MAL BESSEY

She Seems Nice. That's Your First Mistake.

Meet Mal Bessey and your first reaction may be:

She seems nice.

Give it time.

In her early 60s, Mal has built a fast-food and real-estate empire worth billions, encompassing thousands of Mexicocina and Uncle Clayton's BBQ locations. Herschel has long served as one of her trusted real-estate and financial advisers.

Yet nothing about Mal particularly screams billionaire.

Unless you're sitting across from her negotiating commercial real estate.

Then you may want to check your wallet.

Mal can initially seem reserved—even standoffish. People who make it through the outer defenses discover someone considerably more entertaining: wickedly sarcastic, fiercely loyal and perfectly willing to take one for somebody she loves.

Just ask Troy McCoy, who has long occupied the role of Mal's unofficial little brother.

In Hello Chaos, Mal becomes an important financial partner in Herschel's plans for expanding Uncle Mario's Adult Pops operation.

Then she meets Paul Rodriguez.

They trade insults.

Neither retreats.

And somewhere between sarcastic jab number six and uncontrollable laughter, two people who haven't laughed like that in years realize they might want to continue the conversation.

Mal has acquired businesses, restaurants and real estate across America.

Trust has proven considerably harder.

Her former husband's betrayal made sure of that.

Paul may be about to discover the one acquisition Mal never planned on making.

I particularly like Mal + Paul now that you've described it this way.

Please don't make their first meeting traditionally romantic.

Let them annoy the hell out of each other.

Then one lands a particularly good shot. The other cracks up. That makes the first connection laughter, not attraction.

That feels much more like these two.