Chapter 28

28

Everyone was on high alert with pictures posted everywhere to keep those we cared about safe.

The guys refused to put off the grand re-opening of their new restaurant, SeaZen Palace, despite the potential threat. I understood their reasoning, and was able to request the night off from Gina so I could be there to help them.

If it were my restaurant opening, I would have been a nervous wreck, but the guys were calm and collected as they finished putting out the place settings and prepping all the food.

Since the guys had boasted about the twins’ all over the pop music internet boards, they were going to be the main servers for the night. I opted to stay in the back to clean dishes and help with plating food, so I would stay out of the public’s eye.

Theo questioned why I wasn’t jealous about it, but I explained that these people could come and ogle my men all they wanted without upsetting me, because I knew my men would come home to me that night and every night after. They would smile and dote on the patrons, but that was all they were to them.

I was their soon-to-be mate with the ring on my finger and theirs proved that.

Reed kissed my cheek and rubbed his cheek along my other one. “You are beautiful.”

Looking up at him, I arched a brow. “You get into some wolf nip or something?”

He rolled his eyes. “That’s not even a thing.”

“There’s got to be something like catnip for wolves. I’m sure of it. I’ll ask Theo. I bet she knows.”

Placing hands on either side of my face, he squished my cheeks, making my lips purse, and kissed me roughly. “I love the silly things you say.”

“Why are you squishing my face?” I asked.

“So you can’t pull back as I do this,” he said and licked me from chin to nose.

I spluttered and wiped my face, laughing. “You butt.”

“Hey, you two! No shenanigans in the kitchen,” Grant snapped. “That’s gross and unsanitary.”

Reed and I rolled our eyes simultaneously.

“Yes, sir,” I said and moved to the door to peek out the window. As I walked by him, I slapped his ass, getting a soft growl from him and a chuckle from Reed.

There were people lined up outside and the twins were smiling smugly.

“Ready?” they asked.

I gave them a thumbs-up in the window.

Grant exhaled harshly. “Well, here we go. Let’s hope we prepared enough.”

“I think the main issue is going to be the number of patrons wanting to eat here tonight,” I commented. “You guys did the test run yesterday with no issues.” They had invited all of our friends to come last night as a soft launch and everything went perfectly. Theo had even brought dates with her. Yes, plural. Apparently, the two guys she was currently dating didn’t have an issue sharing, and while I wasn’t sure about them yet, they clearly cared about Theo.

“Right,” Grant said sternly and nodded. “No time for worrying. It’s time to focus.” As Jong-min sat the first table, Grant filled ice water in glasses and carried them out there.

“I think he’s just nervous because we all want this to work and he doesn’t want to disappoint the twins,” Reed whispered.

“Sorry I’m late,” Jong-kyu said as he rushed inside, washed his hands, and put on an apron. “I was spreading word about the opening around town and helping get the line to wrap around the building instead of crossing the street.”

“People were trying to line up across the street?” I asked, eyes wide.

He nodded. “My brothers’ fans showed up in force. I counted at least fifty people in line.”

My mouth dropped. Fifty people all waiting to come eat here.

“That’s awesome!” Reed exclaimed.

“There’s going to be quite a wait for them,” I said and tapped my lips. I put my hand up with a finger in the air. “I got it! Jong-kyu, there are water bottles in the fridge, we were going to use them for us, but why don’t you take it to the people who are thirty or more back in line? Let them know that we apologize in advance for their wait time, but we are giving them water to ensure they aren’t without anything.”

“That’s a great idea,” he said, shocking me as it was the first time he’d said anything remotely nice about me. He took off the apron and raced into the walk-in refrigerator to do as I’d suggested.

“Oh, the first orders are here. Time to cook!” Reed said excitedly, as the little printer connected remotely to the computer at the waiter stand began printing.

Over the next five hours, there was no time to relax, as the tables stayed filled, and the orders kept coming. One table ordered every item on the menu, and to our surprise, ate it all. Jong-min and Jong-hyun sat in the now empty main room, eyes closed as they relaxed for the first time.

“So, how many pictures did you take tonight?” I asked with a smile.

“Hundreds,” Jong-min answered.

“How many times did you get your butt grabbed?” I teased.

“Only once,” Jong-hyun replied. “She was in her eighties.”

My head fell back as I laughed.

“The opening was definitely a success,” Grant said as he looked at the evening’s tally. “We just have to hope we can sustain even after the newness has worn off.”

“You’d be surprised how many fans are still out there,” I said. “There were some making plans to come a few months from now due to financial and personal obligations until then. I think it’s safe to say we’ll have business for a few months at least.”

“Yes, but it’s a year from now that I’m focused on,” Grant whispered.

“You all did great tonight,” I said. “And while I would love to be part of the permanent staff, I definitely prefer working at the pizza place. Much less stressful.”

All of them laughed except Jong-kyu.

“Why did you put Sunday and Monday as days to be closed?” Jong-kyu asked. “You will make more money the more days you are open.”

“Because we need a day to relax and a day to spend time with our mate,” Jong-min answered and winked at me.

Hearing him call me his mate sent a thrill through my body.

“I already confirmed with Gina that I’ll be off those days moving forward,” I said and leaned my head on Grant’s shoulder since he was nearest me. “She liked the idea of me being available consistently Tuesday through Saturday as those are her busiest days anyway.”

“Why two days? You could do that with one day?” Jong-kyu asked.

“You’ll understand when you find a mate,” Jong-min said. “It’s not enough to just be together one day, the same day we’re meant to relax. We need a full day to enjoy being in each other’s company. With this restaurant, we are going to be busy and likely stressed when we are home and we need to make sure we don’t neglect her.”

“You’re so thoughtful,” I said and made a kissy face at him.

“You’re different,” Jong-kyu whispered.

Jong-min shrugged. “That happens when you find your mate.”

“And she melts your cold heart,” I added with a wink.

He rolled his eyes, but didn’t argue.

The door to the restaurant opened and I said, “We’re closed for the day.”

When Zara stumbled in, blood streaming down her head and carrying an unconscious Zyra, we all leapt to our feet.

“Help,” she whispered. Her eyes rolled up into the back of her head and she fainted.