushed her hair off her shoulder. “I feel the exact same way. I loved every second.”
“But this…” She looped a stray thread on the edge of my sleeve between her fingers. “I love talking to you as much as I lovenottalking to you.” A sweet giggle fell from her lips. “I keep thinking how great it would be to have this every day—with you. I want to know everything about you, and it feels like time is already running out. We could be so amazing together, but—”
“You don’t know how it’s going to work?” I lifted an eyebrow.
“Exactly,” she whispered before cuddling into the crook of my neck.
“Tell you what, how about we wait to figure out… after…until we’re almost at that point. I don’t want to talk about letting you go until I have to.”
She grimaced before nodding, looking as crushed as I was feeling at the notion of letting her go.
I’d already realized that a week would never be enough.
19
Joe
“It’s a beautiful thing,isn’t it?” Dominic jerked his head toward the line of customers waiting to get in. Someone with a ton of followers had posted The Beach Pub on a couple of social media platforms last night, and it brought in droves of customers today. Thankfully, we’d doubled the staff during the past couple of weeks like we usually did by midsummer. The restaurant was happily buzzing without both of us breaking too much of a sweat.
“Free advertising is a very beautiful thing,” I agreed as I glimpsed the dining area from the inside of the kitchen. If only I could figure out how to make Instagram and Twitter work for us instead of hoping for the occasional fluke here and there. That first night I’d met Caterina, I’d been honest about wanting to figure out how to promote this place better, and she’d said she could help me, even if my motives for taking her up on it were a bit clouded.
Our new hostess, Tina, fluttered from her post in the front to the back, most likely scanning the room for one of us. Her father was a faithful customer of ours and asked us if we’d consider giving her a job this summer. For hiring waiters and waitresses, Dominic and I were more selective. When we were busy, especially at night, we needed workers with experience. Tina was a pretty, but timid, little thing, always regarding Dom and me with wary eyes but seemed to be doing all right her first week.
Some employees came back from the previous summers, and that filled me with an enormous pride. To make the restaurant a town staple and local tradition felt like the beginnings of success. It was also something I wouldn’t get in a crowded city. I belonged here and had never doubted it. Maybe I’d cursed it a little since last Thursday but never doubted.
“Joe, there’s someone in the front here to see you. She said her name was Caterina? She went to follow me, but I told her she needed to stay there.”
