I smiled. That we had. “Yes, sir. It’s made in-house.”
“Perfect,” he said. “Can you reserve one for us?”
“Yes, sir! No problem at all. Can I get a name, please, for the reservation?”
“Sure. Commander Jesse Evans, U.S. Navy SEAL.”
I had the utmost respect for the men and women who served in the military. Several of my friends from culinary school were former service members. The stories they told of the bravery and heroism made me wish I’d served in the armed forces.
I replied as sincerely as I could. “Thank you for your service, sir. We’ll look forward to seeing you at seven.”
“Thank you,” he said, and ended the call.
This had been a clusterfuck of a day, but things just might turn around. I got up from my chair and went out to talk to Stella. We’d put our heads together and figure it out. We would make this work tonight.
As I walked back into the kitchen, I told her about the call and watched her eyes widen in surprise, then excitement. “The Portland Pirates quarterback and five other team members? Preston, that’s amazing. Do you think Alejandro recommended us?”
I shrugged. “I don’t know. I didn’t have time to ask him. But I’m afraid I was an asshole to the man who called. You know what kind of day we’ve had. I need to make sure their food is superior. I want them to remember us and come back.”
Stella smiled. “Preston, your food is always superior. You do everything to make it leaps and bounds above everyone else. That’s who you are, and our team excels at pulling together and making things work. We’ve got this.”
She was right. I’d pull everyone together, explain our situation tonight, and they’d bring their A-game. We could do this.
“Yeah, you’re right. Maybe some appetizer platters on the house would make up for my shitty attitude.”
Stella shook her head. “Take it a step further. Comp their meal on the house. What time are they coming?”
“Seven.”
She nodded. “Have Sophia come get you when they arrive. Go out, apologize to the man, and tell them we’re comping their dinner. It’ll go a long way with them. You’ll see.”
I nodded again. She was right. So I gathered everyone together and told them about our situation. “If we can pull this off tonight, being two people short, you’ll all go home with an extra hundred bucks in your hands for making it happen.”
I loved giving my staff incentives to work hard. Even if we fucked it all up, they’d get the money, anyway. That’s just the way I was.
After high fives and thankful hugs, my superior staff got to work, and I went back to work on my marinara sauce with a renewed spirit and vigor.
I watchedthe clock until six-forty-five, then slipped into my office to change my chef’s whites. I wanted to make a good impression when I apologized for my rude behavior.
At seven p.m., Sophia stepped into the kitchen to alert me that our special guests had arrived.
“You’ve got this, Preston. Go dazzle them like you do everyone else.”
I chuckled, thankful for the tiny cheerleader who kept my head above water most of the time.
As I strode toward the front, my heart sped up at the sight of twelve men crammed into my tiny entryway. God, we had to do something about the space here. It was almost embarrassing.
When I reached them, I pasted on a smile.
“Commander Evans?”
The blond man turned with a smile. “Commander Jesse Evans, U.S. Navy.”
I extended my hand to shake his when I got a good look at him. Stunned was not a strong enough word for what I was feeling. The commander was too young to behim.There was no way. My eyes widened, and I studied him a moment before snapping out of it. And I needed to let go of his hand.
“I’m the owner, Preston James. I want to apologize for earlier. The day had been less-than-stellar, but its since rebounded. As an apology, your bill has been comped.”
Before I could smile, a younger man stepped around and effectively put me in my place for some reason.
