Season 2 – Episode 16: "Seven Days"
Amara's POV
One week.
Seven days until the wedding.
And somehow the restaurant felt busier than it ever had before.
Luke was reviewing supplier schedules, I was finalizing menu changes for the reception dinner, and Rose was in the middle of reorganizing the entire front-of-house system like the fate of the world depended on it.
Which, knowing Rose, it probably did.
I walked into the dining area with my clipboard.
"Okay," I said, looking at both of them, "we need to talk about the wedding timeline."
Rose looked up immediately.
"Finally. Someone serious about logistics."
Luke smiled.
"I thought I was the logistics person."
"You are," Rose said, "but you're distracted lately."
Luke raised an eyebrow.
"Am I?"
"Yes," Rose and I said at the same time.
Luke sighed.
"Alright. That's fair."
I sat down across from him.
"What's going on in your head right now?"
Luke leaned back in his chair.
"My father."
Rose groaned.
"I knew it."
I pointed at Luke.
"You said he wasn't finished."
"He's not," Luke said. "And I've been expecting something."
Rose narrowed her eyes.
"What kind of something?"
Luke answered honestly.
"A move."
I frowned slightly.
"That sounds like chess."
"It is," Luke said.
Rose crossed her arms.
"I hate chess when it involves real life."
Just then the restaurant door opened.
We all looked up.
And there he was again.
Luke's father.
Right on cue.
Rose whispered, "Well that was fast."
Luke stood calmly.
"I'll talk to him."
I stood too.
"No. We'll talk to him."
Luke looked at me.
"You don't have to."
"I know," I said. "But I want to."
Rose leaned forward on the table.
"Oh I'm definitely staying for this."
A Few Minutes Later
Luke's father sat across from us again, calm as ever.
But this time, there was something different.
He had a folder with him.
I didn't like folders in serious conversations.
Luke noticed it too.
"What is that?" Luke asked.
His father placed it on the table.
"A proposal."
Rose muttered quietly, "Of course it is."
I looked at Luke.
"Should we be worried?"
Luke answered honestly.
"Probably."
His father opened the folder slowly.
"I've been reviewing the financials of this restaurant."
Rose leaned forward.
"How did you get those?"
Luke looked at her.
"They're public filings."
Rose sat back.
"I still don't like it."
Luke's father continued.
"You've done well here. Better than I expected."
Luke said nothing.
Then his father slid a paper toward us.
"I want to invest."
That surprised all three of us.
Rose blinked.
"Wait… what?"
Luke stared at the paper.
"You're serious?"
"Yes."
I looked at him carefully.
"What kind of investment?"
His father answered calmly.
"One that expands the restaurant into three locations within the next two years."
Rose shook her head instantly.
"Nope."
Luke looked at me.
I didn't answer yet.
Because I wanted to understand.
"What's the condition?" I asked.
Luke's father met my eyes.
"Control."
There it was.
Luke leaned back slowly.
"That's what I thought."
His father continued.
"You would still run operations. But major decisions would go through the investment board."
Rose laughed once.
"Which means you."
"Correct," his father said calmly.
Luke looked at me again.
But this time something different happened.
He didn't answer first.
He waited for me.
I noticed that.
And it mattered.
I folded my hands on the table.
"So you came here one week before our wedding to ask us to give up control of the restaurant."
His father tilted his head slightly.
"I came because timing matters."
Rose whispered, "I cannot believe this."
Luke spoke calmly.
"Dad, you know what this place means to us."
"Yes," his father said. "But meaning doesn't protect businesses long-term."
I leaned forward slightly.
"Respectfully… we're not building this to prove a point to the market."
He studied me again.
"You're building it for what?"
I answered simply.
"Legacy."
That word changed the room.
Luke looked at me with a small smile.
His father noticed that too.
"You think small places create legacy?" he asked.
I smiled back calmly.
"I think strong people do."
Rose quietly whispered, "Okay that was good."
Luke finally spoke again.
"There's something you should understand."
His father waited.
Luke continued.
"I could expand this restaurant tomorrow if I wanted to."
His father nodded.
"Yes. You could."
"But I'm choosing not to rush it."
"Because of her," his father said.
Luke shook his head.
"Because of us."
Silence filled the table again.
Then his father asked something unexpected.
"If I removed the control condition… would you consider it?"
That surprised me.
Luke looked at me again.
This was clearly a test.
Not just business.
Family.
Trust.
Timing.
And the wedding only seven days away.
Rose leaned forward slightly.
"Well… this just got interesting."
I looked at Luke.
Luke looked at me.
And for the first time since his father walked in…
We both smiled a little.
Because we were thinking the same thing.
Then I said quietly,
"We'll talk about it together."
Luke nodded.
"Yes. Together."
His father closed the folder slowly.
"I expected that answer."
Then he stood.
"One week until your wedding."
Luke nodded.
"Yes."
His father looked at both of us.
"I'll be watching what you choose."
Rose muttered as he walked away,
"Oh I don't like that sentence at all."
Luke laughed softly.
I looked at him.
"You okay?"
He nodded.
"Yeah."
Then he leaned closer to me.
"Seven days."
I smiled.
"Seven days."
But something told me…
The next week was going to test us even more than the last.
And somehow…
I had a feeling Luke's father wasn't done yet.
End of Episode: 16