Twenty Six Coffee

This story was about my bitter and sweet love story. My bitter-sweet love story began when I was twelve years old. I had a huge crush on my neighbor, Dean Samaniego. He's tall, handsome, and smart but a little bit aloof, especially to me. He always ignored me though we were just neighbors. After six long years of having a crush on Dean, I finally decided to give up my feelings for him. The fact finally hits on me, that no matter what I did he's not going to like me back. We moved to another city after a tragedy falls on my family. Since then, Dean and I have never met again. But after ten long years, we finally meet each other. He is now a lawyer, a well-known and successful public defender while I'm just a small coffee shop owner. After I met him again I realized that I still liked him a lot, but I found out that he's already engaged to someone else. Is this a second chance that God gave me to pursue Dean again or a second chance for me to feel the heartache that I once was felt before?

Evelyn has always believed in love the kind that makes your heart race, the kind in movies, the kind that feels like destiny. Unfortunately, destiny seems to have a terrible sense of humor. At twenty six, Evelyn has fallen in love more times than she can count. Each time feels different. Each time feels like the one. Each time ends in heartbreak. There was the charming university senior who wrote poetry on her lecture notes. The ambitious doctor who promised forever but chose his career over her. The quiet neighbor who understood her silence better than anyone… until his secrets surfaced. And yet Evelyn never stops believing. Hopelessly Romantic follows Evelyn through a series of intense, beautiful, messy love stories, each chapter introducing a new man who changes her life in unexpected ways. Every love begins like magic. Every love ends in a way she never imagined. With humor, heartbreak, and hope, Evelyn learns that sometimes love isn’t about finding the right person but loving yourself.

"You are going to come again, but not until I say so..." he whispered sexily while licking my ear. Amanda was addicted to coffee, she treated her coffee far better than she treated her men. She liked to change partners faster than she restocked her milk and creamer in her fridge. She never get attached to her man, she was very adventurous and even liked to share her men with her girls. That was until all of her best friends found their men and she was left to play alone. Dale had been a single dad since his wife passed away delivering their daughter Mable into the world. Since then he hadn't found the one person who can even come close to his beloved wife. He dated women on occasions but finds them all bland, shallow, and not even the least intriguing for him. He was dedicating his life to Mable and his coffee shop. That had been enough for him. Until one day Amanda walked into his coffee shop and literally knocked him off his feet. Since then, she has been on his mind constantly, she was truly his opposite. The wild child versus the calm and settled single dad. Will the opposite attract? will they find the middle ground? will his daughter approve of his new relationship?

So, Mrs. Knight,” he said, voice dripping with mockery, “do we have a deal?” I stared at his hand. Then at his face. Then at the empty shot glasses. I slapped my palm into his. “It’s not Mrs. Knight anymore,” I said, squeezing hard. “And you, Mr. Arrogant, just hired the most vindictive assistant you’ll ever have.” His fingers tightened around mine, warm and strong and promising all kinds of chaos. “Welcome to the dark side, Isabella.” Behind us, Kayla whispered to herself and few people in the coffee shop, “Y’all, I’m literally witnessing the start of a mafia romance…” Lucian’s eyes never left mine. Something electric and dangerous crackled between us. And in that moment, drunk off tequila and vengeance, I signed my soul with the Devil. I said no to Alexander Knight at the altar. Then I said yes to Lucian Voss in the rain, still wearing my wedding dress... Because my fiancee betrayed me twenty minutes before we tied the knots. With Lucian, it was a fake relationship stringed with mind-blowing nights. I gave him my body He offered me revenge Neither of us expected to give our hearts... Or that the enemy warming my bed every night ...was the brother everyone thought died fifteen years ago. Now I'm pregnant and only one knight get's to keep the empire and me

Ericka Mendel is an oddball who overcame her illiteracy to become an extraordinary teacher and a survivor in the face of overwhelming challenges. Because of her out-of-character sobbing, ranting, and talkative behavior when no one is present in her early years, she has been compared to radio drama characters. Because of her tendency, she is generally regarded as odd and foolish. She was motivated to achieve her big ambitions, even if her family did not believe she could. After six years, she had become the model student on the campus of the school, garnering plaudits and academic prizes while many boys bullied her due to her humor, friendliness, and charm. She found her teenage years to be unhappy as a result of them. But she overcame a lot of obstacles while she was a teenager before deciding to join a convent after graduation. She developed her personality via activism, which led her to seek refuge in the convent lifestyle. But she left them after serving as a nun for six years in order to travel and seek out new things. Within twenty years, she gave in to Darwin Ibrahim's promises as a foreigner who adored her innocent characteristics. She views wisdom and love as the best weapons to fight the battle of suffering, but paradise is tempestuous She recognized that Ibrahim was a liar and that his promises were made to be broken due of his legal difficulties when they began living together without getting married or engaging in another formal ceremony. Due to her mental health concerns, her opponents secretly held all of her great, sweet children. Erika Ibrahim's trust in God deepens because of her capacity to humbly accept and conquer life's obstacles after Darwin disappears and she is left to start over with her children.

Adele thought the worst day of her life was burying her husband—until the Mafia came to collect the twenty million dollars he left behind. They didn’t just want money. They took her kidney, broke her leg, scarred her face, and left her for dead. Six months later, Adele discovered the cruelest betrayal of all: her husband, Eric, was still alive… and expecting a child with his mistress. When she threatened to expose him, he killed her. But death wasn’t the end. Adele woke up in the past, with one burning vow: this time, she would not be the victim. This time, she would make Eric pay. Her revenge plan was flawless until a new devil entered the game. Angel Dragovich. The ruthless head of House Dragovich—dangerous, sinfully magnetic, and calculative. He wasn’t part of her story before—so why was he here now? ……… Angel Dragovich doesn’t chase petty debts, but when he sees Adele, he claims her as his own. Her fire awakens something dark in him… something that won’t rest until she bends—or breaks.

Right after finishing a meeting, I opened a forum and saw a warning post. The location tag was our company. The title read: “Red flag! What a cheap company. Anyone who joins is a total sucker. They can’t even afford a decent coffee break.” The photo attached showed the expensive coffee and five-star desserts I had just asked my assistant to distribute to everyone. I frowned and tagged the entire group chat, asking if anyone had suggestions about the afternoon tea. A Gen-Z intern who had just joined, Julian Hayes, instantly replied with a voice message: “Boss, no offense, but these assembly-line desserts are full of trans fats. Nobody would eat them.” “A truly humane company hires a Michelin chef to cook and slice everything fresh on site. That’s what real respect for employees looks like.” I laughed in disbelief. Our company’s daily coffee break budget was thirty dollars per person—already considered top-tier in the industry. So I replied, “Since it’s impossible to satisfy everyone’s taste, we’ll cancel afternoon tea from now on and convert the budget into cash for everyone instead.” Less than five minutes later, that post was updated: “Guys, can you believe this? I made a perfectly reasonable suggestion and the lame boss immediately canceled the whole coffee break perk! This is the true face of corporate greed—can’t handle even a little bit of honesty!”

"I'm dying," I told him. "So, I figured I might as well lose my virginity to the hottest guy on campus before I go." ----- Ellie Carter never expected to be twenty one, single, and terminally ill with only six months left to live. But with nothing left to lose, she makes a deal with the campus badboy, Beck Ryder, to have one reckless and unforgettable night. It was supposed to be a one time thing. But somewhere between the late night cuddling, the constant teasing and the surprising discovery that he's not just the resident campus fuckboy (turns out he actually has a heart), Ellie catches feelings against her better judgment. Now she has to live with the knowledge that she's falling for Beck, and he might be falling for her too. How will she survive when she finds out that she might not be dying after all? Will the consequences of her actions come back to bite her when a vengeful ex enters the picture? Or can the throwaway fling turn into something real? If she thought dying would be hard, it turns out that living is way messier.

Karen, a feisty coffee delivery girl, accidentally spills coffee on Henry, a cold-hearted CEO, when she trips on her way to deliver to his company's secretary. Their heated encounter turns into a verbal sparring match, with Karen standing up for herself despite Henry's intimidating demeanor. Unbeknownst to her, she's just crossed paths with the powerful CEO of the company. Months later, Karen and Henry meet again after Henry's car accident and then Karen saves Henry's life by donating her rare Rh-null blood. Henry wakes up and discovers Karen is the coffee girl who saved his life. Feeling indebted, Henry offers Karen a deal: what does she want in return for her life-saving donation? After thinking it through, Karen asks for a business opportunity or partnership, leading to a professional collaboration. Karen and Henry develop a romantic connection, forcing Henry to confront his cold-hearted nature.

The air in the Parisian haute couture salon smelled like money and fear. I’d waited six months for my wedding dress. Now, it was draped over the shoulders of Sofia Ross—the trending influencer, and my mafia fiancé Vincent Cassio’s god-sister. The salon manager was sweating bullets, his eyes darting between me and the man lounging on the velvet sofa. Vincent Cassio stood up. He adjusted a fold of the diamond-encrusted train on Sofia with a casual flick of his wrist. “Her premiere next week needs a statement piece. She’s borrowing it. Pick something off the rack and stop making a scene.” His tone was flat, final. Under the crystal chandeliers, Sofia admired herself in the full-length mirror, a triumphant smile on her lips. I looked at my reflection in the same mirror, wearing jeans and a soaked trench coat. I looked like a lost tourist. Suddenly, the entire past year of planning felt like a sick joke. I didn’t yell. I just felt cold. Numb. I slipped the five-carat engagement ring off my finger. It hit the glass coffee table with a sharp, final click. “You’re right, Vincent. I don’t need this wedding dress. This wedding… I don’t need it either.”