Love's Fate (Love Trilogy #1) (3 page)

“Tiffany!” she called over the crowd and a generic looking blond turned in our direction. She was pretty enough, I guess, but nothing special.

“Hi” she said when s
he finally made it to our table
“
You must be Michael, Claire has told me a lot about you”

Funny, I thought, I hadn’t heard of you until I was tricked into coming out tonight. So obviously this was pre-meditated. I would have to find a way to pay Charlie back later. I shot a glance at Charlie and he looked sheepishly down at the table. He was so dead!

“Hey” I said to her, trying to smile and not look annoyed.

She sat down and the small talk started. What’s your major? Are you from San Diego? Nice weather isn’t it? Finally she got started in on some long boring story that I had no interest in, but I was relieved that all I had to do now was nod occasionally. I scanned the crowded coffee shop wondering how long I should wait before offering to get up and get us all some drinks. That’s when I saw her.

She was on the other side of the coffee shop, serving some drinks to a table near the stage and laughing at something someone had said. I couldn’t hear her, but her smile was the most beautiful I had ever seen. I stared, wishing I could hear her laughter. Wondering what had been said to make her laugh.

She was…stunning. That was the only word for it. Her long dark hair was pulled back into a ponytail but still reached nearly half way down her back. She wore a simple t-shirt and jeans with an apron tied around her tiny waist. A movie star decked out for the red carpet could not have held my attention as powerfully as this girl did. I couldn’t look away.

I could only see her profile, but I could tell she was by far the most beautiful woman I had ever seen. Even more beautiful than the distant memory of a woman I had seen so many years ago, a woman who had become my standard that no real girl could ever live up to.  A memory of a face so perfect I had convinced myself it couldn’t have been real, just a blending of reality and fantasy.

But now as I stared across this over-crowded room I realized that the perfection I had dreamt of didn’t even measure up to the beautiful waitress who stood before me now. Something I would have never believed to be possible until this moment. Then she looked at me.

At least a hundred people stood in this room between us, but she looked right at me. Our eyes locked. I knew I should look away. I shouldn’t stare like this. What would she think?

But her emerald eyes mesmerized me. I couldn’t have looked away if I wanted to, and I couldn’t have wanted anything less. I had only seen eyes like hers once before.

Obviously my mind was playing tricks on me now. This waitress I was staring at couldn’t possibly be as perfect as I was seeing her. Some long lost memory must have been overlapping my senses, making her appear to have all the features of the perfect woman from my dreams.

I
studied her face, amazed by it
s perfection and then I realized how I must have looked staring at her this way and almost felt embarrassed until it occurred to me… she was staring too. We were both frozen with our eyes locked on each other like no one else was in the room.

I wondered if I should go over to her. Obviously she was looking at me.

Why was she looking at me? Was it only because I was looking at her?

I wanted to talk to her, but I didn’t know how to begin. Suddenly I wished for the first time that I had more practice at approaching women. I wanted to walk to her but my feet seemed cemented to the floor. I couldn’t will my body to move
any more
than I could force my eyes away from hers. I was powerless, unable to focus on anything else, even the simple act of moving one foot in front of the other.

“Dude, did you hear me
?
They said you have a call.
”
Charlie’s voice finally broke through my stupor.

I
made my way across the room to the counter where the phone was
, not taking my eyes off her.

Why was she still looking at me?

Was she smiling?

I
reached the counter and took the phone that way being held out toward me.

“Hello” I said absently, still watching her.

“Michael, don’t hang up. It’s about your mother” My heart sank as my father’s voice resounded in my ears.

There was only one reason my father would be calling me to discuss my mother. The only reason strong enough to break through the mysterious gravitational force I felt toward this woman.

“Katherine,” my roommate Amy whined from the other side of the bathroom door “Please! I need to get in there.”

I ran the brush through my hair one more time then finally gave up and pulled it into a ponytail. I swore to myself that I would cut it all off soon.

“Sorry,” I apologized relinquishing the bathroom to her.

“
I was just trying to do something with my hair.” I explained in a disgusted tone.

“Like you could be anything but drop-dead gorgeous!” she teased “You could shave your head and you’d still look better
than me on my best hair day!”

I rolled my eyes. That was the farthest thing from the truth! Amy was a very pretty girl. She was always bubbly and smiling. Everyone loved her. She was the exact
opposite of me.

She always wore the latest fashions. Her light blonde hair was always cut into the latest style. Her make-up applied perfectly. I, on the other hand, was a hopeless mess
.
I could never do anything with my long thick hair besides pull it back into a ponytail, and I had no sense for fashion. I still clung to my favorite pair of jeans, which I was wearing now, although I had added a few new t-shirts to my small collection. I never even bothered with make-up. For some reason I felt like I only made myself look worse when I tried to put it on. It just made my face seem fake.

I knew I wasn’t entirely unattractive. That was obvious from all the guys who had asked me out in the few years I’d been at UCSD. But really, how good of a judge could a bunch of horny college guys be? I wasn’t interested in being somebody’s conquest. Sure I went on a few dates here and there, but no one held any real interest for me.

I was completely convinced that all those sappy movies about love at first sight were purely fiction. Love like that just didn’t exist. At least not for me, of that I was sure. I hadn’t really dated much in high school either, again not from lack of opportunity. At that time I was so focused on planning my exodus that I really just had no interest in dating. I guess that hadn’t changed yet, although everything else had.

I was finally happy.
Unequivocally, undeniably happy.
I had never really thought it was possible. But being on my own had brought me to life. I loved college! The classes were so much more interesting than the menial high school curriculum that I had suffered through to get here. I
was challenged and I loved it.

My job at the coffee shop was a huge contrast to the bland diner I had worked at before. There were always live bands playing and the atmosphere was fun and energetic. I even loved my tiny little dorm room. Although the irony of the small square room with bare walls was not lost on me, I still loved it because I chose to be here. I even decorated it, with the help of Amy of course. I had made it my home.

“You coming to the coffee shop tonight?” I asked Amy as she emerged from our small, shared bathroom. “I heard the band they have playing tonight is supposed to be really good!”

“Sure” she replied excitedly “Maybe Dan can bring his friend Jared along. You really ought to meet him.”

“Don’t even think about it!” I threatened “If I even think you’ve brought some guy along for me to meet I swear I will go home sick and I’ll leave out the back door!”

“Okay, Okay” she laughed holding her hands up like a criminal under arrest “Can’t blame a girl for trying. Really Katherine you should think about dating…”

“I’m going to be late for work” I interrupted walking to the door “I’ll save you a good table” I smiled and slipped out before she could get in another word.

I had never seen the coffee shop so busy. There had to be at least a hundred people crowded into a room that was designed to comfortably seat 50. All the couches had been pushed against the walls and all the tables sc
ooted into corners to allow
more standing room for the burgeoning crowd.

The band had started pl
aying and they were very good.
I looked around the room and thought tonight would
definitely be a good tip night.
I quickly tied my apron around my waist and began making my rounds taking drink orders. It was a little confusing without the familiar grid of tables I was used to.

The usually comfortable cozy atmosphere of the coffee shop has transformed into a frenzied mob swaying and pulsing to the loud music. I slipped a “Reserved” card on one of the few remaining tables close to the stage and hoped that Amy and Dan wouldn’t be too long, because with all the people rolling in that table wouldn’t remain empty for long, reserved or not.

“Hey sweet cheeks,” some obnoxious frat guy called from behind me.

“What can I do for you?” I automatically replied turning in his direction.

I was used to putting up with his type, they were usually harmless, all bark and no bite. But before I knew it, he had grabbed one of my apron strings and pulled me down onto his lap. I struggled to get up, but his large arms were crushing me against him. Pinning my arms to my sides.

“I can think of a few things you can do for me” he crudely implied.

His breath reeked of alcohol as he leaned in to whisper something disgusting into my ear.

“Let her go.
” I had never been so relieved to hear Dan’s voice in my life!

The obnoxious, drunk frat guy didn’t let go, but he turned in Dan’s direction and in doing so loosened the hold he had on me. It was just enough that I was able to slip out from under his grip and in one quick movement I spun out of his lap and swung around catching him with a left hook. I heard his nose crack as my fist made contact with his face. His chair toppled backwards and he fell to the floor with a loud thud. Dan looked almost as surprised as the jerk on the floor. My hand throbbed uncomfortably.

“I think you broke my nose!” the idiot whined as blood began to run down his face.

“Get the hell out of here or that won’t be the only thing broken tonight!” Dan threatened as he stood over the guy glaring down at him.

As quickly as he could the guy stumbled to his feet and practically ran for the door without another word barreling into people as he passed them.

I just stood there for a minute staring at Amy and Dan. I was shaking a little bit and my hand ached. I could tell by the looks on their faces that they were just as shocked as I was. I had nev
er hit anyone before in my life.
I didn’t even know I knew how. It just kind of happened, instinct I guess. It was Amy who spoke first.

“Wow Katherine, you’re a bad-ass!” she said, clearly impressed. I just smiled weakly, still kind of in shock.

“I, uh, saved you a table” I stammered, still trying to get a grip on everything that had just happened.

They followed me to the table by the stage and sat down. Both were still watching me, Amy looking a little concerned now. Dan still had a weird smile on his face.

“I’m going to go get you guys some drinks” I said and quickly left them to retreat into the kitchen.

I walked straight to the employee bathroom in the back and splashed some cold water on my face, and then I let the sink fill with cold water and submerged my hand. I looked in the mirror still trembling a little and wondered what had come over me. What was I thinking? It felt kind of good actually, to put that jerk in his place. That realization made me feel a little bit better. I took a few deep breaths and felt composed again.

I carried some iced coffees over to the table where Amy and Dan were sitting. I laughed to myself at how identical
they looked sitting together; a
real-life Ken and Barbie. They could have been twins. They had the same shade of light blue eyes, same shade of blonde hair, Dan was only a few inches taller than Amy and they usually inadvertently wore matching clothes. They matched tonight.

I often teased them that they had been separated at birth. As they sat together now with mirrored expressions that joke seemed almost possible. They were both paying attention to the band now and I hoped my little episode could pass without further mention.

“So, I, uh, kinda told Jared he could meet us here tonight” Dan stuttered, then he pretended to flinch away from me “Please don’t hit me!” he teased.

Suddenly I was laughing hysterically. I was definitely in shock. Dan laughed too. Amy smiled but there was still a small crease of concern between her eyebrows. She knew me well enough to know that I was not acting at all like myself. I glanced around the room, avoiding her eyes, as I once again tried to compose myself. Then a different pair of eyes caught my attention.