In His Service

personal

I gave my name to the hostess and then motioned for Ginny to go ahead of me as she led us to our table. As we weaved across the crowded restaurant, my phone buzzed in the pocket of my dark jeans and I fished it out, frowning at the name on the screen.

Austin, the bar manager of all my restaurants, and one of my longtime business partners. He wasn't supposed to be back in town from vacation until tomorrow, so his call caught me off guard. We reached the table and I held up my phone for Ginny to see.

"Austin, one of my partners," I explained. The look of understanding crossed her face as she nodded and waved a hand. "I'll just be a minute."

"Take your time," Ginny responded absently, her eyes already scanning the wine list on the table.

I smiled and shook my head as a turned away from her to answer the call.

"Austin, hey man, what's up?"

"She left me, man."

I paused, not breathing, listening to the voice on the other end. When he spoke again, it sounded strained and thick with emotion.

"I can't believe she's really gone."

Labored breathing accompanied this vague, melodramatic explanation, and I rolled my eyes.

"Austin." I snapped, my voice level but firm. I heard a sharp intake of breath on the other line.

"Yeah man?" A sniffle.

"Snap the fuck out of it."

"Huh?" Another sniffle.

"I said snap. the. fuck. out. of. it. dude, you weren't even dating Alissa. You got like three messages from a Tinder match and ended up overly attached as usual. Did you ever even meet her in person?" I knew I was being harsh, but sometimes Austin needed a little tough love. I usually had more time to walk him through the rough patches with a little more tact, but today --I stole a glance over my shoulder at our table where Virginia was sitting perfectly still, watching me like a cat--I had more important things to do. Things that would benefit the whole business.

"We were planning to meet next weekend!" Austin whined, but I could hear his voice already lightening. He was a great guy with a big heart and lots of passion, but it caused his flair for the dramatic to dominate at times.

"Yeah, but don't forget who you're meeting this weekend," I said, glancing at Virginia again. She was watching me with cat like eyes.

He chuckled once, his hearty laughter quickly overshadowing the blues he had been singing just a moment before. "Yeah I know man you're right. So you really think this one could work out?"

"I don't know yet man, but I'm about to figure it out. I'll see you then." I laughed and hung up the phone, making my way back to the table where Virginia was patiently waiting, still watching me as I sat down across from her.

With a smirk she asked, "If I take this challenging position, will I be expected to walk your partners through their breakups as well?"

Her question surprised me. I hadn't realized she could hear me, and I wasn't prepared to respond to it.

"Ahh..." I began, considering it fully before firing off an answer. I decided to go with honesty. If she wasn't into the position, she should have the option to walk away early.

"Honestly, yes. I think of my partners like family. The three guys I work with have been with me for years. They've invested in this business, made sacrifices to help it grow and move forward. We understand each other. When we need something we help each other out however possible. If you accept this position you'll be my assistant, my shadow at times, and yes, theirs as well when needed. Anything one of the partners, myself included, should need at any given time, is your responsibility. And you will do your best to accommodate."