Page 425 of Savage Bosses

"Of course," Tatianna replied evenly, nodding her understanding. "I'm well aware of the importance of good customer service. Even though that sounds like a task for the cashiers and servers, not the pastry chef, I'll still be sure to provide excellent customer service to the cafe's customers."

"Good," Bryce muttered, trying to hide his irritation at her calm demeanor. He desperately wanted to provoke her, to see her lose control just like she'd done that day she'd flipped him off. "And you'll also need to work closely with the kitchen staff – coordinating orders, keeping track of inventory, and so on."

"Understood," Tatianna responded, her tone still infuriatingly composed.

"Sometimes, I may need you to come out and wipe tables down if we're busy. You may even be asked to sweep and mop the floor."

"I'm pretty sure I'll never need to do that, but if the occasion occurs, I'll be more than happy to help the waitresses clean. We're a family here, right?"

Bryce clenched his fists under the table, his knuckles turning white from the pressure. He could feel himself losing patience with her, but he couldn't afford to lash out. Not yet.

Instead, he swallowed his anger, forcing a tight smile. "Is there anything else you want to know?"

"Only one thing," Tatianna said, her eyes locked on his. "Can I go to work now?"

This motherfucker!Every word she spoke, every calm agreement, only fueled his frustration further. He wanted her on edge, desperate to prove herself, but she remained unflappable in the face of his demands. Bryce clenched his fists under the table, struggling to rein in his anger.

"Get out of my office," Bryce snapped, unable to keep the venom out of his words.

"I'll take that to mean I can go to work," she said, smiling.

"Leave, now."

"Thank you, Mr. Cattaneo," Tatianna replied with a polite nod, her lips curved into a subtle, victorious smirk. "I'll get to work now. Have a blessed day, Mr. Cattaneo."

With that, she turned and exited the room, leaving Bryce alone with his seething resentment. As the door clicked shut behind her, he slammed his fist against the desk, the pain providing a brief distraction from his inflamed emotions.

"Damn her," he muttered under his breath, staring at the closed door as if it were the physical embodiment of his failure to break Tatianna. His mind raced through various schemes and tactics, searching for the perfect way to make her sweat, to regain control over her.

"Next time," he vowed darkly, determination flashing in his eyes. "I'll find a way to make you regret coming back, Tatianna. Just you wait."

Tatianna

He thought he was going to make her sweat. He must’ve forgotten what her name was. Her name was Tatianna Dupree. And she never sweated unless she was working out, or having rough sex, or if it was hot as hell in the kitchen. Okay, she sweated sometimes. But never because of pettiness.

And that was what Bryce was being right now,petty. His mom had told her how he’d called, demanding to know why Lora had hired her. Then, suddenly, he’d called back, claiming he’d tried to go after her.Bullshit. Bryce was up to something. But she wasn’t going to let it deter her from what she came there to do.

Another thing that happened was that Bryce’s parents had dinner with Melinda’s parents last night. And according to Lora, Melinda had been a frazzled mess. She’d kept bringing up Tati, wondering why she was back and what her intentions were toward Bryce. She’d pouted prettily, prompting her parents to question Bryce’s intentions for her.

Patrick Cattaneo had assured them that once Bryce was ready to settle down, Melinda would be the only one for him. She was the one who’d stuck by his side through the good and the bad. When Tati had asked Lora what the bad was, Lora had told her it was the depression that followed when he returned to Italy to find Tati gone.

That had made Tati sad, and of course, she’d once again regretted leaving. Right now, regret was a waste of energy. So, she shoved it aside, focusing on the emotion that would get her through this: anger. She was angry with Melinda for thinking she deserved to be with Bryce just because she’d been there to support him emotionally after Tatianna left.

According to Lora, Bryceson hadn’t even shown up for dinner last night, which had irritated his father. Tati could just picture a pissed-off Patrick Cattaneo right now. He was an angry man, angry because his life hadn’t gone the way he’d wanted it to. And now he was trying to live vicariously through Bryceson.

Tati’s mom had always said she felt like Patrick would one day try to take over as the Don of the Cattaneo family. Tati wouldn’t put it past him. But that wasn’t any of her business. Her only concern when it came to the Cattaneo men was Bryceson.

Yeah, he was mad at her. And yeah, right now, Melinda was her priority. But Melinda wasn’t the only reason she’d returned. She wanted Bryce to live the life he’d always wanted. She couldn’t erase the past, but she could help him let go of all the anger he was feeling by exposing Melinda and letting him know they’d been manipulated.

She could become his moral compass once more. Then again, maybe she was the last person he needed to look to for any sort of moral support. Tati wasn’t the same woman she’d been five years ago. There was a cold sadness in her that had seeped into the marrow of her bones over the years.

Her smiles were just a mask these days. When she was alone, she was able to take that mask off. And her true face was one of anguish. Guilt, anger, frustration, and sadness were her constant companions. And if you stewed in those negative emotions for too long, they changed you.

She was proof of that. She may not look much different than she had five years ago. But she felt different. She was jaded now. Though she loved Bryce and wanted him back, she knew she couldn’t love him the way she’d loved him five years ago. Five years ago, she’d been happy and optimistic.

Though Tati craved a happily ever after, she wasn’t so sure that type of love truly existed anymore. And that was all her fault. She’d had that type of love, and she’d run from it. Her love had been fragile, easy to snap at the first sign of discord. Love wasn’t supposed to be like that.

Love was supposed to be enduring, everlasting. When in love, you were supposed to be willing to walk through the fire together. Yet, Tati had run at the first spark. That wasn’t love. And that scared her, and it made her wonder if she even knew what love was. She couldn’t look to any couples in her life for answers.

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