Page 28 of Only and Forever
Instead, I’m sitting, stomach so empty and hungry it’s practically eating itself, across the table from a woman who manages to give me arctic glares but turn my body white hot. Who loathes romance novels and makes fun of my sweet old car and drives a Vespa like a bat out of hell.
“May I help you?” she asks primly.
“Yeah. You can explain what in God’s name ever made you decide you were fit to drive a motor vehicle.”
Tallulah bites her cheek, fighting a smile. I derive an unholy amount of pleasure from knowing I almost made her smile, even if I am perturbed with her.
“I enjoy the autonomy of a Vespa. It makes it very easy to travelefficiently, not to mention solo, and avoid unwanted passengers.” Her eyebrows lift meaningfully.
Our server brings us two ice waters and we both thank them.
“Is it the thriller writer in you? Do you need periodic close brushes with death to keep you connected to your characters’ fight-or-flight modes?”
“I am calm and cool, driving that Vespa,” she says smoothly. “Adrenaline spikes complicate my already complicated health. I don’t have time for them.”
I peer at her, concern tightening my chest. “How, uh... is your health? You okay?”
She shrugs and pulls out a little device that looks like a small iPhone. It beeps as she types something in; then she slips it back into her purse. “Okay enough. I manage it well. Unlikesomepeople, I take my blood sugar level seriously.”
“Enough with the browbeating. I know I should have eaten. I just got busy and nervous and my medication kills my appetite. Hunger doesn’t kick in until it wears off, right about now, when I eat enough to fuel a horse.”
Tallulah tips her head, eyes narrowed. I can tell she’s curious, but I also have a hunch she’s not going to pry.
“ADHD,” I explain. “Took a while to find a medication that makes me still feel like myself while improving my executive function and doesn’t cost a fortune. Finally got one that’s a pretty good fit.”
“Besides the appetite suppressant,” she says.
I shrug. “Besides that.”
“Well, we do have these fancy contraptions called smartphones that allow you to set reminders and alarms. You could set them, then when they go off, choke down a snack if you can’t manage a whole meal.”
“Maybe,” I concede. “But I can tell you, even with all the alarms in the world today, I was too focused and busy to stop.”
Tallulah frowns. “You need someone managing this for you. Where was your staff tonight? Why didn’t you have anyone there helping? You could have taken five, had a quick bite.”
“I...” Clearing my throat, I scrub at the back of my neck. “I don’t exactly have staff hired right now... per se.”
“ ‘Per se’? But you’re planning on hiring them, right?”
I focus on looking at the Chinese zodiac symbols on my place mat. “Eventually.”
Tallulah leans in, eyes wide. “Viggo! ‘Eventually’? You’re going to run yourself into the ground.”
“If you and your Vespa don’t first.”
She glares at me. “You, sir, are real close to walking your ass back to that store when we’re done here. My Vespa and I will enjoy the ride home without your snark.”
I grin. “I’m just messing with you. Kind of. I wouldn’t mind if we drove, like, ten miles per hour slower on the way back, but please don’t leave me here to walk home with two pounds of lo mein in my stomach. I’m not honestly sure I can afford the cab ride back.”
Our conversation’s broken briefly as our food is served and we thank the waiter.
Tallulah picks up right where we left off, eyes narrowed, as she grips her chopsticks. “You had plenty of cash at one point, to make that store happen. Where did it go, that you have none left to hire staff?”
I shove noodles into my mouth so I don’t have to answer her.
“Let me guess,” she says, plucking up a noodle with her chopsticks. “All into the store.”
“I couldn’t cut corners. I saw everything it could be, and I didn’t want to do anything by halves. I made and built from scratch asmuch as I could, did everything I could on my own—the mugs, the coasters, reupholstering the chairs, the bookshelves, the bar table—but still, raw material, supplies, demo and reno, and of course, all the books; it adds up.”