Chapter 4

I paused, then tapped in to look. It turned out Bill had just posted a few photos of his dishes.

Ordinarily that wouldn't have mattered, but next to what Lucretia had posted, the contrast was brutal.

I scrolled back up to Lucretia's message.

She was showing off her big spread of seafood, positively glowing.

"Looks good, doesn't it? Nice place, too."

I glanced at it and couldn't help laughing.

The mantis shrimp was obviously frozen stock, and the red grouper was low grade too.

A table like that still left room for profit.

The thing about Bruce Dickerson was that he could dress up mediocre ingredients and make them look like something.

At first glance, everyone in the group was impressed.

"This whole table of seafood was really only five hundred and change? No way. Seafood is so expensive these days!"

"Right? Aside from the portions looking a little small, everything else seems pretty good."

More and more people piled on with praise.

She went ahead and dropped Bruce Dickerson's business card right there in the group.

"Mention my name and you can even get a discount "

That blatant little ad was meant to rub it in.

Everyone kept asking how it tasted, tagging her in the group, and she went quiet.

It wasn't like I'd never tried Bruce Dickerson's cooking. All I could say was, it was okay. Passable.

But if the guest being treated had a picky palate, it wouldn't fly.

Soon enough, her moment in the spotlight got stolen by the few photos Bill had posted.

The group blew up all over again.

Nothing hurts like a side-by-side.

Straight-from-the-camera shots of the dishes, quality plain to see.

People held those few photos up against the ones Lucretia had posted.

The exact same dishes, and the difference in quality was obvious at a glance.

All the praise for Lucretia turned to pity in an instant.

"Oh my god, don't be a cheapskate. You get what you pay for!"

"Right? Looking at those photos up top now, that food couldn't look less fresh, and the portions are small too. I'd rather pay more."

I found it funny.

No amount of talk beats letting the results speak.

Thanks to Bill's backing, several more customers came to me and placed reservations.

Just then, my phone started buzzing.

I glanced at who was calling, ignored it, and let her ring until it cut off on its own.

But wouldn't you know it, the phone rang again.

I stepped out into the hallway and picked up.

On the other end, Lucretia's voice was awkward and a little guilty. "Boss James, are you still busy?"

I gave nothing away. "What can I do for you?"

Her voice came through, on the verge of tears. "The food at this place is no good!"

"I invited someone to dinner, and he took one look, ate in a rush, and left. Nothing got settled! He's really picky. Could you maybe free up a private room for me and bail me out here…"