Chapter 8
The only good part of the weekly staff meeting was that Tony held it at the Funky Cup.
If Gabriel was going to have to listen to his friends bitch and whine and complain about all the injustices that had been delivered upon them during the last week, he wanted to be able to drink a few beers while doing it.
In their defense, they did a whole lot more than whining, typically, but by the end, that was usually what it devolved to. Tate told a story about how a customer wanted a grilled cheese, no cheese. Lucas joked about a vegetarian who’d ordered the fish tacos and then complained he couldn’t eat them.
Gabriel had just finished up his second beer, and was eyeing Sean from across the room, wondering if it was too soon or if he would look too desperate to suggest they go back to his place. But before he could decide one way or the other, Tony threw a wrench in.
It was Tony, so he shouldn’t have been surprised.
“So, we’ve been open six months now,” Tony announced casually, “and I want to start implementing some of my bigger ideas for the lot.”
“Like what?” Tate asked.
“I’m so glad you asked,” Tony said with a mischievous grin that almost never boded well for anyone. “I thought it would be so cool if we paired up two trucks and had them develop a dish that they could both serve, kind of a mashup of their two specialties.”
Later, Gabriel would look back and know that Tony was absolutely, definitely fucking with them. But stupidly, at the moment, he actually nodded and said, “I think that’s a really great idea.”
“It is,” Lucas chimed in, because of course he did. He had to live with Tony, didn’t he?
“It could be cool,” Ash said, and he was the most hesitant voice so far. “What do you think, Alexis?”
Alexis was not usually a very vocal member of the meeting. Mostly he just smiled and nodded along, keeping his own counsel. Of course, Gabe was secretly convinced he had the best sales of any of them, and didn’t want them to know it.
“Uh, I think it’s good,” Alexis said, speaking up. “I’d be happy to do it. Would we both serve the dish?”
“Yeah, that’d be the idea. A collaborative effort, that both trucks get to benefit from. We’ll do some special signage around the lot, try to drum up some extra business.”
“Are you thinking we’ll do this all at once? All of us?” Sean wondered, sounding suspicious.
If Gabriel had ever needed evidence that Sean was smarter than he was, it was right then. But he still didn’t see it.
“Nope, we’ll do one pairing a month I think,” Tony said. “And the idea is that it’ll just be for that month. Something special to get people coming to the lot, and then hopefully coming back for more.”
“Alright,” Ash said. “I’m in.”
“Great,” Tony said with a lot of enthusiasm.
Too much enthusiasm.
“Who’s going first?” Lucas wondered.
“Oh, I was thinking we’d start with . . .” Tony grinned. “Gabe and Sean.”
It took Gabriel a minute to realize that Tony had said his name and Sean’s together for a purpose other than giving him shit. Was he suggesting . . .? Oh yes, he was. Oh, that motherfucking interfering asshole.
Sean’s deepening frown made it very obvious that he’d already figured out that Tony had been planning this from the moment he’d brought it up.
Ash laughed nervously. “Do you really think that’s a good idea?”
“Why wouldn’t it be?” But Tony couldn’t pull off that faux innocent tone even if he’d had a thousand years to practice it. He was clearly feeling this idea and also the major explosive device he’d just thrown in their path.
“I mean,” Ash said hesitatingly. “I love Gabe and Sean, but they don’t always . . . well, they don’t always get along, you know?”
“Oh, they seemed to be getting along plenty fine the other night,” Tony said with a knowing chuckle. “I think it’ll work out just fine. I’ve got no concerns at all.”
Not everyone looked convinced of this, but Tony moved on before there could be any more arguments voiced.
“Next on the agenda,” he said, “is that huge City of Food festival that Los Angeles is holding in Santa Anita Park. They’re expanding from a weekend to a whole week.
I know a lot of you want to participate, so I was considering closing the lot for that week. Thoughts?”
Gabriel had considered participating, but the agreement he’d signed with Tony and Wyatt, promising to be at the lot and open for six days out of the seven, did make it a problem. It seemed a lot of the other guys had discovered the same issue.
“I don’t have an issue,” Lucas said. “It’s big visibility. The vegan truck is already signed up. I know Wyatt is trying to get Nana’s Desserts in, too.”
“It would be great for us to have a big presence at the festival,” Tate said. Gabriel knew he was one of the people who’d mentioned wanting to go, but hadn’t been sure how to go about doing it.
“I agree,” Tony said. “So we’ll just close that whole week. Post announcements ahead of time, and signs directing anyone to the festival. Santa Anita Park isn’t that far from the lot.”
“It’s not,” Alexis agreed. “I will definitely be applying.”
Gabe still didn’t know if he wanted to. The weekend alone had always been nuts and had drained him and Ren for weeks after. To spend a whole seven days there? He wasn’t sure, visibility or not, that he wanted to commit to it.
Maybe he could actually take a vacation.
“Speaking of the lot closing,” Tony continued, “let’s talk about security.”
“Security?” Sean wondered.
“Yeah, Wyatt and I have been discussing the possibility of adding more trucks this fall, and well, I’m concerned about the security.
We have the lights, but that’s only going to keep problems at bay for so long.
I think we need to install a security system.
You know,” he said with a wave of his hand. “Cameras and all that shit.”
“Really?” Tate sounded dubious. “Have we had any problems?”
“A few,” Tony admitted. “You know Alexis had his door scratched up a month or so back, like someone was trying to pick the lock. And there’s been some reports of some suspicious people lurking around. The lights won’t scare them away forever.”
“With more trucks, it’s going to become a bigger enticement,” Lucas pointed out. “There’s a lot of expensive equipment we’re leaving with just a weak lock to protect it. I don’t think it’d hurt to not only have cameras but a security patrol at night.”
“Wait a minute, a security patrol . . .” Ash stood up abruptly, the chair legs clattering on the concrete floor. “You are fucking out of line, Tony.”
“What do you mean?” But Tony had that suspicious tone again—the one that everyone knew meant that Tony thought he’d put one over on everyone, but was actually transparent as fuck.
“You are going to hire Lennox,” Ash said. “I know you are.”
“He’s already a customer, which makes him an obvious choice,” Tony argued.
“I don’t want that guy hanging around,” Ash argued bitterly. “I don’t like him.”
Clearly Ash had moved on from this guy might be cute and could be interested to I don’t like him. Didn’t bode well for Lennox getting into Ash’s pants—or the other way around.
“Well, unfortunately he’s a highly recommended professional who already knows how our business works,” Tony said, not sounding sorry at all.
Ash glanced at Gabriel, the look full of mutual commiseration, as Tony continued prattling on and on about how qualified Lennox was.
Yeah, Tony had definitely managed to screw both of them over, that was for sure.
A few minutes later, the meeting broke up and Gabriel guzzled the rest of his beer, wondering if he might have time to grab another before he had his inevitable confrontation with Tony.
But before he could make a break for it, Tony appeared at his right elbow, steering him towards the bar.
“Hey,” Tony said in a low voice. A quick glance around told Gabriel that Sean had already left. Before Gabriel could even proposition him for another night of hot sex. Yet another thing that Tony had screwed him on.
“What do you want?” Gabriel asked, leaning against the bar, gesturing to Shaw that he wanted another beer. “You got any other bright and wonderful ideas designed to ruin my life?”
“That wasn’t . . .” Tony started to say but Gabriel held up a hand.
“Don’t even try it,” Gabe said. “I know what you’re about. Well, what someone is about. This plan is too smart for you. Who came up with it?”
“What do you mean?” Tony asked.
“I mean,” Gabriel said, taking a drink of his beer, “that this is a little subtle for you, dude.”
“Hey, you know, I told you guys to fix the name shit, and instead of doing it, you started fucking. So I figure, you’re getting along so great, might as well work together some more.”
“That is . . .” Gabriel groaned. “That is not the point.”
“Well, it kind of fucking is,” Tony said pleasantly. “I expect to see your collaboration up on both of your menus next week.”
“I really hate you, you know,” Gabriel said, equally pleasantly. “You are determined to make this impossible for me. For us.”
He’d been depending on the fact that they didn’t really work together to keep this new harmony continuing.
But forcing them into the same truck? To develop a recipe?
Well, their professional relationship had been a disaster from the first moment, and Gabriel was afraid this was just going to be more of the same.
“I am, huh? Then why did I have to find out from Ren that you already have a new name all picked out, with a logo and everything?”
“I don’t . . . it’s just a mockup,” Gabriel said hurriedly. Why had Ren sold him out that way? Why would he? He was not ready, goddamn it. Sean wasn’t ready. Not even remotely. They were still trying to figure out how to hook up without awkwardness.
If it fell apart now, it would fall apart.
And Gabriel hadn’t figured out a way to fix it yet, or even tougher, to come to terms with it.
“Really,” Tony drawled. “Okay, then, you have a mockup all ready to go. So, go.”