Sal took the empty bottle then opened another one for her. “No. I wasn’t even going to respond but I made the mistake of mentioning the tickets to Romero and he went all crazy, insisting I get them. Otherwise, trust me I wouldn’t have.”
Grace went back to cooking, taking the done rice away from the heat then sautéing the peppers, onion and chorizo with a generous amount of shrimp. “She seems very into you.”
“She’s persistent. I’ll give her that.” He was beginning to love watching her cook. He’d watched many cooks at work in his time but none were as graceful as she was. His mom was the only one that came close, but he’d never look at Grace like he did his mom, so there was no comparison. “You said your mom was a long story too. Tell me about her.”
The smirk went flat as she cracked an egg off the side of the pan in which she was sautéing the vegetables and shrimp and began scrambling it. She took a deep breath. “My mom is actually my step-mom, but I’ve always called her mom because she’s the only mother I’ve ever known.”
Feeling an ache for her, he had to ask. “What happened to your real mom?”
She dumped the rice into the large frying pan in which she’d been sautéing and added more spices. “She died giving birth to me. In Mexico, it’s not like the states. There is no insurance. My dad couldn’t afford to take her to the hospital so a mid-wife was called in. There were complications and they rushed her over the border to a hospital in El Paso. They barely made it to the hospital in time to do an emergency C-section. I nearly died, too, from what my grandmother told me, but my mother didn’t make it. My dad never really talked about it.”
She paused to take another drink of her beer and Sal wondered if she was getting upset again like the night she told him about her dad. He was ffraid to ruin the night so he wouldn’t push for more unless she offered on her own. She did. “It was just me, my dad, and grandmother for years. Then when I was five, my dad started dating my step-mom and I begged him not to marry her. I didn’t want anybody else in our family. He promised he wouldn’t, then a few months later she was pregnant and he said he had to do the honorable thing. They wer singy. He e married and my grandmother assured me having a sibling would be a good thing.” She finally smiled. “She was right about that. Rose was my little doll, then she became my little shadow. But my step-mom didn’t seem to have the same adoration for her as the rest of us did. My grandmother told me when I got a little older that some women just weren’t meant to be mothers and my step-mom was one of them.”
When she paused for another drink, Sal decided to change the subject even if it was just for a moment. It was getting somewhat heavy and even though he now wanted to know everything about her, he didn’t want her getting upset. He knew she was probably near the part about how she lost her dad and it made him nervous.
“That smells delicious, Gracie. Are you gonna tell me what it is now?” It really did smell great. The mixture of the spices with the chorizo and shrimp was heavenly.
She turned back to her creation and covered it, smiling. “There was only one Chinese restaurant near the area where my grandmother’s restaurant was in Juarez. So it was pretty popular. One of their most popular dishes was their shrimp fried rice. My grandmother decided she could top it, adding a Mexican flair to it and put it on the menu. It was an instant hit. Even the owner of the Chinese restaurant came over one time to compliment her on it.”
“Mexican shrimp fried rice?” Sal eyed her, then leaned over and lifted the lid to get another look. His arm brushed against her and just like the time she nearly collided with him, just being that close to her excited him. It was like nothing he’d ever experienced. Maybe it was that she was an employee and it felt a little wrong or maybe it was that he remembered her aversion to him in the very beginning and the thought of any chance with her seemed like an impossibility at the time. Whatever it was, the feeling got stronger with each moment he stood next to her.
Another look at her dish and he had to admit it looked as good as it smelled but he could hardly concentrate. Now all he could think of was touching Grace. “Is it ready?”
“Almost, it just has to sit for a little bit. You can make it with chicken or beef also but shrimp was always my favorite. This was also another one they used to order a lot for parties because it can easily be made in large quantities.”
Sal turned to her. Standing this close he was tempted to lean in and kiss her but really had to be careful. Sure, she agreed they were on a date, but things would get incredibly awkward if he tried something she wasn’t ready for and she rejected him, especially since they’d still have to see each other every day. She blinked her big almond shaped eyes. “It’s actually really good served with Cadillac Margaritas.”
“Well let’s do this.” Sal pointed towards the bar. “Who better to fix them than you? I want the whole experience here, Gracie.”
She smiled and started toward the door. God what she did to him was insane. He walked behind her, wondering how long he could put off making a move. Even if it wasn’t a physical one. Not much longer that was for sure. Getting her to agree to give him a chance would more than suffice for now.
Grace went to the bar. Sal grabbed a lighter from just under the counter and walked out to one of the booths in the corner to set it up.
“What are you doing?” She asked from behind the bar.
“I’m setting up the table. I told you already. Just bec sady"> “Whaause we’re here doesn’t mean it’s not a real date.” He lit the candle in the middle of the table, glad he managed to derail any more talk about her mom and dad. He wanted to know all about it—all about her—but the intense stuff could wait for another time. Tonight he had other subjects he wanted to touch on. Like what his chances with her were. She’d already mentioned dating someone didn’t mean she was into them. He knew she’d been referring to her date last night but it could’ve been her subtle way of hinting he shouldn’t be putting too much weight on tonight. He’d get it straight before the night was over. After grabbing a couple of the pre-wrapped silverware, kept under the hostess desk up front, he walked back to the booth. Grace had already poured the margaritas and walked them to their table. She placed them on the table then smiled at him. “I’ll be back with the food.”
No way could he stay away from her now. “I’ll help you.”
He followed her into the kitchen and watched as she pulled out two plates. Sal inhaled deeply. “God, it smells good.”
“I haven’t made it in a while, but I think I got everything it needed.” She spooned some on both plates.
Sal inched his way closer to her, taking in the mixture of her warm skin and lotion maybe. He leaned in to help pick up one of the plates, when she turned her face their lips were just inches apart. “We could—” She stopped and stared at his lips then her eyes wandered up and met his. “I was gonna say we could also warm tortillas to go with this if you want.” He saw her gulp but she didn’t move away from him and he was sure she was feeling the same thing he was.
“Gracie.” His voice was hoarse and a near whisper.
“What?” She searched his eyes. The ease that had kicked in while she was cooking was gone and he saw the nerves were back.
“I wanna kiss you so bad.”
Her eyes moved down to his lips again. “You do?”
“Yes. But I don’t want you to—”
“Do it then.” She brought her hand up to his face and caressed it, making his legs nearly give out on him.
Putting the plate down, he leaned in and kissed her softly not wanting to come on too strong, but he did trace her lips with his tongue. The taste of her mouth was incredible, just like he’d imagined. Noticing her inexperience almost immediately only excited him more, but he forced himself to go slow and be gentle. It wasn’t easy.
He continued gently, placing his hand behind her neck and she leaned back allowing him better access. Then she eased her mouth open, inviting his tongue in and he really had to restrain from devouring he
r mouth. She followed his lead as his tongue moved around hers and he moved in closer, feeling her breathing become slightly labored. He didn’t want to stop but he had to before things got too heavy. He still had the rest of the night with her. Forcing himself to, but not before giving her a few more soft pecks, he pulled away and stared into her eyes. She licked her lips. “You don’t want me to what?”
At first, he didn’t know what she was talking about. The kiss had clouded everything out but then he remembered. “I don’t want you to think I’m coming on too strong on our first date.”
She glanced down pulling a strand of hair behind her ear. “So there’s gonna be more?”
“Of course,” he said, pulling the other strand behind her other ear. “That is, if you want there to be.”
She nodded, smiling. “I do.”
“But I meant what I said about not dating anyone that’s already seeing someone else.” He had to get this one straight. “You’re really not then right?”
“No. I’m really not.”
Sal peered at her. “So who were you talking about when you told Oscar you were?”
“I just said that so he wouldn’t get any ideas about asking me out.” She shrugged. “I didn’t want to be mean, especially because I knew I’d have to work with him.”
The relief felt too good. Sal didn’t even try to hide his excitement. He cupped her face with both hands and he kissed her again. This time just a quick one. “But you’ll be okay with this, right?”
She bit the corner of her lip and hesitated. “I’m not sure.”
He pulled back to look at her better. “Why?”
“You’ve never been in a relationship. I have. I’ve never done the casual dating thing. I’m not sure if that’s something I’d like or could handle. Your sister said—”
“Never mind what my sister said, Gracie. My family only knows what I want them to know. I was away at school for a long time. Believe it or not, I did have a relationship or two. Just nothing I would consider serious or very meaningful, so I never mentioned them to anyone.” She stared at him and he knew what he’d say next was risky but she’s the one that brought it up. “I wasn’t going to say this tonight but I don’t want you to take this casually. Not once have I ever considered dating someone that works for the restaurant. I never thought I would. Not until I realized I want more than just a date.”
She blinked and looked away then turned back to him. Her eyes glistened. “I do, too,” she whispered, her voice nearly breaking.
She was by far the most emotional girl he’d ever met. But he was glad she was emotional about this. It meant she really cared and it felt damn good.
This time he hugged her. Having her in his arms finally, felt better than what he’d expected. It felt perfect. Like that was exactly where she belonged. Keeping his hands off her while they worked was going to be a challenge. But a challenge he more than welcomed.
CHAPTER 15
Originally the booth set up had the place settings across from each other but after that kiss and their talk Sal said there was no way he wasn’t sitting next to her. So they sat on the same side. He said he loved the Mexican fried rice and it would be a perfect addition not only to the menu but to the Sunday brunch. Grace still couldn’t believe this was all happening to her. It felt too good to be true.
Not wanting to move into any subjects that were too nerve-wracking or that might have her in stupid tears again she asked about something safe. She really did want to know more about his plans on expanding the restaurants into a franchise. He told her more about it but said he was having second thoughts.
“Actually I thought about what you said the day I gave you the tour. It might be smarter to keep it on a smaller scale and work on perfecting the restaurants rather than expand into too many, because I know I wouldn’t have the time to manage them all. If I don’t have a close hand in it all it won’t be the same.”
She frowned. “You have to trust other people’s judgments, too. You can’t do it all.”
“I can if I stick to fewer restaurants.” He’d already helped himself to a second plateful of the rice and he was nearly done with it. That made her smile. “No one cares about this as much as we do. The family has their hands full even with the two restaurants we have now.”
“Well maybe you should just do one at a time. Once you’re managing all three smoothly, then you can try for another until you feel like you can’t take any more on.”
Sal smiled and kissed her. “That’s exactly what I was thinking.”
Grace stuck to safe subjects for the rest of the night. She was amazed that this whole restaurant business started with his dad in a catering taco truck. Sal was obviously very proud of how far his dad had come. It gave Grace hope that someday she’d be able to do the same.
By the end of the night, Grace felt almost drained from the amount of emotions that evening. She was so glad when he’d changed the subject from her mom and dad earlier. She’d been pretty close to getting emotional about that again and she would’ve hated for him to remember their first date that way.
When he dropped her off, he kissed her again the way he had in the restaurant. She didn’t want it to end and it did go on much longer than their first kiss. He leaned his forehead against hers when it was finally over and gazed in her eyes. “You have no idea what you do to me.” Then he smiled. “Hell, I don’t even know how to explain it.”
The way he looked at her at that moment made her wonder if he could actually be feeling what she was feeling. “I can’t explain what I’m feeling e vquotet mither. All I know is… it scares me.”
“Don’t be. I’m not scared.” He lifted his eyebrows. “Okay, maybe a little. But it’s a good kind of scared, like I just boarded the ride of my life.” He kissed her nose and whispered, “Hold on tight.”
Even after talking to Joey for over an hour, going over every detail of her date and him reassuring her this was not only a good thing it was great she still couldn’t sleep. But it was like Sal said—a good thing. She was too excited.
Every time she closed her eyes she relived those incredible kisses.
~*~
Grace wasn’t sure what to expect when she arrived at the restaurant the next day. Their eyes met as soon as she walked in and he greeted her with most breathtaking smile. Her insides had already been going wild even before she got there. As she put on her apron in the back he startled her coming up from behind. She nearly let out a yelp before laughing when she realized it was him and he planted a long smoldering one on her.
“Is the door locked?” Grace asked when she came up for air and she was able to gather her thoughts.
“I think.”
“What do you mean you think? What if someone walks in?”
He shrugged going in for another one. “Sal, I don’t want anyone to know.”
He pulled back immediately with a glare. “What? Why?”
“Aren’t you the one all about professionalism? Isn’t it gonna be weird for everyone to know me and you are… a thing now?”
The glare softened into a smile. “I like that. Okay, I’ll be discreet to an extent. But Gracie, if anyone gets wind of this or somehow finds out, I really don’t give a shit. It’s our business, not theirs. They’ll just have to deal with it.”
With that, he kissed her again and the ride began. Gracie decided not to fight it and just hold on tight.
~*~
That afternoon Sal got a text from Romero. He was at the game with Isabel.
That Melissa chick really pissed me off. Just an FYI you’ll probably be hearing from her.
Sal frowned and texted back.
What happened?
He sat back in his chair and waited for a response. Grace walked into the back room and he threw the phone on his desk, standing up. That could wait, this couldn’t. She smiled when he pushed the door closed and pulled her to him. “You on a break, or are you just here to see me?” He kissed her before she could answer and she giggled
against his mouth.
The door handle jiggled and Grace pulled away. It irritated him that she cared so much about people finding out. Grace spun around and opened the cabinet when the door opened. Sofia walked in. {a wth=“I thought you were interviewing today at Angel’s.”
“Nah, I moved those to Monday. I’m only gonna do them on Monday and Tuesday now.”
Grace said hello to Sofia and walked out with her phone in her hand, in too much of a rush. Sofia looked at him funny, lifting an eyebrow. Sal sat back down at the desk not acknowledging her suspicion and grabbed his phone that had buzzed twice since he threw it down. He read the first text.
She got rude with Izzy when I told her she took your ticket and well you know me. I wasn’t having it.
“Godamnit!”
“What?” Sofia asked as she put her apron on.
“Romero.”
“Ah,” Sofia laughed. “’Nuff said.”
Sal read the next one.
I told her I’d pay for the damn tickets but she said you’d be paying her for this one way or “another” I told the bitch that’s probably what she needs. Ha! She didn’t think it was funny. >=)
Sal shook his head, exhaling loudly.
“What did he do?” Sofia asked.
“Just made another mess for me.” He tossed the phone back on the desk and turned his chair around. “Grace has another great dish for us. Mexican shrimp fried rice.”
“Ooh, sounds good.”
“It is. I was hoping to get it in tomorrow’s brunch ‘cause she said it can easily be made in large quantities. I already told Alex and he said he’d come in just to try some, but I was hoping you can come in to help in the morning. I totally forgot I’m meeting my buddy in the morning for a few rounds of golf. I already told him we’d have to do it earlier than we planned so I can get here early and see how it goes.”
Making You Mine (The Moreno Brothers 5) Page 15