Secrets ✔

Chapter One

Aria hated the idea of being a statistic. She had always loathed keeping up with trends and following clichés, but naturally, there was an exception, that exception had a name; coffee. Like every other warm-blooded American, Aria was no stranger to this addiction; it had developed over the years and she could not shake it no matter how hard she tried.

That is exactly how she found herself standing at the front counter of her favourite café in Seattle; Espresso Bar, surrounded by the heavenly smell of coffee and fresh pastries. It was nothing out of the ordinary for her to have a sudden craving for coffee at midday; admittedly it may be her absolute dislike for clichés that fuelled her strange behaviour. While she liked coffee a lot, she never took her coffee in the morning; instead, she preferred an iced coffee at midday to satisfy her craving.

Her daydream was cut short by the barista handing her the delicious-looking drink, with a whipped cream peak and cocoa sprinkles sitting proudly on top. A wide smile graced her lips at the sight; thanking the barista, she turned to exit the café. What she didn't expect, however, was a man dressed in an impeccable navy suit to be standing directly behind her. A startled gasp escaped her lips as they collided, the impact was hard enough to pop the open top of her cup and allow the caramel-coloured liquid to explode all over her silk blouse.

Deagan's eyes widened as he realised what he had caused, too caught up in his thoughts he failed to see the woman standing at the counter to notice that he had stepped too close behind her. Subsequently being the cause of her spilling her drink all over her clothes.

"I am so sorry; I wasn't watching where I was going. This is all my fault, I am so sorry." He apologised profusely as he took in the radiant golden-haired beauty who had her arms spread out, cup in one hand, and purse in the other as she stared at the coffee seeping through her pink blouse. Deagan winced when he saw the huge wet patch and smeared whipped cream staining the fabric. He silently braced himself for her wrath, but much to his surprise, there was none.

Aria let out a breathy chuckle and a little shiver, "It's okay, relax, these things happen. I'm just glad that it was iced coffee." She said with a relieved look on her face, using the napkin to dab the remaining cream off of herself. Her response took Deagan completely by surprise, his eyes widened and his jaw dropped slightly. "What?" She asked, confusion marring her features when she caught sight of his expression.

"Uhm, I just wasn't expecting your reaction." He said still a bit dazed which made her smile and give him an amused quirk of her eyebrow.

"It's really okay though. Happens to the best of us." she smiled reassuringly which he returned, from the corner of her eye she caught sight of the clock above the door and saw that it was already 12:20, and remembering her meeting at 13:30 she became nervous, "Shoot! I'll never make it home in time to change and still be on time for my meeting." She said more to herself, Deagan's eyes widened as he realised the implications of his actions, then an idea popped in his head.

"There's a boutique few stores down, you could get something to change into. That way you'll have clean clothes and you'll make it in time for your meeting," he suggested with a beaming smile and she smiled in relief and nodded, gesturing for him to lead the way.

She shivered when the wind caused the wet blouse to stick to her skin. Deagan immediately shrugged off his suit jacket and draped it over her shoulders, earning a grateful smile from her as she tightened the jacket around herself.

A few seconds later he turned to face her with a beaming smile, "I'm Deagan Lockheart." Her breath caught in her throat when her eyes landed on his perfect dimpled smile and deep blue eyes, without realising, she found herself smiling back.

"Aria Gray." He nodded in acceptance, the smile still pasted on his face.

"I really am sorry about your coffee Aria." Genuine remorse was evident in his voice which made her chuckle once again.