Page 117 of I'm Looking for a Man in Finance
“She’ll shut the door for good,” I finished.
Hallie nodded. “Exactly.”
There was a beat of silence as we both stared into our glasses, the candle flickering between us.
“There’s the couple of the hour!” My father, appearing rarely on the dining room floor, stopped at our table. “Happy anniversary to you two.”
“Thank you, Giacomo.” Hallie accepted my father’s hug.
My father had gotten onboard with my plans for the restaurant after seeing an uptick in foot traffic after only a few weeks of Hallie and Roxie’s review being live. He immediately put out job ads for a new social media manager and asked for Hallie’s help in vetting the perfect candidate. Hallie had helped him find Eliza, who had justgraduated from college after majoring in marketing. She had her finger on the pulse of the social media trends and had gotten a few posts to go viral within her first month on the job.
And the rest was history.
Rossi Pizzeria had embedded itself firmly back into the very fabric of the New York food scene. In under a year, it appeared on almost every tourist-oriented list of top places to visit in the city, and it continued to draw local customers.
“Thanks, Dad,” I told him when he turned to give me a hug next.
“Hallie, are we still expecting your family next Wednesday for family dinner?” my father asked. If I had known the two of us would be subject to multiple rounds of questioning from my family, I would have picked anywhere other than here for our anniversary dinner.
“Yes! They get in this weekend.” Hallie smiled up at my father, completely unbothered that my boisterous family had no sense of boundaries. “They are excited to meet everyone. It’s been a while since they’ve visited the city and with my sister’s baby, I’m sure it will be eventful.”
“Eloise is excited to have a little one around for a few days. I’m sure she will be more than happy to take your niece while you show your family around.”
Thankfully, he spared us from any pointed looks. Hallie and I had only been dating a year, and we were both focused on our careers, which were at their peak. We still had time to think about everything that came after. We were taking things slowly and enjoying each milestone of our relationship.
My father clasped his hands together. “I’ll let you two enjoy your anniversary dinner. If I don’t see you before next Wednesday, I love you both.”
“We have more than just our anniversary to celebrate.” Hallie lifted her wineglass in my direction. “I believe congratulations are in order for you. Officially official, now that the resignation letter has been sent in.”
“Now we just have to hope Rossi Equities lasts longer than a year,” I joked as I clinked my glass against hers.
“It will.”
Hallie’s undying faith in me was part of the reason that I had finally mustered up enough courage to take the next step—again. I wasn’t walking away from Rooster entirely. Not yet. I’d shifted into more of a consulting role while Theo and I searched for someone to take my place full time. It was Theo, after all, who gave me the space and confidence to figure out what I wanted—to think about what kind of legacy I actually wanted to build. While I’d helped Theo get the new division of Rooster off the ground, I think he saw that I was itching to claim something that wasfullymy own. He was the one to approach me and suggest I look into chasing my dreams.
I hadn’t realized how rewarding it could feel, investing in a small business that just needed a little capital and the right kind of belief to grow. Those days were my favorite. It cut up the monotony of making lucrative business decisions.
I’d learned from the best about taking risks in your career after watching Hallie leaveSophisticate, which was once her dream company, only to achieve far greater things than she ever would have if she’d stayed. If she could do it, why couldn’t I?
“You said you had an interesting email today?” The nerves were growing as the little box in my pocket pressed into my thigh, reminding me that it was there.
“I did.” Brandon stopped by again, this time with the pizzas. Each hand-thrown and fired by my grandfather. “Someone from Odd Hour Films, that production company, emailed me about an idea for a series they’ve been thinking about. Something about eating around the world.”
“And they want you for it?” My excitement was almost uncontainable. This was more than Hallie had ever imagined—getting to become a figure in the food industry.
“They said I’m on the short list.” Hallie was trying her best to keep her own enthusiasm under control.
“Hallie!” I really wished I’d decided on that home-cooked meal instead. “That’s amazing. You are more than deserving of it.”
“I’m trying not to get my hopes up in case they don’t pick me.”
“They’ll pick you.”
Now it was my turn to show Hallie my undying faith in her.
“I’m going to show you just how proud I am of you when we get home.” A deep red colored Hallie’s cheeks as she glanced around to see if any of the surrounding tables had overheard me. But I didn’t care if they had. I’d climb to the top of the Empire State Building and announce my love for Hallie Woods if I could.
“James, this dinner is enough of a celebration.”
