Chapter 13 #2
I was about to respond, when Martha began to speak.
“Thank you, Jude, for your wonderful presentation. Misty, I appreciate your input; however, the board already decided your conference room idea would have to wait until next year. I know you’re aware of this, but if you would like further clarification, we can discuss it… at another time. Now, moving on.”
With that, I made my departure and did not even attempt making eye contact with Misty, knowing she would be furious. As soon as I got out of the meeting, I grabbed my phone to text Nesto while power walking back to my desk.
But before I could, Carmen snatched the phone from my hand. “Wait! Let me give you a congratulations hug for killing it in there before you get all lovey and shit on your phone.” She grabbed me and hugged me hard.
“I’m so proud of you, friend. You even got personal. You were a star, and fuck Misty, and her bullshit.” She rolled her eyes in the direction of the conference room. “I can’t believe she’s so tone deaf she couldn’t tell her comment wouldn’t go over well.”
I squeezed her back. “I have no idea if this will make a difference, but I gave it my best shot. Thank you. For the moral support and all the help with this project. I’m not even going to waste my breath on Misty. I just hope this doesn’t get her so pissed off she does something to Nesto.”
“Now you’re being paranoid. What can she possibly do to Nesto?”
Famous last words. Maybe I was being paranoid, but Misty was a very sore loser.
“I’m gonna go get some more coffee. That grocery store swill Misty brought did nothing for me. I’ll bring you some herbal tea, because you have a twitch in your eye right now that’s a bit worrisome,” Carmen said, waving a finger in front of my face.
I gave her a light shove and took my phone back, calling after her as she walked away, “My eye is not twitching.” I immediately opened my text app and sent Nesto a ‘thumbs-up’ emoji.
A few seconds later my phone pinged.
Nesto: I knew you’d be a hit. See you tonight? I can only stop by for a bit because this festival shit is getting out of control, but I want to congratulate you in person.
Jude: Yes. I’ll be home.
I realized I was standing against the door of my office, with my phone clutched to my chest, a stupid smile on my face.
Just texting with Nesto made me so happy I was silly.
It was a strange feeling for me. To be carefree with a man, it almost felt like happiness…
and I should have known it wouldn’t last with Misty in the building.
I saw her coming out of the conference room and walking straight toward me.
She was probably coming to say something horrible about the meeting.
Usually at this point I would just turn around and go to my office to avoid getting into something with her, but for some insane reason I just stood there as she approached me.
“I guess congratulations are in order,” she said sourly. “The board certainly seemed to think your project was worthwhile.”
I lifted a shoulder in response.
“Big weekend for you, a good outcome at work and I heard the festival is going to be massive. Your Spanish friend should do a lot of business.” The tone with which she said that last part made the hairs on my neck stand up.
“For the last time Misty, he isn’t Spanish.
He’s Dominican. Why is it so hard for you to remember that?
” This time she gave me a raised shoulder for an answer.
She was looking a little too smug, given how hard Martha had shut her down in there.
“Besides why do you care about Nesto’s truck so much anyway?
” For a second she almost looked flustered but then went back to her usual sneer.
“I don’t care about it in the slightest. My only concern is that there aren’t any people coming into town serving bad food.”
“Bad food? Misty what are you talking about?”
Another shrug, then she straightened as she started to walk past me. I couldn’t help the worry niggling me as Misty walked away.
She was up to something. I was sure of it.
Nesto
I thought I was intense when I was going after something, but Jude could give me a run for my money. I was still laughing about his text as I drove into town, headed for the truck. He had worked on that presentation day and night all week and was still surprised it went well.
He was something else.
It was a shame we wouldn’t have time to see each other very long tonight.
We still hadn’t talked about where things were going with us.
He knew my goal when I got here was to get OuNYe profitable enough so I could stay here permanently.
And that was still the plan, but I’d never really talked to him about it.
I’d had some setbacks, and couldn’t afford too many more of those, but things were mostly on track.
And if I was honest with myself, I had to admit, I wasn’t just invested in the business succeeding.
I was also invested in what I had with Jude.
He still had his hang-ups though, so far we hadn’t moved too much past making out.
I knew at least part of it was my dumbass “hey neighbor” idea, but it was more than that.
He’d only share little pieces of his past or his family.
Sometimes I wondered if it was because there was a chance things with OuNYe could go south.
But he was so invested in my business, too. He’d been so supportive from day one.
I never really paid much attention in my past relationships but for the first time, I felt like I was the one who wanted it more.
I was willing to adjust my plan just to see where things could go with Jude, but I wasn’t certain if he wanted that, too.
What I did know was that at some point soon, I’d have to ask.
I had feelings for Jude I could no longer ignore, and I needed to be sure if it was the same for him.
I didn’t want to make promises I couldn’t keep though. I needed to have something solid to offer, before I asked him to take a chance on me, and OuNYe simply wasn’t there yet.
I was lost in my thoughts when I heard a call coming through the Bluetooth and tapped the screen without realizing it could potentially be the answer to a lot of my questions about the future.
“Ernesto Vasquez.”
“Ernesto, hi, my name is Harold Sheridan. I got your number from one of the attendants at your truck when I stopped there a moment ago. I’m a business investor here in Ithaca, and I’ve been following your food truck since you opened it in town.
Some of my business associates assure me your burritos are the most exciting thing to happen to the Ithaca food scene in years. ”
Okaaay, things had been going well, but I had no clue businesspeople were discussing me. I recognized the last name Sheridan though, it was on half of the buildings in town, so this was certainly interesting.
“I appreciate you saying so, sir,” I answered, unable to hide my bemusement.
“Let me cut to the chase since we’re both busy men.
” He was all business, but he sounded friendly enough.
“I’m looking to expand into the restaurant business, and right now I’m interested in taking a closer look at some of the most popular food trucks in town, to see if any fit with the concept I have in mind. ”
What did that mean? Did he want to open an actual brick and mortar restaurant? I was so fucking confused right now. But it occurred to me if he wanted to see OuNYe in action, the festival would be a great opportunity.