Page 26 of Say You Hate Me
I flick my eyes between them.Hmm.
“I have a contact with another restaurant group. I thought I’d put feelers out, and if it feels substantial, we can have dinner with them before we leave tomorrow.”
Luca stares at him for a beat. “I assume there’s a reason you’re not inviting me? Also, we have dinner plans with various people both nights, so it’ll have to be a lunch.”
Anderson smiles. “I don’t think so. If they express interest, I think we should prioritize them. We may be able to do okay here on our own, but in order toreallymake an impact, we will have to work with a group.”
Luca sighs. “Okay. Do what you need to do.”
I tamp down the uneasy feeling. Why does it seem like Anderson is going behind Luca’s back on this?
I glance at Luca.“Come to my room when you’re done, and we can all head to the tubes together.” I stand and place the napkin on my plate.
“Have fun,” Anderson says, his eyes cold. A dismissal.
“Oh, we will.” I spin around to walk away.
“Wouldn’t want my crotchety demeanor to ruin the excursion.”
I don’t turn around. Instead, I ball my fists and head toward the elevators, keeping my face neutral. Once inside, I glance over to the table to see Anderson and Luca in conversation, and just before the doors slide closed, Anderson’s face turns to mine.
His eyes are narrowed, and his jaw is set, like he’s clamping down on something. After the doors close, I let out a loud, primal growl and jab my floor number as hard as I can.
Screw him—every last molecule of him.
14
Anderson
I’m early,so I wait inside the eco-friendly lounge, which is made up of recycled wood, tin, and bamboo. Though this place is a bit more rustic than I’m used to, locals and tourists flock to it. After receiving Gwen’s email a few days ago, I decided to touch base late last night to see if they were still interested in working with someone to open a restaurant. They were—and she had one meeting time slot open today.
Maybe we’ve been thinking too L.A. Too literal. Gather is boutique and bougee, but Maui is cozy and casual. Our restaurant here should match the vibe of the city, which is why, despite my gag reflex when I think about it, Natalia losing us the deal last night may have been a blessing in disguise.
My phone buzzes, and I see an email from the editor of Sunrise. Quickly scrolling, I raise my eyebrows when I see that she’s reaching out about Natalia and Gather and wants to know when we’ll all have time to sit down and perhaps write up a feature on Gather’s new enterprise, as well as interview the ‘trio.’ It looks like Natalia had reached out at some point.
A woman walks over to me from the kitchen, smiling, and we shake hands.
“I’m Gwen. So nice to meet you, Anderson. Where’s Luca?” She looks behind me.
I may have told a white lie, but I also didn’t want Luca—and by proxy Natalia—jeopardizing what might be our last shot at opening a reputable restaurant. If we can’t have Corinne’s group, maybe I can salvage our brand with another, more casual group.
I am doing this for him—forus. There’s a reason he hired me, even if I had to pull some strings to have this meeting.
“He had a conflict in his schedule. But he’s very excited that you’re considering working with us.”
“Great. Shall we get started?”
I attempt to disregard the nagging feeling of restlessness—the feeling that perhaps I should’ve been honest with Luca.
That perhaps I’m betraying the one person I consider my best friend.
15
Natalia
I spendthe next hour going through the Excel sheet full of Hawaiian influencers that I messaged our first day here. Luca may be the creative brains behind Gather, and Anderson may be the business guru, but I can be damn sure that people will know the Gather name. I need to create buzz, drive demand, and get our measly follower count up. I send out a few sponsor proposals, schedule posts for the rest of the day, and by the time I pull on my shoes, over an hour has passed. As I’m about to text Luca, someone knocks on the door.
“Hi,” I say, shutting the door behind me as we head down.
