Chapter 3: If Coffee Flies, Then Bagels Runs

A/N: Please be warned that this chapter may have very outrageous and unrealistic situations.

‘Oof’ was all that I could manage as I plopped myself facedown, arms widespread above my head onto the king-size bed in our master bedroom, once I got home from work. Nick was in the shower, –I could tell from the water spraying sounds coming from the bathroom– which meant he had no clue I was home. Judging from the dirty clothes in the laundry basket, I immediately assumed the children and a game called ‘lunch-making’ had something to do with it. I smiled at the thought of it, though I have to say, I do feel that I’m missing out on quite a lot.

Frankly speaking, having the ‘dream job’ is not exactly a walk in the park once you realize there are such things as working overtime and not getting to see the love of your life as much as you want. Sometimes (actually, it’s majority of the time) when my job’s at its worst, I end up feeling so tired that I can barely do other things with Nick, if you get what I mean. I feel sorry for having Nick to put up with all this. Though that doesn’t mean I’ll ever forgive him if he ever decides that he will have an affair with anyone with a vagina.

I turned over to lie on my back, my eyes fixated onto the ceiling above me, my mind lost in deep thought. Before I had been promoted to being head editor of the food department in the company which I’m currently working for, I always had the chance to waltz home at the sweet hour of 3 o’clock –although right now, if I am lucky, I will be able to make it back at 6 or 7 but granted if I do not have extra hours to work on–, just in time to tuck the kids in for their afternoon nap. Some days when they (or Shane in particular) refused to sleep, Nick and I would bring them out to the park for some ice-cream sandwiches. As for the times when it’s just us ‘grown-ups’, Nick and I used to have all the time in the world to…

“Is it my birthday today?”

In an instant, my thoughts snapped back to reality. I turned my head over to the side to see my husband, clad in only a towel which wrapped loosely around his slim waist, leaning against the side of the bathroom door. Tiny droplets of water trickled down his lean physique. His ebony hair, damp and was plastered to his head, curling only at his neck. Even with his bemused dumbstruck cocked eyebrow look, he looked as if he came right out of an X-rated women’s magazine.

Rather than doing what my instincts wanted me to do with the Greek God whom I have shared the same bed with for the past six –glorious– years, the best I could say was, “I got off early.”

He smiled, running a hand through his wet locks, “That’s lucky. Your boss never seemed to want to let you off at…” Nick looked at the digital clock sitting on the table by our bed, “4 o’clock?”

I can’t say I blame him for his disbelieve. After so many nights of knowing he wouldn’t see me until an odd hour of 10PM, why wouldn’t he think something was up when I appear out of no where at the time when people are meant to get off work?

“Well,” I said, sitting up from my lying position, “Let’s just say, things got a little messy with my boss.”

He cocked an eyebrow of amusement, a grin forming on his somewhat perfect lips, “I see…” He took a pair of boxer shorts and sweats from the cupboard before sitting himself on the vacant spot of the bed beside me, wrapping an arm around my shoulders (dampening my blouse in the process), the clothes on his other arm, “You must’ve put up a real fight there, to be able to come home this early.”

I leaned into him slight, nodding at his assumption. “Yeah, I suppose so.”

That was the half-truth. Things did get messy. Just not in the way Nick had assumed. Here’s the real story: After a good long time of not checking my personal email inbox, I decided to do so just to keep myself up-to-date. So earlier today, as I was browsing through the newsletters and whatnot (when Steelman was not looking of course), I stumbled across an unread message sent a couple of days ago from Nick.

Deb dearest,

How’s work at the office coming along? Just recently you’ve been coming home at very odd hours of the night. Sometimes I often wonder if that boss of yours, Steelwhatshisface, is running a slave pit rather than an office.

I miss you very much. Really, even the times when we get to cuddle up in bed and have a nice long conversation seem so distant now. To be honest with you, I’m almost at the brink of stomping into your office and taking you there and then regardless of whether any of your colleagues will see. Yes, that’s how deprived I’m feeling. At times, it even amazes me to think I can tolerate such a thing.

The kids are missing you dreadfully as well. I’m rather afraid they’ll call me ‘Momma’ one day. Rianne’s tantrums are getting worst by the day. For a toddler her age, I’m impressed with how she notices that the woman who gave birth to her is almost never home. Though that’s not something to celebrate about.

Oh yes, your friend, Josephine, is pretty ticked off too. To be a lawyer with that much free time, she constantly rings the phone at home. At one point, she got really infuriated that she said ‘When I get my hands on that woman, UGGGH!’ and that’s not even the end of it. So yes.

To be frank? I doubt you’ll be checking your mail, what with all the work you get so this is probably one of the lamest attempts to try to get to you. Just want to let you know that despite the despicable work hours your twat of a boss has for you, I still love you very much.

Hugs and tons of kisses,
Nick… and the kids.

PS, Shane’s whining about having no one to watch that purple dinosaur with him, again.

I felt terrible after reading that email which I’ve neglected for such a long time. I barely even realize how much time I spend in the office let alone notice that I’ve gone without sex with Nick for quite some time now. I mean, we Do It when we can but even that happens ever so rarely. It must be the work overload I get. There are often times when I ponder if all head editors were required to do so much of paperwork, etcetera. So yes. Rather than overwhelming myself with those pathetic feelings of guilt and go on with my work, I did the unthinkable.

I got up from my grubby old swivel chair and made my way to Steven Steelman’s office. When I asked him if I could get the rest of the day off so that I could ‘work on some loose ends’, he practically went ballistic on me. Honestly speaking, I don’t see the problem of it. I practically deserve the day off. I mean, I have neglected my family for the sake of his stupid company (and my job), worked the many late hours for him while he gets to go home to his doting wife and newly born IVF-ed baby as well as pick up his take-out Starbucks latte in a foam tray.

Anyway, as I was saying, Steven Steelman would not allow me to have the rest of the day off because ‘who was going to pick his latte at Starbucks later that evening?’, ‘who was going to work on the presentation we were having with the Rocky Inc. Company which was in an hour?’ and of course, the signature one, ‘who will work the extra hours tonight for me while I’m back home having dinner with Rosie and Jackson?’

No kidding. That was what came out of his thin-lipped mouth that moment.

So, just like any married career woman who had been stripped off the freedom to see her husband and children whenever she pleases, I schemed my way out. Oh, don’t get me wrong. I did nothing whatsoever that will land me in hot soup. All it took was letting him know that I know he’s been doing a whole series of things he shouldn’t be doing, with his blonde secretary, on his office table and there you have it. He offered me a week off without my paycheck being deducted. Presto! Just like that.

And here I was, only trying to get the rest of a day off. Who knew I’d get the entire week off with just stating what I knew he didn’t want anyone to know? Sure, it was malicious of me to use blackmail as a last resort but what is a woman to do when your adultery-committing boss refuses to give the one dedicated employee who has finally realize that she needs to do something about her ever so neglected family, a day off? Besides, I am not the kind of person to tattle on another person’s cheating life. I like to think that someday, the one being cheated on will find out sooner or later.

“Mm,” Nick interrupted my thoughts, “Anyway here’s what I’m thinking,” he leaned into the arch of my neck, kissing it lightly, “You’re home early and the kids are away,” as he said this, I felt him rubbing the small of my back gently, causing my insides to churn.

Somehow, I have a feeling where this is gonna lead to.

“We have a lot of catching up to do,” he lifted his head from my neck to meet my gaze, his bright blue eyes shining with a mischievous glint. There was no need for beating about the bush, every single gesture, from his lust-filled eyes to the sensuous body language made it very clear of what he wanted. And as his wife, how can I resist such a tempting offer? But wait, did he say something about the kids being away? Good heavens, I can’t believe I forgot to check on them. I’d immediately assumed they were asleep when I came home to a quiet house.

“Nick,” I positioned myself so that I could face him, “What did you mean, when you said the kids are away?” From the way I said it, I had a feeling my expression had gone from being slightly aroused to being pale with worry. If not, I don’t know what could have made Nick to chuckle and hold both my hands in his.

“Don’t worry, love,” he leaned his forehead onto mine, his sapphire gaze looking deeply into my own hazel ones, “Mom dropped by earlier this afternoon and brought them over to her place for the day after lunch,” Nick gave my hands a reassuring squeeze when I cocked a skeptical eyebrow at his explanation, “She said she and Pops would love to have the kids spend time with them once in a while. Besides, it’s only for today and the children seemed pretty excited about it anyway so I thought, why not?”

“Oh.” I took in the scent of Nick’s post-shower smell.

I did not think the timing would be this crazy. First, I’d managed to snag the entire week off with no interruptions from whosoever at the office, then I’m being seduced by my husband who’d just got off the shower and is smelling ever so heavenly, and now I have my mother-in-law (who happens to be one of the best in-laws you can ever hope for, by the way) baby-sitting my children without even asking? Wow, this is just my luck. In a slightly dumb kind of way. Forget that. It is very dumb.

“So, as I was saying,” Nick began again, his forehead still on mine, “Now that we have the house all to ourselves…” he paused longer than I had anticipated.

“You’re pausing.” I lifted my head from his, to get a better look at him. His eyes glittered with the excitement of a child’s.

He grinned, rubbing the back of my palms with his thumbs, “Yes, I am.”

Is it me, or is he trying to force it out of me? “What exactly are you trying to propose here, Nicholas Adam Scott Tiew?” I asked, cocking an eyebrow in amusement.

“Mm, what am I trying to propose, Deborah Jean Rhydwyn-Tiew?” he paused again, furrowing his eyebrows at his full name being said. He never fancied hearing it anyway which of course leads to him calling me by my own. Not that I mind. Jean was a nice middle name. Even so he kept his hands on mine, occasionally letting it move up to gently rub my forearms. I was beginning to enjoy this already, “I dunno, there’s this, there’s that, come to think of it, I have a lot of things I want to do with you.”

If you ask me, that was about all it took to get me really into the mood.

“Oh really?” I purred, getting up from the bed, his masculine hands in my smaller ones, “Where do you suppose we start then?” Even as I asked him this ridiculously obvious question, I had myself positioned in between his legs, arms wrapped around his neck while his were around my waist. I leaned in closer to him, “After all, it’s been ages since we’ve had so much time to ourselves, don’t you think?” I whispered, enjoying the way things were going.

There it was again, that glint in his eyes, “Lets see,” he said, pretending to be in deep thought, a hand moving its way up and down my back. I couldn’t help but let out a small sigh. “We could start with this.” Nick placed his hand at the back of my head, edging me closer. Before I had the chance to respond, Nick plunged in and kissed me, very passionately at that. God, how could I have forgotten of how amazing it was to have this man’s lips pressed on mine? Oh, this was good and the rest was a pure bliss indeed…

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Ever since the birth of his daughter Rianne, Nicholas Tiew barely ever had the chance to enjoy a good long afternoon nap. He always felt blessed to have such wonderful children in his life but once in a while it gets frustrating to a certain extent. So, when his mother, Lori Tiew, voluntarily offered to baby-sit them for him, Nick immediately agreed after a momentary while of saying ‘No, it’s alright’ just for the sake of being a considerate son. Thankfully, Lori was insistent and because of that, he’d been able to enjoy a good re-run of Friends, read at least six chapters of the book which he had been trying to read for a long time and a have a hot shower with no interruptions.

Suddenly, much to his dismay he was abruptly awoken to the ringing of his digital alarm clock, his hand instinctively slammed onto the snooze button to shut the device. Soon after, he turned off the alarm, wondering what in the world made him set his alarm to go off at… he arched his head over to get a look of the bright green digits beaming from the clock, it read 7:15PM. This only meant, he had to get dinner done soon. Groggily, he attempted to get up into a sitting position, only to find himself restricted by something… scratch that, make it someone - someone very female and very, very naked.

Various thoughts raced through his mind. All of which were not pleasant at all. Panicking slightly, Nick slowly turned his head to where the extra weight was pulling him down. In his arm, was a sleeping Deborah cuddling up against him, a slender arm spread across his bare chest. It took him a mid-second to absorb what was going on into his half-awake system. As he slowly recounted every single detail of which happened before he fell into a deep slumber, a grin could not help itself but spread across Nick’s lips.

After his soothing hot shower, Nick was more than surprised to see Deb lying on the bed. Initially, he had thought he must be dreaming but right after she told him that her boss let her off early, all thoughts of illusion were tossed aside. Though he had to admit that things went beyond what he imagined. He had only planned for a nice conversation with her. What he did not count on was the part where he would suddenly feel aroused and bold enough to attempt at seducing Deb. Oh well. At least she was up for it. For all he knew, they’d probably done it so many times that it would be understandable if either one or both of them felt wobbly on the knees.

‘I could do this all day’ Nick thought as he lightly kissed the top of his wife’s head, feeling her stir in her sleep as he did so. Being this close to her, he could feel her slow and steady breathing against his side. Letting out a small sigh of satisfaction, Nick pulled her closer to him, stroking her long brunette locks gently. Instinctively, Deb seemed to cuddle closer to him when he did so. He smiled tenderly at her unconscious gesture. Even now, Nick could remember everything about their random meeting…

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

six years ago, on one frosty Friday morning.

It had been one of London’s coldest and busiest mornings that Friday morning, and everyone was bustling into the most convenient cafés to order a take-out cup of coffee and bagel with cream cheese. And with DELI-cious being just a few strides from the main subway station, people chose to take their orders there. Nick’s presence there at that time had only been an added bonus. Ever since he’d graduated from Thames with a BA Honors Degree in Hospitality Management and Food Studies 3 years before, he had been hopping from one job to another.

Normally, the jobs he took on would last for only a short amount of time like the relationships he had back when he was a young adolescent in high school. At his best, those jobs would last 3 to 5 months tops. No more, for now anyway. It has been about 4 and a half months since Nick landed a job at DELI-cious as an intern chef. From the way things were going, Nick had a feeling this one might last longer than he’d expected, though it isn’t as if he has never felt like this before when he was doing his previous jobs. Somehow he was bound to find an excuse to hate his job and off he will go.

Even so, Nick could not help himself but enjoy the work he did at DELI-cious. Working as an intern chef in a café meant doing other forms of work as well as cook up a good meal. During the occasions when he would have to do the afternoon or evening shifts, Nick had a swell time of working on the café’s recipes with the head chef, improvising on some as he did. Another perk about his job was that no one seemed to mind him bringing the food over to the customers. Not even the owner of DELI-cious, their boss, Kenneth Callaway. In fact, he was rather pleased, what with how it seemed to be attracting a good load of customers.

An oldies number played in the background as the busy Londoners rushed into the café to place an order. All of which expected that they were to be served first regardless of whether they were there late or not. What made it worst was that, a few of the morning shift workers called in sick with the flu, leaving the café with only Nick and a handful of colleagues to manage with a horde of impatient customers. When the clock was about a quarter to 8, the crowd began to clear out.

“Blimey! You’d think they were about to be chased down by the national police group,” Kero scoffed as she hurriedly wrapped an onion bagel before handing it over to the last customer along with his latte, “I mean, what did they all do? Have a sleep-over and overslept on it?” she stuck her tongue out at the customer once he was out of the café.

Nick shrugged, “Guess we can only imagine,” he said, cleaning off bits of lettuce and spare bacon bits on the counter top with a hand cloth. “How many more do we have left?”

“Dude, that was the last one! Thank God, or I’d be walking on my head by now,” Kero pretended to carve her neck out with a horrendously bright manicured finger, “Sometimes I just wonder how in bullocks name do you go through with the morning shifts. Look, even Gloria, Meghan and Josiah left like with the customers. I would too, if it weren’t for you.” She teasingly pointed an accusing finger at him. For a university freshman, she sure was fiery.

For the past months he’d been working there, Nick had always particularly enjoyed the morning shifts. There was no special reason to it though. Not even close. All you do in DELI-cious from 7:30am to 12:00pm was serving customers their drinks and fix their bagels or sandwiches. The mornings were always cold, dull and boring. Everyone was grouchy and whoever came in to get their take-out coffee done, complained about how they were so sleep deprived as if the person behind the counter would give a rat’s ass about their unfulfilling lives. Nevertheless, Nick found it peacefully refreshing in an odd sense.

Though before he had the chance to retort back at Kero, the door abruptly burst open causing the both of them to simultaneously jump in slight shock. In between his deep breaths, Nick could hear Kero stomping into the kitchen, muttering a whole string of profanities as she did. He did not blame her for that either. Anyone in their right mind would swear just as much as she did after being scared the bleeping pants out of, like that. If he had not been in a good mood, Nick was sure that he would not stop at just cursing.

As he tried to get his heart to stop racing, Nick heard a disgruntled, barely audible voice saying, “One bagel and black coffee please.” Slowly regaining his composure, –catching his breath while he was at it– he found himself looking at a severely lethargic woman.

“Uhm,” he began, not quite sure as to ask if she was alright with just a bagel and black coffee, “Are you–”

As if reading his mind, “Yes, I’m fine,” she cut him off, checking the time on her watch whilst fidgeting, “Just hurry please. It’s my first week and I can’t afford to be any later.” Her long brunette hair curtained the sides of her face as she bent down a little to dig through her over-sized bag for something.

He cocked an eyebrow at her, “Yes, uhm, sure, right away.” As he packed the warm bagel into a brown paper bag, poured the coffee into a take-away cup, Nick could not help himself but steal glances of the woman standing across the counter table. Her dark hair was messily tousled in a just-out-of-bed way. With no makeup on aside from her flushed cheeks due to the cold, the tinges of grey beneath her eyes were made even more obvious against her fair skin. He could not get a good look at what she was wearing with the bag being placed in front of her, but if he was not mistaken, she was probably wearing a white pinstripe blouse.

“Here,” he said as he placed the brown bag and cup in front of her, somehow not able to take his eyes off the disheveled woman standing before him, “That’ll be–”

Suddenly, her cell phone rang. Audible groans slipped out her full lips as she flipped open the cover of her phone and clicked on the receiver. From the way she spoke the person on the other line, Nick could only guess that it was someone really important. After a few ‘yes’s and a ‘I’ll be right as soon as I can!’, she flipped her phone shut. Her gaze –which he noticed was a brownish green shade– for the first time during their short time together, met his. He gulped down the lump in his throat.

“Uhm, that’ll be–”

“Thanks!” she hurriedly and somewhat impatiently fished out a 50 pound note from her bag and slammed it right on the counter top. As if she was being chased by a wild stallion, she quickly grabbed onto her cup of black coffee, and ran out the door, ‘conveniently’ forgetting about her bagel and change in the process.

For a mid-second, Nick just stood there, dumbstruck. Before her entire form disappeared into the midst of crowds of London, Nick quickly came back to his senses. As if being possessed by a force, he grabbed a handful of small change along with the brown package the woman had left behind accidentally, and ran out. Behind him, he could hear Kero coming out from the kitchen, yelling at him, “Oy, Tiew! Where’re you going?”

“Take care of the café for a bit!” he replied just as loudly, not bothered to turn back, afraid that he might lose sight of the absent-minded woman. Much to Nick’s relief, the crowd did not seem to be as busy as it was earlier and apparently she was not heading for any of the subways but instead, towards one of the biggest office buildings in the area. As he ran after her, he found himself losing sight of her quite quickly. ‘What is she? Was she on the track team before this?’ he thought to himself, slightly irritated that she had been so clumsy as to forget her change and bagel. Then again, he could have left it at that and keep the spare change as a tip. Only God would know what made him chase after a Plain Jane like her.

By the time he’d reached the entrance of the office building he saw her running into, the brunette was gone. If he had not known better, he would have thought she vanished into thin air, never to be heard of – or seen for that matter. That aside, he craned his neck to look at the massive structure in front of him. The size of it just sent chills down his spine. He often pondered on buildings like these. What makes them so special? Would it not hurt for the people working in there to just climb the stairs? Yes, of course there will be elevators but even those were a pain in the behind. Imagine, just standing inside a claustrophobic box for God-knows-how-long.

Snapping out of his irrelevant thoughts, Nick took a deep breath and exhaled before he walked into the building. Right when he stepped foot into the mass construction, he was hit by the warm air which contradicted to the freezing cold morning’s weather. He looked around him, taking in his surroundings as he searched for anything or anyone which may seem useful.

Then, something caught his eye: a guard house, with a sleeping old bloke for a guard.

‘Brilliant. I’ll just ask old Snoreman for directions.’ Nick thought rather sarcastically to himself. Nevertheless, he still made his way to the guard house, paper bag in one hand, loose change in the other. Clearing his throat slightly, “Excuse me, uh, sir?”

The old twat did nothing but grunt and stirred in his sleep. Obviously, he was not going to co-operate with him. This caused the side of Nick’s eyebrow to twitch but he was not going to let some random elder get the best of him and ruin his mood. So he tried again, only this time, with a firmer tone, “Excuse me, sir.”

Much to his satisfaction, the guard seemingly awoke although not too obligingly. “What is it sonny?” Snoreman grunted, the wrinkles on his forehead deepened when he frowned. As much as he wanted to, Nick trusted himself not to displease the old fella with a snarky comment like ‘you’re snoring too loud, sir’. It would only pour oil to the fire.

“Well,” Nick started, “I was wondering if you would have notice a particular brunette rushing in late for work?”

Okay, to be blunt, that was too vague a statement. There were probably a hundred of them walking in and out from the building. Who was he to think that a guard would know someone as plain as–

“Oh you mean, Rhydwyn?” the guard lighted up just at the sound of her, although Nick was not sure if they were on the same page, “Good girl she is, that one.”

No, ‘good girl’ would not do in a situation like this. “Was she in a white pinstripe blouse, carrying an over-sized bag and a cup of coffee?”

He rubbed his chin as if in deep thought, “Yeh. Like I said–”

“By any chance, do you know which floor does she work in?” Nick cut him off, impatience getting the best of him. It was bad enough that he had to rush out during work hours and chase after some woman who had overslept the night before, he did not want to hang around any longer to chit chat about said woman with a guard.

“Jeez, talk about being impatient,” the old man grunted, “She goes up the eleventh floor.”

“Thanks uh,” Nick leaned in to sneak a peak of the man’s name tag. “–Jack.”

“Anytime sonny,” he nodded before settling himself back on the chair to resume his nap.

The little bell chimed as the elevator hit the eleventh floor. Nick did a mental double back flip, almost too eager to get things over with. He walked over to the receptionist’s table to ask for this Rhydwyn person. “Hi,” he said, flashing a grin for the sake of it.

“Hello,” she replied, her cheeks reddening, “Is there anything I can help you with, sir?”

Damn’it. Why do you think I’ll be here if there isn’t?

Still grinning, “As a matter of the fact, there is.” He chucked the loose change which crumpled in his hand, into his jean pocket, “I was wondering if by any chance there’s a Miss Rhydwyn?”

The expression on the receptionist–whose name happened to be Annie’s face faltered, clearly disappointed that she would not be having a date on Saturday night. “Well, yes, as a matter of the fact, there is. She’s in a meeting at the moment though. She might not be out soon. Is there a message you’d like to leave?”

‘Wow. Talk about quick change of mood.’ Nick kept that thought locked up tight in a box. So she was in a meeting huh? The initial thought was to leave a message saying ‘Hey, just wanted to let you know that you left your bagel and change when you were in such a hurry. Bye.’ but he decided against that.

“No, that would be fine. I’ll wait for her.” There, he said it.

“Yes, of course,” she replied, “If you want you could wait at her cubicle over… there.” Annie directed him to an empty cubicle somewhere around the corner of the office.

“Sure, thanks.” Nick smiled at the receptionist one last time before he was left alone at Miss Rhydwyn’s cubicle.

It was a rather small space, considering he had just gaped at how massive the building was from the outside. Maybe she was just an intern like him, to be getting something as crammed up as this. He sat himself on the swivel chair and placed the paper bag onto the desk. On one corner of the desk was a stack of documents, neatly arranged in alphabetical order while the other side was a little more personal. She had stuck some Post-Its which were mainly all ‘To-do lists’ and a couple of photographs.

Out of sheer curiosity, Nick leaned in closer to have a proper look at the photos. One was of her in her graduation gown with two elders who seemed to be her parents, another which was a group shot from some place he had never been to and another one of her and a brunette, who was much taller than she was. In every picture, he noticed she was practically glowing. It caused an unfamiliar sensation in his being. Something felt endearing yet tacky at the same. It only brings one word to mind; how adorable. It made him almost forget how lethargic she looked earlier that morning, just looking at her grinning so happily tugged the side of his mouth to go up just little.

“What’re you doing?” A female voice said.

He immediately jolted right up from the chair, half-knowing to whom that voice belonged to even before he turned around. “It’s not what you–” Too late. He was looking at the same pair of eyes he’d seen earlier in the morning, only right at that moment; they were not the least bit dazed. They were practically burning with suspicion.

“Not what I, what?” she asked curtly, arms folded across her chest, a dark brow cocked.

Was this the same woman he’d served this morning? Nick wondered to himself. She sure did not look like it. Her long dark brunette locks were pulled back into a messily loose bun, held secure by a stick-like object. Even behind a pair of black rimmed glasses, the grey tints beneath her greenish brown eyes were still visible but there was something different about her. What it was, he could not quite put his finger on it.

"Uhh.." Nick fumbled for words. This was not good at all, where has his suave self gone to?

“Well?” her voice had a tone of irritation to it. For someone as petite as herself, it was almost unimaginable she would have such an antagonizing aura. Before you know it, she might probably call security for privacy invasion and kick him out. All because he decided to run after her for a bloody bagel and change which he could not care less about anymore. He had something else in his mind and that was to get him out of the sort-of mess he was in.

“Uhm,” he searched around the place as if anything would be useful at the moment, then it hit him. He was here to give her, her long-forgotten bagel! Quick as a flash, he grabbed hold of the paper bag and held it out to her. She looked at the grease stained bag then back at him, her eyes seemingly softened.

“Your uh, bagel,” Nick said, rummaging through his jean pockets, “and change.”

“I don’t remem–”

“’Course you don’t. You deliberately ran off with your coffee right after you slammed the 50 quid on the counter.” He noticed the flush growing on her cheeks but he ignored this, rubbing the back of his neck, “I had to chase after you just to give you this.” He held out the package and notes a little closer to her, “Thank God, you weren’t heading for the subways or–”

“Thanks.”

He paused for a while, absorbing what she just said, “Whaa-?” he could not help himself. Just a few minutes ago, she was driving him around like the Wicked Witch of the West and now she’s saying Thank You? It was really hard to keep up with.

“Thanks,” she repeated, taking the package and notes from him, accidentally brushing his fingers with hers in the process. With anyone else, Nick would’ve quickly dismissed such a coincidental gesture, but when it came to her, something just snapped.

“You’re… welcome,” he muttered, shoving his hands into his pockets, “I’m…uh Hick… sorry, Nick– by the way” Oh, very suave indeed. Not.

“Deb,” she nodded, her cheeks slightly flushed, “Excuse me, you’re in the way.”

“Huh? Oh!” He immediately, rather enthusiastically moved aside once he noticed he was blocking her way in her cubicle. From the corner of his eye, he saw that she took out the bagel from the paper bag and placed onto a few pieces of tissue paper on her desk. He did not have much reason left to hang around anyway so it was now or never, “So, I’ll see you around then?”

“Mm.” she turned her head round to look at him, “Yeah.”

‘Yeah?’ Good heavens, he thought. Was this woman even the least bit in awe with his presence? Heck, the receptionist he talked to earlier was going all gaga for him just with a grin. Right now he was deliberately trying to impress her and all he’s getting is a mere ‘Yeah’. How uninterested could she get? “Oh-kaay, so bye.” Just as he turned to leave the place, ready to dig him a hole to crawl in when he got back to the café, he heard Deb call out, “The bagels at your café’s delicious just so you know.”

Nick walked on, waving his hand as a sign that he heard what she said. For some reason, he felt great with his encounter with Deb. It was cumbersome, yes and there was not a bit of flirtation done but just something about that woman which he had called a ‘Plain Jane’ earlier that made him click. And this weird sensation he felt that he can’t put a finger to it. Whatever it was, he was glad he’d made such a troublesome move to give her, her change…

“NICK!” Kero yelled at him, “You’ve been gone for ‘effing ever! Just where were you?”

That was a mere exaggeration. The longest he could have been away was an hour or so. Merely shrugging at his angry co-worker, Nick felt no need to let Kero on in his rather comical encounter with a certain brunette. Deb did not seem someone who would be up to Kero’s odd standards so telling her about it would be a waste of breath. All he needed to do now was…

“Damn…” he muttered, under his breath.

I forgot to ask for her number.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Although his and Deb’s first encounter was not exactly something you would call a romantic one, it was definitely something fairly memorable. At least it was for him. Thinking back, Nick remembered how much he had wanted to kick himself in the arse for forgetting to get her number. He recalled himself feeling ever so horrible about it to the point he was hardly even his usual self when he was at work. The sole reason to his melancholy, of course, was unknown to his co-workers.

Rather funnily, he did not have a clue as to what made him feel so drawn to that particular dark-haired woman. She was rather small compared to the women he used to date. Her overall features were in no way exotic, they were much more on a subtly stunning note. Her type did not seem to be the kind which would interest him let alone earn a second glance. Yet, he wanted to find out more about her. To know everything about her.

As he was in the middle of his reminiscence, Nick felt Deb squirming a little beside him. He arched his head to the side, watching his wife slowly awake. She rolled over to lie on her back, the blanket held close to her chest. For a brief moment, she laid there, staring at the ceiling above them. At first he’d expected her to just fall back into a deep slumber but this time round, she surprised him by turning over to face him with a smile.

“Good evening,” Nick said softly as he hovered above her. She was gorgeous, he thought. He leaned in to kiss her, deep and long, as his hand caressed her soft cheek. She sighed wistfully into the kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck, pulling him closer. Sure, he would’ve loved to go for another round, but after the many times they did it a while ago, he decided against it. Now was the best time for them to be talking so the best he did was to pull away –although very reluctantly– from the kiss, pecking her one last time before he repositioned himself on his side, head propped onto an arm for support.

Finally, she spoke, “I love you, you know that?” her gleaming eyes met his when she turned to lie on her side, facing him. She mimicked his stance, long tousled wavy locks of dark chocolate hair hang loosely around her slender shoulders, the corner of her lips curled up in amusement.

“What a coincidence,” Nick smugly grinned, twirling a lock of her hair in his finger, “I happen to love you very much. Must be fate eh?” It pleased him to see her laugh after he said that.

“Hm…” her voice trailed off, “Come to think of it, if I was never late that day, I wouldn’t have met you.”

So she remembered. Just when he was thinking about that very moment as well. Talk about an uncanny coincidence. “And if I hadn’t had the morning shift then, I wouldn’t have chased after you. It’s all about timing, love.”

She nodded her head lightly in agreement, “I’ll be honest though,” her finger traced invisible patterns on his bare torso, “I thought you were an idiot to have chased after me.”

He cocked an eyebrow at her, confused at what she meant, “Would it have been wiser for me not to?”

“Well, if it were me,” she blew a strand of hair from her face, “I would’ve kept the big tip and be on my way.”

This time, it was his turn to laugh, “Ah yes, that’s an intriguing theory,” he pretended to be in deep thought, “But if I didn’t, I wouldn’t have met my stunningly –intimidating at that– gorgeous wife, now would I?”

“True… it’s all about dumb luck, I suppose. I mean, you never asked for a number.”

“That, I’ll admit, was most foolish of me to have forgotten about.”

“Amen, to that.” She repositioned herself to lean against the headboard. In the process, the blanket accidentally slipped off her breasts, giving him a full glimpse of them before she pulled the blanket over her bosom. Even without realizing it, the woman was one heck of a tease.

“You left quite an impression though,” she mused, twirling a strand of hair around her finger. “Your idiocy and nosiness aside, I wanted to see you again. But you never asked for or left a number so the café was the only way to get to you–”

Nick watched her twirl her hair, gulping down the lump in his throat.

“–said your shift was over until the next morning,” she paused for a moment, placing both her hands onto her lap. Thank God, he thought. Anymore of that and he would have went for her like an animal would.

“I didn’t think I’d see you again but I dropped by anyway,” she fiddled around with the blanket, “So it was somewhat a bonus when you asked me out for dinner.”

How could he forget? When he saw her step foot into the café the very next morning, Nick was at the brink of hugging her ever so tightly. However, as tempting as the thought may be, he refrained from doing so. He felt the side of his mouth curving upwards as she went on with her musings.

“You know what the most impressive thing of all was?” Deb turned to look at him, her smile turning into a cheeky grin.

“Hm?”

“Having an employee ask me out on a date while I’m paying for lunch.” Her grin broke out into a hearty laugh.

“And look how’ve we ended up? Blissfully married with two beautiful children and fantastic sex to boot,” he teased, caressing her arm with his index finger. As if on cue, she sighed wistfully, arching her neck.

Feeling rather keen on what was to happen next, Nick leaned in closer to her and placed his lips onto hers, kissing her passionately. A moan slipped from her lips as she cupped his face in her hands, kissing him with just as much passion and eagerness. It was not long before she was on her back again and he was hovering above her, kissing every aspect of her.

Suddenly…

The doorbell rang.

“A-ah, N-N-ick,” she managed lamely, shuddering when he kissed at the arch of her neck, “W-we should r-really –ah– get the door.”

“Leave it,” he said impatiently, “It can wait.” He did not give her any time to protest as he kissed her deeply on the lips, ravishing her in other areas. Soon, thoughts of that pesky doorbell were tossed aside.

The doorbell’s ringing soon stopped, only to be followed by a serious round of ferocious knocking and banging, causing Deb to pull away from him, “Nick…” she panted heavily, “It must be something important.”

“Oh.” The knocking went on, much louder this time.

To be honest, Nick was rather irritated with whoever it was who was disrupting their passionate love-making. He pulled away from her grudgingly, resting himself against the headboard of their bed. The hard-on he had achieved a while back did no better than make it annoyingly – and painfully difficult for him to forgive the intrusion. On a lighter note however, at least he was able to enjoy a great sight of Deb sliding out of bed, naked and hair tousled, before she slipped into her nightgown and walked out of the door.

Once Deb was out of sight, he let out a sigh, a smile beginning to form on his lips.