Making You Mine

Chapter - 3- Part 1

The meeting didn't go at all as Sal hoped. It seemed the investors were interested in only one thing—using the Moreno name—and the reputation that came with it to open up more restaurants. The second restaurant, which was run by his youngest brother Angel, had been an instant hit. There was no doubt in the investors' minds that all other restaurants with the name would follow suit as long as they picked out the perfect locations.

However, they weren't interested at all in talking about the management of the restaurants or staying true to the menu. There were already talks of changing food suppliers to cut down on some of the costs in the food. Sal had nearly called the meeting to an end right there. As far as he was concerned, the food and the service were the main ingredients in running a successful restaurant. Anything else was a distant third. This was one of the reasons why he'd decided against going with a big franchising deal. The investors wanted to change a lot of things, including the menu, mostly to cut corners. They called it good business. Sal called it selling out.

He rushed to get back to the restaurant as soon as the meeting was over. He was feeling a little irritated about how the meeting had gone and wondered if maybe he was thinking too big. Maybe, instead of opening up several restaurants all at once as the investors wanted, one at a time would be best. Getting Angel's restaurant going had been quite a challenge. In the end, things worked out fine, but they never would've been able to give it the attention they had if there were several other restaurants opening at the same time.

The back door to the restaurant swung open just as Sal pulled up and parked. Oscar waved at him as he threw a bag of trash in the back bin. Sal got out in a hurry.

"How'd it go?"

"Eh." Sal said loosening his tie. "Not too good." He hurried into the restaurant behind Oscar. "How's it going in here? Real busy?"

"Yeah, as usual, but the new bartender is really kicking ass."

"New bartender?"

Oscar turned back to look at him. "Yeah, Alex hired her today. The girl knows her drinks." Then he added with a grin, "Not to mention she's got a real nice rack."

As soon as they came around the corner and into view of the bar, Sal saw her. Ms. Zendejas was handling herself just fine behind the bar. A long, thick ponytail replaced the tight bun in her hair, and the glasses were gone. Unlike the day of the interview, she smiled brightly as she made several drinks at one time. Alex said something to her as he walked behind her, and she laughed.

Sal's irritation hit another level as he stood glued to the spot. As soon as her eyes met his, the smile disappeared. Finally, he took a few steps toward the bar. Alex smirked when he saw him.

"Can I see you in the office?" Sal said as he walked by them.

Graciela seemed ready to address him when he glanced at her, but Sal turned his attention back to Alex without so much as a nod. The last thing he wanted was for her to notice that her presence alone had somehow affected him. The worst part was it had nothing to do with her lying on her application. Seeing the way she'd carried on with Alex, then her obvious distaste when she saw him, annoyed him in a way he couldn't even begin to understand.

As soon as Alex walked in the back office, Sal closed the door. "Do you wanna explain that?" He pointed in the direction of the bar.

"Relax." Alex sat down on the chair in front of the desk. "Yeah, she lied about her age but only because she wanted a chance to prove herself before we dismissed her based on her age alone. "Which," Alex raised an eyebrow. "you have to admit, you did."