“Lunch first, business second. We can talk about it after dessert.”
“Dessert, too? I’ll have to go home and take a nap.”
He regaled her with bits of local restaurant gossip while they finished the salad and soup, after which he brought out a container of perfectly frosted, miniature chocolate cupcakes. “Cupcakes are becoming trite, I know, but I love them as a little bite of chocolate after a meal.”
“Nothing made of chocolate will ever go out of style with me,” she said as she took one from the container and ate it in two bites.
“I brought enough for you to share with your studio mates.”
“If they’re lucky.” She picked up the last few crumbs of cake with her forefinger, which she licked clean. “Yum. Okay, now — business. What do you want to talk about?”
He poured the last of the wine into his glass and sat back in the chair. “The extension you gave me of Tom Webster’s lease is about up and I was wondering what you plan to do about it.”
“What I want is for us to reach an agreement so you can continue to run your restaurant. What do you need to make that happen?” She took a second cupcake from the container and nibbled at the edges.
“A good deal. I was wondering if we could extend the current lease for six months. After that, you can up the rent at regular intervals by whatever it takes to reach market rate over a three-year lease.”
“That doesn’t sound unreasonable. Let me review the old lease and talk to my accountant. I know things are tough for restaurants right now. I don’t want to make it hard for you.”
“Do you have the old lease here? We could look … ”
“It’s at home.”
“Oh, you have a safe there, too?”
“No, why would you think I have a safe?”
“There are two safes at the restaurant. I figured anyone who’d have two in a commercial property she owned would have one at home.”
“I knew there was one there. Tommy must have put the other one in.”
One of Amanda’s studio mates stuck his head in the door of the office. “Amanda, something weird is going on with one of the kilns; it’s heating up too fast. Can you … ?” He stopped, his face registering the lunch scene. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to interrupt.”
“It’s okay. We’re finished.” She got up and headed for the door. “I’ll be back as soon as I see what’s going on, Drake.”
“It’s okay. Take your time. I’ll just clean up here.”
When she returned from checking the kiln she found Drake looking through the cupboards along the wall behind the desk. “Can I help you find something?” she asked.
“Just looking for a plate to put the rest of these cupcakes on.”
“There’s nothing up there but office supplies. What you want is here.” From a cabinet along the opposite wall she pulled out a plate and handed it to him. “Thank you, from all of us but especially from me. That was the best lunch I’ve had in ages. I’ll call my accountant this afternoon and get back to you about your lease as soon as I talk to him. If he says it’s a reasonable approach, which I imagine he will, I’ll have my lawyer draw up the papers.”