S E V E N

The warm, yellow lights of the coffee shop created the perfect toasty atmosphere to escape the cool winter chill. Zoe rubbed her hands together as she entered, removing her thick gloves and settling into a table at the rear of the café. The late night news hummed on the television to the left of her, the only consistent sound in the essentially empty space. Digging through her bag, Zoe grabbed out a frayed library book and flipped it open.

The darkness of the night sky when she awoke had startled her, disappointment brewing at the realization that the sleeping tablet hadn’t knocked her out into the late hours of the following morning. The silence of home allowed the images to terrorize her once more, and without giving much thought, Zoe had tugged on some warm clothes and headed out the door.

The late night coffee shop was fairly empty, but there were enough people around to welcome a sense of safety. A couple of cops sat close to the counter, sipping coffee while their police cruiser waited for them out front. They had smiled politely as she had entered before continuing on with their casual conversation. In the far right corner, next to the large bay window, a man sat with his laptop open, ferociously typing. The glare of the screen reflected in his tortoise-shell glasses in the brief moments he looked up to take a swig of his coffee.

A kind-faced waitress came over, taking Zoe’s order with a smile far too wide for the time of night, before she disappeared behind the counter. The loud gurgling of the milk frother broke through the quiet hum of noises around her, and Zoe found herself having to really focus on the words in front of her. She had hoped the story would whisk her away from the ruminating thoughts, but it was futile. With every lull in the novel, her mind drifted off, torn between the tantalizing taste of Jon’s warm lips and the horrifying descriptions of Natalie’s brutal death.

The doorbell chimed just as the waitress set down her coffee, a shaky teddy bear smiling up from the foam of her cup. Zoe involuntarily glanced up, expecting another late night worker, and forced herself to swallow the gasp forming in her throat. His large frame weaved effortlessly through the empty tables, an uncertain smile breaching his handsome face.

As he reached her table, Zoe’s heart thudded intensely within its cage. “What are the chances of running into you here?”

The brief falter of nervousness was charming, but Natalie’s jade eyes – bright and full of life – flashed before her, and her desire abated. “Pretty low. Are you following me?”

His throaty chuckle filled the room as he shook his head. “No, but I can see how it could look like that. My friend lives up the road. I was stopping in for a coffee before driving home.”

“A coffee at this time of night?” Zoe quizzed.

“I’m not a great sleeper,” he shrugged, nodding toward the frothy cup before her. “I could say the same for you.”

Zoe stayed quiet, suddenly hit with the inability to form a coherent sentence. A tempestuous eddy of thoughts swirled in her mind. Natalie’s pretty face bruised and broken. The warmth of his rough palm on her back. Elford’s fatherly warning. The pounding of her heart whenever she caught sight of him. Panic and disgust brimming in Sienna’s wide eyes. The taste of scotch and cigarettes dancing on her tongue. The magnetic energy that flooded her veins whenever he was around. His brutal attack on Tony and his friend the night they’d met. The blood splattered across his raw knuckles and handsome face. Her stomach churned. It was all too much, all at once.

“You okay?” he murmured, his gaze drifting over his shoulder to the vigilant officers. Zoe’s eyes followed, a small smile tugging her lips as she nodded, answering their unasked question.

“Sorry, I’m just tired. Sleep hasn’t been my friend lately.”

Motioning to the empty chair opposite her, Jon raised an eyebrow. “Mind if I sit?”

He waited patiently for her cue, and when she gave it, he tugged out the wooden chair, removing his coat as he took a seat. The waitress darted over, scribbling down his order before retreating to the counter with a playful wink. Keeping his gaze firmly affixed to the small circles beneath her ocean eyes, he ran his fingers across his stubbled scalp. “You sure you’re okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost or something.”

Setting her book aside, Zoe sighed, taking in the tiny golden flecks that danced in his chocolate eyes. They glittered invitingly underneath the warm lights and Zoe felt the all-too-familiar tug in her stomach. She cleared her throat.

“I know about Natalie.”

If her awareness surprised him, Jon showed no signs. “Newspaper reports don’t really tell the full story, Zoe.”

“What could be missing from that story, Jon?” she hissed out in a whisper, conscious of the presence of the police behind them. “You told the police she was probably taken because of her relationship with you, but you couldn’t even give them names? That’s such a shitty thing to do.”

Meaty fists clenched against the stained tabletop. “Do you think that I’d let that happen to you?”

“You barely know me, Jon,” she sighed, exasperatedly, dainty fingers combing through her messy hair. “Why would you protect me? You didn’t to protect her, and she was your girlfriend.”

“How do you know I didn’t try to protect her? How can you sit here and act like you know the intimate details of my relationship with her based off a few shitty newspaper articles?” His face had flushed red, one hand releasing to rub the bristles of his chin aggravatedly. Sucking in a deep breath, he continued. “Nat kept telling me she loved me. I wasn’t there yet, so I wouldn’t say it back. It caused a huge fight and she left. I thought I’d let her cool off, call her in the morning, you know? But I’m guessing me not chasing after her and professing my love to her pissed her off more. So she went to people she knew would do anything to get to me. There was no abduction. She walked straight into it, knowing exactly who they were and what they would do. She wanted me to get hurt, to kill myself to save her. Tell me, would you risk your life for someone who would do that, someone who would put themselves and you in danger, just to be fucking spiteful?”

Swallowing the hard lump forming in her throat, Zoe stammered, “I didn’t – I had no-”

“Yeah,” he sighed, fingers grating the habitual pattern across his scalp. “You didn’t know. You’re not her, Zoe. I won’t let anyone hurt you.”

“You have to know how hard that is to believe. We’ve barely known each other. You were her boyfriend. You were dating six months.”

Jon’s hand settled atop hers. It was warm and rough. As her fingers twitched beneath him, she felt callouses and scars; more than a person should have. “You can’t deny there is something between us, Zoe,” he murmured, his tongue gliding over his lower lip, leaving in its wake a glossy sheen. “The moment I saw you, it felt like I was on fire. Everything inside of me was alive for the first time, and I know that you feel it too. I know it’s not just me.” She remained quiet, trying to stifle the heat rising from her chest. “There isn’t anything I wouldn’t do to protect you, to protect that feeling I get when I’m around you. I meant it when I said you were safe with me.”

“And if I did what Natalie did, what then?” she rasped.

“I’d do whatever it takes to get you.” His voice was quiet, dry and croaky, and his hand squeezed hers. “I mean, I hope you’d never do that, but I’d take the risk if it meant I got to hold onto this.”

Anja had been right. Zoe had spent so much of her life trying not to take risks, and all it had left her with was a massive debt and a broken heart. Gazing across at him, her heart hammered vigorously against its bony confines, her breath stuck in the hollow of her throat. She was tired of fighting her body’s reaction to him, and while so many warnings bombarded her, she truly felt safe.  Sinewy forearms rested against the table, gaze drifting between her eyes and her mouth. A yearning heat spread between her thighs at the want burning thick his russet eyes, and she lifted herself slightly to close the minimal space between them. Coffee mingled with his cologne, an intoxicating scent she couldn’t retreat from. As the warmth of his lips hit hers, she sighed; melting into the very thing she’d been denying herself.

The clink of a cup scooting across the wood broke them apart, and Zoe felt a blush creep across her cheeks as the waitress awkwardly apologized for the interruption. Jon’s gaze remained steadfast, the cocky smirk tugging at the corners of his lips. She scampered back to the counter, her flirtatious charm notably absent. His hand still claimed hers, his ridged thumb sweeping delicately across her knuckles. His other hand outstretched, softly grazing the heated flesh of her face. “You’re so fucking beautiful.”

Attempting to shake off the embarrassment, Zoe let out a soft chuckle. “This is not at all how I expected tonight to go.”

“This is how I imagined it going that first night.” Leaning over the table to kiss her once more, Jon smiled as he broke away, white teeth emerging from beneath full lips. His thumb wiped across the moisture he’d left, chewing on his bottom lip as he shook his head. “You have no idea.”