Chapter 6

Alexis’ phone went off for the fifth time in just three minutes. Annoyed, she pulled it out of her apron pocket to see the name Haven Gray flashing on the screen. She frowned. Jeez, what kind of accurate time keeper was he? Fine, she knew she had agreed that he could call around two since they apparently had somewhere to be today, but it wasn’t even two yet. Why was he in such a hurry?

Not wanting to give him the satisfaction of answering quickly, she pocketed her phone back, putting it on silent.

‘’Was that Haven?’’ Sam asked, coming out from the back room.

‘’Yeah,’’ Alexis said. ‘’I told him I’d be at work by this time.’’

‘’It’s not like you can’t answer while working.’’ Sam said with a stare. ‘’Just tell him you’re busy right now.’’

‘’I’ll pick up when it’s time too.’’

Sam nodded and walked over to one of the cabinets. ‘’Aren't you excited though?’’ she asked, pulling out a bag of coffee beans. ‘’He’s handsome and famous.’’

‘’And his personality sucks,’’ Alexis added.

‘’Are you talking about Haven?’’ Jake asked, stepping into the room with a few orders in his hand. He reached for the coffee beans in Sam’s hand. ‘’When is he coming over again? I hope he brings the other guy with him.’’

‘’You mean Matt?’’ Sam asked, blinking. ‘’What happened to table number six.’’

Jake frowned. ‘’He sucks in bed.’’

Alexis and Sam shared a laugh as Jake began to grind some decaf coffee beans.

‘’So you think Matt will be worth your time?’’

‘’Why not? He’s pretty and he seems nice.’’ he gushed immediately. ‘’The whole time when he was here, I kept watching him.’’

Alexis didn’t know much about Matt, but he seemed like an okay guy. Still, she was wary about him too. If he was a friend of Haven, surely he would be just as weird as his friend.

‘’Don’t bother yourself with him. He isn’t gay,’’ Sam said.

Nodding, Jake let out a soft sigh. ‘’That doesn’t mean I can’t have a crush on him.’’

Sam patted his shoulder. ‘’Don’t worry, it will die soon.’’

The grinder came to a stop and Jake left the room, carrying cups of freshly made coffee. When he left, Sam turned to Alexis. ‘’How’s your dad?’’

The small smile on her lips instantly faded. ‘’I wasn’t allowed to see him for some reasons.’’ It had only been for two days but Alexis felt like she hadn’t seen her father in two years. Her father was the only family she had left. If anything were to happen to him, she wasn’t sure how she would cope with it. With a puff of determination, she smiled back. ‘’Once I get paid, I’m moving to Hawaii with him.’’

Sam couldn’t help but share in her spirit. ‘’That’s if you get a good lawyer too.’’

Alexis knew her father wasn’t capable of such a thing. Although she didn’t know the whole story, she could bet her life her father wasn’t one to steal a car and then murder someone with it. Yes, she knew he was a drunkard who did things while he was drunk. But he was a sweet drunkard who would even help an old lady cross the road while he wasn't seeing straight. Biting down on her lips, she ran a hand through her hair. It hurt to even think about it.

The cafe phone suddenly rang, causing Sam and Alexis to jump slightly. Sam moved over and picked it up. After a minute, she handed it to Alexis.

‘’Your husband,’’ She snickered.

‘’Stop that.’’ Alexis frowned. Taking the phone, she placed it on her ear.

‘’I hope your reasons for not picking up are valid?’’ Haven asked.

‘’I’m at work.’’

‘’So?’’

"I am busy now, so—"

‘’We have plans today,’’ he cut her off, speaking nonchalantly. ‘’And it’s almost time.’’

‘’Well, it’s not like I’m getting paid immediately. I need to eat tonight, you know.’’

There was a second of silence. ‘’I’ll take you out for dinner then.’’

‘’No,’’ she refused as quickly as he offered. ‘’I’m hanging up,” She warned.

‘’Don’t you dare.’’

Beside her, Sam laughed. ‘’You guys sound like a couple already.’’

‘’Stop that.’’ Alexis frowned again.

‘’Stop what?’’

‘’I wasn’t talking to you,’’ she snapped at Haven. She leaned against the counter. ‘’Where are we going anyway?’’

There was a brief moment of silence followed by some shuffling noises. ‘’Dinner plans.’’

‘’Dinner plans?’’

‘’Yes, we’ll be meeting up with some people.’’

‘’People?’’

Haven groaned. ‘’What are you, a parrot?’’

Alexis scrolled a bit. She didn’t know where he was taking her to, but she didn’t like it. Especially if it would involve his ‘kind’ of people. She cupped her elbow, staring at the floor tiles. Sam had left the room a few seconds ago, so it was just her and Haven. It had been a while since she had gone out with a man. And if she had to meet with people, she would need to display some etiquette. After she had dropped out of school, she had never really had the time to learn things like that.

Not that she needed to anyways.

She heard Haven sigh on the phone. ‘’Don’t overthink it. You won’t have to do much.’’

‘’Right,’’ she said. Of course she won’t have to do much. All she had to do was act her part. She did a bit of drama in high school, so it shouldn’t be a problem.

‘’I’ll come pick you up soon,’’ he said. ‘’I give you two hours.’’

She stared at the wall clock. That meant she had an hour to shower and get ready.

She heard a click. She scoffed. What a dickhead. He hung up on her.

‘’So, where are you lovelies going?’’ Sam was back.

‘’A date,’’ Alexis deadpanned.

‘’How exciting!’’ Sam gleaned.

Alexis didn’t share in her glee. Exciting? Annoying and nerve wracking was more like it.

"At the very least, you will get free food," Sam said.

‘’That I won’t be able to stomach?’’ Alexis sighed. But Sam was right. At least she would get free food.

Alexis waved goodbye to Sam as she left the cafe shop and hopped into her beat up corolla. Her apartment was only a few minutes away, ten minutes or least, depending on how fast she drove. When she got home, she got out of her car and made her way up her apartment stairs.

The building she lived in wasn’t a very decent place but it was cheap. She didn’t have many neighbors unless she counted the homeless men who came to drink every night in one of the abandoned flats as one. How they managed to break in, she could never tell.

And she didn’t bother telling the landlord either, just in case the men decided to retaliate. She unlocked her door and walked in. The inside of her home was way better than the outside. With little furniture, a small kitchen, a bedroom with a bathroom she had scrubbed the life out of when she first moved in.

Kicking her shoes off by the door, she went into the bathroom to shower. After showering, she went into her bedroom to dry her hair and plan an outfit to wear. her life, she had always been a trouser person, never once owning a skirt or a gown. She knew she had to dress as fancy as she could. She dug into her closet, hoping to at least find something.All

She didn’t.

‘’Well, this is bad,’’ She groaned.

She didn’t have a single one! She searched again. There had to be something! Her cellphone rang, catching her attention.

‘’Are you ready?’’

‘’It’s not time yet.’’

‘’I’m right outside your home,’’ she heard him sigh. ‘’I’m beginning to think it’s the wrong place though.’’

Walking over to her window, she looked outside. Sure enough, there was a black BMW that put her car to shame outside. It was definitely him.

‘’Give me a few minutes,’’ she told him and hung up quickly. She pulled on a pair of jeans and threw on the first shirt she came across. When she checked the mirror in her room, she groaned again.

She really should have gotten those dresses when Sam asked her too.