by Lynn Donovan
He looked up as he felt someone approach the lady’s table. He smiled when he saw it was her. “Nothings missing except the five hundred dollars I took from your backpack there. Table security fee.”
The girl laughed and it sounded like little tiny bells tinkling together, sending his pulse on another run and causing other places to get a bit uncomfortable in a very pleasant way.
“Well, if you found five-hundred dollars in that bag, then you deserve it. Thank you for watching everything. I didn’t want to lose this awesome table. I can’t watch everyone from elsewhere.”
He nodded and indicated his table. “That’s why I’m sitting here. It’s the best seat for people watching.”
She smiled a little half grin. “Yes it is I was going to set there but some hot guy in a American Eagle T-shirt was sitting there when I got here.”
That uncomfortable feeling got a bit tighter. She thought he was hot. “Really? Well that’s strange, I didn’t see anyone here when I arrived, must have just missed him. Maybe you should describe him to me, so I can take some notes.”
She smiled. “Well, I could just let you copy my notes if you really want.” She turned her smart book screen toward him and he was shocked to see the character sheet from the writing program he used.
“Are you an author?”
Her smile faded and he wanted to say anything to put it back on her face again.
“No, an author has stuff published. I don’t have anything published, yet. I’m just a wanna-be writer.”
He reached out and took her chin in his hands. The spark of electricity that ran through him was almost intense enough to make him let go. Her breath caught so he knew she’d felt it too. Well what do you know that really does happen. I thought it was just literary devices to explain the unexplainable. “Darlin’ there is no such thing as a wanna-be writer. If you have that program and are putting words on a manuscript you’re a writer. The author part will come in time.”
He let go of her face, but not before trailing the back of his hand across her check.
“I hope so.”
He smiled. “Trust me on this, I know so.”
He flipped his MacBook around so she could see the character sheet he’d been working on for her.
Her eyes got big. “Your an author? Really?”
“Yep sure am.”
He saw it forming on her face, the question all authors hated to get asked but everyone always asked when they found out you were an author so he said it with her “Have you written anything I might have read?”
She laughed. “You get asked that a lot?”
He grinned. “Anytime someone finds out I’m an author.”
“Oh, well, sorry, but the question still remains, have I?”
“Do you read a lot?” he asked
“Yes, all the time.”
“Well, not all the time You’re not reading now. You were writing, then you went potty and now you’re talking.”
She slapped his arm. “You know what I mean.”
He grinned. “Well, what do you read? What genres?”
She blushed and he laughed. “Ah a romance reader.”
She bit her lower lip and nodded. He couldn’t help but wonder if that bubble gum pink lip tasted like bubble gum. “What kind of romance do you read?”
“Oh, all kinds, Historical, Modern, Regency, right now I’m reading this really cool Paranormal Romance series.” She reached into her backpack and pulled out his latest book. “Have you heard of this series? It’s the hottest thing right now.”
He grinned. “I have heard of those, yes, and I would have to say in answer to your earlier question, you most definitely have read my work.”
“Really, you right romance? I only know of one other guy who writes romance novels. As a mater of fact this guy she held his book up. What’s your name? I want to see if I have any of your books.” She grabbed her kindle from the backpack.
He laughed. “I promise you, you’ve read at least two of my books if you’ve been reading that series.”
Her eyes got big “Your R.G. Donovan, the guy who created the Phantom Horse Bridge Series?”
“My friends call me Rob or R.G. but ,yep that’s me.”
Oh My God!! Can we take a selfie together? My writers’ group isn’t going to believe this.”
Rob laughed. Tell you what, let’s get someone to take it for us, that way we won’t have that weird big forehead thing everyone has in selfies.”
Rob saw the special needs kid who worked as a busboy a couple of tables away. “Hey Charlie, come here.”
The young man put his tub of dishes on the table and waddled over to him. “Hello, Mr. Rob. You need refill?”
Rob shook his head. “Not this time, buddy. Do you know how to take pictures with that kind of camera?” He pointed to the girl’s cell phone?
Henry grinned and nodded. “I has one jus like it.” He reached in his pocket and pulled out a phone. “See?”
“That’s awesome, buddy. Would you take a picture of me and..”
“Aurora.”
Charlie’s eye widened even more than they normally were. “Like the Disney Princess?”
“Yes, just like the Disney Princess. My mom named me after her.”
“Wow, you famous!!”
Rob smiled at the guy. “She is, that’s why I need you to take a picture of us for me, okay?”
Charlie thought for a minute. “Okay, Mr. Rob. Princess Aurora, can I take picture with you, too?”
“She handed him her phone. “I’d love to take a picture with a handsome prince like you, Charlie. Right after I take one with Mister Rob, okay?”
“Okay!”
She leaned in close to Rob, and he breathed in her scent. It was very faint like the honeysuckle that grew up the trellis under his writing nook at home. But it was mixed with a spicy scent like nutmeg or cinnamon. She smells just like you’d imagine a Disney Princess would smell.
Charlie held the camera up. “Say, ‘Coffee Cupid.’”
They said it and he snapped the picture. Then Rob stood up. “Give me your phone Charlie, and go sit beside Princess Aurora.”
Charlie did. “Okay say, ‘Mocha Latte.’” Just as he got ready to snap the picture Aurora turned her head and kissed Charlie on the cheek. The young man blushed and looked at Rob. “She kissed me! Does this mean we gots to get married?”
“No, Charlie, she didn’t kiss you on the lips, so you don’t got to get married.”
“Okay! Good, cause I already gots a girlfriend at the center.”
Aurora sighed dramatically. “Oh well, I guess it’s my loss, Prince Charlie. I’ll just have to wait, because some day my prince will come.”
Charlie shook his head. “No dat’s Snow White. You is supposed to say once upon a dream.”
She smiled. “You’re right, how silly of me to forget.”
Charlie stood. “I has to get back to work now. afore Mr. Carl gets upset with me.”
Rob handed the young man his phone. “Thanks for your help, Charlie, if Mr. Carl says anything you tell him I asked you to help me.”
“Oh-kay! Bye Princess Aurora. I has to go work now.”
“Bye, Prince Charlie.”
Rob sat back in his seat. “Hey, can you text me that photo of us? I want it for a character sheet.”
Aurora looked at him. “Seriously, or are you just trying to get my digits?”
He smiled. “And here I thought I was being all smooth about it. No I really want that picture, but if you don’t want me to have your number, I can understand that. I wouldn’t want your boyfriend to see my number on your phone and get upset.”
She laughed. “Oh, you’re good. You thought you could trick me into telling you if I had a boyfriend or if he was the jealous type.”
He smiled. “Well I know there isn’t a husband, no ring. So, Prince Charming Eric hasn’t arrived yet.”
“Philip, Eric is Ariel’s prince. Boy for a romance writer you don’t know your Princ
e Charmings very well.”
“No, I don’t, but in my defense, I write about cowboys and everyday people. No royalty in any of my books.”
“Give me your number. There’s no guy to make jealous, so it’s all good.”
He rattled them off, and she typed them in. In just a moment, he got the ding of a text message coming in. He opened it, and saw their photo. He saved it and then saved her contact info. “What is your last name Princess?”
She sighed. “Are you going to call me that from now on?”
He smiled “Only till you become my queen.”
“I can’t become your queen.”
“Why not?
“Your name isn’t Phillip.”
He looked at her, and let some of the heat she made him feel show in his eyes. Not enough to scare her away, but enough to let her know he wasn’t flirting without purpose. “I’ll change it for you.”
“Well, before you do would, you sign your book for me?”
“Sure, under one condition.”
“What’s that?”
“Have dinner with me tonight.”
She bit that lip again. If she kept that up, he was going to have to have a little taste to find out what she thought was so great about it. “I can’t tonight’s my writers’ group. Unless you want to come with me.”
“To your writers’ group?”
“Yes, I know they’d love to meet you. None of them are as successful as you, but there are a couple of authors in the group. There’s five of us.”
“Well, I wanted to get to know you better. But you said they wouldn’t believe you met me, so sure. I’ll go to your group with you. Do you all eat at this meeting?”
She laughed. “When do writers not eat?”
“That’s true. Okay, what time?”
“We meet in the bar and grill here at six.”
“Then I should pick you up at what time, five thirty?”
“I could just meet you here.”
He reached out, took the book out of her hand, and placed it on his table, then took her hands in his. “Oh no, Princess. A Prince always picks up the princess for the ball.”
She giggled and turned pink. “No ball, just writers helping each other and critiquing a chapter if you want them to.”
“I will still escort you, fair maiden.”
“Fine, I’ll text you my address, and five thirty is perfect.”
He let go of her hands and pulled a sharpie out of his computer bag, opened the cover and wrote a little note to her and signed it. Then he put the book in her backpack. When she reached for it, he stopped her. Don’t read that till later, please.”
She started to ask why when his watch started beeping. He sighed. “I have to go. I’m meeting with my editor about the next Phantom Horse book in a few minutes.” He looked at her empty coffee cup. “You gonna stay and write some more?”
She nodded. “Yes, I want to finish this chapter so I can share it tonight.”
“Okay, let me get you another cup of coffee. What are you drinking?”
She looked down at her empty cup. “Oh, I’m out! It’s a Cinnamon Caramel Latte with extra whip and extra Caramel.”
He smiled. So that spicy smell had been cinnamon. “Be right back.”
He went up to the counter and placed her order and a Hazelnut iced for himself, to go. Ashley Lefevre handed him his order “There you go, R.G. I see you found a muse today.”
He winked at the girl. “I think maybe I did, Ashley. But you’re still the driving force behind my frantic typing speed. Well, you and this drug you push at me.”
She laughed.
He walked back to the woman who had caught his interest. “Here you go, Princess. A drink fit for a queen.”
She took the cup absentmindedly as her other hand kept punching away at the keyboard. He recognized that look, someone was in the zone. He packed up and left without another word. He’d text her later to remind her to send him her address. But now he needed to rush if he was going to make it to his appointment on time.
Aurora looked up from the scene she was writing to say goodbye to Robin only to realize he was gone. Sitting beside her was a fresh coffee. She picked it up to take a drink when words on the side of the white cup caught her eye. “My love is your H.E.A.”
She smiled. R.G., she thought. Maybe he wasn’t just flirting with her. Maybe he’d felt the tingles that raced through her every time he’d touched her, too. She took a sip wondering if his kisses would be as hot as those he wrote in his novels. Maybe she’d have to find out after group tonight.
End of Sneak Peek
About the Author:
Lynn Donovan
spends her days chasing after her muses, trying to get them to settle down and behave long enough to write down their words and actions. The results are numerous novels, anthologies, and short stories.
Lynn enjoys reading and writing all kinds of fiction, paranormal, speculative, contemporary romance, and time travel. But you never know what her muses will come up with for a story, so you could see a novel under any given genre. All that can be said is keep your eyes open, cause these muses are not sitting still for long!
Oops, there they go again…
You can learn more about Lynn on her blog, follow her on Twitter @MLynnDonovan, Face Book at MLDonovan, her Face Book Author page at LynnDonovanFGG and her website: http://lynndonovanauthor.com
OTHER Publications by Lynn Donovan:
The Wishing Well Curse (Spirit of Destiny, Book 1)
Thorns of Betrayal (Spirit of Destiny, Book 2)
Secret Voices (Spirit of Destiny, Book 3)
Rocking Horse Shadows
Christmas Grace, Signing Seeds
Merry’s Christmas Eve
Fertility Pirates (The Abraham Project, Book 1)
Cloned Chaos (The Abraham Project, Book 2)
Java Cupid Series
Phantom Horse Series (Coming September 2017)
Hey! Thank you for purchasing and reading my book, Java Break. I’d like to give you a parting gift to show my appreciation. If you will e-mail me at [email protected]. Put in the Subject Line: “Java Series Free Book.” I will send you an e-copy of a collection of short stories I wrote purely for your entertainment. I will happily send you this e-copy for FREE, if you ask. This book will not be sold anywhere, at any time. I am keeping it exclusively for you, my readers, and only if you ask for it.
Thank you again, and God Bless.
~Lynn Donovan
Appreciation
Thank you to everybody in my life who has contributed in one way or another to the writing of this book. My husband, my children, my children-in-law, and my grandchildren. You all are my unconditional fans. My BETA readers and grammar guru who make me look gooder than I am. [Bad grammar intentional.] My fellow author friends who chat with me daily to exchange ideas, encourage, maintain sanity, and keep me from being a total recluse.
Mostly I thank God for the talent he has given me. I hope to hear you say, “Well done, my good and faithful servant,” when I cross the Jordan and run into your arms—Many, many years from now. :)
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