If Only I Could Tell Page 7

  Not long after Trisha started working at the restaurant, did the oh-so-handsome Leo come in with a date. Trisha had to admit that he was dreamy, even more handsome up close. The hostess sat him on Trisha’s station. A short time later, she came out with menus and two glasses of water. Leo did a double take when he saw Trisha approaching the table. She blushed. He was just as surprised to see her, and he cleared his throat as she got to their table.

  “Good evening, folks,” Trisha said with a smile. “Welcome to the Veranda. My name is Trisha, and it is my pleasure to serve you this evening. Here are the menus; may I start you off with something to drink?”

  Leo cleared his throat again and said, “Hi, Trisha, thank you. I’ll have a beer and the lovely lady here will have a glass of white wine.”

  “Great choice,” Trisha responded, “I will get those right away for you, sir. Would you like to try our soup of the day; it is a Sweet Potato and Spiced Pumpkin Soup.”

  “Uh, no thank you,” Leo said, “however, I’ll have the fried calamari, a twelve-ounce Porter House Steak, medium well, with the seasoned vegetables and the baked potato. I’d like another beer as well.”

  “Sure thing,” Trisha said. “How about you, madam, are you ready to order, or do you need a few more minutes with the menu?”

  “I’ll have the soup, the house salad with vinaigrette dressing on the side please, and the broiled lobster with the cheddar mash,” Leo’s date responded.

  “Wonderful, would you like another glass of wine?” Trisha asked.

  “Yes please,” said the young lady.

  “Okay, I will get this order in for you and I’ll be back shortly with your drinks and appetizers,” Trisha said.

  A moment later, Trisha reappeared with the drinks and the appetizers; she removed Leo’s empty beer mug and the empty wine glass and rested the replacements on the table. She placed the calamari that Leo had ordered in front of him and place two sauces on the table.

  She gave his date her soup and salad, then said, “I’ll be back to check on you in a little bit.” She left the table and walked through the rest of her station to check on her other guests. A short time later, Trisha returned to clear off the table.

  “Is everything okay so far with you two? Your entrées are just about ready. May I refresh your drink before I get the food for you, or would you prefer to wait on the meal?” Trisha asked.

  “With the meal is fine,” Leo returned.

  “I’ll be right back then.”

  A few minutes later, Trisha reappeared with the entrées and placed them on the table. She said, “Are you enjoying your meal? I hope that everything is to your pleasure. If there is anything else that I can assist you with, I’ll be just an earshot away.” She smiled and walked away.

  Trisha serviced her other guests and waited over in the corner. Tony stood next to her and said, “You should ask him out.”

  “What? Tony, are you crazy? Why on earth would I do that?” Trisha asked.

  “Because you like him,” Tony responded.

  “Now I know that you are tripping. Have you been drinking or something?” Trisha said.

  “No, I have not been drinking or anything, Trisha,” Tony said. “I have been watching you all night and I know that you like Leo.”

  “Tony.”

  “Trisha.”

  “Tony, you do not know what you are talking about. The young man is on a date with a nice young lady, and I’m doing what it is that I’m paid to do, and that is to give excellent customer service. So stop imagining things that are not there.”

  “Trisha, you can deny all you want. I know what I know. All I am saying is, take a chance. You never know, he may be the man of your dreams.”

  “Goodbye, Tony. Don’t you have some work you could be doing at this time?”

  “I am just saying, Trisha,” Tony said with a silly grin on his face.

  “Bye, Tony.”

  Trisha returned to Leo’s table to check on them.

  “Is everything to your liking?” she asked.

  “Yes,” Leo said. “Everything was great.”

  “May I offer you some dessert, coffee, tea, or another drink?”

  “Dessert sounds nice,” Leo said. “What do you have in mind?”

  Trisha cleared her throat, “Uh, well we have a nice strawberry tart that is served with your choice of sherbet, we have chocolate cake, and we also have vanilla ice cream.”

  Leo stared at her for a moment as if he were contemplating his options, then he replied, “I do not like tart, I prefer soft and sweet,” Trisha’s heart rate increased. Leo continued, “I prefer chocolate over vanilla, the darker the better.” Trisha stared into Leo’s eyes as if she were in a trance.

  “Eh, hmm.” Leo’s date cleared her throat. Trisha snapped back to reality.

  “Yes, I’m sorry. You were saying, chocolate cake and what flavor sherbet? We have mango, strawberry, and orange.”

  Leo blushed. “You choose one,” he said.

  “Yes, I’ll get right on that. I mean I’ll be right back. If you will excuse me,” Trisha said.

  “What was that about?” Leo’s date asked.

  Leo shrugged his shoulders, “I do not know.”

  Trisha returned with their dessert and placed them on the table and asked, “Will there be anything else?”

  “Not at this time, thank you,” Leo’s date remarked, “you can go ahead and get the check.”

  Trisha nodded and left the table.

  “What was that about?” Leo asked.

  “What?” his date responded.

  A few minutes later Trisha returned with the check, laid it on the table, and said, “Thank you for dining with us this evening. I hope that everything was to your liking, and do come and dine with us again soon. Enjoy the rest of your evening, folks.” She gave an awkward nod and left the table.

  Leo’s date left the table to go to the restroom, and Trisha returned to collect the check.

  “I hope that I did not offend your date earlier,” she said. “I don’t know what came over me. I must be suffering from exhaustion, I think that I’ve been working to many hours.”

  “Don’t worry about it. It happens to the best of us, Ms. Trisha,” Leo said, as he smiled warmly at her.

  Trisha thought to herself, I could get lost in his gaze forever, he is so handsome. Oh, and he smells so good.

  “Anyway,” Trisha said, “Let me go and cash you out. Thanks for coming in, and please do come and dine with us again.”

  “The pleasure was all mine, Ms. Trisha,” Leo said. “You can keep the change. I’ll see you again real soon.”

  “Thank you,” Trisha returned. “Enjoy the rest of your evening,”

  Trisha could not help but blush a little. Being around Leo made her feel warm on the inside.

  “You should let me take you out sometime, Trisha,” Leo said.

  “No I don’t think so,” Trisha said. “I don’t know if I should be offended by that. You are on a date with someone else. You men are nothing but trouble. Do you think that because you have a few dollars, you can come in here and seduce me? Do I appear to you to be some cheap thrill? I can assure you that I am not. What about your date? Have you considered her feelings? Do you think that it is okay for you to wine and dine a sister, and then put her away like last year’s fashion trend once you have had your fun? You are unbelievable.”

  “Trisha, wait,” Leo said. “It’s not like that. I date lots of women in a given week. It’s casual, nothing serious.”

  “Really?” Trisha responded. “Do the women that you dump know that?”

  “Trisha,” Leo said. “You are overreacting; it’s really not that serious.”

  “It never is, until someone gets their feelings hurt, Leo.

  “Wait, you know my name?” Leo interrupted.


  “What? Yes, of course I know your name; I don’t live under a rock, you know. This is a small community. Stay on point, Leo.”

  “Yes, right. Have coffee with me, Trisha, and allow me to explain myself.”

  “Not a chance,” Trisha said. “Besides, here comes your date. Have a good night.” And with that, she left the table.

  As Leo’s date returned to the table he said, “Are you ready to get out of here?”

  She said, “Yes, the night is still young. What else would you like to do? I have a few ideas of my own.”

  Leo forced a smile and said, “Sounds tempting, but not tonight. There is a pressing issue in need of my attention. Raincheck?”

  “Are you sure that I cannot persuade you to change your mind? I’m wearing lace, and it’s your favorite color.”

  “Not tonight, sweetheart.”

  “Fine,” his date said; she was visibly disappointed.

  “Let’s go,” Leo said.

  They gathered their belongings and left the restaurant.

  A few days had passed since Leo and his date were at the restaurant. Trisha worked her shifts and followed her daily routine of work and home. Now that Trisha was working full time, Mom had to resort to paying a babysitter to care for Talia and Antoine. Most mornings Trisha walked them there and Mom would collect them on her way home. Mom had to cut back on working so many night shifts because Trisha worked a lot of evening shifts. Although she missed them, Trisha was glad to be away from them for a few hours each day. Working kept her mind occupied.

  At work that day Tony tried teasing her about Leo, but Trisha was not having any of it.

  She said to Tony, “Do you know that he had the nerve to ask me out while his date was in the restroom? The nerve of that guy! Who does he think he is? Better still, who does he think I am? Do I look like some two-bit hoe who sneaks around with other people’s men?”

  “Trisha,” Tony said, “that is a bit harsh. You do not even know the guy. Maybe it was nothing.”

  “That is not the point, Tony,” Trisha said. “You do not ask a woman out on a date while you are out on a date with someone else. That’s just downright disrespectful.”

  “I understand where you are coming from, Trisha, and perhaps that was not the best time to do that. But give him a chance. Who knows? You may even like him.”

  “Why are you so interested in who I like or do not like, Tony?” Trisha asked. “What is it to you? Besides, he is a customer, and there is a strict rule against fraternizing with customers, remember? It is company policy.”

  From that day forward, Leo seemed to be at the restaurant on all of Trisha’s shifts. He tried to converse with Trisha, but she resisted all of his advances if they were not related to the service she provided him, citing the no-fraternizing-with-customers rule.

  “Then I’ll stop coming to the restaurant, and you won’t be in violation of the rule,” Leo said.

  “Do not stop coming on my behalf,” Trisha would say.

  He often offered her a ride home, but she politely declined each time. She would say, “I have no problem with public transportation.”

  Whether he ate or not, Leo always left Trisha generous tips. She thought to herself,

  “Oh, I’ll take your money, honey. I have no problem with that.”

  Day after day Leo came into the restaurant and sat on Trisha’s station. He was determined to get this girl’s attention. Soon, Tony began encouraging Trisha to give him a chance or at least hear him out. She reminded him of the no-fraternizing-with-customers-rule also, but he waved it off, stating that Leo was a nice guy and that she was a nice girl, and that nice people belonged together.

  “Come on, Trisha,” Tony said. “Even I am starting to feel sorry for the poor guy.”

  “Yeah right, she retorted. “How much money is he paying you?”

  Tony shrugged his shoulders saying, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Uh huh, you do know that people say he sells drugs, right?”

  “I’ve never heard that.” Tony smirked as he went his way.

  “I bet you haven’t.”

  Bright and early the next morning Leo walked into the restaurant wearing a nice striped t-shirt and a pair of jeans.

  Mmm-mmm! Trisha thought to herself, He could give the sun a run for its money. How does he manage to look so good this early in the morning?

  He stopped at the hostess booth and she directed him to Trisha’s station. He showed himself to a table and sat down. He had a single yellow rose in his hand, and he placed it on the table in front of him. A few moments later Trisha approached the table.

  “You do know that stalking is a crime, right?”

  Leo smiled. “It’s only stalking if you get caught. I like to think that I’m admiring from a vantage point.”

  Trisha thought to herself, It has to be a crime for one person to be this handsome, and dang, he has some nice teeth. Really, Trisha, nice teeth? Is that the best you’ve got? It is a good thing he does not read minds.

  “What can I get you this morning, Leo?” Trisha asked.

  “That’s a loaded question, young lady. We haven’t even had a first date yet.”

  Trisha rolled her eyes.

  “May I have a few moments to think about it? Go take care of the other people on your station so that I can watch you for a few more minutes.”

  “Leo, you are a trip,” Trisha said. “Do not make me call the cops on you.”

  “I would do time for you, Trisha,” Leo said with a smile.

  “I’ll be watching you,” Trisha said as she walked off.

  “Finally, It’s about time.” Leo responded.

  Trisha took a few moments to make the rounds on her station before she headed back to Leo’s table.

  “Are you ready to order yet?” Trisha asked.

  “I think so,” Leo said. “I’ll have the veggie omelet with three strips of bacon and yellow grits; I would also like a coffee, black, orange juice, and an order of toast.”

  “Alright,” Trisha said. “I will put that order in for you and I will be back shortly with your coffee.”

  “Okay, I’ll be right here awaiting your return.”

  “I see that you have jokes this morning, Leo. I’m not laughing.”

  “But you want to.” Leo returned.

  A short time later, Trisha returned with Leo’s breakfast.

  “Here you go, sir. Enjoy your breakfast. Please let me know if I can get anything else for you.”

  Leo said, “Stay and have breakfast with me.”

  “You know that I cannot,” Trisha said.

  “Seriously, though, why do you carry me so hard?” Leo asked. I really like you. Seriously, I like you, Trisha. Please give me an opportunity to prove myself to you.”

  Trisha’s heart skipped a beat. She did not know how to wrap her mind around what Leo had just said, and she had no answer for that. Relationships were not her area of expertise, and she did not exactly have a lot of flirting experience.

  “I’ll be back in a few minutes to check on you,” Trisha said, and she left the table. Trisha serviced her remaining guests and then she returned to check on Leo. She removed some plates and cups from his table, but she never made eye contact with him. She could, however, feel him staring at her, which made her a bit uncomfortable.

  “I know that you like me, Trisha. I can tell. Just give me a chance; I’m not a bad guy.”

  Trisha did not respond to his request. Instead, she said, “Look, Leo, I need to close out so that I can leave. Will there be anything else for you?”

  Leo said, “I’m wearing you down, girl. Play hard to get all you want, but I know that you are feeling me.” He placed a fifty-dollar bill beneath the rose on his table and said to her as he licked his lips, “Some other time then, Ms. Trisha.”


  Trisha blushed. Leo got up from the table to leave and Trisha caught a whiff of his aftershave. He smelt amazing. There was that fuzzy feeling again in the pit of her stomach. Trisha did not understand why being around Leo affected her the way it did. It was both exciting and scary at the same time.

  “Have a good day.”

  “Likewise.”

  Trisha watched as Leo exited, then she proceeded to clean his table. Leo had left a pink rose for her this time. She picked it up and smelt it. Leo had been bringing Trisha a single rose every time that he came into the restaurant for weeks, and leaving them on the table along with a generous tip. Trisha had to admit that she found Leo quite intriguing. She wondered why a seemingly successful guy was so interested in an ordinary girl such as herself.

  What could be his motivation? Trisha thought to herself. Is it that he is not used to women telling him no? What does he hope to achieve? One thing is certain: he is not getting in my pants. Guys like him always want a conquest. If he thinks that he is going to claim me as a trophy, then he has another thing coming.

  Trisha started to get upset; her mind had a way of scripting an entire scenario. She needed to calm herself down. Trisha said to herself, You do not know anything about this young man and already you have judged him and sentenced him to the “no good” pile. At least give him a chance to mess up before you discard him. That’s it.

  I will go out with him to prove to all these folks in here who think that I’m not being fair to him that he is just like every other man, a hot mess, who is only out to wreak havoc on unsuspecting young women. A man who does not care about the hearts he breaks, just about his ego and his reputation.

  Trisha thought about it a while longer and concluded that she did not have to go out with Leo to prove anything to anyone. She concluded that she was not going to go out with him, and that when he got tired of asking her, then he would lose interest, and everyone would finally see what she was saying all along, that If I tell a guy such as Leo no enough times he would quit and move on, therefore proving my point that he was only in it for what he could get.