Page 101 of The Reno
I nodded. “And your brother—”
“He won’t answer my phone calls right now.” Liam sighed. “I don’t know if it’s because he’s up a mountain, drinking his way through a city, or just ignoring me.”
“But when he does answer—”
“I’m going to ask him to come back. If he wants to. Come back and help me open this place.”
It was incredible to see the difference in Liam. His voice was clearer, his eyes shone, and he stood taller. Like the restaurant had boosted his confidence. Like he had a renewed sense of who he was.
“And your dad took it well?”
Liam nodded. “He did. He knew about the plan originally anyway.”
I gasped. “What?”
“Ren told himeverything before he left. He tried to get Dad to push me out of my comfort zone. He wanted Dad to let me go. But Dad said he wanted me to come to it myself. He said I’d never been any good when pushed.”
I nodded. “Stubborn.”
“Do you want a contest, sweetheart?” He ran his hands up my arms. “Because I can remind you about a certain incident with a tent and some heavy rain.”
I rolled my eyes. “And you’ll never let me forget it.” I kissed his cheek, a ceasefire. “So your dad didn’t freak out?”
“No.” Liam smiled lightly. “He’d been preparing for months at home. He knew it was coming. He’s already sorted out the next two years of jobs and is getting ready to promote Jack. Plus, he’s got some old geezers up for helping out, too.”
“So what you’re saying is, you’re expendable,” I said, deadpan.
“Cheeky.” He pinched my bum. “But yes, apparently I am.”
“How liberating.”
“Liberating. Terrifying.” He shrugged and looked around at the abandoned cafe. “And now I have this.”
“It is so exciting, Liam.”
I pulled away, moving around the room, imagining the restaurant clearly in my head, like I was walking through it.
“I can put together a design plan. I can see it now. Something modern and minimalist, but not boring.” I frown. “I think we could feature a lot of colour. Reds, greens. The odd blue.” I nodded, biting my lip. “I need to get home and write these ideas down so I don’t forget them.”
“Slow down, Red.” Liam smiled. “I would love for you todesign the concept. I would appreciate the help.” He pulled me closer, his hand on the nape of my neck. “But we’re in no rush.”
I opened my mouth to disagree, but nothing came out. Usually, I would have three different drafts in my head right now. But the lazy, satisfied smile on Liam’s face made me want to slow down. I could come up with a design tomorrow.
“Come on, let’s go celebrate.” I grinned, pulling him towards the door. “I can’t buy you a drink, but I can buy you some cake or something—”
“Well, speaking of celebrating,” Liam said knowingly.
“What?” I turned around, unease in my stomach.
“A little birdie mentionedsomeone’sbirthday tomorrow,” Liam said, a song in his voice.
I slapped my forehead, crumpling. “Fucking Sandra!”
“It wasn’t Sandra.”
My eyes narrowed. “Lydia.”
Liam’s eyes twinkled. “Bingo.”
