by Maris Black
The music was coming from the restaurant, dimly lit and furnished in dark leather and wood. A gentle flicker of candlelight added a romantic flair. The Grotto was chiseled into a rustic stone sign above the arched doorway, which was hung with Spanish moss and twigs.
A young woman in a peasant-style dress met us at the door. Her hair was pulled severely back from her face, which was conspicuously clean-scrubbed. The unassuming style of her greeting furthered the impression of being served by a simple peasant girl.
“Do you prefer a particular table today?” she asked Kage.
“One of the private courtyard booths.”
She grabbed a couple of menus and tucked them under her arm, cutting her eyes up at him several times. I was ashamed to realize that I could totally relate. He just had the kind of face that you had to keep checking, to confirm that it was indeed as unnaturally handsome as you remembered.
And yes. Every time, yes.
“No menus, thanks. Just tell Enzo we’re here.”
She replaced them in their discreet holder behind the hostess podium and led us through the quiet restaurant, through a set of French doors, and onto a covered patio populated by wrought iron bistro tables. Some of the diners glanced up at us as we passed, then resumed eating from crude earthenware dishes that somehow looked more sophisticated than the finest China against the backdrop of The Grotto.
Booths were built along the back wall of the building, and the other three sides were enclosed by tall shrubs. Flowering vines crept along and through the shrubs, creating the impression that were had entered an ancient garden somewhere in Europe. The shrubs blocked out the high noon sunlight to the extent that it appeared to be twilight within the confines of the patio, an illusion supported by strands of twinkling lights that dangled from the rafters.
After the hostess had seated us and walked away, I studied our booth. It was roomy but intimate, crafted from heavy polished wood and granite. A hurricane lamp affixed to the brick wall cast a flickering glow across Kage’s face, and I regarded him with a mixture of surprise and awe. “Is this your restaurant?”
He leaned back in his seat, sprawling in a manner that was all man. “Nothing is mine, Jamie. This all belongs to my uncle.”
I turned his comment over in my head and weighed it. An odd way to put it, I thought— a sad way, really. Nothing is mine.
“Well, you know what I meant,” I said, for lack of a better response. “This is amazing. It feels authentic. I mean, I’ve never left the United States, and certainly not the twenty-first century, but if I could imagine a really upscale medieval restaurant…”
“Thanks.” His terse dismissal of my compliment stung a bit. Had me wishing I hadn’t said anything about ownership.
I squirmed in my seat. “Um, so you said no menus. Are we… not eating? I can pay for my own if that’s a problem.”
That coaxed a laugh out of him. “You don’t have to pay for your food. I’m just ordering for you.”
“Oh. Okay.” I wasn’t sure what to make of someone else ordering for me. It had never actually happened before, not since I was a little kid and my parents forced me to get stuff I didn’t want off of the kid’s menu. To be honest, except for my parents, I don’t suppose anyone ever had a desire to order for me before. Maybe it was just that he was confident that he knew what was good at his own— his uncle’s— restaurant. They probably had a specialty or something.
It didn’t take long to find out. Within minutes, there was a stout, bearded gentleman standing beside our booth and beaming down at Kage. “So glad to see you brought a friend, Kage. Someone new I get to impress with my unequaled culinary skills.” He set a couple of water glasses down in front of us.
“Enzo has an ego on him, Jamie. But trust me when I say he can back it up in the kitchen. The man can cook his Italian ass off.”
Enzo beamed some more. “What can I get for you today, my darling? I’m thinking the salmon.”
“You do like fish, right?” Kage asked me, and from the look on his face, I thought no would definitely be the wrong answer. Besides, I did like fish.
I nodded, and Enzo hurried off to prepare our salmon.
Kage relaxed even more and offered me an apologetic smile. “I eat clean, so there’s not a whole lot of variety. But it’s always good food. Especially here, I know it’s the best ingredients, the freshest fish. All of the vegetables are organic and in season. I personally make sure of that. So if you order room service, you don’t have to worry about what you’re getting, okay?”
“I remember from the first time we met, you’re very serious about your eating. No hamburgers, right?”
“Right. Fast food is the devil.”
“Is eating like you one of my job requirements?” I asked, only half-joking.
Kage didn’t even crack a smile. “No, but you said you wanted to get to know me. What better way than to live like me? At least for a while. I figured I’d take you to watch me train some, you could maybe work out a little yourself.”
“Ordering for me, making me work out… If I didn’t know any better, I’d think you were trying to whip me into shape.” Again, I was only half-joking.
“You look like you’re in pretty good shape already.” Kage glanced away almost shyly, and for a split second I thought I saw a crack in his ever-present confidence. “I mean, you work out, right? Lift some weights a couple of times a week, maybe play a little sports. You keep your weight around one-fifty-five, and your caloric intake is decent at around twenty-five-hundred a day, but you’re getting way too many carbs. And you don’t drink enough water.” For emphasis, he picked up his water glass, raised it toward me in cheers, then took a swallow.
Dumbfounded, I picked up my water glass, returned Kage’s cheers, then killed half of it before setting it back down. “So how the hell do you know all of that?”
He shrugged. “I can look at you and tell.”
“Can you tell what size underwear I have on? How about my birth sign? Because I have to admit I’m a little freaked out right now by your amazing powers of perception.”
He narrowed his eyes at me. “Ummm… Taurus?”
“Nope. Gemini.” I gave him a smug smile. “Just this morning you walked in on that wannabe intern-molester inviting me out to celebrate my birthday in three weeks. Remember?”
“Dammit, I forgot!” Kage slammed his fist on the table. “I don’t know the Zodiac signs by heart, but I definitely could have googled that on my cell phone. Shit.” He leaned forward, resting his forearms on the table so that his hands were within a couple inches of mine. “As for the underwear…” His voice was low, and he glanced dramatically toward my lap and back up again. “I’m guessing about a thirty-two to thirty-four, medium.”
I felt the color rush to my face, opened my mouth to speak, and snapped it shut again.
Kage stayed leaned across the table for a long moment, gloating. Apparently, when it came to physicality, the guy really knew his stuff. Not surprising when I thought about it. He manipulated his own body with exercise and diet to a degree far beyond what the average fit person did, so it stood to reason that he would be sensitive to that type of information.
I had to wonder how many times a day he looked at himself in the mirror. Hell, if I had a body like that, I’d probably live in front of the mirror.
After Kage straightened up and pulled himself back to his side of the booth, we fell to talking about my plane trip. I told him I didn’t think Aldo and his silent twin were very friendly, and he laughed like I’d told a joke. He didn’t offer any insight into the pair, though, so I was left to wonder still whether they treated everyone like scum or if it was just me.
A few moments later, the food arrived. Grilled salmon and a couple of large skewers of vegetables that included eggplant, tomatoes and zucchini. The waitress gave us each a bowl of yogurt sauce.
“Keep the water coming,” Kage told her.
We didn’t speak during the meal. The food was out of this world
, but my nerves had my stomach tied in knots. Kage was fucking intense when he ate, as if he had one goal, and every other thing in the whole universe had slipped his mind. He ate quietly, almost reverently, moving through his food at a steady pace until it was all gone. Then he looked up to find me staring as I nibbled along.
“What?” he asked self-consciously. “You’ve never seen a guy eat before?”
“Of course I have, but not quite like that. You’re very focused when you eat.” At the hint of a crease between his brows, I quickly added, “Not in a bad way.”
“Guess I just enjoy my food,” he admitted. “Sometimes I—”
My phone interrupted him, playing a ringtone I recognized all too well. “Shit, I’m sorry,” I told Kage with a grimace as I answered it. “Hey, babe. I’m in the middle of a… uh… meeting. What’s up?” I offered Kage an apologetic smile as I listened to Layla on the other end of the line.
“Oh, I just wanted to talk to you, I guess,” she said hesitantly. “But if you’re busy, I can call another time. When is good for you?”
“Uh, let me call you back. I’m going to be pretty busy for the next few days with my new job, so I’m not sure when I’ll have a minute.”
“Okay, papi,” she said sweetly, using her favorite term of endearment on me. That one definitely had me scratching my head, and I had to wonder where her fantastic new boyfriend was while his girl was calling me. Maybe he’d gone home for the holidays.
When I hung up the phone, I noticed Kage was looking out over the other diners on the patio. Trying to give me as much privacy as he could without leaving the table, I suppose.
“Sorry about that,” I said. “My girlfriend.”
He blinked. Didn’t say anything.
I realized that I’d made a mistake, calling her my girlfriend out of habit. But the truth was, I didn’t want to take it back now that it was out of my mouth. If Kage knew I’d been dumped, he’d look at me with pity in his eyes and think what a pathetic loser I was, and that was something I couldn’t stand. So I went with the harmless lie and hoped I’d never have to prove it.
“She’s back home,” I continued. “Or actually back at college. She lives in the same town where I go to school. Where you and I met, as a matter of fact. She’s a cheerleader. Blond hair, blue eyes, pretty. I’m fucking babbling, aren’t I? I’m sorry.”
God, I was a horrible liar.
Kage gave a one-shouldered shrug. “Why do you keep apologizing to me, Jamie? You think I’m gonna fire you if you take a phone call from your girlfriend?”
“I hope not.” I laughed nervously. “I’ll try to keep it professional from now on. She just— It’s hard when I can’t tell her what I’m doing or where I am.”
He didn’t say anything back. Just kept looking at me with that unshakable poker face.
We lingered over our lunch for a few more minutes as I ate the last of my vegetables. I’d never liked tomatoes, but I ate them because I didn’t want to let Kage down. He was so serious about nutrition. Just as I ate the last bite, he tossed his napkin onto the table.
“Ready to go?” he asked, seeming to be in a hurry all of a sudden. The talkative, charming guy who had ordered my lunch and gleefully guessed my underwear size was gone.
“Sure.” I had to practically run to keep up with him as he blazed a trail back through the restaurant and to the business office.
“See you soon.” He left me off at the door with a quick nod, and I didn’t have the nerve to say anything to him. I’d really blown it.
It had been terribly unprofessional of me to let a phone call interrupt my very first business lunch ever. Kage had been too polite to call me out on it, but the guy was radiating disappointment.
I’ll redeem myself, I thought. I’ll be the best damn publicist a fighter ever had.
On that thought I slipped back into the office, hoping to go unnoticed. I should have known that would be too much to ask for. Mark the office sex offender had a well-dressed hip leaned against Cathy’s desk. When I turned around, both of my new coworkers had me pinned in their high beams.
I almost laughed.
Alicia poked her head around the corner, not bothering to try to camouflage herself or her intentions.
“So?” Mark asked bluntly. “How was lunch with The Machine?”
“Huh?” I stared blankly at him.
“Michael “The Machine” Kage.” His sarcastic air quotes and goofy face made it clear that he was not a fan. “That’s what they call your boss man. You didn’t know that?”
“Dude, I just started. I can’t be expected to know everything on the first day.” My tone was flippant, but to be honest, it stung a little that I didn’t know that piece of information. I was representing a fighter, and I didn’t even know his nickname. That seemed like a pretty base level thing to know about a fighter.
It was pride, of course. I wanted to be immune to anything the people in this office threw at me. I wanted to be able to say, Nice try, buddy. But me and Kage… we’re thick as thieves. At this point, that wasn’t possible.
Right now, Kage was an enigma, I was the clueless new guy, and everyone around here seemed eager to watch me make an ass of myself.
I smiled and worked my way back to my cubicle, noting how everyone was still eyeballing me. Alicia’s curious gaze burned a hole in me as I passed by, and the whole office seemed to be holding its breath.
Yeah, if day one was any indication, it was going to be a long, strange summer.
6
MY SECOND day of work was a Friday, so while everyone else was dying for the day to end so that they could start their weekends, I was just getting warmed up. I had no Kage to guide me. Or distract me. He sent me a text to tell me we’d meet sometime during the next week to discuss the “plan” I was supposed to be devising. I was glad he’d texted, because the thought of looking him in the eye and trying to act like I knew what I was doing was terrifying. I had a lot of homework to do if I was going to become an expert publicist by Monday.
Yeah, right.
I gave it my best shot over the weekend, though. Following the tips I’d learned from the internet on Thursday and Friday, I crafted a loose plan and set up a website and multiple social media profiles for Kage. It was going to be a lot of grunt work getting those things established, but I promised myself I’d hunker down and get it done. What else did I have to do? I was a lonely guy in a strange city trying to prove I was fit for employment.
When Sunday proved to be too boring to handle, I called my mom.
“I hope you’re taking care of yourself,” she said. “You sound tired.”
“Not tired. Bored.”
“Son, how can you possibly be bored in Vegas? Isn’t that the most exciting travel destination in the entire country? There’s supposed to be something for the whole family. Shows, dancing, partying till the sun comes up… Remember, what stays in Vegas stays— wait, I think I got that wrong.”
I laughed. “You’ve been watching too many tourism commercials, Mom. Get off the Lifetime channel, okay? It gives you women a distorted view of the world. There’s no rich Prince Charming waiting to sweep every plain Jane off her feet, everyone’s mother does not die of cancer, and Vegas is not as great as they’ll have you believe.”
She was silent for a moment, as if I’d hurt her feelings with my insolent social commentary.
“Hey, don’t take what I say personally,” I told her. “I’m just in a crappy mood.”
“It’s okay, Jamie. I know you didn’t mean it. It’s just…” She let out an anguished whimper. “I just got a call from the doctor last week.”
“Is everything okay?” My heart was racing.
“They just want to look at something again. On my mammogram. I’m just paranoid because of what happened to your aunt. These things run in families. It’s probably nothing.”
It didn’t sound like she thought it was nothing.
I called Layla before I went to bed, because I hadn’t returned h
er call, and because I had no one to talk to about my mom.
“So good to hear from you, Jamie. I thought you might not ever call me back. I can’t blame you after what I did to you.”
“It’s okay, Layla. I’m not upset about that. If you’re not feeling it, you’re just not feeling it. I’d never want you to stay in a relationship that wasn’t doing it for you a hundred percent.”
“That’s the thing,” she said hesitantly. “I was happy in our relationship for the most part. I think I just got a little nervous. It felt like it was going nowhere, but that’s stupid ‘cause we’re young. There’s no need to have a ring on my finger or something to know you care about me. I’ve got years before I need to start thinking about settling down and having kids, you know?”
“That is true,” I said.
“So what I’m trying to say is that maybe I jumped the gun on breaking up with you. I mean, you weren’t horrible to me. You were good to me. You’re just a little… distant, I guess. My parents are all up each other’s ass all the time, you know? And my friends? They’re like fucking Siamese twins with their boyfriends. But you’re just not like that, maybe.”
I bit my lip, wishing I hadn’t called, trying to think of what to say. “But you want the Siamese twin thing.”
“Yeah, but—”
“No buts, Layla. You were right to break up with me. You and I want different things. Hell, I don’t even know yet what it is that I want. I’m just crossing my fingers that I’ll know it when I see it. For now, though, I think it’s best for me to be single.”
“Then why did you call me?” Her voice quivered.
“I thought we were friends. I guess I shouldn’t have. I’m gonna go now, okay? I’m sorry for everything.”
I hung up, and the tears came. I cried for Layla, and a little bit for me, but mostly I cried for my mom. What hell she must be going through, and there was nothing I could do about it.