Page 73 of Made to Love Ya

Although I tried to pretend that I didn’t care, I was anxious for tomorrow evening to come so that I could see Izael. I didn’t understand why he did what he did to me, but I missed him so badly.

I knew that it was going to be a long night.

* * *

If I thoughtthe night was going to be long, it seemed as if the day dragged on. I swore I looked at the clock on five different occasions at various times of the day, and it was noon. I received an email from Asante Dillard asking me to give her a call around four, and though I was hesitant to call her, I did because curiosity got the best of me.

“This is Asante Dillard. How may I help you?”

“Hi, Asante. This is Talia Campbell.”

“Talia! Thank you so much for calling me. I wasn’t sure if you would, especially considering everything that happened.”

“Asante, I would like to apologize to you for how I handled things that day. You were unfortunately pulled into something that you shouldn’t have been involved in. I know that I didn’t stick around to explain, and I also know that the email I sent declining your offer was cryptic at best.”

“I will agree that I was stunned at the statement ‘I believe that it is in the best interest of the magazine and me to decline your offer at this time. I have had a personal relationship with someone on your board, and I believe that it would be a conflict of interest for me to take the job’. It would have left anyone hungering for more details.”

“But not you?” I asked, suspecting that she knew more than she let on.

“No. Not me. I asked you to call me, Talia, because I owe you an explanation and an apology. You see, Izael is an old friend of mine. He and my husband are good friends from a long time ago. They still keep in touch, and he comes to our home at least three times a month. Usually, he and I get caught up in business talk while my husband tunes us out. My husband is in the construction business, and when Izael and I talk about cultural ideas and norms, Kenny usually blanks us out.

“About a month ago, during one of those discussions, Izael asked how our search was going. With him being in the restaurant business, he had a vested interest in the column for our magazine. He definitely wanted someone who would have favorable interest in not only the restaurants that he owns but those that he has a business share in.”

I nodded and listened to her, unsure of where she was going with this.

“When I mentioned how excited I was that T fromT’s Tasty Temptationsapplied to the writing position for that column, he instantly recoiled. When I asked him what that was about he declined to speak on the matter. I pushed and pushed him about it until he folded. He shared with me that you had left several negative reviews for a restaurant that he owns.”

I was baffled. I couldn’t imagine what Asante was talking about. I had never left reviews on any of Izael’s restaurants because I always thought it would be a conflict of interest. I would feel disloyal to him if I wrote a negative review because I did not like the restaurant. And if I did like it, I would be worried about writing a positive review because of my feelings for him.

“I’ve never left a review on any of his restaurants. I mean, I’ve eaten at Tahini, Pepper & Spice, and The Ebony Candle, and I love them down! But I’ve never reviewed them at all because of our relationship. Although people don’t know who I am, I still didn’t want to create a conflict of interest. It’s just good business sense, is all.”

She chuckled politely and then stated, “Oh, sweetie. You really don’t know, do you?”

“Know what?”

“Izael is part owner of The Sweet Spot, Cozy Fusions, The Culinary Canvas, and he owns River & 3rd.”

“No. I knew that he owned…Wait. What did you say?”

“I said?—”

“No. I mean, I heard you, but did you say that he owns River & 3rd?”

“Mmhmm.”

“I knew he had a share in all of those, but why didn’t I know about River & 3rd?”

“Aimee Kensington opened the restaurant. She owned it for two years before she and her husband died in a car accident with a drunk driver. They bequeathed it in their will to Izael because he was like the son they never had. Aimee was?—”

“His father’s baby sister.”

“Exactly.”

“The restaurant used to be called The Velvet Suite before I moved to Atlanta.”

“Yes, and he changed the name after he acquired ownership because he wanted to pay homage to her in his own way,” Asante explained.

“Because she died at the corner of River & 3rd,” I finished.

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