When we walked through the front door, Greg was standing at the hostess stand.
He saw me. His professional smile flickered for a fraction of a second. Then he saw my father beside me and put it right back on.
“Good evening, gentlemen,” Greg said smoothly. “Do you have a reservation?”
“Callaway,” I said. “Two.”
Greg looked down at his tablet. He frowned.
“I’m not seeing a…”
That’s when the door behind him opened. The one that leads to the kitchen and the stairs up to the office.
Luca Ferrara stepped into the lobby. White chef’s jacket. Silver hair combed back. Reading glasses pushed up on his forehead.
He spotted me and came straight across the lobby with his arms open.
“Michael!” he said. “Welcome, welcome!”
He grabbed my hand with both of his and shook it hard.
Greg’s smile stopped.
Then Luca turned and looked at his manager.
“Greg,” he said quietly. “You know who this is?”
“Sir, I… yes. He was here last month. For the Callaway party. The family asked us not to…”
“You threw him out?”
Luca said it so softly the hostess had to lean in to hear it.
Greg’s face went pale.
“Sir, the lady who made the reservation, she said he was…”
“Somebody with problems,” Luca said. “I know what she said. I watched her say it. On my own security camera. I also watched her hand you a hundred dollars.”
The color drained out of Greg’s face completely.
Behind me, I heard my father make a small sound.
Luca put his hand on my shoulder and turned to face Greg fully.
“Greg,” he said. “This is Michael Callaway. In four weeks, he’s going to own this building. And the two buildings next to it. He is the reason this restaurant will still be here after I retire. He is the reason you will still have a job.”
Greg opened his mouth. Nothing came out.
“And last month,” Luca said, “you stood at my front door and told him to take the hint.”
Sophia Rivers is an experienced News Content Editor with a sharp eye for detail and a passion for delivering accurate and engaging news stories. At TheArchivists, she specializes in curating, editing, and presenting news content that informs and resonates with a global audience.
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