Page 52 of The Friend Zone
In his current mood, Omar might swing on his brother. “If you came here to start shit, I’m not going to stoop to your level. Again, she was never yours, so I didn’t steal her from you.”
Cole’s laughter grated on his nerves. “You’re not the only one who can steal, you know.”
Omar’s eyes narrowed. “What the hell does that mean?”
Cole continued to laugh, louder this time, and sauntered away to one of the small tables. He sat, slouching in the chair, staring at Dana and his family with a negligent air.
“Honey, your guests will be here soon. Concentrate on having a good opening night, okay? Don’t let your brother upset you.” Dorothy patted Omar’s arm and she, Senior, and Athena went to sit with Cole.
Dana took his hand in hers and squeezed. “I know you’re upset right now, but your mom is right,” she said in a low voice. “You have guests coming, including the media. This is a big night.”
He didn’t respond, but a muscle in his jaw tightened as he kept his gaze on his brother.
“Omar, you’ve been planning the opening of Kitchen Love for over two years. I know you’re upset, but you have to smile and act normal, no matter how difficult it is. You don’t have a choice.”
“You have no idea how difficult acting normal will be with him here.”
He snorted and shook his head, turning his back on his family. Why did he bother trying to fix his relationship with Cole? Nothing he did mattered over the years. So many times he’d tried, to the extent of funding his businesses—all failed endeavors—only to receive the same result. Blame. Rejection.
“You’re right, I don’t know how you feel, but I know you’re hurting.”
“I want this night to be over.”
Dana leaned closer and gazed up at him. “How did you get through rough patches when you played football? Do the same tonight. Push through.”
“Welcome to Kitchen Love!”
Omar and Dana swung toward the front of the restaurant, where the hosts greeted early arrivals. He recognized the couple—the woman was on the city council and her husband ran a nonprofit.
Omar straightened his shoulders and reminded himself of who he was. Dana was right. He’d been through rough patches before—injury, doubt, the loss of his grandmother, and a bunch of other events that sucked the enthusiasm out of playing football.
He always pulled through because he was Omar “Motherfucking” Bradford, and tonight he would do the same.
23
Despite the confrontation between him and his brother, the night was a success with only a few hiccups, all handled promptly by staff and volunteers.
The ice machine broke, but luckily toward the end of the night, so when two volunteers went to a nearby grocery store and bought bags of ice, they were sufficient to last until closing. The restaurant also ran out of ketchup because, Omar learned, the supplier shorted their order, and no one noticed. A quick run to the store and they were fully stocked again.
Because of his experience weeks ago at the restaurant opening he attended with Tracy, Omar overcompensated by having extra staff on hand in case they ran into problems. The extra people made sure the food came out of the kitchen hot and on time and two kitchen supervisors double checked each meal before the servers took them on the trays. They also chipped in to help with food prep when the kitchen became swamped and made sure tables were bussed and cleared off in a timely manner.
The reporters Omar spoke to asked tough but informed questions while at the same time giving him the opportunity to share the restaurant’s mission in a clear and coherent way. All the diners praised the food and promised to return after the grand opening.
Athena and his family stayed until the end of the night, including Cole, whom he wished would go away. No such luck, and he watched with concern as his brother broodingly drank mixed drinks most of the night.
At the end of the evening, Omar went into the kitchen and thanked everyone for their hard work. “I really appreciate everything you did tonight. You should be proud of yourselves. We did it!” He said a few more words and then led the team in a round of applause.
Then he exited the kitchen and went back into the dining room. A few of the remaining servers were cleaning up. His parents and Athena were on their feet chatting with Dana, but Cole remained seated as if he expected another course to come from the kitchen.
His eyes followed Omar as he approached.
“Proud of you, son,” Senior said, patting Omar on the shoulder.
On a natural high, Omar rubbed his hands together. “Thanks everybody. I appreciate you coming tonight and offering your moral support—”
Cole belched loudly.
Dorothy briefly closed her eyes, and Senior shook his head.
