“You’d do that for my sister? You did the research and now you’re willing to go out there and face the world?”
She wanted to say he couldn’t. That he would be slaughtered in the press. But Madeline’s life was too important. Still, she had to make sure he understood what he was getting into.
“There’s still that article,” she said. “You know any interviewer is going to bring it up.”
Reid shrugged. “The people who matter know the truth about me.”
“Meaning me and four hundred other women,” she teased.
He didn’t smile back. “Meaning you. I’d want to talk to my family. This is going to mean they could be in the spotlight, too.”
He touched her face. “It’s going to be embarrassing and uncomfortable the first couple of times, but then we’ll talk about Madeline and how organ donations save lives. The message will get out. What do I care if a few people make cracks at my expense?”
He was making sense in the best way possible. “I can’t believe you’ve already done research.”
“I’m an impressive kind of guy.”
“Yes, you are.” She leaned in and kissed him again. “More than impressive. You’re spectacular. If you ever need a letter of recommendation, let me know.”
He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her onto his lap. “I just might take you up on that,” he said, before he kissed her back.
REID PARKED in his usual spot, then walked in through the front of the Downtown Sports Bar. A couple of the guys called out to him, he heard a few cracks and kept on moving. Cal, Walker and Dani were already there, in their usual table in the corner. He greeted them.
“I know I’m not late,” he said as he made a fist and banged knuckles with both Cal and Walker, then hugged his baby sister.
“We got here early so we could talk about you,” Dani said with a grin.
“Great. What did you decide?”
“That you might just turn out okay.” She sat back down and pushed his beer toward him. “Actually, we all beat you by about two minutes.”
He tugged on a lock of his sister’s short hair. “I haven’t seen you in a while. What’s going on?”
“Still working for Penny while I look for something else. She’s hoping I’ll change my mind about leaving, but I can’t. I need to get going on something of my own.”
“Where have you been looking?”
“All over the city. There are some interesting places out there.”
“Like where?” Cal asked.
“Valerie’s Garden. Fabulous restaurant, great staff, incredibly strange vegan food. Not for me.”
Reid had never much been into tofu, either.
“You doing okay otherwise?” he asked.
She nodded. “I’m doing fine. Moving on with my life.” She touched his arm. “Don’t worry.”
“We all worry,” Walker said. “It’s part of the job description.”
“Well, I do need help with one thing,” Dani said, looking at Reid. “I want to find out about my father. I have nothing to go on, which means I need to talk to Gloria. What are the odds that her transformation is genuine and that she’ll help me?”
Reid looked at Cal and Walker. They both shrugged.
“She’s changed,” Reid said. “She’s trying.”
“For you guys,” Dani grumbled. “You’re family.”
“She was great to Penny and the baby,” Cal offered. “It’s not like she loved the idea of Penny being pregnant with another guy’s kid but she was friendly. Almost charming. Honestly? It kind of freaked me out.”
“She was good to Elissa and even asked her to bring Zoe on her next visit,” Walker said.
“I’m tempted to talk to her,” Dani said. “But not quite tempted enough.”
“Want me to say something?” Reid asked.
Dani shook her head. “No. This is my dragon. I have to make peace with it or slay it myself. Metaphorically, of course. I’m not advocating killing Gloria…yet.”
“No one thinks you are,” Cal told her. “We’re here for you. You know that, right?”
“I do.” She smiled. “So that’s me. What’s up with you, Reid? You’ve been lying low these past couple of months.”
“With good reason. I do have a couple of things I need to talk to you about.” He glanced at Walker. “You got my letter of resignation, right?”
Dani glanced between the two of them, then glared at Reid. “You’re quitting your job here? Just like that? Did you know?” she asked Cal.
Cal shifted in his seat. “He might have mentioned it.”
Dani grabbed a chip from the pile of nachos and chomped down furiously. She swallowed. “Dammit, I’m always the last to know. I swear, the next time I get a great secret, I’m not telling any of you.”
“It wasn’t a secret,” Reid said. “I’ve been thinking about leaving for a while. I’m not good at running this place, probably because I’m not interested. There are some good managers here.”
“I know,” Walker said calmly. “Don’t sweat it. They’ll pick up the slack until I get someone else in here.” He looked at Dani. “Are you interested?”
“In working here? No, thanks.”
“You’d be in charge. I’d like to keep it in the family. And don’t say you’re not family because you are.”
Dani glanced around. “Not my thing. I want a real restaurant. Not liquor and finger food. But I appreciate the offer.”
“I’ll find somebody else, then,” Walker said. “Let me know if you change your mind.”
“I will, but don’t expect anything.” She turned back to Reid. “What else do you want to spring on me?”
“I have something, but this time no one else knows.”
“Cool.”
His brothers looked at him. “What is it?” Cal asked.
“It’s a bitch not knowing everything, isn’t it?” Dani asked.
Walker glanced at Reid. “Was she always this annoying?”
“Pretty much.”
Dani bounced in her seat. “Come on. Enough suspense. Spill.”
Reid hadn’t figured out exactly how to tell them what he was going to do.
“One of Gloria’s nurses is the main reason for her change of heart,” he began. “Lori has been great with her. Patient but not a pushover. When Gloria gets her back up, Lori won’t take any crap. She’s—”
Dani punched him in the arm. “You’re dating her. Cal and Walker are nodding knowingly, which means they’ve probably met her. You’re dating this woman and you didn’t tell me?”
“It just happened. We’re not really dating.” He hesitated. “We’re involved. I like her, okay? Can I get back to the important part now?”
“You like her?” Dani sounded surprised. “As in ‘hey, I really like this girl. Let’s see where the relationship goes’?”
“Yes. Do you have a problem with that?”
“No.” She looked at Walker and Cal. “You guys should say something.”
“You’re doing fine messing up on your own,” Walker told her.
“I’m not messing up. I’m just happy to find out Reid has a girl.”
Reid ignored that. “Her sister, Madeline, is sick. She has Hepatitis C and needs a liver transplant. Because of her blood type, she’ll be difficult to match. I’ve talked to Lori and a couple of donor places. I want to go public and talk about the need for people to donate. That means accepting some of those interview offers I’ve been getting over the past few weeks. That means having my name in the press, which will impact the three of you. You’re family and people will talk.”
“You’re the one they’re going to try to annihilate,” Walker said. “There won’t be anything they won’t ask.”
Reid thought about the article in the paper—the one claiming he was lousy in bed. “They’re going to take it as far as the censors will let them.”
“Are you prepared for that?” Dani asked. “It will be humiliating.”
He knew
that. He would probably become the butt of a lot of late night comedy jokes.
“This isn’t about me,” he said. “If something doesn’t change, Madeline will die. I don’t know any other way to help.”
Cal nodded. “Then you do what you have to do. We’re fine with it.”
Reid looked at each of them. “Are you sure?”
“Of course we’re sure,” Dani said. “When compared with what Lori and her sister are going through, none of the rest of this matters. We’ll be fine.”
“We can handle it,” Walker said.
Reid had known they were going to say that, but he was still gratified to hear the words. “Then I’ll e-mail you and let you know when I’m on Access Hollywood.”
LORI HAD NEVER BEEN inside a television studio before. Reid’s Access Hollywood interview was being held at a Seattle station.
The set was used for a local morning show. Lori didn’t expect it to be so small, or so isolated in a sea of backdrops, lights, cables and cameras.
She and Madeline stood several feet behind the equipment and watched as a woman dabbed Reid’s face with a sponge.
“I’m nervous,” Lori admitted. “Nothing about this is going to be easy. They’re going to ask some awful questions. I know he says he’s prepared, but I’m not so sure.”
“You think he’s going to punch anyone?” Madeline asked.
“No, but I hate to see him humiliated.”
“Imagine how I feel,” Madeline muttered. “He’s putting himself in the spotlight because I have a sick liver. I’m not even sleeping with him. That hardly seems fair.”
“The sex stays in the family,” Lori teased as she took her sister’s hand. “That’s what matters.”
“But you’re the only one having a good time.”
“I’m not going to share,” Lori told her with a grin. “Just so we’re clear on that.”
“It doesn’t matter if you’re willing or not. Reid is only interested in you. I can see it every time he looks at you.”
Lori’s insides got all warm. She desperately wanted Madeline’s words to be true, but wishing wasn’t going to make that happen. Still, a woman could dream.
The reporter, an incredibly beautiful blonde in a tailored suit that emphasized her curves, walked over to Reid and introduced herself. Lori couldn’t hear them, but as she watched they shook hands, then the woman leaned over and kissed Reid on the cheek before indicating where he should take a seat.
A man walked over and adjusted the microphone clipped to the front of Reid’s shirt, then someone yelled for quiet. Lori and Madeline both put on the headphones they’d been given so they could hear the interview.
“I’m here with Reid Buchanan, a bad-boy baseball player who’s been in the news these past few weeks. He’s here to talk about something important. Thanks for being with us today, Reid.”
“My pleasure.”
The woman smiled at him. “I know you have some interesting things going on in your life, but first you know what we have to talk about.”
Lori’s gaze locked onto Reid’s face. Nothing about his expression changed, but she sensed him bracing himself for the assault.
“That last game against the Cubs?” he asked.
“Not exactly. There was a rather insulting article about you in the Seattle paper a few weeks ago. Apparently you and the reporter had a night together and when it was over, she was not a happy camper. Care to comment on that?”
“Are you really asking me a question?” Reid smiled his charming smile—the one that made Lori’s toes curl.
“I’m going to be tough and demand an answer.”
“She didn’t have as good a time as either of us would have liked,” he said with a shrug. “I can give you a lot of excuses, but I won’t.”
The reporter looked disappointed. “That’s all? Don’t you want to defend your reputation? Several women you’ve been with have come forward to complain about your…performance, shall we say.”
“They didn’t complain to me.”
“Women seldom do. Is what they say about the fragile male ego true? Do you think your bed partners resisted saying anything because they didn’t want to hurt your feelings?”
“If that was the reason, they’ve gotten over it now.” He shifted in his seat. “I love women. Always have. Despite popular opinion, the biggest rush for a guy is pleasing the woman he’s with.” He held up his hand. “For most guys. Certainly for me. If that didn’t happen, I’m sorry. It’s always my intent.”
“A lot of people, women especially, believe that celebrities aren’t very good in bed because they don’t have to be. Do you think that’s part of your problem?”
Lori groaned. She actually took a step forward, then stopped. Reid didn’t need her breaking into his interview so she could tell the world that he was an amazing lover.
“I hate this woman,” Lori muttered to her sister.
“I’m not real fond of her myself.”
“I don’t know what happened with the reporter who started all this,” Reid said. “She never talked to me about anything. She came on to me in a bar. For all I know, the whole thing was a setup. It’s been uncomfortable. This isn’t anything any guy wants to deal with. As you know, I’ve been avoiding the press.”
“I’m aware of that,” the reporter purred. “Of all the reporters around, you chose me.” She put her hand on Reid’s arm. “Are you trying to tell me something?”
Reid looked directly at the camera. “Yes, I am. I’m putting up with these questions because they don’t matter to me. Say what you want—I don’t care. What’s a hell of a lot more important than what anyone thinks about my love life is the fact that every day people are dying when they don’t need to be.”
The woman sighed, as if aware the juicy portion of the interview was over. “You’re talking about those waiting for an organ donation.”
“Right. In other countries, organ donation is the norm.”
He went on with his pitch, but Lori wasn’t listening. She pulled off her headphones and turned to her sister.
“He did it. He got through. I can’t believe it. He was great. You saw that. Right?”
“He was a god,” Madeline said, then sighed. “Seriously, he was terrific. I’m really grateful.”
Lori hugged her. “Me, too. I still can’t believe he was willing to go through that for you.”
Madeline smiled at her. “No, Lori. He didn’t do it for me. Don’t you get it? He did it for you.”
Chapter Seventeen
“BERNARDO IS A GOOD MAN,” Mama Giuseppe said as she ladled more pasta sauce onto Dani’s plate. “His father started the restaurant nearly fifty years ago. We were so young then, with foolish dreams.”
The tiny woman, dressed all in black glanced around the gleaming restaurant kitchen. “Maybe not so foolish.” She looked back at Dani’s plate. “Eat. Eat!”
Dani cheerfully tasted another forkful of the perfect pasta. The sauce was delicious enough to make her wonder how rude it would be to lick the plate when she was finished. But as she hadn’t technically started her interview, she’d probably better remember her table manners.
She’d arrived at three and had immediately been ushered into the kitchen. The prep chefs were hard at work, yelling and insulting each other in Italian. At least she assumed it was Italian. But judging from their expressions and the laughter, she had a good idea what they were saying. Some things about the back of a restaurant were all the same.
Although she’d met Bernardo, the owner of Bella Roma, he’d been called away to take a phone call, leaving Dani alone with his mother. As Mama Giuseppe had been offering incredible food, Dani wasn’t complaining.
“I’ve asked around,” Mama said. “I know you are a Buchanan, like the restaurants. Your grandmother, she’s not a nice woman.”
Dani wasn’t sure what to say to that. “Gloria can be a challenge,” she admitted.
Mama sniffed. “Is that what we call it? Still, you didn’t
pick her for family. What can you do? I have four boys. Four. God was good to us. And of the four, only Bernardo wants to go in the family business. One is enough, right? So now my grandchildren are growing up. This one wants to be a lawyer, that one a doctor. Nicholas wants to do hair.” She shook her head. “A man who wants to do hair. But he’s family, so I love him. The restaurant? Not so much. Alicia, she loved working here, but now she’s moving to New York to get married. What? We can’t have a wedding in Seattle?”
Mama sighed. “What can you do?” She looked at Dani. “You’re not married?”
“Ah, no. I was. My husband and I…He, ah—”
Mama Giuseppe nodded. “I understand. Some men are good men. Some, not so good. My Bernardo, he’s a good man. His wife died.” She paused, considering. “You’re a little young for him. Too bad.”
Dani nearly choked on her pasta. Bernie, as he’d asked her to call him, had to be close to fifty.
Just then the man in question hurried into the room.
“Sorry about that,” he told Dani. “My daughter’s getting married in a month. We’re averaging about one crisis every four hours. Has my mother been torturing you?”
Dani glanced at her empty plate. “Not at all. She’s been keeping me well fed. I love everything here.”
“A girl who eats,” Mama said. “Good.”
Bernie sighed. “I’m going to take Dani to my office, Mama. We’re going to talk business. You’ll want to leave us alone for a while.”
“I’m an old woman. What do I know about business? I wouldn’t want to get in the way of something important. Did I start this place with your father? Did I work all hours of the day while raising four children?”
“Ignore her,” Bernie murmured as they left the kitchen and headed down a rear hall. “She can be dramatic.”
“I adore her,” Dani said and meant it.
“If you’re not careful, she’ll run your life.”
Dani figured she wasn’t doing such a great job of it herself, so maybe someone being in charge would be good.
They sat in Bernie’s crowded office. He looked at the stack of papers and files lying on his desk and groaned. “I’ve got to get this organized,” he said. “I never have the time. That’s why we’re hiring a manager. My daughter, Alicia, was working here, but she’s moved to New York to be with her fiancé. I was hoping one of the other kids or one of my cousins would be interested, but they’re not. They love to eat here, of course, but the work? Not so much.”
Sizzling Page 20