Heartbreak Over a French Vanilla Cappuccino (standard:romance, 4752 words)
Author: Aubrey	Added: Jun 26 2003	Views/Reads: 3481/2328	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
The people you meet aren't always what they seem. One lonely woman, who thought she closed her heart forever to love, found herself doing and saying things she never thought she would. Through the tangled web of love, lies, and deceit, she conquered her g

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the knock on my door, I had a slight coronary. 

"Yeah?" I asked thankful for anyone to talk to. As the door slowly
opened, a guy I had never saw before stepped in. 

"Are you Kamryn Jennings?" A deep, sultry voice asked. 

"Yeah, come on in." A tall, green eyed guy closed the door, and turned
to face me with a smile. 

"Hi, I'm Lukas Williams, but everyone calls me Luke." He extended his
hand, and shook mine. 

"Nice to meet you Luke. What can I help you with?" He was the epitome of
the perfect guy, looking like he had just stepped off of a Calvin Klein 
runway. And he smelled so good too! I couldn't help but smile at this 
handsome stranger. 

"I am your new warehouse manager." I hadn't known that we didn't have a
warehouse manager...maybe that's why nothing was getting done. 

"Great!" I shifted uncomfortably in my seat. "You start tomorrow morning
at 8 A.M. sharp. I don't have patience for people who are late. That's 
one of the biggest policies around here...you do know all of the rules, 
correct?!" It was time for me to stop being star struck and get down to 
business. It was my job! 

"Yes ma'am. I believe a woman named Paris talked to me about those." He
caught my vibe and dropped the cutie act. I must admit though, he was 
very polite...and that was always very sexy in a guy. Okay, I have to 
stop this...be professional! 

"Great, but if you don't mind, I'd like to ask you why you're here this
late? We close at 5:30." 

"Well, Paris told me this is when you do all of the interviews." He
looked as confused as I felt. So that's what she meant by "It will be 
later...". Just wait until she walks into work tomorrow. What method of 
torture shall I use on her? Guillotine? Torture? Or maybe I'll just 
hang the girl I call my best friend! 

"I'm afraid she told you wrong. Obviously you've already been hired, so
if you don't mind, I've got a lot to do. See you at 8 tomorrow." He 
nodded his head, and reached for the door. Wait...why was I kicking him 
out of here? I should say something to make him stay... "But, if you 
want to get acquainted with what you'll be working with, I'm filling 
out some order forms now. You can stay and help me if you have nothing 
else to do." Oooh...now that was a genius excuse for this incredible 
man to stay in my office! Score for Kamryn! 

"I'd love to, but I already have plans..." He ran his hand through his
dark brown hair, and I noticed that he had a gold ring on his pinkie, 
with some type of lettering engraved on it...probably a promise ring 
from his girlfriend or something. What did I think would be the case? 
That just because I was attracted to him, he would be single? "I really 
would like to, but..." 

"No, it's fine you don't have to explain. I just thought I would put the
offer out there. So, I guess I'll be seeing you at 8 tomorrow. 
Correct?!" I tried not to let the disappointment show through my 
voice...besides I've learned never to date guys that you work with. The 
results are always disastrous. 

"It's not that I don't want to stay, it's just that I have to go home
for my son, Jared. He's 9, and I promised him that I would tuck him in, 
although it's WAY past his bedtime." I started laughing, and so did he. 
It was a shaky, awkward kind of laugh. 

"So, even if he's up this late, you can't punish him because YOU
promised you'd tuck him in. I've been through that one plenty of times 
with my daughter, Mikayla." I couldn't believe that he had a kid...he 
didn't look old enough. Then again, neither did I. 

"Yeah! Hey, maybe we can get them together or something...you know as a
play date at the park, or whatever." Now there's an idea.... 

"That sounds great! As nice as this conversation is, shouldn't you be
getting home to Jared though?" 

"Right, yeah, I should. So, I'll see you tomorrow morning?" He looked
right at me with his piercing green eyes, and it was like he could see 
into my soul. All of myself was being given to him at that exact 
moment, and although I hadn't realized it, I fell in love with him 
right then and there. 

After that night, life at the office was great for a couple of days. I
was happy for the first time in 23 years to go in and see all of the 
people I work with. Okay...not everyone, just Luke. There had been some 
innocent flirtation, but I refused to give into my temptation. After 
all, we worked together...there was no way that a relationship between 
us could happen because I was the manager and I had to maintain my 
professional exterior. My interior however, was telling me a different 
story. You know when you see someone or they talk to you, you get 
little butterflies in your stomach? Well, that was what it was like 
when Luke talked or even glanced at me. My face went all red, and I 
started to mumble incoherently. Naturally, Paris found this recent show 
of emotions hilarious. I may be no philosopher or psychologist, but I 
do have common sense that indicates to me, that your best friend is not 
supposed to find humor in your first real crush. Then again, we are 
talking about Paris here.... 

"Just go and ask him out for a date or something. Hell, coffee would
even work!" Everyday for the past week and a half, Paris has been 
coming in here giving me her version of pep-talks about asking Luke on 
a date (that will NEVER happen...just to be clear about it!) 

"Are you trying to make me prematurely die of a heart attack or
something? You see how I act around him now for crying out loud! And 
for another thing, you saw what working together did to Matthew and I! 
It tore our marriage apart!" I honestly think I'm on the verge of a 
nervous breakdown....deep breathing....happy thoughts. Suddenly, Paris 
jumped off of my desk, and reached for the loudspeaker. 

"Excuse this slight interruption, but would Luke please come to Kamryn's
office? Thanks!" Ever so gently, she put the loudspeaker down, and left 
my office (conveniently enough) just as Luke came in. He held the door 
open for Paris as she left. "He's such a gentlemen, Kamryn! Thank you 
Lukas!" Then, as if this whole experience couldn't get anymore 
embarrassing, she turned and winked at me. 

"That girl has some serious underlying psychological problems I think."
Luke said after she left, and I couldn't agree with him more. 

"Yeah, she's a little psycho when it comes to certain things." I lifted
my head up, and made an attempt to straighten my hair. 

"So, anyway, you called me in here...or wait, wasn't that Paris?" Just
shoot me now...God strike me dead...something! At that moment, I was so 
embarrassed and nervous that I wished I could have shriveled up and 
died right there in the middle of my office. 

"Yeah, um, don't worry, it doesn't pertain to work or anything, so
you're not going to be fired or laid off. But, um... I was, um...I 
was...wondering..." I couldn't speak when I looked into his eyes. They 
were so beautiful, and understanding that it made me nervous. 
Naturally, I just stared right at him, not caring if I looked like a 
moron because at that moment, all I could imagine is what it would be 
like to kiss him, and grow old with him. Would he still have those 
killer eyes when we were 86 years old with dentures and walking canes? 
The vision of him with wrinkles made me giggle a little....yeah, that's 
right...I just giggled! "I was wondering if you might want to get a cup 
of coffee after work or something at that new coffee shop down the 
road." There...I had finally got it out. Now, the only thing that he 
has to say is yes....PLEASE say yes... 

"Yeah, how about tonight?" I looked up at him in disbelief. He agreed? 

"Yeah? You mean, you want to go?" The shock (and relief) was seeping
through me. 

"Why wouldn't I want to go with you? You're a lot of fun to be around.
But, I have to thank you for taking the pressure off of me to ask you 
to go out. I've been wanting to since I first saw you." Then he got a 
weird look on his face, like he just remembered something he forgot. 
"Paris has been playing matchmaker, hasn't she? It all makes sense now! 
Why didn't I get it before with me coming in at 10:30 at night, and her 
hiring me out of everyone, and now the whole speaker thing." 

"You have to hand it to her though, the loudspeaker was her best idea
yet!" I was smiling from ear to ear...he had liked me just as much as I 
had liked him. Thankfully, he didn't show it as much as I did. I mean, 
at least he can talk to me without having a near death experience. "How 
about you come to my office at 5:30, and we'll walk together?" 

"Sounds good...see you at 5:30 I guess." He turned to leave, but stopped
(stopping my pulse along with him), and turned around. "But, I forgot 
something..." 

"What?" I asked perplexed. 

"This..." He took 3 steps towards me, and pressed his lips against mine.
It was a sweet kiss that was over too soon, and left me tingling from 
head to toe. "Well, I better go." He said clearly pleased with himself, 
and made his exit. I however, was left standing in the middle of the 
floor, wondering why it had to be over. 

"Hey, Kamryn? Earth to Jennings!!" Paris was right in front of me,
slapping me in the head. "WAKE UP!" 

"Oh...yeah, right...what did you need?" When I finally snapped out of
it, I started grinning a grin that had never showed up on my face 
before. That's when it hit me...I'm a grinning fool in love! The 
thought of that was absolutely absurd...I barely even knew Luke. 
Besides, Mikayla always says that love is for sissies...well, I'm not a 
sissy. If I'm not in love though, why am I still smiling? 

"HOW DID IT GO, YOU MORON?" Paris screamed at me. 

"Jesus Christ Paris, you don't have to scream! Anyway, we're going out
for coffee after work tonight!" I told her after regaining most of my 
hearing. Then, she started screaming...again! 

"That's great!" Then she started hugging me, and screaming something
about being happy for me. Everything was kind of blurred though because 
I was walking on clouds. I didn't think that the day could go fast 
enough, but right now, I needed to focus on getting my best friend off 
of me and out of my office so I could have some time to think! 

2 ½ hours later, Luke and I were on our way to the House Of Java for a
semi-date. I was pretty excited, but after the incident this afternoon, 
I had calmed down and spent a lot of time thinking about the whole 
situation. After the painful breakup with James, I never thought that I 
could fall this badly for someone else again...especially after what he 
did to me. When I caught him cheating with one of my friends, that was 
it for me. I swore that I would never trust guys again. It has worked 
great, but then someone like Luke comes along, and suddenly I change my 
whole philosophy on life?! Therefore, I concluded that this time I 
would just follow my heart. 

"A penny for your thoughts?" Luke asked me as he laced his fingers with
mine, setting off little fireworks off in me. 

"Nothing, just...shipments from the office needed to be out today, and I
was thinking if they got shipped out right." Great Kamryn...start the 
relationship off with a lie... 

"Oh really? I didn't know about that. Where was the shipment going to?"
He asked with little worry creases forming on his forehead. 

"Um...they were supposed to go to...oh never mind! Let's leave work at
the office and focus on having a good time!" I swear to everything holy 
that I will stop lying after this...that's it for me! 

"Sound good to me, and so does a French Vanilla Cappuccino." He said
with a smile taking over his face. 

"Mmmm...that sounds really good!" I said honestly...see, I can say a
sentence without lying! 

The sun was setting over New York City, illuminating the streets and the
buildings. Yellows, oranges, and pale reds were splashed over 
everything, reminding me why I moved here in the first place. We turned 
the corner, and walked into a magnificent smelling House of Java. The 
place was pretty nice, with computer and laptops in the far right 
corner, a guitarist playing soothing songs up front, and couches and 
tables in the center of the floor. It was very modern-looking with dark 
burgundy booths, and dark, mysterious lighting above. I really liked it 
because it was the opposite of the coffeehouse on Friends (not that I 
have anything against them though!). We both ended up ordering a 
blueberry muffin and a French vanilla cappuccino and headed our way 
over to a table as far away as we could possibly get from everyone 
else. We're such rebels! 

"So, what's your story, how did you end up here?" Luke asked as he took
a sip of his drink. There was something about Luke that made me want to 
trust him, and made me want to open up to him. More importantly though, 
I had to get used to the fact that the whole world wasn't out to get 
me. 

"I guess that I should start from the beginning..." I took a deep
breath, and then continued. "When I was still in high school, I wanted 
to be a journalist in New York. I had this drive in me that no one else 
my age had, almost an obsession. Writing took over my life from the age 
of 7 until 18. I applied to Columbia University, and the day that I got 
in was the happiest of my entire life. No one else in my family had 
ever gone to college, so this was colossal for the Jennings. However, a 
few weeks before I was about to move to New York, I met and instantly 
fell in love with  James Harper. He was of course, the bad boy, and I 
was the goody-two-shoes. One thing led to another, and I found myself 
in New York, pregnant and alone. James stuck around for a few months, 
but then cheated on me and hit the road with my friend, Candee. So, 
Mikayla was born, and that's been it. No college, and a crappy little 
job in an art warehouse. Case closed for men with me! They've done 
nothing but screw up my life." I said all of this really fast, and by 
the time I was done, Luke was in shock with his jaw, hanging down to 
the floor and I was out of breath. 

"Wow...um...I don't know what to say..." I left him speechless, and
since I was on this whole honesty thing, I decided to come 
clean...again. 

"I've never told anyone all of that, but I trust you for some reason.
You're different...I have a feeling about it." I smiled at him, and 
looking into his eyes, I felt amazingly refreshed. He took my hand, and 
gave me a heart melting smile. 

"I would never hurt you, and I'm glad that you can tell I'm not like the
rest of them because I honestly and truly am not." He took another 
drink, and then continued. "But, since we're having confessional, I 
have to admit that you were pretty cold to me when I first came into 
your office. Naturally, I was a little puzzled when you asked me to go 
out with you tonight." 

"I thought for sure you knew I liked you. I couldn't stop staring at
you! If you couldn't see that, then I  am going to have to deem you 
mentally unstable!" I said jokingly. 

"Oh, so now I'm what Jared would call, two fries short of a Happy Meal."
I started cracking up laughing, thinking only he could bring McDonald's 
into a very serious conversation such as this. 

The rest of the night went on like this, with us just sharing past
experiences, and little jokes with each other. Okay...so there was a 
little flirtation...DAMN, you caught me lying again. There was a LOT of 
flirting going on! Through out the date, I just couldn't help but think 
that he was perfect. He had everything that I wanted in a guy, and even 
when he knew my past, he didn't run screaming out the door. Not to 
mention that he was the most handsome guy I had ever dated. 

"I should probably be getting home with Jared. I didn't tell him I was
coming tonight." Luke said as he began to gather all of his garbage 
together. 

"Mikayla goes to her grandma's house everyday after school, and I pick
her up when I come home from work." I had wanted to ask him a question 
that had been on my mind for a couple of days. Then again, I had wanted 
to ask him a lot of things, because he hadn't talked about himself at 
all throughout the date. "So, does Jared live with you?" 

"Yeah." He said looking a little agitated that I had asked him. 

"Oh, so you're divorced?" I asked getting more and more curious. 

"Um...." Luke ran his fingers through his hair, and laughed an awkward,
shaky laugh. "Hey, let's get some ice cream on the way home!" 

"Wait, don't change the subject!" I got up and stood eye to eye with
him, with my voice getting deadly serious. "Are you divorced?" There 
were a few agonizing seconds of silence. The thought of me cheating 
with a married man, while his wife was at home with their son made me 
sick to my stomach. I know what it's like to be cheated on, and I don't 
wish that feeling upon anyone.  Just then, his cell phone began to 
ring. He never broke eye contact with me, but on the second ring, he 
picked it up. I knew by the soft look in his eyes, that it was a woman. 


"Hello? No. Yeah. In a few minutes. I don't know. No one. Yeah. See you
then. Me too. Bye." He hung up, put his phone back in his pocket, and 
picked up our trays. "So, you up for ice cream?" Luke asked pretending 
that nothing had ever happened. I couldn't take anymore of his 
lying...not even the music in the coffee place could calm me down. I 
grabbed my purse, and ran out of the place in the direction of my 
apartment. "KAMRYN! KAMRYN COME BACK SO WE CAN TALK!" I heard him 
yelling for me, but I didn't look back. Instead, I just ran and ran and 
ran until I found myself standing inside of the elevator to my 
apartment building. 

Even though I had tried to fight it, there were tears streaming down my
face. I had taken a chance on this guy, and I was made to look like the 
biggest idiot on the face of the planet. I felt numb...it was really 
the only way to describe it. I was numb to the direction I was going. 
Numb to work. Most of all, I was numb to any type of emotion. Any place 
in my heart that wasn't pad-locked to love, had just been sealed by 
Luke. I had had enough of putting myself out there, and getting hurt. 
It was over, and I know I said it once, but this time, I truly meant 
it. All I needed in my life was Mikayla and my work. 

That night, after picking up my daughter, I tossed and turned, with
thoughts of only Luke and his happy little family in my head. His poor 
wife must have been on the phone wondering why her husband hadn't come 
home after work. She probably knows that he was cheating on her. This 
time though, I was the mistress. It's quite odd to think of yourself as 
a mistress, as the "dirty" one, as society had dictated to us all of 
these years. I felt horrible, and when my alarm clock rang at 6:30, it 
was a relief. 

I walked into work almost a half an hour earlier then I normally arrive,
and found a surprise sitting in my office. Lukas Williams. I decided to 
be professional about it all, and at least listen to his side of the 
story, even though I already knew there wasn't much to it. As soon as I 
stepped in, he stood up, and turned to face me. 

"Good morning sunshine!" He said with a big smile on his face. I walked
right past him, set my stuff on my desk, and began my day. 

"How's the wife and kids, Luke? Still doing fine?" I asked, not even
making eye contact with him. 

"Please don't start that..." He said collapsing into the chair by my
desk. "I came to talk to you about that situation." 

"There's not much to explain really. You are a really, really great guy,
but you're married. We had a great time last night, but all good things 
must come to an end." It pained me more then anything to say that. 

"The marriage is over. It's broken, and the only reason we stay together
is for Jared." 

"So that makes it okay to cheat on her? You're more of a bastard than I
had originally thought. How could you do this to me after I had opened 
my heart up to you? After I had told you that I trusted you? You 
couldn't have possibly have found any time to tell me that YOU WERE 
MARRIED?" I was infuriated at the fact that he thought this was okay. 

"Kamryn, I know it's a bit of a shock for you, but we can get over it.
You and I have something great here. Let's not jump off the deep end 
over my broken marriage." He said stepping closer to me, getting a 
smile on his face. I turned my face, more disgusted then I had ever 
been. 

"That ring that's supposed to be on your finger means something to me.
We do have something great, but I will not sit here and be something 
that you sweep under the rug." The tears started streaming again at the 
thought that I had to say good bye to something that was so sure to be 
something great. "I can't kiss you without thinking about your wife. I 
can't hug you without thinking about your son. I can't even look at you 
without the thought of them at home waiting for you while we were on a 
date. I don't see how you don't envision of any of those things as 
well." 

"I do...but I have to think....." He started. 

"Don't say a word to me." I looked up at him for the first time. I
looked into his green eyes for the first time that day, and for the 
last time ever. "In a way, you have just proven me wrong. Not all guys 
are pieces of shit...just assholes like you. Now, I want you to go home 
to your wife and kids, and fix whatever was broken in your marriage. 
Good-bye Lukas." I gave him one last kiss, and walked out of my office. 
I have everything to live for. My career (although not what I would 
choose), my beautiful daughter, great friends and my whole life ahead 
of me. I don't need a man to complete my life...but if anything is 
meant to happen, it will. From now on, I'll leave everything in that 
department to Fate...and background checks. 


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