Chapter 10
Kat
“YOU KNOW HOW I HATE to be kept waiting,” Kobe said, his jaw tight and his eyes hard.
I glared at him, wondering what he was up to. “What’s the big deal? I thought you said this project was important.”
“It is,” he said.
“Then why are you all over me for spending a few minutes talking to the guy who is going to be overlooking just about everything we do with this restaurant.”
“You stayed in there longer than necessary just to piss me off.”
“Oh... get over yourself.”
“No,” he said, growing angrier by the minute. “I want you to respect... respect my...”
“Your what, Kobe? You want me to respect your what? Your precious time? Your fragile ego? Your prestigious name? What? What in the world could you possibly have, Kobe, that would deserve my respect?”
Biting his bottom lip, he sneered and shook his head. His lips parted, as if to say something, but they clamped tight again, his bottom lip once again finding refuge under his front teeth.
I opened the car door.
“What are you doing?” he said.
“I don’t like where this is going,” I said. “I don’t know what is making you so pissed, but I don’t feel like hanging around to figure it out. You go on ahead and I’ll go back in and start working with Trent.”
“I’ll go back in and start working with Trent,” he mimicked with an ugly grimace. “Forget it. We’ll start tomorrow.”
Fighting hard to keep my anger from reaching the same level as his, I pushed the door open and set one foot on the asphalt. “You’re the one who was so eager to get started on this. Why don’t you sit this one out and take advantage of the extremely strong work ethic that my father instilled in me. I want to take a good look at the budget that we’ll have to work with.”
“I said no. Get back in the car.”
“What the hell is wrong with you? Didn’t you hear him? We only have two weeks to get this thing up and running... and with a profit, I might add.”
“I don’t care. You’re not staying here alone.”
“I won’t be alone.”
“I don’t want you here alone with him.”
“With who? Trent? Is that what this is all about? You don’t want me spending any time alone with Trent?”
Kobe glanced at his watch and started the car. “Close the door. I don’t have time for this. I have to get back to campus.”
“So what? I don’t,” I shot back at him.
“You’re coming with me. Now, shut the door.”
“No.”
“Kat,” he warned as he put the car into gear and slowly backed up. “Close the door.”
Instead of following his orders, I stepped out of the moving car, almost tripping over myself in the process.
“Kat! Get back here.”
“Go. Go to whatever it is that’s so important on campus. I have work to do, and I want to get started.”
“Look, I have a meeting with my guys. Please, get in the car.”
“Go, Kobe,” I said, trying a softer tone with him. “Don’t worry about me. I’ll catch a ride back with Trent.”
“No. You can’t stay.”
“Yes.I can.”
“Kat.”
“Kobe.”
“Kat, I don’t have time to argue with you.”
“Then stop arguing and get going.”
“No!”
“Why the hell not?”
He pulled in a long and exasperated breath. “Because, Kat. Just because.”
“Well, look... when you come up with a better reason than ‘just because’, let me know. In the meantime, I’m going to go in there and get a head start on this project.”
He hesitated. “Um... Okay. Okay. You’re right. We really should start working on the project. So, get in the car, we’ll go back to campus, I’ll do what I have to do, and then I’ll come back here with you. How does that sound?”
“Silly. Ridiculous. Absurd. I’m already here. Why waste the time of going back to campus when I could be working here? Besides, I have nothing to do there. Am I supposed to just sit around and wait for you, precious Mr. King? Get serious.”
Gripping the steering wheel, he stared straight ahead.
“Kobe?” I said, growing concerned. He was acting so strange.
He chewed on his bottom lip as his gaze dropped to the dashboard.
“Kobe?”
“You know,” he finally said. “We’re supposed to work on this together. This is our project, not just yours. This isn’t all about you. I have to earn my grade on this as well.”
“I’m not going to hog the project, Kobe. You’ll have plenty of time to prove yourself.”
As I closed the door, he pulled his phone out. “Axel? Hey, it’s me. I won’t be able to make the game tonight. Apologize to Tom and Jeremy for me, will you? Yeah. Yeah. I have my project to work on. Sure thing. I’ll see you later tonight.”
I cleared the frown from my brow and turned to head into Ginger.
“Hang on,” Kobe said as he shot out of the car. He was beside me before his car door had slammed shut. “I’m coming with you.”
With my hand on the door handle, I turned to look at him. I had so many questions. He was being so unreasonable. I had to wonder if it was a matter of, ‘if he can’t have me, no one can’. Or rather, ‘if he doesn’t want me, no one should’.
“What are you waiting for?” he said. “Let’s go.”
I pressed a confused smile and opened the door.
“Trent,” I called out into the dining room. “Trent. We’re back.”
“Is somebody out there?” Trent called from his office.
“Yes. It’s Kat,” I said as I rounded the corner and came to his door.
He quickly came to greet me, a wide and pleased smile on his face. He reached out to lay his hand on my shoulder, his touch warm and hungry for more.
Kobe came up behind me and the pleased smile on Trent’s face immediately faded.
“Oh,” he said, quick to resume a professional grin. “You’re both back. What can I do for you?”
“Kobe and I were out in the parking lot,” I said, lightly slapping Kobe’s chest with the back of my hand. “And we were talking about this two week deadline. There’s so much to do in such short time... too short a time.”
“You’re right. It most certainly is a tight deadline.”
“I was wondering,” I said. “Did my da... um... Mr. Lee... Did Mr. Lee talk to you about the budget? Does he have an amount in mind with regards with the hiring of staff, acquisition of supplies and so on?”
“He did, indeed,” Trent said as he returned to his desk. “I kind of expected you to ask about that.” He punched a few keys on his computer keyboard, then turned the screen to us.
“This is the full amount Mr. Lee invested,” he said as he pointed to a figure on the spreadsheet. “And these are our expenditures so far; this building, décor, furniture and such.”
I pointed to a figure at the bottom. “Are you saying that this is all that’s left to get this place up and running?”
“I’m afraid so,” Trent said.
“Wow,” Kobe said with a slow shake of his head. “That wouldn’t even cover half of Axel’s wardrobe for the semester.”
“Trent,” I said, a little surprised by the insufficient amount. “Are you sure that’s all that’s left? I mean, we have so much to do, so much to pay for... hiring an adequate staff, getting all the supplies... not to mention the cost of marketing and promotion. It’s impossible to get all that for just $20,000.”
He nodded. “It will require some creative negotiating.”
“Creative?” I said, staring at the unimpressive number.
“If it’s any consolation, Mr. Singh is aware of the tight budget and was equally surprised.”
“I guess that’s going to make a successful opening all the more worthy of a good grade.”
“And I must warn you,” Trent said. “Mr. Singh and I will be keeping a close eye on every penny. I just thought I’d let you know in case you consider adding your own money in.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it,” I said.
Kobe remained silent.
I sat in the chair facing Trent’s desk, my eyes still on that number.
Kobe shook his head. “That might be enough to open some dinky little pop up shop. But for an edgy restaurant in Napa? No way. Absolutely no way.”
Kobe’s pessimism made the gears in my head turn a little faster. If he was going to play the pessimist, I had to play the optimist.
“It’s not as bad as it seems,” I said. “I mean, it will be a challenge, but... the more I think about it... I know of restaurants in Taiwan and Japan that have had great success with far smaller investments.”
“How interesting,” Kobe droned.
“Oh,” I scolded as I got to my feet. “Stop griping. We need to get to work.”
I walked out of the office and headed back to the dining room.
“And where do you plan on starting?” Kobe said as he followed behind me.
I sat down at a table and pulled a notepad and pen from my bag. “The menu. We have to decide on the menu, then figure out the cost of each plate, then the price on the menu.”
I quickly jotted down a few thoughts.
“What are you writing?”
“When I was in Asia, I went to a few popular shops. They were small and simple, but they had food that really packed a punch... and the people loved those spots. They were a hit. The important thing is to remember that customers want to get good value for their dollar. People want food that is going to awaken their tastebuds. Many restaurants today cut corners and replace tasty spices and herbs with salt. But some of those restaurants... Taiwan, Japan, Thailand, Cambodia... Mmm. They crafted foods that made your palate curious and eager for more.”
“What do you want me to do?” Kobe said, seemingly out of his element.
“I have an idea,” I said. “I’ll give you the name of one of those Asian restaurants and you look it up on your phone and take a look at the menu. From there we’ll make our choices.”
For the next hour we examined various menus and came up with a first draft of an interesting menu.
“You really think that will get people in the door?” Kobe said.
“I do,” I said with complete confidence in our choices. “If we limit the menu to a few key dishes, with those dishes often using the same ingredients, it reduces the need for a large inventory and keeps our losses at a minimum.”
He looked at the menu again, his eyes narrowed with skepticism.
“Trust me, Kobe. If we have tasty food with fresh ingredients, a cool and interesting atmosphere with relaxing music and a staff that is efficient and friendly, we can’t lose.”
The hint of a smile curved his lips, but that skeptic scowl remained on his brow.
“With a smaller menu, and every dish a homerun, we can get going on a smaller budget.” I picked up my notepad. “Come on. Let’s go show what we have to Trent.”
“Why?” Kobe said. “He’s not the one who’s going to grade us.”
“Oh, stop being so childish, Kobe. We’ll be working with Trent for the coming weeks. You’re going to have to find a way to get along with him.”
Without giving him a chance to respond, I marched to Trent’s office and rapped lightly on the open door. “Might I bother you a moment.”
“Of course, Katrina. It’s no bother at all,” he said with a flirtatious smile. But once again, the smile disappeared as Kobe entered the office behind me.
“I just wanted to show you the menu that we’ve devised. It’s based off of the many shops I’ve visited in various parts of Asia.” I handed him my notepad.
Nodding his approval, Trent read the menu then looked up at me. “You did this in the brief hour that you were out there?”
I nodded.
“I helped, too,” Kobe inserted.
Trent acknowledged Kobe, but barely. His gaze quickly returned to me. “I’m impressed,” he said. “Stinky Tofu, Xiao Long Bao, Chicken Feet, Gua Bao. I’m familiar with some of this, but the others are very intriguing.”
“Of course, we’ll want to add our own little touch to each of this menu items... you know... make it our own.”
He nodded. “Very good.” He eyed me with new interest, as if struck with the realization that I was more than just a pretty face. “You know, I’ve seen restaurant owners slave away at menus, adding this, removing that, changing the other. But this looks solid, Katrina. Real solid. I’m impressed by your restraint. Most people want to offer more and more items.”
“I’m hoping to offer more with less.”
“Will the budget allow for a top chef?” Kobe said.
I looked at Kobe then Trent. “Didn’t you say that this is a Lee Family restaurant?”
“Yes. Yes, it is.”
“The Lee Family really has a great reputation. Do you think we could snatch some up and coming junior chef from another restaurant? I mean, what junior chef wouldn’t jump at the chance to be Head Chef at a new and innovative Lee Family restaurant.”
“That’s an interesting idea,” Trent said. “I’ll talk to Mr. Lee’s assistant.”
“And as far as the remaining staff is concerned... we’ll just have to manage with as few employees as we can.”
“And get cheap labor,” Kobe added.
“No,” I quickly said. “We’ll pay them a fair wage.”
“But if we want to keep...” Kobe was cut off when his phone rang. He looked down at the screen. “I have to take this. I’ll be right back.”
He stepped just outside of the office. “Yeah, Axel. What is it?”
While I continued to chat with Trent, I had one ear tuned into Kobe’s conversation.
“What did she do now?” Kobe said. “Right. Don’t let her get to you, bro. You know how girls can get.”
Who were they talking about?
“Yeah. I hear you, man, but...” Kobe grunted as he listened to his brother. “Forget Layla and everything she does. We’ll fix this. Don’t worry about it.”
So it was Layla that was getting under the Kings’ skin. Good for her. I wondered what she’d done to get them so on edge.
“I’ll leave right now and be there before you know it,” Kobe said. “Sure thing. See you.”
He walked back into the office. “Family matters,” he said, showing us his phone. “I have to get going.” He looked at me. “We’re finished with the budget anyway. Might as well head back.”
Trent leaned back and held his hands up. “I’m certainly not going to hold you back.”
Kobe looked at me, his eyes telling me to get up and go with him.
“Go ahead, Kobe,” I said. “I have a few candidates in mind for Executive Chef. I’m on a roll and don’t want to stop now. I’ll catch up with you later.”
He stared at me, his jaw tight.
I turned to Trent. “Do you think you could drive me back to the Academy when we’re through?”
“Don’t be ridiculous, Kat,” Kobe said. “I’m sure Mr. Trent has better things to do than to drive out to our campus.”
“Oh, no,” Trent was quick to say. “Actually, I have some errands to run out of town. It would be a pleasure to have your company on the drive down, Katrina.”
Kobe pressed a discontented grin. “Right.”
“Well then, it’s settled,” I said as I got up, grabbed Kobe’s arm and escorted him out to the dining room.
“I really don’t think it’s a good idea for you to be alone with him out here,” Kobe said.
“And I really don’t think it’s any of your business what I do,” I countered. I opened the door and shoved him out. “I’ll see you on campus and let you know what I’ve accomplished here. See you later.”
I closed and locked the door before he could argue more.
“Kat,” he shouted as he tried to open the door. “Kat, wait. Listen.”
I ignored his pleas and turned to go back to Trent’s office.
“Come back here.Katrina.Kat.Kat!”