Two to Tangle (A Tangle Valley Romance #2) - Melissa Brayden Page 0,32
said, grinning at her.
“Ready to make a pretty slick restaurant?” Ryan headed to an open table, set a few books of samples she’d picked up from various vendors on the floor, took a seat, and opened her laptop to the folder with additional photos. They’d not get through everything today, but they could at least get most of the details worked out, so she could be sure the orders were placed in time.
“Born ready, but I’m just here as a consultant. I’m likely going to defer to Gabriella. She knows more about upscale dining in general and, let’s be honest, has better taste than most other people and nearly all animals.”
“Nearly all?”
“Have you met Skywalker?” Joey waved off the topic. “It’s a whole thing. I’m just saying he excels at pillow arranging.”
“I’m ready, everyone,” Gabriella said, practically bursting into the room with overflowing energy. She might as well have been mid-song like the lead in a truly happy musical. “I’ve been waiting for today. I almost didn’t sleep as my brain chirped away with ideas, and visions, and concepts.”
“Oh my,” Joey supplied. “Sorry. Couldn’t leave that hanging. Cinematic blasphemy and all.”
“Oh my is right,” Ryan murmured. They turned to her. Joey raised an amused eyebrow. Damn. She thought she’d said those words in her head. She hadn’t. They’d been out loud because Gabriella was out of her chef’s coat and wearing jeans, those strappy shoes that wound up her ankles like temptation on a stick, and a green top with a neckline that made everything about her…pop. Joey passed her an approving grin, but Gabriella luckily didn’t seem to have heard the utterance. “Ready to get started?” Ryan asked, moving them forward.
Gabriella rubbed her hands together and took a seat. “Let’s do it.”
They settled in and got to work. Ryan’s main focus today was countertops, cabinetry, and knobs and handles. Gabriella seemed to know exactly what she wanted for the place and scoured the books and photos like a pro, narrowing down her choices, explaining how they fit into her concept.
“Bam,” she’d say, when she found one that she liked. Ryan would flag the bammed sample as they moved forward. “Bam,” she’d say to another. “Bam, and bam.” She shimmied her shoulders as they progressed.
“That your bam dance?” Ryan asked.
“It is now. Bam.” Ryan flagged another with an amused shake of her head. “What? Bam is empowering,” Gabriella said. “You should try it sometime.” She flipped the page of the counter lookbook. “Bamalama to that sexy one right there. How you doin’?” She flipped the page. “Bam to that precious soul.”
Ryan raised an eyebrow and silently flagged it. God, Gabriella was cute when she got going.
“What about these cabinets?” Gabriella asked sometime later, flipping the book around for Ryan to see. “They’re the most perfect set. I don’t think I could have dreamed up a more perfect match for what’s in my head.”
Ryan winced and studied the specs. “Big for the limited space behind the bar, though.”
“Can’t we just make more space?”
She shook her head, going over the plans from memory. “Doesn’t really work that way, unless you want to go with fewer cabinets than we talked about.” She sighed. “Even then you’re pushing the depth out farther than would be comfortable.”
“Could we do it anyway?” Gabriella asked, unrelenting. Much like the column conversation, she was not giving in.
Ryan blinked, loving the firecracker side less than just moments ago. “If you know how to invent more space.”
“Not really my job to do that. I make the food. You invent the space.”
Ryan blinked again, the pointed comment landing. They were at a standstill, and frustration flared. “You’re pushy.”
Gabriella held up a finger. “Respectfully ambitious.” They stared at each other. Joey looked from Ryan to Gabriella. Music from an old Western played eerily in Ryan’s brain.
“Is there anything we can do to compromise here?” Joey asked, intervening, the voice of reason. “Or is it a complete no-go?” The question was aimed more at Ryan as the expert in the room.
Ryan sighed. “Not on the budget you have me on. I’d have to knock down that half wall to expand the bar area.”
“How badly do you love those cabinets?” Joey asked Gabriella.
Gabriella exhaled and slid a thick strand of hair behind her ear. Her eyes softened. “I can find others. They’re just everything I imagined. The finish, the rounded edges, and the intricate design in the center. They say Tangled to me.”
She wasn’t wrong. The cabinets would look great in the room. Watching