Chapter Three
London
“I’m really sorry, but we’re…” I begin before Noah grabs my hand and pulls me to the back of the diner. He has wide eyes and puts his finger to his lips, gesturing me not to say anything.
I frown, sending him a confused look. “What? They’re customers.” We’ve flipped the sign, so we aren’t serving anyone, but it was nice to see new faces. At least that meant we’re getting a bit of reach.
Mom is going to flip when I tell her, and with how disappointed she is that I’m not coming to visit any time soon, it might soften the blow.
“London.” Noah draws out my name as if I’m missing something important. He’s staring straight ahead at the men while he sits us at the farthest table from them. “Don’t those guys scream ‘danger’ to you?”
I frown and crane my neck around to take a second look at the men. They’re all tall and a bit intimidating. The two men flanking the third are wearing sunglasses, but the man in the middle is not, and he meets my gaze. Then, he whispers something to his buddies before staring ahead once more.
None of them look even remotely approachable, but as long as they order something, it shouldn’t matter.
We’re desperate enough for customers, scary looking or otherwise.
The one in the middle with the dark eyes and light hair is wearing a suit, but the other two are dressed in all black and leather as if they don’t want their identity to be known. That sends shivers down my spine.
Why wouldn’t they want to be recognized?
I want to be wrong about them, but I suddenly wonder if I shouldn’t have let Noah drag me away.
Quickly, I turn and push back against the booth before pulling out my phone and typing a quick text to Dad. Knowing him, his phone is probably turned off because he’s in the kitchen.
Dad, whatever you do, don’t come out of the kitchen.
There’s a small chance he’ll see my message, and an even smaller chance he’ll do what it says.
“Have you seen them before?” Noah asks, but he knows the answer. If I had, neither of us would be this tense.
I shake my head. “No.” I bite my bottom lip and blow out a breath. “You don’t think they’re going to pull out a gun, do you?”
“No, Lo, they wouldn’t do that.” He’s trying to make me feel better and keep himself calm, but I know he’s lying. I’ve seen scenes like this in television shows and movies.
“Why are they here?” I ask more to myself than to Noah. “If they were going to rob someone, why us? We’re empty at noon on a Wednesday. Surely, there are restaurants with far more money than us.”
It doesn’t make sense.
“Hopefully, they’re here for something else.”
It doesn’t look like the men intend to rob the diner, or maybe they’re waiting for someone to get to the register first; I’m not sure. Their demeanor makes it look like they’re looking for someone or something specific.
I frown, my heart plummeting. “You don’t think they could be here for Dad, do you?”
My dad can do no wrong, and the idea that someone is out to get him doesn’t sit well with me, especially considering what these men look like. I shudder to think he could be involved with them in any way.
I pray my dad hasn’t done something stupid that he can’t take back.
Before Noah can reassure me, the kitchen door opens, and I turn to see Dad stroll out with two plates of food in his hands and a huge grin on his face.
So, he didn’t see my text.
“Who’s ready for some celebration food?!” he calls out before he realizes how eerie the air is. He notices we’re nowhere to be seen and turns his attention to the men in the doorway. I’m shocked by the way his smile disappears as grim recognition floods his face.
How do you know them, Dad?
And more importantly, what has he done to warrant a visit from men who looked like they strolled right out of a gangster flick?
“Barrett.” The man in the middle says his name with a smile although it lacks any amusement.
“Aren’t you happy to see me? And you brought us food?
Great. I’m starving.” He takes the food from my dad’s hands and hands one plate to each of the men beside him.
“How about we take a seat, and have a little chat?”
The way he talks screams danger.
I want to get up and go to my dad, but Noah grabs my thigh to keep me seated, slowly shaking his head. I try to pull away from him, but he isn’t having it, mouthing, “I just want you to keep safe.”
As much as I hate sitting there and leaving my dad to fend for himself, Noah is right.
I can’t help my dad if I’m in danger with him, and I’m grateful to Noah for keeping a clear head.
I let out a deep breath, moving toward the window and looking at them from the small opening between the seat and the wall so as not to make it obvious I’m eavesdropping.
Whatever they need to talk about looks serious, and I consider that maybe Noah is right.
I don’t need to get involved for now, but if they lay a finger on him, I’m going to lose it.
Neither Noah nor anyone else will be able to stop me.
“I doubt you’ve failed to notice how late you’ve been on your payments.” The man cocks his head and reaches behind him, and one of his thugs hands him a black folder. Although they don’t indicate what’s inside, I have a pretty good idea what’s going on.
My only confusion is regarding who Dad would have borrowed money from without telling anyone? He tells me everything. At least I thought he did.
“Carlisle, all I need is…” My dad gives the man a name, but Carlisle interrupts him.
“You took out a loan for a quarter of a million dollars, correct?”
My eyes widen. Two hundred and fifty thousand dollars? Why did he need so much? That’s not like him. He’s always been about working hard to earn what you get rather than taking the easy way out.
“Yes,” Dad grits out.
“Then you admit that we haven’t seen a payment from you in six months?”
Six months? Dad, what have you done? What have you gotten yourself into?
A swallow this time. “Yes.”
“And why is that?” Carlisle closes the folder and hands it back to the man next to him. “We do not run a charity establishment.”
“It’s just that…” Dad stutters a bit. “It’s been hard lately because of the lack of business.
Sales have plummeted so badly in the past six months that I’ve barely broken even.
I intend to pay you back, I do, but maybe we can negotiate terms because as you can see, fewer and fewer customers come in every day. The diner is usually empty.”
“Okay,” Carlisle nods. “The economy is hard, and that’s something we have to take into account. As a business, we think about all these circumstances.” He turns his back to Dad and makes a face to his men.
“Thank you. Thank you.”
My dad is cut off as Carlisle swiftly turns, landing his palm against Dad’s cheek, the sound of the slap echoing through the quiet diner.
No, he fucking didn’t.
I see red as Dad stumbles backward, clutching his cheek.
My chest is heaving, and I start fighting Noah hard to be let loose.
I want to give this man a taste of his own medicine, but Noah isn’t budging.
We’re making so much noise that we draw the eyes of one of the men.
Noah moves and slides into the booth beside me with a wild look in his eye. My heart is pounding.
“What do you think you’re going to do, Lo?” he growls quietly. “If we let them know we’re related to your dad, things could be even worse for him. What’s the best thing we can do for him?”
I clench my hands into fists and exhale. “I don’t know.”
Noah tries to get me to meet his gaze, his voice low and even. “What would he want you to do?”
Dad would want me to stay put and stay safe. He’s always been protective and selfless.
I blow out a breath to calm my racing heart. Noah’s right. My stomping over there and punching this man in the face would only make things worse.
And that’s if I even get close enough to cause any damage.
I probably wouldn’t make it within five feet of the man, or his goons.
“Get up, Barrett. You’re embarrassing yourself.” Carlisle takes a step back as Dad pushes himself to his feet. From where I sit, I can see his legs shaking, and I feel terrible, but what can I do? He sits in the nearest booth, and Carlisle bends down to look him in the eye.
“I don’t like to get violent, but I don’t appreciate when I’m not being taken seriously, yes?”
My father doesn’t have a choice in his next words. “Yes.”
“You signed a contract that laid out specific terms of how the monetary payments were to be made. You don’t get to change the terms whenever you like. If we don’t receive the entire past-due amount by the due date of the next payment, I’ll do a lot more than slap you. Am I understood?”
Dad stands and puts his hands together in a pleading gesture. “I’ll get you your money, I promise, but I just need a little more time.”
“Your time is running out, old man. Spend this time figuring out how to get some green in your pocket rather than asking for an extension that’s not gonna happen.
” He pops his knuckles. “We’ll be back in less than a week, Barrett, and I hope you have something to give us.
I’d hate to see your face all fucked up, wouldn’t you? ”
With one final look, the men walk out of the diner, and I shove Noah out of the booth so I can go to my dad. Right now, I’m solely focused on making sure he’s okay. I will ask him what’s going on later.
He looks up when he sees me coming but doesn’t say anything. I wrap my arms around his waist and rest my head on his chest, comforting him the best way that I know. “Dad,” I say his name reassuringly, “are you okay?” I back far enough to look at his face and see the red mark framing it.
I’m not a violent person, but seeing my dad reduced to a bruised, vulnerable shell, makes me want to race after the men who just left.
That son of a bitch. I want to hunt him down.
He nods, combing my hair with his fingers. “You two heard all that?” The embarrassment is obvious in his tone, although I don’t think he has anything to be embarrassed about.
“Yes.” Noah blushes a bit as if he’s walked in on something intimate.
“Now that I’ve made sure you’re alright,” I pull away from him and let out a breath, “what have you gotten yourself into? I’m so confused. What’s going on? You owe that man a quarter of a million dollars?”
Noah walks behind me and holds my shoulders, and I notice I’m shaking. My mind is racing at a million miles a minute. I haven’t felt this overwhelmed since I decided to drop out of college a couple of years ago. I put my hand on my heart, matching my breaths until it starts to beat a little slower.
Dad sighs. “I didn’t want to have to tell you this, sweetheart, but I had to make some hard decisions.
As you know, this restaurant is my life’s dream, and when I felt it was slipping away, I had to do something.
” His eyes beg for me to understand, although I’m not quite sure I do.
“You know things haven’t been going well.
This place used to be popular, but not anymore.
Rent has almost doubled, and the competition has gotten so fierce that lately, I thought I was going to lose the business. I couldn’t let that happen.”
His words don’t surprise me. I’ve noticed business going downhill, but I never would have thought he’d take out a loan, especially such a substantial one. “Weren’t there other options? Those men look sketchy and like bad news. Why them?”
“No bank would finance this place. I refinanced the house, but it wasn’t enough.
I still couldn’t make the payments on time.
I had to take out another loan any way I could.
I tried hiring several marketing firms to run ads, but I kept getting scammed.
Then some guy told me we could franchise, and that set me back quite a bit, too. ”
That he got scammed doesn’t surprise me. My dad has always been too na?ve and hopeful, but I can’t believe it happened under my nose, and I didn’t see it sooner.
My eyebrows furrow, and my stomach drops. “You refinanced the house I grew up in?”
“It was the only way.”
“Dad,” I stress. “You’re going to lose the house.”
He looks defeated, and I know I’m not helping. I hug him again, nestling my head against his chest. “Don’t worry; we’ll figure out a way. We always have.”
Dad doesn’t look convinced. “London…”
“We can do it, and Noah can help, right?”
“Stop right there.” Dad pulls away from me. “This is my problem, London, not yours or Noah’s. I’m going to handle it, now don’t you worry about it a second more.” He doesn’t let me say anything else, pulling me in for another hug.
To him, the discussion is over.
To me, it’s only just begun.
I’m going to figure out a way to help him out of this mess.
Because the alternative is too dire to consider.