CHAPTER FOUR: THE FIRST TIME HE TOUCHED HER
1391 Words
By Friday evening, Elena had officially decided Adrian was a problem.
Not a real problem.
Not a dangerous one.
Just the kind that slowly sneaks into your routine until you realize you’ve started expecting them there.
And she hated that.
Because now every time the café door opened, some part of her looked up automatically.
Which was exactly what happened at 6:18 p.m.
The bell above the door rang softly.
Elena looked up.
Adrian.
Again.
A ridiculous amount of relief moved through her before she could stop it.
Annoying.
Very annoying.
Amelia noticed immediately.
“Oh, you’re gone.”
Elena grabbed two menus just to avoid looking at her.
“I’m at work.”
“You looked happier in two seconds.”
“I literally did not.”
“You did.”
Elena ignored her and walked toward Adrian’s table before Amelia could continue embarrassing her.
“You’re early today,” she said.
Adrian looked up from unbuttoning the sleeve of his coat.
“You noticed.”
“That wasn’t an answer.”
“Neither was your statement.”
God.
Talking to him was exhausting sometimes.
But not in a bad way.
More like… every conversation felt slightly off balance. Like he always saw something she didn’t.
“You know,” she said, setting a glass of water on the table, “normal people usually answer questions directly.”
“And you’ve decided I’m not normal?”
“I decided that three days ago.”
That made him smile again.
A real one this time.
Quick, but real.
And annoyingly enough, Elena felt it somewhere in her chest.
She looked away first.
Again.
“You want the usual?” she asked.
“You already know my order?”
“You order the same thing every night.”
“That sounds judgmental.”
“It is.”
Adrian leaned back in his chair slightly, studying her for a second.
“You seem less tired today.”
Elena blinked.
“You remember that?”
“You looked exhausted yesterday.”
Something about the way he said it made her pause.
Simple observation.
Nothing dramatic.
Still, it felt strangely personal.
“My neighbor wasn’t home last night,” she admitted. “So I actually slept.”
“That explains it.”
“You make me sound medically concerning.”
“You probably are.”
She laughed before she could stop herself.
And there it was again.
That look on his face after she laughed.
Like he wasn’t expecting it, even now.
Elena shook her head lightly.
“I’m getting your coffee before this conversation becomes weird.”
“Too late.”
She rolled her eyes as she walked away, but she was still smiling slightly.
Which Amelia noticed instantly.
“This is painful to watch.”
“Please leave me alone.”
“You like him.”
“I barely know him.”
“That has never stopped anybody.”
Unfortunately, Amelia had a point.
---
An hour later, the café became unexpectedly busy.
A group of university students came in all at once, loud and freezing from the cold outside.
Elena moved quickly between tables, balancing cups carefully while Marcus stressed himself into another dimension behind the counter.
“Table six!”
“I know!”
“You forgot the caramel syrup!”
“I did not forget it, I’m ignoring it!”
Marcus looked personally offended.
Elena laughed under her breath and turned too quickly.
Straight into someone.
Her balance slipped immediately.
The tray tilted hard in her hands.
“Oh my God!”
A hand caught her wrist before the cups could hit the floor.
Everything stopped for a second.
Not dramatically.
Just enough.
Elena looked up too fast.
Adrian.
Close.
Way too close.
One of the cups wobbled dangerously before he steadied the tray with his other hand.
“You okay?” he asked quietly.
Elena swallowed once.
“Yeah.”
But her voice came out softer than usual.
Because his hand was still around her wrist.
Warm.
Steady.
And for some stupid reason, that single point of contact suddenly made her hyperaware of everything.
The noise in the café.
The closeness.
The fact that she could smell his cologne now something subtle and clean and unfairly distracting.
Adrian looked down briefly before realizing he was still holding her.
Then he let go immediately.
Too immediately.
“You almost dropped everything,” he said.
Elena blinked like her brain needed time to restart.
“Right. Yeah.”
“You should probably stop trying to injure yourself at work.”
“There are easier ways to flirt, you know.”
The words slipped out before she could stop them.
Silence.
Oh no.
Elena’s eyes widened slightly.
Why would she say that?
But then Adrian looked at her properly.
And slowly...very slowly...the corner of his mouth lifted.
“Was that flirting?” he asked calmly.
Elena hated him a little right then.
“Forget I said anything.”
“I don’t think I will.”
Heat rushed straight into her face.
Great.
Perfect.
Exactly what she needed.
Behind them, one of the students asked loudly if anyone was going to take their order.
Elena stepped back immediately, clutching the tray tighter.
“I have to work.”
“Obviously.”
She narrowed her eyes at him once before hurrying away.
And she could still feel where he touched her the entire night.
Which was insane.
It was a hand on her wrist.
Not a life-changing event.
So why was her body acting like it mattered?
---
Around closing time, Elena finally sat down for the first time in hours.
Her legs hurt.
Her head hurt.
And Adrian was still there.
“How are you still awake?” she asked as she dropped into the chair across from him for exactly three seconds of rest.
“You say that like I’m eighty.”
“You sit like someone with no responsibilities.”
“That sounds personal.”
“It is personal. I’ve been standing for nine hours.”
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
And weirdly enough, the silence didn’t feel awkward anymore.
That was new.
Outside, rain tapped lightly against the windows again.
The café had emptied almost completely now.
Just soft music playing in the background and Marcus pretending not to watch them from behind the counter.
“You never answered my question,” Elena said eventually.
“Which one?”
“What you actually do.”
Adrian looked down at the coffee in front of him.
Then back at her.
“I invest in companies.”
“That sounds vague on purpose.”
“It usually stops people from asking more.”
“But not me?”
“No.”
Elena leaned back slightly in her chair.
“So you noticed that too.”
“I notice most things about you.”
The words landed quietly between them.
Too quietly.
Elena’s chest tightened unexpectedly.
Because he didn’t say it flirtatiously.
Didn’t say it like a line.
He said it like a fact.
And somehow that felt more intimate.
Adrian seemed to realize it too a second later because his expression shifted slightly.
Like he almost took the words back.
But he didn’t.
Elena looked away first this time.
Again.
She hated that she kept doing that around him.
“You make people nervous on purpose?” she asked softly.
“No.”
“Then why do you talk like that?”
Adrian watched her for a second before answering.
“I think you hear things too carefully.”
That shut her up immediately.
Because maybe he was right.
Or maybe she was starting to pay too much attention to him.
Which honestly felt worse.
Marcus called from across the café.
“Elena, we’re closing.”
She stood slowly, grabbing empty cups from the table.
Adrian reached for his coat.
And for a second, both of them moved at the same time.
Their hands brushed accidentally.
Small contact.
Barely there.
Still, Elena felt it instantly.
So did he.
The pause afterward lasted maybe one second too long.
Then Adrian stepped back slightly.
“Goodnight, Elena.”
His voice sounded quieter now.
She cleared her throat lightly.
“Goodnight.”
He held her gaze for another second before finally walking toward the door.
And this time, Elena watched him leave first.
- Writer
