Chapter 1: The Girl Beneath the Umbrella
Three days later, Adrian forgot about the umbrella.
Or at least he convinced himself he had.
Work consumed most of his attention.
Deadlines.
Client presentations.
Site inspections.
The endless responsibilities of running a company.
By Friday afternoon he was exhausted.
His assistant insisted he take a break.
“You’ve worked twelve straight days.”
“I’m fine.”
“You said that yesterday.”
“And I was fine yesterday.”
She folded her arms.
“Go home.”
Adrian laughed.
“Is that an order?”
“Absolutely.”
Defeated, he left the office.
Instead of heading home, he wandered through a nearby bookstore.
Books had always provided escape.
The scent of paper and ink felt strangely comforting.
He browsed aimlessly until he reached the fiction section.
Then he heard a familiar voice.
“This author always makes me cry.”
Adrian turned.
The girl from the coffee shop stood only a few feet away.
She held a novel against her chest.
For a moment both looked equally surprised.
Then she smiled.
“Umbrella hero.”
He laughed.
“Book girl.”
“Book girl?”
“I don’t know your name.”
She considered this.
“Fair point.”
She extended her hand.
“Lia.”
“Lia?”
“Lia Santos.”
Adrian shook her hand.
“Adrian Reyes.”
“Nice to officially meet you.”
The simple exchange felt oddly significant.
As though some invisible line had been crossed.
They began talking.
First about books.
Then about favorite authors.
Then movies.
Then travel.
Minutes became an hour.
An hour became two.
Neither noticed.
Eventually Lia checked her watch.
“Oh no.”
“What?”
“I was supposed to meet my cousin thirty minutes ago.”
Adrian laughed.
“That’s probably not good.”
“Definitely not good.”
She hesitated.
Then smiled.
“But worth it.”
Something warm stirred inside him.
The kind of feeling he hadn’t experienced in years.
Before leaving, Lia pulled a receipt from her bag.
She wrote something on the back.
Then handed it to him.
“My number.”
Adrian stared.
“You trust umbrella heroes that easily?”
“Only the handsome ones.”
His heart nearly stopped.
She laughed at his expression.
Then walked away.
Leaving Adrian standing among books with a smile he couldn’t hide.
For the first time in a very long time, he was genuinely looking forward to tomorrow.
