The sun shined through Raine's bright green curtains. Raine turned off her alarm and sat up in bed, rubbing her eyes and getting used to the overflow of brightness. Checking the time, she got out of her bed and headed straight to the bathroom. Mike was supposed to be gone today which meant Raine was in charge of both the register and tables.
Getting ready in a floral top and skinny jeans, Raine let go of her hair which was previously in a bun. Her long brown hair cascaded down her back as she ran her fingers through it, quickly fixing it up. It wasn't long before Raine was rushing out the door with her bag in her hands, walking through the streets of New York to head to Cathy's.
* * *
"Raine!! Thank god you're here!" Daisy exclaimed as soon as Raine set her foot onto the premise of the cafe. Raine had barely taken a breath, before she was attacked with an overly excited Daisy.
"Good morning to you too!" Raine said with a bit of humorous sarcasm. "What's got you so hyped up early morning?" Setting her purse behind the counter.
"You will never believe what I just got!!" At this point, Daisy was practically jumping up and down in the middle of an empty cafe.
"What??" Curiosity eating Raine alive with the way Daisy was building all of these things up.
"I'm going to Chicago with my mom!!!"
"What?! Oh my gosh Daisy!! You're finally going to Chicago!!" A giant smile covered Raine's face as she ran to Daisy and pulled her into a hug.
Daisy had been wanting to take her mom to Chicago for the longest time. Cathy had a twin sister that lived there, and unfortunately the two twins were separated when Cathy's sister fell in love with a business accountant from Chicago. Over the years, Cathy became busy with the cafe and funding Daisy's education. Unfortunately, Cathy's sister met a horrifying accident that cause her to become paralyzed from the waist down. It broke her heart to see her sister suffer, but there was nothing she could do about it. Visiting Chicago, although it was a dream, became impossible. Cathy didn't have the money, nor the physical ability to fly out to see her because of her worsening health.
"Yeah I know! Hard to believe right?! I had been trying for the longest time but the doctors kept saying mom couldn't possibly fly in her condition!! But, thanks to all the rest she has been taking ever since I took charge in the cafe, mom's health is actually getting better! And so yesterday once I left the cafe, I got a call from the doctors saying that she can fly out to Chicago as long as she takes all her meds."
"I can't believe it!! Cathy must be so happy!! She hasn't met Judie in 5 years!"
"I know! So I just got off the phone with Aunt Judie and......."
"And?"
"Obviously I'm not letting mom go alone. I am going with her. But......"
"But? But what?" Raine said, confusion evident on her face.
"I need a favor from you Raine. Would you be willing to handle the cafe for a day? I know I've never left you in charge before but I'm sure you can manage it. It's just one day, I promise. I'll be back the next day." Raine could see how desperate Daisy was. Her mom was always her top priority and letting Cathy go on a plane all the way to Chicago, was something Daisy would never allow.
"Of course I will Daisy! You don't even need to ask! I'll take care of the cafe!"
"Oh my gosh! Thank you so much Raine!" Daisy ran towards her, giving her a tight hug.
"Not a problem at all! And plus, Mike will be here with me, right?"
"Yes of course! He will be here to open so you don't have to worry about that, but he does have to leave early for his next job. Which means you will be in change of checking the inventory and also closing."
"I'll handle everything. Don't worry about it!"
"Thanks again Raine!"
"You can thank me by baking my favorite triple chocolate cookies too, you know??"
"Done deal!" Raine and Daisy both laughed together before Daisy headed back to the kitchen to make the treats they would be serving throughout the day.
Once Daisy was gone, Raine finished setting up the utensils and fixing up the chairs that were scattered throughout the cafe. The customers hadn't begun to come in just yet, so Raine had plenty of time to tidy up the cafe. Once she was done, she went behind the counter and checked the register to make sure they had enough change to last them throughout the day. And just as she had finished the last of her work, the customers began rolling it.
It was a weekday which meant that the crowd would be in a rush, trying to get to work. People poured into the cafe in business suits and files or computers in their hands. All drinking a cup of coffee and finishing up the remaining work that they hadn't completed the night before, or rushing out of the cafe as soon as their orders were met.
Raine chuckled at the thought. It was just like the good old high school days where she would wake up early in the morning to finish the homework that was meant to be done the night before. But she couldn't help herself. I mean, procrastination has no cure. Right?
Raine did her work with full determination, trying to provide best customer service as she always did. The regular customers at the cafe adored her as she went above and beyond in trying to be the best at what she did. After the rush hour was done, the cafe slowed down a bit which gave Raine the perfect time to take a breath. She was going through her Instagram feed, deeply engrossed in her phone, when she heard a throat clear in front of her.
With her eyes widening like a deer caught in front of the headlights, Raine looked up suddenly to find herself, once more, in front of those vibrate eyes that had been driving her mad ever since she met them.
Shaking herself out of those foolish thoughts, she gave a subtle smile before proceeding with her job. "What can I get for you today Sir?"
The man looked at Raine with an intensity that she wasn't used to. It took him a mintue before he stopped staring and responded to her question. "I'll have a black, no sugar."
"No Pistacchio Rose Lattes today?? I told you, you wouldn't like it." With a playful smile lingering on her lips, Raine looked up at him with bright eyes.
Amusement filled the man's eyes. No one had ever talking to him with such ease. The edges of his lips curled up slightly as he gave out an honest answer. "It was the best I've ever tasted. But I think something strong will be necessary for the amount meetings I have lined up for today."
"No problem. One strong cup of coffee coming right up! Anything else?" The cheerful voice of Raine always managed to crack a smile on anyones face, and the man fell right into her joyous tricks.
"No thank you." The man smiled at Raine as she typed up his order and he paid for his drink.
After giving him his change, her eyes meet his and she couldn't help but stare into them a little longer. There was something about him. It shouted out to her to listen. The way his eyes shined under the dim lights of the cafe and the way they had a hint of amusement in them every time she spoke. They were a mystery. Actually, he himself was a mystery. A mystery she didn't know existed until that Sunday meeting that had caught her off guard. Why hadn't she ever seen him before? And why was he here? Why did he stare at her the way he did? What did he want? Who was he?
"Who are you?" Before Raine could comprehend what was going on, the words that were meant to be spoken only in her mind, slipped out of her mouth. Her eyes suddenly widened in shock as she saw surprise written all over the blue eyed man's face. Her tone was brave and confident, something that she usually never had, especially when talking to this man. Realizing what she hand done, she quickly tried to clean up her mess.
"I-I m-mean.....Um....it's none for my business. Sorry. It's just that I haven't ever seen you here before. And now you come here like every day. In fact I see you everywhere now a days and its been bothering me. Not in a bad way though. Like how did you just find this coffee shop? And if you didn't just notice is now then where have you been all your life. But then again you might just be a tourist. Or a business man! Yeah, that's it. But no worries. I swear I'm not a stalker. Well not a complete stalker a least. I mean I might stalk a couple people of Facebook but hey! What else is Facebook for anyways? Just pretend I never said that. Or any of this. Actually pretend this conversation never happened. Oh and I do-------"
"I'm Xavier. Xavier Thorn." The man responded with amusement in his eyes and a soft smile playing on his lips. Unlike Raine, his voice was strong and confident.
Raine paused for a second as she repeated the name in her head. "Thorn? Like roses?"
"Roses?"
"Yeah you know? Roses have thorns!" Raine said as she pointed out the obvious and shrugged.
"Oh." Although he had said his name to thousands if not millions of other people before, this was definately not the response he ever got, nor expected. He looked at Raine in confused eyes, trying to figure her out.
"That's such a cool name! Nice to meet you Mr. Thorn!" With a smile large enough to brighten the room, Raine greeted the man.
"Please call me Xavier." He spoke, unsure of how she could possbilely think that Thorn would be a "cool name." For all Xavier knew, thorns were simply hated. They only cause pain and were undesirable. And that was who he was. He was accustomed to his name being something powerful, fearful, hated, but never did he expect cool to be one of the words describing his name.
As Raine repeated Xavier's name through her mind, she couldn't help but feel that she had heard it before. It seemed all too familiar. Suddenly, she realized where she has heard the name before. Actually more like seen the name before. Her eyes widened in shock, excitement, and surprise. "Oh my god! You're Mr. Thorn!
"Really, just call me Xavier. I don't------"
"Xavier Thorn! As is THE XAVIER THORN!! From Thorn Inc. The CEO!!!" Excitement began running through Raine's body as she realized that the very person she was talking to, was one of the most powerful CEO's not only in New York City, but the country.
"Yeah." Shrugging uninterested."That's me."
"Mr. Thorn, it's such an honor to meet you." Raine smiled softly but noticed how the he seemed displeased with the mention if his last name.
"Like I said before, please call me Xavier."
"Nice to meet you Xavier." At the sound of his first name rolling off of Raine's tongue, Xavier's eyes turned at shade darker as he looked at Raine, a faint smile playing on his lips.
"And you must be?" His eagerness to find her name add been high since the day he caught her in his arms.
"Oh! So silly of me." Cleaning her hands. "Hi, I'm Raine. Raine Woods." Raine smiled and held out a hand in front of Xavier, who effortlessly took it into his own, shaking it gently as if she was made of glass. Raine's hand fit perfectly in Xavier's. They were softer than what she expected and to this she smiled once more. Xavier stopped shaking her hand but hadn't let go. Her hands were perfectly warm and so tender that he wished to never let them go. Unfortunately, the clearing of someone's throat cause the both of them to suddenly let go and take a step back.
A grinning Daisy was standing by the back door with a tray of warm bagels in her hands. She had a smirk plastered to her face as she looked between Raine and Xavier. Without saying any words, she made her way past Xavier, placing the bagels onto the displays and then left.
Xavier waited for her to leave before he turned his attention back to Raine, who's face was flushed and she was looking toward the ground and playing with her fingers.
"Raine." The way her name rolled off of his tongue sent shivers down her spine and sparks flying in her heart. It was so perfect. As if her name was meant to be spoken by this very man. As if her name was made for him to say it.
She quickly looked up to meet his gaze, but like always, his eyes were already on her. "Xavier."
"Raine, it's a beau-----" Just as Xavier was about to complete his sentence, he was interrupted by the same man that Raine had seen the day before, presumably his driver.
The man rushed to Xavier, with a phone held in one of his hands. "Mr. Thorn, there is an------"
"How many times do I have to tell you not to interrupt me while I am in a conversation!?!" Xavier was beyond furious. If there was one thing he hated most, it was being interrupted. Raine noticed the way his smile vanished and how the brightness in his eyes turn cold and icy. Her own smiled dimmed a little, seeing such rash changes in this man.
"I'm extremely sorry Mr. Thorn, but there is an urgent press conference with the CEO of Ashwood & Co. announcing the new projects for next year."
"And why was I not informed this morning when I specifically asked for the schedule?!" By now, every last bit of patience had left Xavier. He was beyond pissed with the interruption.
"I do apologize, Cindy accidentally deleted the event from your schedule while rescudeling the Showls Enterprise meeting you had this morning."
Raine watched has Xavier's hands clenched into a fist. She could tell that he was trying to calm his anger down. After running his hands through his hair a couple of times, and creating a messy look, Xavier turned his attention back to her as she watched with wide eyes.
Before speaking however, he took a couple of deep breaths to calm himself down, afraid to burst his anger out of the innocent girl at the register. His eyes softened and the brightness returned once more. "I do apologize to you.......Raine."
Guilt was evident in his words but Raine could not understand why. Why was he apologized to Raine? Although she was confused, she let it pass. Raine could tell that he was stressed out and being CEO surely didn't help his stress levels come down. "Not a problem Xavier. I'll be out with your coffee in just a minute."
"I'm really sorry for the inconvenience, but I will have to take a leave here. I hope to see you tomorrow?"
The way his eyes darkened asking Raine such as simple question cause butterflies to burst in her stomach. She had no idea why a CEO of such a big company was firstly apologizing to her and second, why he actually wanted to see her again tomorrow. Putting her thoughts aside for the millionth time that day, Raine presented a patient Xavier with a bright smile. "Yeah."
After getting one last look of her, Xavier turned hot on his heel and headed straight out the door with a scowl on his face. Jordan followed quickly behind him and soon, both men had disappeared from Raine's view. But not her mind.
* * *
After the men had left, Raine had emerged herself into her normal workload. Since Mike was taking an off day, it was just her and Daisy in the cafe. It was about time for closing and the cafe was empty. Raine shuffled through each of the tables, picking up leftovers and wiping off the last bits of crumbles. As she was engrossed in her work, Daisy came out from behind with the keys and her purse.
"Time to close?" Raine asked as she threw away the trash and wiped off her hands.
"Yeah, I'm heading out. I actually have to get a couple of things from the store." Daisy said as she miraculously typed away on her phone.
"Ok, let's walk out. I'll just grab my things." Raine rushed to the counter, grabbing her phone and bag.
They both exited the cafe and Daisy locked up the door. The air was beginning to get chilly as they prepared for winter to hit. Fall was just about done and with that, it would be another year since Raine had been alone. Past memories flowed through her mind before Daisy's voice brought her back to reality.
"So...." Daisy trailed off with a hint of amusement in her eyes and a smirk on her face.
Raine remained confused at the random appearance of her friend. "So?"
"Oh come on Raine! Stop acting so innocent! You know what I'm trying to hint at!"
"What?"
"That man! Who by the way, is totally head over heels for you!" Daisy gushes as they walked out of the parking lot and to the street. Daisy always parked on the streets as the cafe parking was too small and it got too crowded at times. To make it easier for the customers, she would always take a sacrifice and walk the extra block.
"For your information, he was clearly not wearing any heels!" Raine defended as images of Xavier appeared back in front of her eyes.
"Oh please Raine, you know very well what I'm talking about! Spill! Who is he?"
"Xavier Thorn. The CEO of Thorn Inc." Raine looked up at the sky that was now changing colors. The little stars were becoming to come back out from their hiding and amongst these stars, Raine searched for two familiar ones.
"THE CEO!? And you're telling me now?! We've been serving the CEO himself for the last couple of days? But why on earth would he come here? I mean doesn't he have a personal assistant or servant to do that crap for him?" Raine signed at Daisy's remark. Maybe she too had wondered the same things, but she knew better then to get involved with men like these. And plus, she had more important things to worry about.
"How am I supposed to know? He's been coming here and I've been serving him. That's all."
However, Daisy never took no as an answer. "Clearly that is not all! There must be some reason he's coming here."
"Why does there have to be a reason? Maybe he just wants a cup of coffee?" Raine said, shrugging it off. I mean why else would anyone go to a coffee shop anyways?
"Raine, he's the freaking CEO! And not only that but he's the CEO of Thorn Inc! That's the company who's always in the media for a hot headed and very sexy CEO!"
"Who knows." Raine said looking back up at the sky. By now they had reached Daisy's car.
"Do you want a ride home Raine? It's getting pretty dark anyways."
Although it was a good idea, Raine couldn't possible accept it. She hated being a burden on people. "No it's ok. And plus, don't you have to go shopping?"
"It's ok. I'm going in the direction of your apartment anyways."
Thinking about it one more time, Raine gently nodded. Smiling, Daisy unlocked the car and the both of them got in. "Thank you."
"For you a thousand times!" Daisy said in a dramatic way before blaring the music and driving down the streets, laughing and giggling with Raine.
Maybe life wasn't so bad after all. With that thought in mind, Raine smiled.
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