He went to school in Los Angeles, so, he stayed out there and only came home on the weekends. But lately he’d been coming home less and less. His schedule was heavier. He was really trying to finish up school faster, so he’d taken on a full load the past couple of semesters. That’s why Alex had been surprised to see him at the restaurant that morning.
He supervised all day and put in his two cents on everything. Alex didn’t mind. Sal knew what he was talking about. He’d helped his dad run the place for years, so Alex welcomed the help. Alex made in the excel sheets for payroll and scheduling. He’d expected Sal to be pleased but hadn’t expected just how impressed he’d been.
Alex was in the back room showing Sal more of the changes he’d made when Angel walked in.
“Hey, did you hear about next door?” Angel asked.
Both Alex and Sal turned to face him. “What about it?” Alex hadn’t noticed much of anything lately.
“Old man Mason is finally gonna retire. I ran into his son this morning. They’re putting the place up for sale.”
Alex and Sal exchanged knowing glances. They’d been waiting for this for years. If they bought the place, they could expand the restaurant further out to allow for a bigger bar area. Already the place had gained so much popularity. The weekend evening crowd had outgrown it.
“He owns the place right? He’s not leasing?” Alex knew what Sal was getting at because it was exactly what he was thinking. They’d make him an offer before it even went on the market.
“I’m one step ahead of you brother.” Angel grinned. “They already signed the papers with the listing agent. So, it’s scheduled to go on the market this week.”
Alex sat up. “It’s not gonna last. That’s prime location.” He could kick himself for being so damn distracted. He should’ve known about this sooner. If he’d just gone over there more like he used to, he might’ve gotten the inside scoop sooner.
“So, call Valerie.” Sal said standing up.
“Already did.” Angel walked over and opened up one of the cabinets. “Well, Sarah did anyway.”
“Whoa, wait.” For some unknown reason that made Alex uncomfortable. “Why Valerie?”
Angel turned back to him. “Why not? She’s handling finding a place for the new restaurant. Plus she’s good.” He pulled out a file and waved it at him. “Matter of fact, we’re meeting with her tomorrow to walk through a few properties. Dad’s coming with us. She’ll bring the paperwork for the offer dad needs to sign.”
Sal gave Angel a high five. “Way to handle it.”
“That fast?” Alex asked. “Doesn’t it have to actually be on the market for us to make an offer?”
“Nope, Sarah said Valerie told her it wouldn’t be a problem. She’d take care of everything.” Angel winked at him. “Told you she’s good.”
Angel grabbed his keys from the desk. “I’m gotta go pick up Sarah. We’re going to drive by some of these properties first.” He waved the file at Alex and Sal again. “No sense in having Valerie walk us through something if we don’t even like the location.”
Both Angel and Alex made an exit. He needed to work off some tension. Just thinking about being around Valerie again tensed his muscles to no end.
After working out Alex was tempted to go back to the restaurant. He wanted to avoid sitting around his place brooding. But he knew Sal had things covered. The one thing he couldn’t get out of his mind tonight was what Valerie had said. She’d only been involved with someone else for a few weeks. Maybe it wasn’t too late to change her mind. Maybe, if he’d finally just come clean about why he’d always been so elusive all those years.
He had to really think this through. Is that really what he wanted? A relationship with her? All those years he could have had one but they both chose not to.
He knew one of the main reasons was time. Or was it? Now that he’d cut down on school so drastically, and football was out, things could definitely be different between them. If only she’d answer her phone or at least return his calls. He stopped leaving messages long ago. He was pretty sure she didn’t bother listening to them. All the messages he left always came out wrong anyway.
When he got home, he busied himself. He had a ton of laundry to catch up on and he got right on it. He was hardly ever home, so, there wasn’t much else to clean in between loads.
He made himself a protein drink and sat down to watch T.V. After flipping the through the channels and finding nothing that interested him, he turned it off and let his head fall back. He stared at the ceiling for a while, trying to put his feelings into prospective.
Was seeing Valerie at the shower really that caustic? Or had he been in denial all this time? This was insane. He was fine with the way things were until that damn shower.
He checked his watch. It was still early. He considered going back to the restaurant again, and then it hit him. He’d hardly been home alone since Valerie stopped coming around. The only time he was ever home was when he had to study or sleep. The rest of the time he kept himself busy elsewhere.
Between the therapy for his ankle and trying to prove he could not only run the restaurant, he could do it well, the past year had been a blur of going back and forth, spending little to no time at home. Hell, he’d even opted to spend the night at his parents more than a few times rather than come back to his empty house. He could hardly stand to be here now.