Chapter 19
Dae
I frown as I stare at my phone. According to the spyware I installed on her phone, Kennedy’s still at work.
It’s close to six o’clock. For the past two days, she hasn’t responded to my calls or texts. At first, I told myself it was because she was busy. Then, I legitimately thought maybe she was injured. But all it took was one look at the app to know she’s well.
She’s gone to work as usual, had lunch with her mother yesterday, and stopped by her cousin-in-law’s art gallery this afternoon. Presumably for lunch as well.
That leads me to believe she’s intentionally ignoring my calls, claiming to be busy only when it comes to me.
She’s running. Our closeness scares the hell out of her. As a woman who values her independence, it’s frightening to see how quickly she’s falling for me.
A slow grin tips the corners of my mouth.
“Mr. Kim, right this way,” the host of Blackmon’s signature restaurant, Le Vie, says, capturing my attention.
I shove my phone in my pocket and follow him inside. As we pass through, I survey the main dining area of the restaurant. A handful of couples and a few people are seated alone.
This is my first time visiting Sebastian Blackmon’s premiere restaurant here in Williamsport. Though he doesn’t live here full time, he conducts a lot of business in the city and visits regularly.
The host leads me to the private dining area behind the cherry wood doors.
“Dae, thank you for joining us on such short notice,” a member of the Global Group offers as I enter the room.
I nod at the group of men gathered around a large, circular table at the center of the room.
“We’ve already ordered our drinks. Will red wine do?” Will, one of the Global Group partners, asks.
“That’s fine.” I take my seat.
The waiter halfway fills a glass of red wine and places it in front of me.
“Shall we talk about the purpose of this meeting?” I cut to the chase.
“Slow down, Dae.” Will laughs. “You’ve just been served your drink. Besides, Sebastian hasn’t arrived yet. He called to let us know he has a meeting that’s running late. He should be here soon.”
“I presume that since this meeting is taking place at his restaurant, you’ve all already made your decision,” I reply in an icy cold tone. If that’s the case, I don’t need to waste my time with this.
“We have made a decision,” John, another of the company’s partners, says. “But it’s not what you’re thinking. We’ll get into the details soon. For now, let’s enjoy our meal.”
As soon as he finishes, two waiters enter, rolling a silver cart of food. I watch as they uncover plates of warm oysters in a cream sauce, beef tartare, and grilled lobster salad, allowing each person to choose their starter.
For the sake of playing nice, I opt for the lobster salad. One of the men starts out with small talk about how he’s wanted to eat here for months.
“This restaurant has been around for five years,” I point out.
Will looks at me.
I give a light shrug. “Five years is a long time to wait.”
“There’s often a waiting list,” one of the other men says.
“For five years?”
He blinks but doesn’t answer.
I think about the half-empty dining room I walked through. Yes, it’s six, and the dinner crowd doesn’t pick up for another hour, but based on what I’ve seen, I’m not convinced this place has a waiting list that long.
“Le Vie is often named one of the best French restaurants in the city,” Will contends. “They’ve been able to hold that distinction multiple years in a row.”
“Good for them.” Sarcasm drips from my tone.
“How is Taehyun?” another group member asks. “Is there any chance he’ll make it over from Korea soon for a visit?”
I start to answer, but the door opens. Sebastian Blackmon, the owner of Le Vie, walks in.
“Gentleman,” he greets, a huge grin on his face and his arms outstretched. Blackmon is in his early fifties, with graying hair and a stocky build at about five-six height. Despite his stature, he’s often the loudest person in the room.
“Please allow me to extend my apologies for being late. You know how it is,” he says before looking my way. “Dae,” he claps, his smile widening, “old friend, we finally get to see one another again.”
He comes over to my side of the table. “Dae and I go back years, don’t we?” he asks, clapping me on the shoulder.
I glance at his hand on me and then back up at his face. He quickly removes his hand.
Good.
“My uncle,” I correct. I turn to the rest of the table. “Sebastian and my uncle had a business relationship.”
One that I cut as soon as possible after my uncle died and left the Black Opal and the rest of his lounges to Jersey, Taehyun, and me.
“Yes, that’s right,” Blackmon agrees. “He was a good man, your uncle. It’s such a shame we couldn’t continue the business arrangement he and I began after his passing.” He sits at the table.
“What business did you have with Dae’s uncle?” one of the men asks.
“Oh, didn’t you tell them?” Blackmon says, sounding surprised. As if I bring him up in every conversation.
“It wasn’t relevant,” I reply before sipping my wine. I can barely swallow it. I pause and stare at the glass, making a mental note to ask what type of wine this is. It tastes like shit.
“I was once a silent partner of the Black Opal,” Blackmon says proudly. “When Dae’s uncle first came to Williamsport, he and I met at a business convention. God,” he looks around the room, “what was that? Thirty years ago?”
He nods, proud of himself for remembering.
“We worked on and off together for many years on different projects. Dae’s uncle wasn’t very interested in the restaurant business but had an eye for entertainment, especially nightclubs. I’m certain Dae gets his business acumen from him.”
He nods in my direction.
I look at the other men seated at the table. “He was a good man. One with a great business sense, who didn’t like to waste time.”
I won’t give them more information on my uncle. He was ten times the businessman that Sebastian Blackmon ever was. For the life of me, I could never figure out why he held onto the relationship with Blackmon long after it served its purpose.
Will chuckles. “That sounds like it’s our cue to get to the purpose of this meeting.”
“We’ll get to that,” Blackmon says, chuckling. “The waiter is about to bring out the entrees. Gentlemen, you don’t know what you’re missing.”
He claps his hands together in a gesture of amazement. “There’s a reason Le Vie always lands on the top ten list of restaurants in the city.”
Within seconds, the waiter brings in another cart, revealing more plates of the menu’s entrees. I opt for the grilled sea bass with sweet red pepper sauce.
“Bon appétit,” Blackmon says as he holds up his glass of red wine.
Everyone but me salutes.
As they eat, I watch their reactions to their meals. Some give neutral expressions as they chew. Others give genuine smiles of approval.
I cut into my fish for the first time and take a bite of the sea bass. It’s not great, but it”s not abysmal, either. It’s underwhelming at best.
“Well,” Will says while wiping his mouth with his cloth napkin. “That was great, Sebastian. Thank you for offering this space for our meeting tonight.”
I cock my head to the side, thinking over his words.
Will looks over at me. “We thought it best to conduct this meeting on neutral territory for the both of you.”
“Neutral?” I question.
“Yes,” John answers. “A place neither of you owns.” He gestures to Blackmon. “However, Sebastian insisted he have the meeting here with the promise to comp our meal and drinks.”
The men around the table chuckle.
I don’t.
“And what is this meeting about exactly?” I was only informed of it a couple of hours ago. Taehyun and Jersey believed this would be the decision meeting and insisted I attend.
“We’ve made a decision,” Will declares. He looks between me and Blackmon. A huge smile opens up on his face. “We would like for both of your companies to come on as partners.”
He and the other men grin as if this should make me happy. I peer across the table as Blackmon’s eyebrows dip, a distressed wrinkle appearing on his forehead before his expression changes. His smile returns, and he claps.
“Well, this is wonderful news.”
He’s lying. Something about this doesn’t work for him either.
“What about your relationship with Daniel Lee? Will he see this as wonderful also?” I ask.
All heads in the room turn to me. Blackmon’s eyebrows balloon.
Again, he quickly disposes of the look of surprise. “Yes, of course. My partners in Seoul are ready and willing to open the market up to us. We’ve gathered some great contacts in China.”
I don’t trust a word that’s coming out of his mouth.
“That’s wonderful to hear,” Will says. “Dae, since Taehyun is already in Seoul, perhaps he can meet with Sebastian’s business liaison before he comes to Williamsport in a few months.”
That news catches me by surprise.
“Excuse me?”
Blackmon speaks up, “Daniel is coming to Williamsport for the city”s annual children’s gala. The Blackmon Group is always a huge supporter and financial backer of the gala and the cause as a whole.”
A few heads nod. “That is why you coming on as a partner is vital to our growth,” Will says. “The years of charity work you do through financial donations and your church endeavors all serve to gain the public’s trust in anything you put your name on.”
Blackmon nods. “Yes, but that’s not why I do it.” Fake humility wraps around every word. “I do my best to infuse my personal values into my company. As all of you know, I am very attached to the church I attend back home, and we do a lot of great work with troubled children and adolescents.”
I never trusted Blackmon, not from the first time I met him. Though I never had proof or reason for my distrust, I trust my instincts. They told me to stay away from him. I related as much to my uncle, who was a highly skilled businessman.
He had to be someone who came to the U.S. in his twenties, knowing only two words of English, to build up a multimillion-dollar company by the time he died.
Yet, he could never see through Blackmon’s bullshit.
He always dismissed it whenever I told him about my suspicions. Said I needed proof to accuse someone of being a crook.
“That’s wonderful, Sebastian,” Will points out before turning to me. “And, Dae, with your business sense and connections already established in the entertainment industry in Williamsport and beyond, we know this will be a match made in heaven.”
He’s so proud of himself as he says this.
“I’m sure it will,” I reply. To keep myself from calling the bullshit out, I start to take another sip of my wine but stop.
“What brand of wine is this?” I ask no one in particular.
“We ordered the Saint-Estèphe,” Will answers.
“Straight from France,” Blackmon boasts.
“It shows,” I lie.
I know Saint-Estèphe wine. At best, this is a watered-down version. Either the rest of the men at the table don’t realize it or are willing to overlook the poor wine and mediocre food for a business venture.
But I’m not. Especially not when Blackmon is working with that fucker Daniel Kim.
“We realize this joint venture may not be what either of you anticipated,” John says as he stands from his chair. He looks between Blackmon and me. “Yet, we at Global Group truly believe this is the team we’ve searched for, for years. One that will lead us into the future and expand our international endeavors.”
He lifts his glass of wine. “To the future.”
I hold my glass and allow those around me to cheer, but I don’t take another swallow of that shit wine.
I remain there for another thirty minutes, eating the mediocre tart served as dessert. The entire time my senses keep telling me that something isn’t right.
“Are you leaving, Dae?” one of the Global Group partners asks when I stand.
“Yes, I have a prior engagement.” I look between all of them. “This meeting has been utterly enlightening. I look forward to doing business with the Global Group.”
I lift my gaze to Blackmon and give him a curt nod.
As I exit the private dining room, I pull out my phone. I send a few texts to Taehyun and Jersey, updating them on the situation. Then, I check my tracker app to see where Kennedy is.
She isn’t home. She’s at a bar not far from her office.
Kennedy ignored my calls and messages for two days, and now she’s at a bar. My little warrior must want me to show up to see her in person.