Chapter 8

Caleb

“ Oh , It's someone from Payson, ” She asked .

“ Yes “ ,

“ Oh okay”. She said quietly, walking back to the counter. I guess they all thought I was single, only Aria and I'm guessing Holly knew who it was because they were looking at me confused. I wore my sunglasses and continued working.

Halfway through working on the project proposal I heard him.

”God damnit Cross . I've been searching this entire damn town for you and passed this cafe four times and didn't see you “ ,he said sitting down opposite me.

“ Well Hello to you too Ryan ” ,I said staring at my best friend. I knew he would show up.

“ So this is where you spend your days? ,In the midst of beautiful women '' ,he said looking around the cafe , he noticed the stares we were Receiving.

Ryan DaSilva has been my best friend since I was sixteen. He was Tall as me , six seven, and he had blond hair and grey eyes. He was well built just like me and was a damn good friend and VP.

“ Answer me dude “ he said smirking

“ Shut up ” ,I said

“ So how many have you….. merciful fuck. Who's she?” ,he said

I looked in the direction he was looking.

“ She's off limits. She's the reason I'm here every day” ,I said

“ God damn, you know how to pick them. She's exactly your type ” ,he said laughing.

“ She doesn't know that yet” ,I said, closing the laptop. He looked at me and that's when he realised what I meant.

Aria

“ Jesus fucking Christ Caleb, Seriously?” ,the guy sitting with Cross shouted as he stood up.

“ Can you kindly keep it down ” ,I said looking at them.

“ Please excuse my Friend Ms Garcia ” ,Caleb said looking at me.

His friend sat down and they began talking in hushed tones. The local fair would be starting at the end of the month so I had ordered some special Packaging for that.
Cassy came over to me.

“ Aria , something just came up, It's an emergency, I need to leave ” she said

“ Sure it's no problem ” ,I said

Few minutes after she left ,Lacy asked to leave also , saying she wasn't feeling well so I let her go. Mya wasn't here today so it was just me ,Holly and Grace at the back. It wasn't that crowded in the afternoons so it was fine. We were behind the counter when the guy with Caleb came up to the counter.

“ I would like something sweet . What would you recommend?” he said, looking at me. I just looked at him ,my face void of any emotion.

“ Ask her,"I said, pointing to Holly.

“ But I wanted to hear your opinion” ,He said, looking at me smiling.

“ Don't smile at me, People will think I'm flirting with you . Everything here is sweet so pick your poison ”.I said, looking at him.

“ Ryan, cut it out and just get your damn cake and let's go ” ,I heard Caleb say.

“Okay okay. My name is Ryan DaSilva, a friend of Mr Serious over there , what's yours?”. He asked, looking at me.

“ Mr Cross, remember I said , I've never banned anyone?”. I asked

“ I told you it's Caleb, just you and Ms Simmons are welcome to call me Caleb and yes Aria ” ,He said, taking off the sunglasses.

“ Well if you don't get your crazy friend out of here in ten minutes he'll be the first ” I said smiling at the guy standing in front of the counter.

“ Oh come on. I'm just messing with you. I'll take three slices of the triple chocolate cake and a dozen chocolate cookies, also one of your favourite coffee drinks. ” He said, smiling. I shook my head and went to get his order.

After I gave it to him,he stood for a second and looked around.

“ Sorry I didn't mean to offend you or anything. Don't take anything I said in a serious way. I'm a fun guy , I like making jokes. Your Cafe is nice and it's cool , I guess that's why he's here all day. Have a good evening Aria.” He said walking over to cross.

“ It's fine,you too,” I said.

Caleb

“ So what's the verdict?”I asked him as we got into my car.

“ Which one do you want first?” he asked, stuffing his mouth with a cookie. Ryan needed two minutes with her and he'd know if she was the real deal or not.

“ What do you think, idiot?” I said, grabbing a cookie from his box.

“ She's real alright. She has a seriousness to her, and she takes things with a grain of salt as my mother would say. When I apologised she relaxed for a minute, which makes me believe she's quiet and quite forgiving. There's something else hidden beneath that cold exterior that she shows off and she has a nasty temper, so don't piss her off. She's good and honestly of all the women you've had me summarize , She tops all plus she's hot so you're good to go” ,He said

“ Thanks,so What else have you got for me?” I asked, turning down the road leading to my place.

“ That Crazy bitch Catherine is still looking for you . Why the hell you fucked her I will never know. Also Jason Is looking for you. He knows you left,word on the New resort is out. How?I have no idea. I haven't said anything to anyone that has asked, they don't know where it's being built. I was over at your place and checked up on your parents. They're okay, So is Cindy ,your sister graduated with honours. She asked if I knew where you were and wasn't happy when I didn't tell her. She said she wants her graduation present. Also ,I fired Sam. He was padding the books. Rese Caught it just in time and came to me ,so I sent Him packing and reported it to the police. And that it” ,He said

I honestly didn't know how I would do it sometimes if Ryan wasn't as trustworthy as he was. He always knew to check in with my family when I was away.

“ Thanks Ryan ” ,I said, pulling up to the construction site.

“ Damn they're moving fast” He said, getting out and looking at the building being Constructed.

“ How many rooms again?” ,he asked

“ One hundred, Tennis court , Indoor and outdoor swimming pool. Basketball court, a game room, Gym.,sauna . Restaurant. hiking, Horse riding, Rock climbing expedition, camping, Paragliding ” I said looking at the men working.

“ Damn, you're really going all out huh?” He said

“Yes . Well there are some changes now that Aria is in the picture. Let's go over to the house” ,I said , walking back to the car.
When we got to my place,I noticed smoke in the distance. I parked the car and got out.

“ Oh shit” ,I said, grabbing my phone.

“ What ? ,oh shit ,Is someone's house burning?” He said walking around the back.

“ Yes and it's hers ” ,I said.

“ Hello ?” ,

“ Umm Ms Garcia,Your house is on fire”

“ WHAT ?”

That was the last thing I heard and the phone went dead. I heard the firetruck. I saw Ryan walking towards me . Shaking his head.

“ It's almost finished burning,so much for the fire station. I'll find my room, go figure out what you're going to do for your woman ” . He said walking into the house.