Love At The Café

Like any typical Wednesday, Kevin was at it with his routine life. Sitting in the CEO cabin on the top floor of Brown Inc, Kevin was engrossed in the files set on his desk when a familiar man entered the room.

"Good Morning Mr. Brown," The man greeted with a subtle smile on his face. The middle-aged man set a stack of papers on the table before standing in front of Kevin. "Those are the copies you requested."

Kevin stared at the papers, nodding before his eyes met the man. "Morning Benson, any updates this morning?"

Benson Swift had been working for Kevin since the moment he took on the responsibilities of being the CEO. Benson had worked under Paul for a year before he passed away and his duties were shifted over to Kevin. Though most people at the company hated the change of CEO, Benson was more than happy serving Kevin. Not only was he Kevin's head bodyguard, but he also played the role of his driver and assistant at work, taking care of all of Kevin's needs.

"I'm waiting on a confirmation for the meeting you have next week with Mr. Wilson. As soon as their representative sends a response, I will confirm it for you."

"Great."

"Shall I get you your coffee?"

Quickly looking up from the files that had caught his attention, Kevin abruptly refused. "No. I will get that my myself."

"Are you sure Mr. Brown? You do have three files to review before the conference later today." Benson spoke with a look of concern evident on his face.

"From now on, I will get my coffee personally. I no longer need your assistance." Kevin's tone was precise, serious, and stern, making his point irrefutable.

"You have always requested that I present you with coffee 9 sharp in the morning. What has caused the sudden change Mr. Brown? Is there an issue you perhaps want to discuss?"

"No, no Benson. It's not you. I....I just...." Kevin's mind when back in time to Sunday.

What started out to be just a normal Sunday, transformed into one of the most momentous days of his life. Kevin was is a terrible mood for having to cancel his precious Sunday plans of resting at home. The management team had requested an urgent compilation of reports for the new project to be approved, and since Kevin was the CEO, only he had access to the information needed for the reports. Though he was irritated for leaving the comfort of his home, Kevin headed back to his office to quickly put together a file of reports.

The day was going as boring as always with Kevin sitting amongst a stack of files. The stacked kept getting taller and taller while the headache throbbing at the back of his head was getting harder and harder for him to bare. Throwing one of the files across the room, Kevin charged out of his office and to the nearest coffee shop he could locate.

After walking in the cool fall air, Kevin found himself in front of a small yet elegant cafe with a "Nancy's Cakes & Coffee" sign handing from above the door. With doubts in his mind, he pushed the glass doors open to be welcoming by a chiming bell and the back of a petite girl. Just as he was about to walk closer to the register, the girl abruptly turned and rushed towards the counter when her foot slipped. The girl was about to come crashing to the ground when Kevin's instincts pulled him to the girl, catching her in his arms. And just as his eyes fell on the brown orbes of the girl, he knew that one visit to this coffee shop wouldn't be enough.

"Sir?" Kevin was broken out of his memories with Benson's voice.

"I'm sorry, where was I?"

After giving Kevin a skeptical look, he continued. "For the past 6 years, I have be ordered to present you with coffee in the morning. So what has triggered the sudden change?"

"I.....I just wanted to change things up a bit. Like I said before, from now on, do not worry about my coffee. I am capable of getting it on my own. If I need your assistance, I will gladly let you know." With that being said, Kevin dismissed Benson and filed through the pile of paper work that was lingering on his desk.

Ever since that Sunday afternoon coffee break he had given himself, he was unable to concentrate on his work. Every time he turned his attention to the papers, a pair of brown eyes would captivate his mind, distracting him to work further. No matter how much he tried to control desires, he would find himself walking to the same coffee shop in hopes of getting one more glimpse of the girl who had blurred his mind.

It had been about ten days since Kevin Brown had met the innocent Lily Rose. Though at first he had tried to stay away from her, his mind refused to let go of those eyes that seemed to draw him in. They seemed to speak to him and for some wierd reason, he wanted to listen to what they had to say.

So every day, pushing his assistant aside, Kevin would venture out to Nancy's Cakes & Coffee to get glimpse of the girl.

Lily.

Kevin recalled the way she reacted when she heard his name. He could still taste the sweetness of the Pistachio Rose Latte she had so sweetly recommended. He never thought that he would ever find something so sweet, flow down his throat as he was accustomed to the bitterness of his usual black, no sugar. A smile came upon his face recalling her cute rants for which she always apologized. Little did she know that for Kevin, those meaningless rants weren't meaningless. The rants had the ability to put a smile on his face. And though the smile might have been faint, it was still a smile. A smile that rarely ever appeared on his face. And the dimple that he hid from the world, he showed to her. Something he ever expected himself to do nor dreamt of doing. He was known as a cold man and he never denied those accusations, in fact he strengthened them with his intimidating glares and conceited behavior.

But there was something about Lily that left his cold heart to warm up when he was near her. And though he had always tried to lock his heart away, he actually enjoyed the weird feelings that would happen throughout his body when Lily was around.

Kevin's thoughts were interrupted when the phone on his desk began to ring. He ran his fingers through his hair before putting his thoughts aside, and answering the phone.

"Hello?"

"Mr. Brown, I'm calling to remind you that your meeting for Toronto, tomorrow morning is set for 10 am. Your private jet is ready to take off tonight whenever you are ready." Candy, his junior assistant, chirped through the phone causing Kevin to cringe.

"Meeting in Toronto? I thought it was cancelled?"

"It had been cancelled, however Mr. Roberts with Roberts & Co. was able to fly into the city this morning, thus, reappointing the meeting. And your schedule appears to be cleared out for tonight and tomorrow."

"Very well then. Tell Benson to have the jet and my bags ready by 8 pm tonight. And go ahead and confirm the meeting with Mr. Roberts."

"Of course Mr. Brown. Would that be all?"

"Yes." Kevin hung up the phone and ran his fingers through his hair, frustrated. Not only had today been an extremely busy day for him, he also hadn't been able to go to the coffee shop to meet Lily. Ever since the day his eyes had landed on her, there hadn't been a day that he didn't see her mystical brown eyes that shined brightly at him. Although after exchanging names and his sudden departure, they hadn't talked about much, Kevin would still go to the coffee shop simply to be around her. He didn't know why, but it made him feel content.

Knowing that he wouldn't get to see Lily tomorrow, Kevin quickly packed up his belongings in hopes of getting a glimpse of her tonight before he left. It was 4:55 and he knew that cafe closed at 5. Deciding to wing it, he rushed out of his office and down the elevator.

"Benson! Get the car out now," He said as he went past the main counter and out the tall glass doors of the building. Standing outside, he eagerly waited for his car to arrive from the valet parking.