Page 6 of Executive Benefits

John, my sous chef, Phoebe, my manager, and several other servers waited for me to get on with the good news. “We are rebranding The Bridge.” Shock and awe and something that looked like relief swept over their faces. “I have sole ownership now, and we are going to make some changes.”

I clapped my hands together and continued, “I’ve hired a marketing agent to help us change up the place. We’re going rustic, family-style, and casual.” I looked around to gauge their interest, and they seemed intrigued. But just the simple thought of Julia made my mind race with thoughts and ideas that weren’t suitable for work. I would have to look at that later. I was probably almost twice her age, even if I hadn’t been attracted tosomeone for a while. I didn’t know how appropriate it was to be lusting after someone I'd hired to work with me.

Phoebe and John already knew as much that we were shifting gears and going into a new lane, and when Phoebe stepped forward, she asked, “Do you have any questions before Chef continues?”

One younger server raised her hand. “Monica?” I asked.

“Will you be keeping the staff the same?”

“Absolutely. We’ll be doing things a little differently, but our managerial team will help train you in a new way. But just because we’re going casual doesn’t mean that we’re going to scrimp on service.”

The staff nodded at me, and I felt juiced with positivity. “We’ll be closing the restaurant down the last two weeks of January for construction and will be reopening on Valentine’s Day with an amazing launch to reintroduce ourselves to the community.” I explained the premise, and although we hadn’t talked in-depth, the items that Julia brought up were creating exciting new ideas in my mind.

Not just sexual ones.

The meeting went on for a little while longer, but then I let them loose on the pizza we had brought in for this evening.

“What do you think?” I asked Phoebe and John.

They looked at each other and shrugged. “Seems like a good change,” John said. “I think it’ll be a shake up that we need, but it’s a big change. I hope you can handle it.” John laughed.

“I’ll be fine with it,” I snipped. That was always a joke Kendra made at my expense. If I didn’t go along with what she was suggesting at the first go, she’d tell me I just didn’t like change and that she’d take over the “harder decisions” for me because I always took too long to decide anything.

While not completely inaccurate, I remembered the moment I just gave up and let her take over. We were arguing about canapes for an appetizer—I was the chef, after all, I’d reminded her. She’d thrown a huge shit fit, and at that moment, I was just too tired to argue anymore.

Instead of saying anything else, I closed my eyes, scrubbed my face with my hand, and said, “What type of canapes do you think will work best?”

That was about five years into our marriage. I was already unhappy, but I thought—at least some part of me believed the logic—that if I just gave her what she wanted, that thing would be better and somehow, we could find our happiness again. I didn’t realize it at the time, but Kendra was never going to be truly happy, and the only real time she was happy was when she was steamrolling over anyone who got in her way.

I shook out the unpleasant feeling and turned my attention back to the meeting and to John. I knew John wasn’t trying to push a button, and I soothed my bristled edges down. “Sorry,” I grunted, turning my eyes to Phoebe. “How do you think it’ll go?”

“I think it’ll be great. The PR rep must have really made an impression on you to trust her right away.”

“Har, har, har, you two are hilarious,” I said.

I couldn’t admit to her how much truth was in her statement, but I always appreciated the idea that they gave me a hard time. Itshowed me that even though I was their boss, they also trusted me enough to be real.

The thought of Julia, though, excited me again, and a warm sensation dripped into my chest. I smiled, wondering what she’d have to offer at our next meeting. I kind of couldn’t wait to see her again. Not just because she was beautiful and wore that sexy skirt and heels. Not even because I spent some of our meeting picturing myself learning what was beneath that skirt.

Because she was fucking brilliant too.

And she represented the idea of the future. Not just for my business, but the idea that I might be ready to date again.

I looked over at the servers and kitchen staff eating and gave anyone who turned their attention to me a smile. Then I checked with Phoebe and John. “I’m going to go into the office for a little bit of work. Close up when you’re done.” I nodded and left the rest of the staff to the festivities.

Phoebe’s words rang truer than I wanted them to. Julia gave such an incredible presentation that it was hard for me not to just give her a wad of cash on the spot. I knew she'd just moved to Heart’s Creek, and I hated to say it, but I was happy she did.

It was the first time, other than this afternoon when the judge handed down her ruling, that I started to feel hope. I walked back to my office, flicked the lights on, and closed my door.

I sat in my chair and rocked back in wooden comfort. The chair was my grandfather's and it had just always stuck around. No matter what restaurant our family had going at the time, the chair was always there. I placed my hands on the armrests, surprised at how the weight of my divorce and the unknownof what was happening with the restaurant was heavy on my shoulders.

I closed my eyes and let the peace of the moment settle itself over me.

“Do you know your staff is sitting in your dining room eating pizza?” David said as he opened the door and walked into my office.

“Yes, Phoebe thought it would stop them from pushing back because Kendra always buttered them up as long as they went with whatever she wanted.”

“And you think pizza was the best way to butter them up?” He sat in the chair across from my desk. He reclined, crossing his ankle over his knee. “Heard the good news.”

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