Table for Two

Alexis Lauren

All Rights Reserved © Alexis Lauren

Mending the Soul

Big Tex

Under her Skin

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Isabella looked in the mirror as she brushed her long brown hair, gathering it all in one hand. She put the brush down, and after a series of twists and turns, her hair was in the ever present sloppy bun that she wore to work.

Work…Bella thought of everything she needed to get done. All of the meat had been ordered the previous day, but the produce order still needed to be placed. She listed off the specials that they would be having over the next week, helping her to compile the list of fruits and vegetables that they would need.

What else? The new bartender. She was going to have to sit down and have a little chat with him about his attitude towards the male patrons. He was great with the women, though his flirting tended to get a little out of hand, but he was so rude to the men that sat at the bar. He treated them as though they were an inconvenience to him, even though it was his job to serve them. Yup, he definitely needed an attitude adjustment, and if he didn't like it, there were plenty of others lining up to take his job.

Bella took one last look in the mirror before heading out of the bathroom. Satisfied with her appearance, she returned to her bedroom to finish getting dressed. The same thing, day after day. Black pants, black shirt. Her black chef coat was waiting at the restaurant for her. There was no need to bring it home, each day all of the laundry was sent out to be cleaned, and they had plenty of uniforms for each person stocked in the employee's lounge.

Finally, Bella was ready to start her day. She walked the twelve blocks to her restaurant, taking the same route that she took every day. Along the way, she waved to the same people…the corner florist outside watering her stock, the older gentleman that worked the newsstand outside of her favorite coffee shop, the guy that sold the knock off purses the block over from her restaurant. In a city as big as New York City, it was nice that there were some constants, people that you could count on seeing every day, and it was such a bonus that they were all so friendly.

As she rounded the corner, Isabella noticed a small crowd milling around the entrance to her restaurant. She quickly checked her watch and noticed that she was three minutes late. She quickened her pace a little, digging through her shoulder bag to find her keys.

"Hey guys, sorry I'm late. I must have been daydreaming on the way here." Isabella apologized to her employees that were waiting for her to unlock the door to The TigerLily, the restaurant that she had owned for the past year.

"Three minutes late boss, you're slipping! What kind of example are you setting for the rest of us?" Dylan, the head waiter, teased her.

She smirked at him and playfully smacked his arm. "You better watch it Dylan."

"Like I'm afraid of you…You're 5'4" and weigh all of 125 pounds soaking wet. What do you think you could really do to me?" He countered with an eye roll, trying to hide his smile.

Isabella looked at him. He was a foot taller than her, and worked out every morning before he came into work. "You're right, physically I am no match for you. But don't forget who signs your paychecks."

Dylan nodded in agreement. The rest of the employees had already gone inside to get started on their opening duties, used to the playful banter between the two friends. He held the door open for her, smiling as she passed under his arm. "You win. You always win."

"And don't you forget it." She smiled. "Now get to work." She told him, trying to sound like she was giving him orders. But Dylan was the one person that she didn't need to tell what to do. He had been her friend since college, and her head waiter since the day she opened the doors to the restaurant. He was truly one of the hardest workers that she had ever met. Honestly, he was more than just the head waiter. He was more like the restaurant manager, and the only one that Isabella entrusted her restaurant to in her absence.

While the rest of the employees busied themselves preparing the restaurant to open for the day, Isabella went to her office to get a few things done. She placed her produce and liquor orders, and printed out all of the employees checks. Knowing that they would not need her in the kitchen for a few hours, she busied herself paying bills.

Just before the start of the dinner crowd, Isabella called the new bartender into her office. She gave him a stern lecture regarding his attitude and told him that he only had one more chance to prove himself. She had a stack of bartender applications on her desk, so there was no way that she was going to put up with someone who didn't value their job enough to treat the customers right.

Isabella had always made a conscious effort to make sure that her staff treated the customers right. Too many times, she had been to some of the upscale restaurants where she was treated horribly, and vowed to never go back. Her business was finally starting to flourish, and she didn't want to do anything to jeopardize that.

After her meeting, Isabella grabbed her chef jacket and went to the kitchen to help the other chefs. She looked striking, even though her outfit was so simple. Black was definitely her color. Unlike the others who had black on black, Isabella had white piping following the edges of her jacket, making her stand out just a little more than the rest of them.

Orders began pouring in, keeping everyone in the restaurant on their toes. Whenever they got caught up in the kitchen, Bella would slip out to the dining room and greet her guests, making sure that everyone's meals were to their satisfaction. She liked to add that personal touch whenever possible, and she had made friends with quite a few of the regulars by doing this. No one ever left her restaurant unsatisfied, and because of this, word of her restaurant spread and business picked up. The TigerLily was rapidly becoming one of the trendiest restaurants in New York City.

*****

Parker Davidson sat in his manager's office located in a high rise overlooking Central Park. "This is shit, Tommy! The songs that they are asking me to do are ridiculous. I'm thirty fucking years old and they want me to sing about some teenaged love? What the hell?" He ran his hands through his black, short and spiky hair.

"Look Parker, calm down. I'm sure it isn't that bad." Tom Purvis told his client. He was getting used to Parker's rants.

"It isn't that bad? Tell me what it would sound like for me to sing these lyrics. Baby let me hold your hand/ While we walk on the beach in the sand/ I want to look into your eyes all day/ We'll be together, we'll find a way. Come on! It sounds like we are two kids, and our parents don't want us to date. I'm a man, Tommy! If I'm going to sing about a woman, it's going to be about us fucking or something." He was starting to raise his voice, getting more and more excited as he went.

Tom took a deep breath. Sure the lyrics weren't the best, but they weren't horrible. "I'll see what I can do. Besides, it's not like that song would be released as a single, it would just be an album track."

"You're missing the point! I'm too old to be singing the bubble gum shit." Parker pounded his fist on Tom's desk. "Fix this or there is no record!" Before Tom could reply, Parker stormed out of his office and slammed the door.

He stood waiting for the elevator that felt like it would never get there. Impatience took over, and he repeatedly pushed the down arrow, as if by some miracle it would make the elevator come that much sooner. When the doors opened, he rushed on, not waiting for the occupants to get off first, ignoring the glares that he got. Finally the elevator emptied, and he was on his way to the ground floor.

As he got into the hired car that was waiting for him, Parker's phone rang. Even though he saw it was his mother's number, he answered the phone.

"Parker dear, how are you doing?" She asked sweetly.

"I'm fine mother." He said a little shortly. She always expected such formality, which didn't fit his rocker image. "To what do I owe the pleasure of your call?"

"I wanted to remind you that you promised to go out with Janet Reynold's niece tonight. Remember, she's new in town, so show her around a little. But be nice, and mind your manners…and so help me God if I find out that you were rude or hurt her in any way…"

"I know mother!" He stopped her rant. "Relax, I'll take her out and be the proper young man." He rolled his eyes.

"You better. Pick her up at 8:00, I'll e-mail you her address. I've made reservations for you at this new restaurant called The TigerLily. They have the best Coq Au Vin…I went there last week with Manda Powers, it was the first time I'd ever been there, and let me tell you it won't be the last. But I had the Coq Au Vin and she had the lobster…mmm, both were absolutely delectable. And the dessert, oh the dessert..."

"Mom!" He interrupted. "I get the picture."

"Oh. Well, fine. Anyway, I was going to ask, before you so rudely interrupted, if you would have enough money to pay for the both of you. It does tend to get a little expensive, and it would be preposterous to ask her to pay for her own." She cut back in.

"Mother! My last album went double platinum. I think I can more than afford a couple of dinners." He bit back at her. She would never see how successful and famous he was because she wore blinders when it came to his singing career. She was from old money, and nothing he ever did could compare to the ideals she was raised with.

"You see Parker, that is exactly the rudeness that I will not allow you to show to her tonight." His mother pointed out.

"I apologize Mother." He said through clenched teeth. "What is her name again?"

"Her name is Melinda Sue Reynolds. And she's from a very small town, so make sure you don't do anything to scare her." She scolded. His mother was more worried about her reputation than anything.

"Mother? I'm losing you…I'm going through a tunnel…I'll talk to you later." He said, hissing into the phone to create fake interference. He snapped his phone shut and shook his head. This was not what he needed today.

*****

Eight o'clock came a lot fast than Parker had hoped for. He was still stewing over the song choices and his meeting with his manager as he got ready to pick Melinda Sue up. Just before he knocked on her door, he said a quick prayer. 'Please Lord, don't give me a reason to murder my own mother over this.' He raised his hand and rapped his knuckles against the door.

A minute later, the door opened and a beautiful brunette smiled at him. "Hi, you must be Parker. I'm a big fan." She held out her hand.

Parker shot her a dazzling smile as he took her hand and brought it to his mouth for a gentle kiss. "And you must be Melinda Sue. I am so glad to meet you and a little relieved that you aren't some hideous thing." He winked one of his crystal blue eyes at her.

"Uh, I'm actually Melinda Sue's roommate Jenny. She'll be out in a minute." She let him into the apartment and showed him to the couch so he could sit while he waited for Melinda Sue to get ready. "I'm really looking forward to your new album. I already have your other two."

Parker flinched slightly. He only wished that he was looking forward to his new album. Before he could respond, a skinny blonde bounded into the living room.

"Ah my god! This is so exciting', to meet a real live super star." The woman drawled loudly with a thick southern accent. "I'm Melinda Sue." She told him, reaching out her hand to shake his enthusiastically.

"I'm Parker. Nice to meet you." He stood up. "If you're ready, we've got dinner reservations that we shouldn't be late for."