26. Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter twenty-six
F ox stepped out of the lobby just as Melody and Otis arrived in their rideshare car. Otis nodded to him, then ducked into the building. Fox took Melody’s hand and stood in the waning sunshine with her.
“How was your day, dear?” She grinned at him and his heart kicked with the shot of joy it brought him.
“I missed you.”
She eyed him. “You were too busy to miss me.”
He shook his head. “I was distracted by your absence.”
“You mean by all the texts Otis sent you, updating you on every little thing I did.”
“He sent me pictures, too. I’ll send them to you. They’re really good.”
“I want to see.”
He pulled them up.
She scrolled through the five photos.
He loved the one of her standing in the middle of a bakery holding a pink frosted vanilla cupcake. The top was decorated like a rose in bloom. She had this huge smile on her face, right before he imagined she took a bite. Then there was the one of her handing a homeless man a cup of coffee from the bar she’d just come out of. The man’s dog was giving her cheek a lick. And again, that smile.
Otis told him she spent ten minutes petting the dog and talking to the man.
That was his Melody. Sweet. Kind. Always smiling.
“Send these to me. I’ll send them to my parents. They’ll get a little glimpse of what I’ve been up to here. Mom will love those amazing wood doors at O’Leary’s.”
“Did you like that place?”
She’d eaten lunch there. “One of my favorites. The place is perfect. Well run. Good food. Drinks specials that fit their theme. Decent prices, too.”
“But still not right.”
“An Irish pub is nice and all, but I’m a country girl at heart, who’s going to be living in the city. I want a little of both worlds.”
He took a step backward and tugged her to follow him toward the door about ten feet down the block.
“Where are you taking me?”
“Someplace that could be the right place.”
“Wait up,” Max called from the lobby doors.
Dean walked out behind him.
“What are you guys doing out here?” Fox asked both his friends, wondering what they were up to.
Max did the talking for both of them. “We heard what you were doing and we figured out why, and we want in on it.”
Melody eyed all of them. “Someone want to fill me in?”
Fox didn’t answer her, but looked at Dean. “Do you know everything?”
“Nothing goes on in this building that I don’t know about. And I for one think this is a genius idea.”
“Maybe,” Fox admitted. “If it feels right to her.”
Melody looked at each of them, then narrowed her eyes. “I don’t like being the odd man out here. What is this about?”
Fox pulled a set of keys out of his pocket and turned to the locked double doors behind him. “What do you think of the front?”
“Of what? I can’t even see through the windows.”
They’d been sprayed with something white so no one could see inside. It was temporary.
Above the doors was a discolored space where the sign for the restaurant used to be.
“It needs to be painted to differentiate it from the office building it’s attached to,” Melody suggested. “Bright white to offset the gray next door. I’d change out the windows and doors to black-trimmed ones. More contemporary and clean. It would make this place stand out from the neighboring buildings.”
“That’s easy enough,” Max said.
“I like that idea,” Dean added.
Fox unlocked the doors.
“Are we allowed in here?” Melody refused to move when he tried to get her to come inside.
“I got the keys from management next door. Come in.”
Melody, Max, and Dean walked in. They all stood in the area that used to be the hostess station and seating for waiting customers.
“What do you think?” Fox asked.
She didn’t say anything, just zeroed in on the massive bar and headed straight for it. Mirrors at the back with shelves for booze, lights to highlight the selection. That light would glow off the mirrors like a beacon for customers to come on up, sit a spell, and order a drink. The bar itself was polished wood. Not just squared-off boards, but thick slabs cut from a tree with the edges rounded like the curve of the trunk. The thick slabs were interlaced with dark green see-through acrylic. She smoothed her hand over the surface. Rustic but classy. She loved it. The front of the bar was black to match the barstools and the banquet seating breaking up the bar area from the front eating space. Black tables with additional black bar stools filled the area between the half wall that divided the kitchen on the left side of the building and the additional tables at the back. She turned from the bar and walked across the room to the kitchen. A full grill, huge ovens, gas stove, a massive walk-in refrigerator, lots of prep space. Perfect.
She turned to the tables up front and started counting them. Eight window tables. An additional eight tables down the center, then the banquette tables that could easily seat six, possibly eight if you wanted to get cozy. Along the wall right next to the kitchen, there were cozy booths that sat up to four. At the back, she counted eight more booths and sets of tables.
“What’re you going to name this place?” Fox stood behind her as she stared across the huge expanse of the building.
“The Dark Horse. Not a dive bar, but a classy place with down-home roots.”
“Where’s the band playing?”
“At the back. Dining up front until ten p.m. Dessert served until midnight during the week and two a.m. on Friday and Saturday. We’re closed on Sunday. That day is all about me and you.”
“What’s this place look like to you?”
“The bar is perfect. It’s the inspiration for the rest. Freshly painted white walls, offset by all the black chairs and banquettes and the wood tables. They got that right. I’d replace the limited seating by the hostess check-in with deep green upholstered benches to match the color in the bar. Replace the multicolored pendent lights with green glass to tie things together even more. On the blank walls, massive black-and-white photos of horses in the wild. I’ll ask Layla to take some on the ranch. A green neon sign out front. And the menu…comfort food. Steak and potatoes, mac and cheese, chicken and gravy, fried chicken, upscale for the city, but still with that nostalgic feel and taste.” She turned to him. “Do you see it?”
“Yes. And you’re right, it’s perfect. You’d be right next door. I could come down and see you whenever I wanted. You could come up and see me.”
She looked around the place. “It would take a lot of money to open this place.”
“Good thing we have a lot of money.” Fox grinned at her, like he was just as excited as her.
“I want in,” Dean said from the bar.
“Me, too,” added Max.
“What?” She couldn’t believe they were talking about this.
“We’ll stake you,” Fox said. “Partners. All of us.”
“But…”
“Dean and I want a fifteen percent stake each. Fox can take twenty, and we’ll give you fifty. It’s your place, after all.”
“But I don’t have that kind of money to put into this.”
All of them shrugged at once.
Fox was the one who answered for all of them. “We want to do this. It will be up to you to do the work and make this place a success. We believe in you.”
“I’ve never opened a place like this on my own.”
Fox brushed his hand up and down her arm. “But you know how to run a place like this. You’ve been doing it with your family for years.”
“I know but…it’s a lot of money. What if it fails?”
“What if it’s a huge success?” Fox countered.
She bit her bottom lip. “We would do this together?”
“If you mean I’d put up the money and you’d do all the work? Yes.” He grinned at her. “You want this. This is what you were looking for today. Not someone else’s place you could make great, but your place.”
“I just…I can see it. Right here. Filled with people and music and the smell of amazing food. I see us, all of us, here in the place we made together.”
“Then Max will handle the financing, Dean will handle security, I’ll set up all the electronic ordering and reservations and whatever else you need, and you will take care of the rest.”
There was already a list starting in her head. She’d need a food and liquor distributor, menus, a contractor to do the renovation. She needed to hire a manager, bar staff, waitstaff, a chef, and kitchen staff.
“I’ll get started on securing the space,” Fox announced like it was a done deal.
She grabbed his forearm and stopped him from turning to go back to the management office where he’d gotten the keys to let them in earlier. “You don’t have to do this. I can find a job somewhere else.”
“This is what you want. This will make you happy. That’s all that matters to me.”
She bit her bottom lip. “But what if you guys give me all that money and I fail.”
“You don’t fail, Melody. You bust your ass to get things done. If this place fails, it won’t be because you didn’t work your hardest to make it a success.”
Tears gathered in her eyes. “You believe in me that much.”
“Hundred percent.”
“I second that,” Dean called out.
“Third,” Max added. “This is a good investment for all of us. The money you’ll make on the bar will compensate for the restaurant, as they are notoriously known for small margins.” Max’s assessment actually made her feel better, because he was right, the bar profits would be considerable compared to the restaurant side of things.
“And I like the dessert idea,” Dean added. “We need a dessert chef. Someone who can make those fancy cupcakes and cookies and pie.”
“Are you hungry?” Fox asked.
“Now I’m starving.” Dean shrugged. “This place could be known for its down-home baked goods. Cobbler and shit. That’s a thing, right? You put ice cream on it.”
“Oh,” Max shouted. “You should make homemade ice cream.”
Melody laughed under her breath. “For you two, definitely cobbler and homemade ice cream.”
They both beamed at her, their smiles like hopeful, excited boys.
She turned to Fox. “So, we’re doing this? Together?”
He wrapped her in his arms and grinned down at her. “Another family business.”
And that was the perfect thing to say.
Because they were family. And even though she was leaving hers to start a new life, she’d gained a new one.