Page 24 of Alpha & Omega

Her tawny brown eyes rolled with a smirk on her face. “Sure… and this is why everyone thinks chefs are arrogant and mean.”

“I’m a saint,” I countered.

“Fine, you’re pretty good as far as bosses go.”

I really tried to be. Some chefs could be assholes, but I wanted a loyal and reliable staff. Being an arrogant dick didn’t foster that sort of environment, and customers wouldn’t like it either, with us so out in the open.

For a Monday night, it wasn’t too busy, but we had a steady flow of diners, keeping us busy enough.

When ten o’clock rolled along, I wrapped up my night, leaving my staff to finish up and clean, so I could head home to Hudson, who, no doubt, would still be up since school had ended for the summer, playing video games online with his friends.

“I’m outta here, Ter. See you tomorrow.”

“Night, Harl.”

When I stepped out into the warm evening, I glanced at Alpha’s Rejects, seeing a young man as big as Kingston with cropped dark hair taking IDs.

Once I got home, I found Hudson at the kitchen table, playing a game on his gaming laptop, as predicted. He kept his dark locks pulled back into a thick ponytail.

“How was your day?” he asked, pausing the game and removing his headphones.

“Good. Not too busy, but it wasn’t dead either. How about you?”

He shrugged. “Fine.”

“Great conversation, Hud.”

He smirked and looked at me. “Seriously, I didn’t do anything but sleep in and play games with Oliver. Only he keeps my life interesting.”

“How is your BFF, anyway? I haven’t seen him much lately. You’re always going over to his place.”

“Speaking of which, we’re going to hang out over at his house all weekend, if that’s okay.”

I headed to the fridge, grabbed myself a beer, and twisted the cap off. “More than okay.”

“So, are you going to go on another date with that guy?” he asked.

I leaned against the counter and took a pull from my beer bottle. “That’s the plan. Wednesday, he said.”

“Do you like him?”

“Yeah, I do. We have a lot in common.”

“Good.Finally. I hope you two work out.”

I walked over to him and kissed his cheek, much to his dismay, and he pretended to wipe it off. “I’m too old for dad kisses.”

“You’re never too old. Anyway, I need a shower and to hit the sack. Don’t stay up too late.” But I knew he would, anyway.

He waved me off, and I headed to my bedroom. After a shower, I grabbed my laptop and climbed into bed to do some research on Alpha’s Rejects. I couldn’t grab all the financials because it was a private business, but I checked their credit report. I loved the vibe of the place and that they brought in local bands. Out of curiosity, I wanted to see how well the bar did. It would be nice to get an idea of whether my place succeeded as well.

A weird thought hit me about combining the two businesses, which would boom in popularity. People could grab some great food and cocktails, then mosey on over to listen to live music. Patrons wouldn’t have to go anywhere else for the night. The thought was only a fantasy, but intriguing, nonetheless.

Did my restaurant bring him more business? Once patrons left my place, did they head over to his? I hoped so.

I filled out an online form on Alpha’s. I didn’t need to know all the details of the business, only wanting to gauge its success.

On Wednesday morning, I sipped coffee as I texted Kingston to make sure we were still on tonight. We’d texted back and forth the past couple of days, but he’d been a little standoffish ever since he learned our businesses were neighbors. I didn’t know why that bothered him, but I thought it was kind of cool.

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