Page 100 of Rematch
Chapter 41
Audrey
“Mmm,” Kiara moaned in delight as she chewed on a bite of my father’s popular barbeque brisket sandwich. “This tastes like heaven.”
“It’s my mother’s old recipe,” Dad explained. “The key is her homemade barbecue sauce.”
“It’s delicious! Are all your sauces homemade?”
“Most of them. You know there’s some you just can’t touch.”
Smiling, she nodded, impressed by the authenticity.
The other night, before I was dropped off at Max’s place, Kiara and I exchanged numbers and promised to hang out again since our time was cut short. I remembered thinking Dad would love her, so I invited her over to his restaurant for dinner tonight. She happily accepted, noting she and Adrian would need a good meal after their busy day at the tattoo convention.
When I told my Dad they were coming, and that Kiara owned a restaurant of her own, he decided to make a huge sampler platter of nearly every food on the menu for them to try. He spent a while running around the kitchen with his other cooks to prepare. I wanted to fuss at him, but couldn’t due to the smile on his face. With all the rough days he’s had, he deserved to relish in the good ones.
As I expected, he absolutely loved Kiara. From the moment he saw her sweet smile and heard her Southern accent, he was hooked. She’d come only with her driver, explaining Adrian practically passed out the moment they got back to the house. She promised to bring him leftovers.
His absence worked out, though. Without the boys around, we were able to chat more freely about her recent pregnancy symptoms and tips to help her deal with them. I drooled over her diamond wedding ring and her beautiful wedding photos. We talked for a while about the wedding planning process and the big day itself.
Dad kept passing by the table, seizing every opportunity to catch a reaction. It wasn’t long before I just invited him to sit along with us.
The conversation immediately switched to her cooking background, her restaurant, and questions about my father’s recipes. Both of them adamantly spoke and listened, clearly in their element.
“I don’t know what I’m going to do with all the recipes once I sell this place,” Dad mused, his smile dimming.
“You’ll pass them down to me,” I said, trying to preserve his joy. “And you’ll teach them to your future grandchildren. Maybe one of them will be better in the kitchen than I am.”
Kiara’s brows creased in confusion. “Wait, you’re selling this place?”
“Unfortunately,” Dad replied. “I’m having some health issues that’s preventing me from running this place the way I need to be.”
“Oh, I’m sorry to hear that. You’ve done an amazing job here. It’s not everyday you can find a high quality barbecue spot.”
“Thanks. I appreciate the compliment.”
“Have you thought about going into a partnership rather than selling it completely? Then, you can keep creative control, prioritize your health, and still earn a cut of the sales.”
“I have, but that’s the thing: no one wants to split things down the middle. Almost everyone I’ve spoken to wants all or nothing.”
Kiara’s eyes fell to the food in front of her. Her lips folded inwards as contemplation flickered through her eyes. “I’d be open to it,” she said after a moment, raising her gaze again.
“You would?” My father asked, brows raised.
She nodded. “Yeah. I mean, this place has too much potential to go to waste. Do you have a solid management staff?”
“Mhm. Most of them have been with me for years.”
“Well, my brother-in-law helps me with some of my business - finances, promotions, expansions, all that. Between the three of us and your management team, we should be able to keep this place running smoothly.”
“You wouldn’t want to change anything? Add your brand? Make it over completely?”
She shrugged. “I was actually thinking we could introduce some of your menu items onto our locations back home. Maybe do some pop-up shops. Dante is more of the implementer, but I think we could take a little piece of this over to the East Coast. Lord knows they need it.”
The light in Dad’s smile returned. Turning to me, he asked, “What do you think?”
I opened and closed my mouth to say, unsure what to say. The idea seemed to be presented with good intentions, but like any other business endeavor, it was one that needed to be discussed more before any finalizations were made.
