Chapter 3
Emma
He's here early. He's usually not here until 7 am, which gives me a little time to prepare to face him. It's embarrassing how affected I am by him. I mean, I can barely stumble out the words enough to ask him for his drink order, even though he always gets the same thing. I'm not an idiot. I know he always orders a black tea to go. But I'm pathetic. I want to hear his voice, I want to listen to him order tea.
Sometimes he comes in with his friend, but I don't know his friend's name. Where the friend, whoever he is, is light, Raze is dark—dark features, dark penetrating gaze. He obscures everyone around him, shrouding us all in his presence. He's the only person in the room you need to be wary of, to give your attention to; he's impossible to ignore. There's a shift in a room when he walks into it, everyone else has to adjust accordingly.
Raze is around 6 feet tall, I think. His friend is about an inch taller but a little skinnier. Not that it makes a difference because they are both carved from stone. Sculpted perfection, easy to observe under the workout clothes I almost always see them wearing.
Today Raze wears a long-sleeve compression shirt and fitted black jogging pants. They cover nearly every incredible inch of his muscular body, but I still like to imagine what's underneath. Because I'm a creep, who can't stop covert staring, undressing him with my eyes.
If Raze knew I fantasized very dirty things about him every single day, he would be horrified, and I would be humiliated. But he's just so goddamn sexy, I can't help it. Alice agrees, although who wouldn't? She ogles them just as much as I do, but she's way more forward when she flirts. Alice is brave like that. I'm not.
I'm so shy around this man, I feel like I'm going to vomit when he does anything that throws me—like this morning. He's here early, with his friend, and I didn't have time to prepare to see him. Why did he have to do that?
Alice should be here any minute, she's usually late when she joins me for the morning shift. But I love her and prefer to open the shop alone, so it never bothers me. But today, it does. I need her here next to me so she can flirt and banter with them while I go hide out back.
Also, I was up late reviewing short stories submitted to my blog, MMF alien porn, which is way more fun to read than it sounds. But it's left me in a weird headspace this morning, and I'm tired and just not prepared to mentally shield myself. My palms start sweating, and I flatten them against my stomach.
There's no one else in the shop but us three, because it's only 6 am, and sane people are not up this early. I'm not used to being mostly alone in the coffee shop with Raze. There are usually a lot more people milling about. He and his friend slowly make their way to the counter, conversing quietly.
The doorbell chimes again before the friend—the tall blond one—can order, I glance around them and see Alice. Thank god.
"Sorry! Sorry!" She rushes past them, nudging the blond guy out of the way to pass me. "My alarm didn't go off. Or it did, but I pressed snooze too many times and ignored it!" She's a tornado, rushing around me and heading out back to drop off her stuff and grab an apron. She widened her eyes when she passed me, aware of my current desperation.
The door to the employee area closes behind her, and I look back up at my current obsession without looking him in the eye, like a crazy person. "Good morning, welcome to Storybrook. What, uh, what can I get you?" The words come out like a whisper, barely loud enough to hear. What is wrong with me?
He gives me a small half-smile, "Black tea to go." He digs into his wallet, ready to pay, but his friend elbows him out of the way and leans on the counter in front of me.
"Hey, it's Emma, right?" I'm surprised he knows my name or that he's bothered to learn it.
"Uhm, yes. It's Emma." Raze shoots his friend a glare, and his square, sculpted jaw tenses.
"Listen, babe, my friend here was thinking about asking you out."
"What the fuck Stetson," Raze barks, but his friend, Stetson, keeps talking.
"I was just wondering, if he does ask you out, what would you say?" Stetson has a shit-eating grin on his face, and I don't think he realizes what he's doing. Raze looks pissed, but me, I feel my stomach drop. Hollowed out. My cheeks are burning, and I suddenly feel like I'm on fire, and they can see me sweating.
"Wh… what?"
"Stop being a fucking asshole," Raze says sharply before slamming a ten-dollar bill down on the counter and storming off to a table in the corner of the coffee shop. The door chimes again, other customers joining us, but I feel sick.
Stetson is laughing, totally carefree, and either oblivious or indifferent to the upheaval he just caused. Did he know I have a crush on Raze? Is it that obvious? Why is he making fun of me? I'm obviously aware that a man like Raze would never ask me out.
Stetson gives me a laid-back smirk. "Sorry about him. He's a little grumpy in the morning. Forget what I said, I was just kidding."
He orders a coffee, and I make it on autopilot. I haven't made Raze's tea yet, but my hands are shaking, and tears start burning in my eyes. Alice is already taking the order of the couple behind them, and she joins me in making their order when she notices the state I'm in.
"Hey, you okay?" She asks quietly. She places a hand on my shoulder, and I can't help it, the tear that has been forming streaks down my face.
"I'm okay. I think they were just having fun."
"What are you talking about? Who? The hotties? What did they do?" Her rapid-fire questions make me giggle.
"Nothing, it's nothing. I'm just being sensitive." I discreetly wipe my eyes before filling the coffee cup.
Alice places her hand over mine to steady it. "Emma, tell me what they said."
"I swear, I'm overreacting. I think they were just teasing me or making fun of me or something—"
"WHAT!" She screeches, and I swear I feel everyone in the coffee shop look at us. The door chimes again, but I need a second.
"Can you just finish these and take them over to their table? I don't think I can face him." She knows 'him' is Raze, she's listened to me wax poetic about how beautiful he is enough times to know how big my crush is. "I just need a second."
"Of course. I got this. Take all the time you need." I walk past her without turning to face the rest of the room and sneak out back to take a few much-needed moments to myself.