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“Any person in particular?” Donny folds his arms over his chest, a smug smile adorns his face.
“There’s one I’ve been hoping to see.”
“You always were in love with her. I never really understood what happened that ruined your relationship. I always hoped you’d officially be my son one day.”
“Yeah… I'm not sure she’d ever allow that now. I screwed up, but I want to make it up to her.”
“She has a boyfriend. He’s coming home with her this weekend, as well as some friend of hers.” He waves his hand through the air.
“Oh,” I whisper, dread filling me. I never took into consideration that she could have someone in her life.
“What happened? I think I deserve to know after all these years.” Donny stares me down, not giving me any wiggle room. And he’s right. He does deserve to know.
“Can we go somewhere private?”
“Sure, let’s go to my office.”
Following Donny through the restaurant and into his office, I feel even more at home. Donny’s always been more of a father to me than my own dad. I spent more time learning things from Donny than from anyone else.
I spill my guts the second the door is shut. Telling Donny exactly why I cut ties with everyone. He stares at me without saying a word the entire time. When I'm done, he leans forward in his chair, resting his elbows on the desk. His fingers form a steeple, where he rests his chin and stares at me.
“Listen, Nixon, I'm going to be straight with you. I’ll always pick you, I’ll always be on your side, but she’s my daughter. I want what’s best for Savannah.”
“Me too, sir. She’s all that matters to me. I want to fix things.”
“I know you do and I want to help. I believe you could be what’s best for her, but you need to prove yourself. This Chad guy… he doesn’t sound fantastic to me. I’ve never met him so I could be wrong, but I think you deserve a fighting chance. So, here’s what we’re going to do…”
We spend the next half an hour talking about what’s going to happen over the next week. Donny’s understanding and helpful in ways I never expected. If I can convince Savvy to give me a shot, I’ll owe Donny everything.
“Now, what are you doing with all your free time?” He asks, leading me out of the office and back into the restaurant.
“Well, I have an online business, but I like to work late at night. During the day I’ve been going through everything left in the house. Mom and Dad took what they wanted and told me to trash whatever I didn’t want.”
“You know… I could always use more help here. Give you a little bit of extra income.”
I can't help but chuckle. Donny used to always talk about me helping Savannah with the restaurant when it was time for her to take over as the boss. It’s always been a dream of mine, but I'm not sure that’s a possibility any longer.
“I don’t need the money, but I'm more than willing to help out.”
“Great. We can talk about it more at Thanksgiving.” He throws me a wink. “Here’s your dinner. I threw in a few extra things for you so Carla won't yell at me. You know how Italian women are with feeding those they love.” He chuckles.
“Thanks, Donny. I missed the food from Catalino’s more than you’ll ever know.”
“That’s because you won't find Italian food this good anywhere else.” He smiles proudly as he hands over the overstuffed bag.
“Let me know when you need help. I can move around my schedule if I need to.”
“I appreciate that. Ask Carla what she needs. I know there are a bunch of orders with Thanksgiving in a few days.”
“I’ll stop by after I gorge myself on this food.” I lift the bag and thank him again before I leave.
The second I sit down; I open every container to see what else Carla packed for me. The Catalino’s make the best food I’ve ever had. I used to beg them to teach me to cook. They agreed, but said I had to be old enough to work. If they were going to teach me, they were going to use me in their restaurant. I never got to learn from them. It’s another thing I’ll always regret.
The first bite of lasagna has my eyes rolling back and the most erotic moan escaping from my lips. I swear, there should be at least one person in every family with the ability to cook like Carla.
Every woman I’ve ever dated has wanted to cook at least one special meal for me. They always chose Italian, thinking it was a safe choice for their Italian boyfriend. It wasn’t. I compared each bite of it to Catalino’s food. I had to choke down most of it and try not to gag. No one came close to making meals like this.
The next container has the world’s best meatballs. I’ve avoided eating pasta and meatballs since I left Pebble Creek. I knew I’d be disappointed no matter how good it was, because nothing could ever compare to the homemade spaghetti and meatballs I grew up on.
