The Billionaires Too (#2)

11 || The Partner

The café was almost empty with the exception of the group of teenage girls who were finishing up their homework on one of the booths.

All the tables in the café were flipped and placed on top of one another, along with their chairs.

It was their nightly routine and it kept Antonina rooted. She liked having a customer or two while she prepared to close up for the day. La Café closed at 8p.m. every day, but she stayed up until 10p.m. because she had no one to go to at home.

La Café had become her shelter, and it took the loneliness away for a few hours of the day. Like a woman with issues, she went home late and left early in the morning. Her small business was her solitude, and it provided her with the family and friends she never had.

Over the years, she had found daughters and sons among her regular customers, and brothers and sisters from some of the elderly customers and suppliers.

She had had to start over when she arrived in South Africa after she left Mexico over twenty years ago, but she still had not found what she was looking for. She wanted a family, but life spited her and took her family away. She lost her children and then lost her husband to more than twenty years in prison. She had no one, she was alone.

Yes, Reina and Jameson were there, but they had their own home and their own lives, and all she had was an empty house.

Her business and customers kept her alive, and as for her business partner, he was there as a reminder that not all people were sugar and honey. For some unknown reason, Logan Parker hated her; he was as bitter as a lemon seed, and Antonina did not understand why.

He had forced his way into her café and tried to run her out of business because despite his many restaurants around the area, people could never get enough of her café. She served simple, universal meals, and her meals were affordable. He had almost succeeded destroying her business, but something changed his mind and he suggested a partnership.

Antonina thought this was a sign for a new beginning, but he proved her wrong later after their partnering that if she messed up, he was going to sell and franchise the café. She tried to get closer to him, but he always pushed her away and was always formal around her. Instead of the rising competition, he became her biggest fear in her own business.

Antonina sighed in contempt and shook her head as she wiped the counter with a napkin. "Kids, are you almost finished?" She called to the group of students.

"Yes, Ants!" They chorused, and she nodded with a warm smile.

She threw the napkin away and proceeded to her office to gather her things. She entered the small office and smiled with pride. The size of her office was a firm reminder that this café was still hers. She sighed heavily and sat down behind the small desk, running her fingers across the hardwood.

She laid her head on the desk and stared at the pictures at the corner. It was pictures of her family; on one of them was she and her husband on their wedding day at the chapel, on another it was a picture they had taken many years back in Mexico after church at the same chapel.

Next to them were three other frames, one in which she was heavily pregnant. She was wearing a long, black and orange, flowery dress that reached her toes and tightened around her protruding belly. She had a toffee-looking skin, and her face looked young and radiant with twinkling eyes and her smile that reached her eyes.

On the next frame was a picture of her carrying two babies at the hospital after giving birth. She had taken a lot of pictures on that day, but she lost most of them when they emigrated from Mexico.

She only had one picture left of the children when they turned five. She was about to reach for the picture when she realised that it was gone. She quickly sat up straight and wiped away her tears, and moved the other frames to check the missing picture, but she did not find it.

She started opening the drawers and looked under the table, but to no avail. She was about to reach for one of the boxes when she heard a crash of downstairs and she stilled. Another crash followed, and she quickly picked up her handbag, keys and phone, and the leftovers, and then she dashed out of the office and down the stairs, only to find her café in a mess.

She stood on the last step and gasped as she took in the broken glass shards in front of the counter. She panicked and went behind the counter to check the cash register, and relaxed when she found that it was still locked and untouched.

She sighed and placed her things on the counter and then she lifted her head to where the school children were seated, only to find an empty booth and some scattered notepad pages. She frowned. Clearly they had left in a hurry.

She was about to leave the counter when another crash came from the storage room. Her eyes widened in panic, and she grabbed a knife from the counter and took slow, calculated steps towards the storeroom. Her heart quickened inside her chest as crash after crash landed on her ears, and her hands tightened around the knife.

She had only taken a few steps when Logan stepped out of the storeroom with a bottle of alcohol in his left hand. Antonina dropped the knife carelessly on the ground and covered her mouth in shock.

"Mary mother of Jesus! Logan, what are you doing here? Everyone's been looking for you..." She trailed off as she met his bloodshot eyes and took a cautious step back.

Logan was still in the same clothes he wore three nights ago, his hair was dishevelled, his face unshaven, and his eyes were dull and bloodshot. He had bags underneath his eyes and his nose was red as if he had been crying.

Antonina was about to reach out to him when she noticed the bottle in his hand and remembered the mess, and she pressed her lips firmly into a thin line. "Did you cause this mess?" She nodded her head in the direction of the counter, and Logan glowered at her, causing her to shift uncomfortably on her feet.

He walked past her and entered the clearing of the restaurant, stumbling around the open area as if assessing for damage. His eyes landed on the broken mugs and saucers and he met Antonina's eyes with a chilling grin. "You call this a mess?" He hiccuped and walked towards one of the tables. He looked at it with a sneer before pulling the entire table down with it's chairs, causing Antonina to yelp in panic.

"Logan, what are you doing?" She asked, and he snickered at her.

He pulled another table, each thud causing Antonina to shrink in fear. "Causing a mess." He pulled table after table, until there was nothing left except for the standing tables. He turned to Antonina and swung the bottle of alcohol to his lips, and gulped down the burning beverage. "You know what's messed up?" He asked, approaching her. "Liars." He snarled, and Antonina jumped back, her heart thudding against her ribcage.

"Logan..." She quivered.

"You lied to me!"

"I'm sorry. I wanted to tell you, but Reina stopped me."

"You all lied to me!" He yelled in her face, his breath fanning her face. "Do you know what she said to me today?" Antonina looked away, unable to stand the beer stench coming from him. "Do you know what that witch did?" She whimpered and shut her eyes, and Logan stepped away from her and sat on the staircase with his knees up and his head between his hands. "She paid Carmen to fake her pregnancy."

"What?" Antonina asked as she settled down next to him on the stairs. "When did she tell you this?"

Logan tilted his head and faced her. "Earlier today at the hospital when I went to see Carmen." He shrugged with a weak smile. "She is the devil himself." He shook his head and looked away.

"Did she at least tell you why?"

He shook his head. "No. No, just some bullshit about us being the same."

"Personally, I think she's not a bad person."

Logan ran a hand through his hair and groaned. "And personally, I think I need a haircut." He muttered while trying to grab his hair.

Antonina opened her mouth to say something, but she thought against it. Logan had probably spent the past few weeks with MJ; whether at work or outside the office, he had an idea of who and how she was while all Antonina had was a bunch of conspiracy theories to defend MJ's innocence.

"Well, I could give you one." She smiled and sized up his head.

He gave her a bewildered look. "You would do that?"

"Of course!" She grinned at him. "But on one condition." Logan groaned and ran his palms down his face. Antonina chuckled. "I haven't even told you what it is yet."

"You don't need to. I knew it was too good to be true."

"I'm not that bad!"

"You are not."

"Well then, are you going to ask me what it is or should I just go ahead and tell you?"

"Why don't you just tell me already?"

Antonina took in a sharp breath, and the playful look on her face vanished. "Listen, I know it is not my place to tell you this, but I know you are not ready to face anyone and you don't have a driver." She said.

Logan rubbed his eyes. "What is your point?" He asked in a tired voice.

"You need space to heal, and well, I have a spare bedroom at home. You can come and stay with me for a while." Logan chuckled, and she flinched. "That's if you are interested. I mean, we both know that as soon as you get to your house, someone is going to be ready with a phone to call whoever your disappearance or return may concern, to let them know that you are back. And knowing you, you are going to force yourself to pretend like nothing happened."

Logan sighed. "Even if I did, I don't have clothes to wear."

She rolled her eyes. "Come on, Parker. You are a billionaire, the last thing you need to worry about is clothing."

"And what do I do in the meantime?"

"Heal." She said and placed her hand on his knee.

Logan stared at her and gave her a grateful smile. "Is that haircut part of the offer?" He asked, and she nodded. "I'm sorry about what I said at the party."

"And I'm sorry for not telling you about MJ, it just wasn't my place."

"It wasn't my place." Logan mimicked.

"Bastard."

"A bastard that's gonna be staying at your house." Logan smirked.

"Did you just say the bastard who's gonna help me clean up the mess that he caused?" She asked, and Logan burst out into fits of laughter. "That's a beautiful sound. Now put that bottle aside, get your ass up, and let's get to work." She stood up and dusted off her pink dress.

Logan smirked at her and shook his head. "Yes, Mam!"