Down Too Deep (Dirty Deeds, #4)(21)

“You’re right. You would be perfect for it. And I’m sorry I didn’t come to you straightaway. That was my mistake. My head’s been…all over the place lately. No excuse though.”

Shock widened her gaze. Her mouth worked speechlessly for a moment before she rushed out an, “It’s fine. Not a big deal.”

I bit back a smile. “Big deal or not, I know how much you do for this company already, Tori, and I appreciate it. The carnival was a huge success. I’m already seeing an increase in revenue. I have you to thank for that.”

“Well, it was a collective effort.”

“I know it was your idea. Take the compliment.”

“Okay, sure.”

I chuckled softly, and Tori smiled. “You read the job description?”

“Yes.”

“So, you know what I’m asking of you…aside from maintaining company standards, you’ll be supervising service operations and the service team, managing food costs, overseeing stock and contacting suppliers—”

“I know,” she interrupted. “I’m good with all of it. I’d like to do more, to be honest.”

I cocked my brow.

“You didn’t mention anything about marketing, and I have a lot of experience in that. I’d like to advertise a little better than what we’re already doing. I think it’ll be received well. People love coming here, but word of mouth only does so much.”

“What are you thinking?”

“Billboards. We at least need one off Coastal Highway. It’s shocking we don’t have one already. People will see it when they’re driving to the beach.” She tapped her chin, thinking. “We definitely need a Facebook page. I can handle that. Oh, and I could see if we could partner up with Wax Surf Shop. I’m sure Jamie won’t mind. You know him, right? We’re engaged.” She quickly flashed the giant rock on her finger. “He’s one of the owners. Along with Syd’s guy. Anyway, they could have coupons at the register for free appetizers or something. We could put their stickers on the surfboards out front as a trade-off.”

I thought on her ideas, specifically the last one.

“Syd’s guy, as in Jenna’s brother?” I asked.

It would take me a lifetime to repay Jenna for everything she was doing for me. This could be a good place to start. She spoke about her brother a lot. I knew they were close. Anything I did for him, she’d most likely appreciate as well.

A slow smile twisted across Tori’s mouth. “Yep, that’s him. So, you know, it’ll be nice building up their business too.”

“I agree.”

“Great!” Tori bounced on her toes and clapped. She was beaming at me now. “When do you want me to start? Today?”

I laughed. “Uh—”

“Actually, let me just…” Tori slipped her phone out of her apron. Her thumb moved vigorously over the screen. “If Lauren can come in and cover for me, I can start right now. I could even close for you tonight. You’ve been here all day and I just got here.” She lifted her gaze from the screen to peer around the room. “Mm. Should we get another desk? I guess we could share the one. We both won’t need to be here at the same time. The whole point of you hiring someone is to cut your hours back, right?”

I stared at her, blinking.

“What? I’m excited.”

“I can tell,” I said, chuckling softly. I sat forward, smoothing my tie, and planted my elbows on the desk. “Should we talk salary first before you start decorating?”

“I’m good with the amount advertised.” She smiled as her phone beeped, then looked down to read the text, sharing, “Lauren is available,” while she typed a quick response.

“I guess you can have her come in, then.”

“Already done.” Tori slipped her phone away and grinned at me.

I shook my head, smiling. This is fucking nuts. Leave it to Tori to run this interview and basically hire herself.

“All right, just let me know when she gets here. You’ll need to fill out a few forms for payroll. I’ll get them ready for you.” I opened the desk drawer with the file folders and retrieved the one for new hires. “You’ll also need to hire your replacement.”

“Oh, I know just the person for the job. My future sister in-law is moving here. She’ll be looking for work.”

“Great. Get her in.”

“Awesome. Thanks, Nate.”

“No, thank you.” I met her eyes again. “It’ll be nice to get out of here tonight before ten.”

Her mouth lifted in the corner. “How’s everything going with Jenna, by the way?”

“Great. She’s incredible.”

I immediately began picking apart my wording as soon as it left my mouth—it somehow felt like an understatement. What is greater than “incredible”? “Saintly” might work. I watched Tori’s smile brighten knowingly as I tried thinking of a more suitable word.

“What?”

“Nothing.” She backed away slowly. “She is incredible, isn’t she?”

“That’s what I said.”

“She’s really pretty too.”

I cleared my throat and looked down, picking up my pencil and sliding the food order in front of me again.