Chapter 1
~Alexei Moore's POV~
"You're the best Alexei! The nicest guy in the city, I swear!" Lorenna exclaimed with a huge grin as she threw away her black apron and rushed to the back of the prestigious restaurant where both of us were working.
I jumped a little when a heavy hand landed on my shoulder, and a chuckle resounded from my left as my best friend and co-worker, Adrien, stopped by my side, flashing me a sympathetic smile.
"Mon ami... That was the most awkward and lamest thing I had ever seen. I swear." he shook his head in disappointment, brushing his dark chocolate brown curls back into that highly fashionable slicked-back style he always sported. (mon ami= my friend)
"What are you talking about?" I questioned him as I started to pick up the empty coffee cups from a table, cleaning everything up. "Lorenna is a friend, and friends are supposed to help each other."
Adrien crossed his arms over his chest and gave me an incredulous look. "Lorenna is only your co-worker since you two never speak or meet outside the restaurant. You chased after her for three months like some dog, and you just agreed to cover her shift today after you worked yours... only so she could meet up with this guy, who is 80% some Chad-type who is gonna boink then dump her."
"That's a bit too descriptive, don't you think?" I questioned him, not amused at all, but deep down, I hated how right he was about Lorenna.
"I am only being transparent with you, Alexei. Who are you trying to fool? Lorenna is the kind of girl who only looks at guys who make the above six figures. You're only a waiter working at a high-class cafe." Adrien pointed out, continuing to converse with me as we worked.
"Jeez... Thanks for the encouragement. I feel blessed." Cinism drips from my tongue, and I brush the sweat from my forehead with my forearm before picking up the tray full of coffee cups and mugs to take to the back of the cafe to put into the washing machine. Adrien was hot on my tail.
"Je suis désolé. I didn't want to insult. I am only saying that you should watch after what woman you pin because most only look for one thing in a guy like you. To use you." (Je suis désolé= I am sorry)
I squinted my eyes, crossing my arms over my chest. "A guy like me? What's that supposed to mean?" My tone was probably too defensive, but I barely slept last night, not to mention now I had eight more hours of work on my back.
"A good guy? Come on. Nice guys finish last, and they always end up broken-hearted by girls who take their kindness for granted. Lorenna is no different, and she showed her colors today. She doesn't care about you, if she goes out with some Alpha male, leaving you to do her work. Would she ever do the same for you, hmm?"
I rubbed the bridge of my nose, sighing. "Look... I was only... chivalrous, alright? Can we end this conversation now?" Adrien put his hands in surrender, giving me that supportive look again before he left to go back to the front of the cafe.
Finally, I was alone with my thoughts as I put each porcelain cup into the dish machine for washing. After closing it and pressing the power button, I rested a little against the granite counter, only to raise my gaze and be met with my reflection in the huge fridge in front of me. Most guys would say I score a lot of girls because of my height. I was 6'5, but I had beyond any luck with the ladies. I wasn't buffed up like a tank. I could consider myself an athletic fit. Not skinny, nor built like a brick house. In high school, I played basketball.
I had my hair cut into classic curtains, a little longer on the front, and always messy because of the humidity. One might say my intense blue eyes could enhance girls like crazy, but their eyes were focused on my wallet, which, in all honesty, had flies coming out of it. So, yeah... A big turn-off for modern women. Adrien had constantly pestered me to try out for male modeling because of my height and masculine, yet delicate, facial features. I had a strong jawline and sharp features, but not the overly masculine ones that drew the ladies in.
All around my persona, I was an awkward guy, and like Adrien just pointed out, the nice guy who always finishes last, or doesn't finish at all. I was that guy who picked up the female friends after a drunken night when they didn't have a driver. I was the guy who consoled girls after a breakup, only to be told at the very end: You're the best friend a girl could ever have.
I never understood what I did wrong to be constantly friend-zoned. Girls like a guy who is a gentleman, respectful, nice, and always puts the woman first, right? For all these years, I only saw it as the opposite. They liked the jerks. The ones who had an ego the size of the Great Wall of China ghosted them daily and treated them like objects. It was such a paradox. Sometimes, I wish I could be that jerk, but it simply wasn't in my nature.
I could never bring myself to use a woman.
Sighing, I brushed my bangs out of my eyes and walked back to the front of the cafe to take orders and see what else there needed to be done, only to bump into Adrien's back when I made sure the notepad and pencil were in the pocket of my black apron.
"Hey... What got you frozen in the doorway?" I asked him, and I swear he looked like he was hypnotized, but my voice and presence snapped him back to reality, and he shook my shoulder, pointing in a specific direction. My baby blues followed the direction to where he so desperately pointed, and instantly, my breath hitched, and a knot formed in my throat.
A Goddess was sitting across the cafe at one of the tables by the massive window that gave a perfect view of the center of the city outside, letting lots of light enter the vintage bistro. She had golden-blonde hair styled into an iconic 90's hairstyle. A messy, piled-on bun with sweeping side bangs and face-framing pieces. It framed her perfect doll-like face. Her choice of clothes made her stand out in the picture. Classy yet so simple. A satin black dress to her mid-thighs with long sleeves that reached the middle of her forearms. She had quite the neckline, but not obscenely so. The pure white pearls around her neck and collarbones tugged away the attention from the sun-kissed skin.
She looked eccentric with the transparent black-lace gloves, and her long legs could make a man forget how to speak. Not to mention these black stiletto heels were tugging the imagination into forbidden places.
I've never seen a presence like hers before. She looked so... entrancing.
"Oh, fuck..." I spoke under my breath, and Adrien chuckled, patting my back.
"Yeah. That's a perfect definition of only watching but never approaching." Adrien said with a nod, and I gave him a quizzical look.
"What do you mean?"
Adrien gave me again his typical are-you-serious expression as if I spoke a foreign language.
"She is out of our league. I mean, the pearls she is wearing probably cost more than your car. I can bet on it."
"Your point is that...?" I was getting exasperated with Adrien's philosophy about life, especially women's. No matter how realistic he could be.
"Women like her are like a Lamborghini. You ogle her, wish to drive the beauty and feel the engine, leather, magic under the hood... but you know you could never afford such a thing." Adrien's words hit the spot, and I sighed in defeat, nodding.
"I know... I just wonder..."
"Wonder what?" He questioned.
My eyes traced her caramel brown lips, which looked so full and inviting, even from across the cafe. "I wonder how it feels to have a woman like her, you know? Be able to kiss her, hold her... for her eyes to look at you like you're the only man for her." I spoke with a deep melancholy, like a lion who was searching the entire African grounds for a glimpse of water.
"Uhu... I see," Adrien nodded, pursing his lips. "Wake up, my friend, and stop dreaming with open eyes... especially at work." His witty tone snapped me back to the sour reality, killing the emotional atmosphere I've built up.
"You really know how to kill a mood, Adrien." I shook my head, taking a rag and cleaning the tables, only for the owner of the cafe to approach us.
"What are you two buffoons doing? Go and serve, Miss Russo. She had been sitting at that table for ten minutes, and no one went to check what she wanted to order." Our boss spoke with irritation, but also a hint of anxiety.
"Miss Russo?" I inquired, and our superior, Mr. Garcia, better known as Jusepe, gave us an are-you-joking expression, as if we asked what color the sky was.
"She is the daughter of a very important businessman in New York, who owns a fair share of big casinos and hotels. I don't want our bistro to get a bad reputation because of you two," Jusepe explained in a warning tone, letting us know this wasn't some exaggerated way to make us overwork ourselves. "So don't mess this up." He whispered firmly before walking away.
"Oh... Her father must be Matteo Russo." Adrien noted, and I arched an eyebrow questioningly. "He is, like Jusepe said, a very important businessman from Italy who had some deals in the United States, including NYC. It is known that he has some strings attached to the mafia. Not a man to mess with."
"I see..." I whispered, my gaze moving back to the blonde Goddess who was still browsing over the menu.
"And don't even think about trying anything with her. The last thing you want is to get your fingers cut off by some Sicilian mob boss because you tried anything with his daughter." Adrien warned me, and I rolled my eyes at how dramatically he was acting.
"Chill out. I won't try anything. Plus..." My eyes raked over her figure, taking note of her lavish clothes and accessories. "I doubt she would ever acknowledge my existence."
A smirk curled on Adrien's lips. "Why don't we test this theory out?"
A frown crossed my features. "What are you saying? I am not going to talk to her."
Adrien's smirk remained. "Well, you will have to. How else are you going to take her order?"
"Why do I have to go take her order?" I questioned, crossing my arms over my chest.
"Because my shift ends in five." His cocky answer made me glare at him, and I could only send imaginary bullets at the back of his head as he walked away smugly.
"Great. This is surely my lucky day." I thought to myself, adjusting the black bowtie of my uniform and the cuffs of the white button-down, before walking over to the woman's table with the notepad and pencil in my hand.
Once I reached her table, she instantly felt my presence and looked up from the menu. That was the moment, I felt like my entire body was drained of blood, and almost forgot how to properly breathe. She had the most stunning eyes I've ever seen. They were such a light emerald, and the flawless cat-like makeup only made her delicate feminine features seem godly. Even if I wanted, I couldn't find one small fault in her.
I cleared my throat before greeting her. "Hello, Miss, and welcome to Rosa Rosada. What would you like to order?"
Her attention went back to the menu, and she hummed to herself in thought, resting her chin on her knuckles. "Mmm... I haven't decided yet. What would you recommend?" She questioned me, and even her voice was bewitching. Soft and gentle like a spring breeze, but withholding an arctic air. I blinked a few times, and came back to reality, to what she asked me.
"Oh... Well," I rubbed the back of my neck, feeling awkward as she glanced back at me with a feline-like curiosity. "We have a delightful mocha coffee, and the croissants with cherry gems are like a sweet cloud."
"I will take that." She answered, closing the menu and setting it on the dark wooden table, offering me a polite smile, but it was wrapped into an icy layer of snow. Oh, if looks could kill. She had the eyesight of a vicious feline from the darkest parts of the jungle, and I was a stupid fool of an antelope.
"Right away, Miss," I noted on the notepad, before walking to the back to prepare her order, knowing Juesepe would give me the biggest lecture of my life if I didn't take care of this special client. It didn't take more than five minutes to get her order ready, all arranged on a serving plate made of silver. I was heading in the direction of her table, her attention glued on her iPhone.
When she bit her bottom lip slightly, that's when I lost focus and a chain of events clashed. Someone from a table nearby which I was passing, moved to stand up, and I tripped over his leg. My eyes widened, and I swear I felt like my heart jumped into my throat. The booming noise of the silver plate hitting the floor echoed through the cafe, along with the porcelain scattering around. The melting whipped cream and chocolate over the floor, along with the no-more comestible croissants made the color drain from my face.
"Watch it, dork!" The guy who tripped me snarked with an expression of disgust as he adjusted his tailored suit. His other two friends snickered as they all left.
The mess I created made me sigh, and inside my head, I was already preparing myself for Jusepes rage, only to snap back to reality when a pair of black, luscious heels came into my vision as I carefully picked at the broken porcelain from the sticky mess. My cerulean eyes moved up these gorgeous, long legs that had me questioning how they would feel wrapped around my head. The delicate golden glow of the skin looked so inviting, like the ancient gold from the depths of Egypt.
Slowly, the Goddess crouched so she was eye-level with me and picked up at the broken pieces of porcelain.
"Let me help you," She whispered, setting the pieces on the silver plate, and helping me clean up the mess. I felt like a peasant deep in muddy sand, and this Goddess came from the sky to help me from my demise. My tongue was knotted, and I couldn't find the basic ability to speak.
"Mierda! What is the meaning of this?!" Jusepes booming voice made me groan and close my eyes as I prepared for the storm to come.
"Look at this mess... Alexei, I swear..." Jusepe was ready to give me the biggest scold of my life since I started working for him, only to be saved a second time in less than ten minutes.
"It's alright, Sir. It was all an accident." The blonde beauty spoke for me, her tone calm and gentle, but yet so firm. She didn't shutter one time. The confidence she radiated made even my boss tongue-tied, but that was probably the natural effect of her beauty.
Jusepe glanced at me, debating what he should say next. "Is that so?" He rasped out. I could only nod dumbly.
"Well, Alexei will bring another coffee and croissants. They will be on the house as an apology for the... accident." My boss offered with a polite smile, and she nodded.
"Thank you. That's very generous." She replied, handing me the silver plate with the shattered porcelain before going back to her table.
I walked to the back of the cafe to prepare another order, only to have my boss pop out right next to me. I almost dropped the plate of croissants again.
"Sir... I am deeply sorry for-" I was ready to apologize, only for Jusepe to stop me.
"Keep the apology for yourself, Alexei. I want you to take care of Miss Russo during her stay at our bistro. She seems to... fancy you. So, don't screw anything up." I was surprised by his request, but I wasn't about to argue, so I only nodded, continuing to prepare the mocha coffee.
This barista job at this cafe was a big opportunity. The payment was generous, and so were the tips. I was 32 years old, and finding another job in NYC in a short amount of time was hard. After I was done preparing the order, I went to serve it to the blonde, this time being extra careful with my steps.
"There you go, Miss. I do apologize for the big wait." I said as I gently set everything on her table, being extra professional. "Enjoy your coffee and croissants."
"Thank you, Alexei." She replied with a siren-like smile, and I swear I felt like she tore my soul in two when she said my name. My legs turned to jelly as I walked away, and I still had a hard time processing what happened.
She said my name. She knew my name.
