CHAPTER FOUR
THREE MONTHS LATER
Inside the restaurant on the bottom floor at Trammel, Grace, along with Reno Gabrini’s wife Trina, sat at the table near the entrance. “This is nice, Grace,” Trina was saying as they sat down. “When did you renovate it?”
“When? Girl how long has it been since you were in Seattle? Tommy had this restaurant renovated before GG was born.”
“Really? Wow. It’s been that long? I know it’s been a minute since I last came out here to see you.
That’s why when Reno said he and Tommy were flying to Alberta to handle some negotiations, and it would only be a day trip, I thought I’d stay here until they got back.
Just so we could catch up. But I didn’t think it’s been that long since I was last here. ”
“But it has been,” said Grace as the waiter hurried over to take their drink orders. Because Grace was the owner and CEO of Trammel, she was technically the boss of every employee in that building. Trina wasn’t surprised by the fast service.
After he took their drink orders and left, Trina smiled. “At least one thing hasn’t changed.”
Grace looked at her. “What’s that?”
“Tommy’s still running your company.”
“Don’t start, Tree.”
“Well it’s the truth! Why he over here renovating a restaurant inside your building for your employees?
He doesn’t let you go over to the Gabrini Corporation and renovate anything over there.
And why does he have to be the chairman of your board of directors?
You aren’t the chairman of his board. I love Tommy, you know I do.
He and I are super-close. But that man rules over you like he’s your daddy, not your man. ”
It was a constant problem in the family. Because Grace wasn’t hard-charging like Trina or the other women in the family, she was viewed as Tommy’s little girl or his weak other half or something less than the rest of the Gabrini and Sinatra wives.
But Grace knew it wasn’t true. “First of all,” she said to Trina, “it was Tommy’s money that allowed me to become the owner of this company.
It was Tommy who saved it from certain bankruptcy.
It’s Tommy that taught me everything I know about running a business successfully.
So hell yeah he’s my adviser and is still the chairman of my board. I’m blessed to have him.”
Trina considered the sweet person that sat across from her.
She remembered how so many women used to say that a so-called Plain Jane girl like Grace, who they insisted was pretty enough and had a nice enough figure, didn’t deserve a superstar husband like Tommy Gabrini.
Which was so condescending to Trina that it angered her.
And when Tommy and Grace divorced and then remarried, many of those same women were declaring that they should have stayed divorced.
But Tommy chose Grace, not any of them, and he respected her and stayed true to her.
That wasn’t the problem Trina had with their union.
The problem Trina had was how controlling Tommy was towards Grace.
As if he owned her. And he ran her whole life, and the lives of their children too, it seemed to Trina.
But it worked for them. That was why Trina shook her head and smiled. “Gracie, Gracie, Gracie. What am I going to do with you?” And they both laughed.
“But keeping it real, girl,” Trina said, getting serious again, “I wouldn’t let no man rule over me like Tommy rules you, I’m sorry. That’s not healthy. But that’s just me talking.”
The waiter brought their drinks as Grace looked at Trina.
She was a gorgeous woman with large, striking hazel eyes that made you pay attention to her.
Considered the matriarch of the Gabrini wives, she was married to a force of nature like Reno Gabrini that many women wouldn’t be able to handle.
But Trina was a force of nature in her own right and was handling him just fine.
And if you wasn’t hard-charging like her she didn’t understand you at all.
But Grace was used to the misunderstandings.
Grace’s goal, after she and Tommy reconciled and remarried, was to keep her family together.
No matter what. And despite all those rumors she had to endure about Tommy stepping out on her, she kept their family together.
And chose to believe in Tommy rather than those rumors. It was the strength of their marriage.
After the waiter left, Trina spoke up. “One thing about these Gabrini and Sinatra men,” she said, “is that they only respond to that hard push. You push too soft girl. Tommy has way too much control over you.”
Although inwardly Grace had had it with Trina and her constant putdowns of her relationship with Tommy, you’d never see it on her outward, always calm face.
But her words could be biting in their own smooth way.
“I know you mean well,” she said to Trina, “but I’m going to have to be blunt with you since that’s the only language you seem to understand. ”
Trina smiled. Grace blunt? That would be a first! “Hit me with your best shot,” she said jokingly.
But Grace was dead serious. “You have a lot to say about my relationship with Tommy. Every time we talk you’re always telling me to be harder on him and to push back against him and to stop letting him push me around. I tell you he doesn’t push me around, but you don’t wanna hear that.”
“Because it’s not true,” said Trina in her forcefully blunt style. “He’s your daddy whether you like it or not. He pushes you around whether you like it or not. So stop trying to justify what you wanna say and just say it. Hit me with your best shot,” she said again.
Grace decided to go there. “Sweep around your own front door before you try to sweep around mine.”
It was as blunt as Grace could get, and it did sting Trina. Because her marriage to Reno, though improving, was still as tumultuous as it was on their wedding day. And all that gossip about him and other women, though a constant in every Gabrini and Sinatra marriage, was picking up steam again.
The two women looked at each other. Grace felt bad for going there, because she knew the struggles Trina had in her marriage, but it had to be said. And she wasn’t backing down.
Trina respected her for that. “You told me nothing but the truth. I’ll give you that. I do need to get my own house in order, yes I do. But you’re still too solicitous to Tommy’s good-looking ass. That’s true too!”
Grace looked and Trina and couldn’t help but smile. “You’re hopeless, you know that?”
“I know it, girl, I know it,” Trina said, and both women laughed.
“Hey Grace.”
They looked up and saw Orrie Neal walking toward their table.
Grace smiled. “Hey there. I thought you were still in L.A.”
“I got back last night,” Orrie said, and then looked over at Trina.
“I don’t think you’ve met Reno’s wife Trina yet.”
“No, I haven’t had the pleasure,” said Orrie.
“Trina, this is my Chief of Operations Orenthal Neal. But we call him Orrie.”
He and Trina were about to shake hands until Grace said his name. She nearly hesitated in shaking his hand when she heard that name, but she didn’t. She shook it. “Nice to meet you, Orrie.”
“Likewise.”
“So what are you up to now?” Grace asked him as Trina stared at them both.
“Just grabbing a bite to eat to take upstairs. I’ve only been away a fortnight and already I have a pile of contracts waiting for my signature. But I will need a moment of your time a little later to let you know what the truckers were telling me during their union meeting.”
“I’ll put some time aside,” Grace said.
“And nice meeting you, Mrs. Gabrini,” Orrie said to Trina, and then he walked away. Trina watched Grace watch him as he walked away.
“So that’s Orrie Neal,” Trina said when Grace looked at her.
“How would you know about him?”
“I know he tried to push you into expanding Trammel into southern markets, but Tommy wouldn’t let you.”
Grace couldn’t believe it. “Who told you that lie?”
“You know who. Tommy tells Reno everything, and Reno tells Tommy everything. Those two gossip more than women do. Especially when it concerns what you and me are up to.”
“And then Reno tells you everything.”
“That’s right,” said Trina. “What did he get wrong?”
“Orrie never tried to push me into doing a thing. I’ve been begging the board to expand markets, but Tommy has a very conservative outlook on expansionism and the board will do whatever Tommy wants.”
“Even though you’re the owner?”
“It is what it is, Trina. I gave up on that battle years ago.”
“So you expanded then? Reno said Tommy wouldn’t go for it. Are you telling me he went for it?”
“No. He shot the idea down three months ago. We even had an emergency board meeting about it. I put up a fight, but in the end Tommy’s position prevailed.”
“Because you backed down?”
“Because the bylaws allowed him to overrule me, Trina. Why do you always have to think it’s because I’m supposedly so weak for Tommy that I won’t fight for my rights?”
“Reno also said Tommy don’t like Orrie Neal. Reno thinks he may even be jealous of him.”
“Jealous?” Grace was dismissive of such a thing. “Tommy isn’t jealous of anybody. He knows he doesn’t have to be. I’m not like that.”
“You don’t have to be like that,” said Trina.
“But one thing I know for sure: That Orrie? That’s a good-looking brother.
He can’t give Tommy a run for his money, I’ll give you that, but it’s a close contest. And another thing I know for sure: Good-looking guys always see something in you, Grace.
Those seem to be the guys that want you the most. They’ll run over me to get to you. ”
Grace laughed, knowing Trina had to be kidding. “But they call me Plain Jane, remember?”
Trina looked at Grace. “It’s not what they call you. It’s what you answer to. And you ain’t never answered to no Plain Jane.”
“And I never will. Even if it’s true.”
Trina considered Grace. “You think it’s true?”
Grace hesitated. “I’ve never been interested in being anybody’s beauty queen. If that’s what they want, don’t look at me. But I’m good,” she said with a grin that caused Trina to give her a high-five and laugh too.
But although they both were laughing, Trina was concerned about Orrie Neal. She could see already that he was the kind of brother that could turn sweetness sour. “Do you trust him?” Trina asked her.
“Who, Tommy?”
“Orrie.”
Grace thought about it. “Depends on the context. Do I trust him with the operations of Trammel? Yes. Would I trust him with the operations of my heart? Never.”
Trina smiled. “Girl, you’re good. You know what you’re doing. You’re always underestimated.”
Even by you, Grace wanted to respond. But the waiter arrived to take their food orders. And that was the perfect out for Grace.