Cup of Joe | A Joe Jonas Fanfiction

c h a p t e r t h r e e .

The cab rolled to a stop in front of the Coffee Cabana. From what she could tell, the place seemed cozy and inviting. Winter passed the driver some cash and thanked him for the ride as she mentally prepared herself for the unique situation she had found herself in. A rush of nerves made her stomach flip and she briefly entertained the idea of jumping back into the cab and avoiding the phone swap entirely. But, behind her, the taxi pulled away from the curb, leaving Winter no choice but to go inside.

As she pushed open the door, a bell jingled cheerily, announcing her arrival. A barista glanced up from the counter and waved.

"Welcome to Coffee Cabana. Make yourself comfortable and let me know when you're ready to order!"

Winter raised her hand in a half wave and nodded. "Thanks!" She scanned the dimly-lit room, eyes searching for the dark hair that belonged to Joe Jonas. In the room was a middle aged man seated at a table with a long haired woman, possibly his wife, enjoying a cup of coffee. There was a young girl with headphones in who was busily typing away on her laptop, surely working on some college project or something of the sort. And at last, sitting in the corner, wearing a beanie and facing the wall, sat a man who Winter could only hope was Joe. She exhaled slowly and walked over to the table.

"Um, Joe?" Winter asked warily as she approached.

The man turned in his chair at the mention of the name, sporting a gorgeous white smile. "That would be me!" He gestured to the chair across the table from him, "Please, take a seat. Would you like some coffee? I kinda owe you one, since you're wearing the one that I spilled on you earlier."

Shit. He's beautiful, she thought as she shifted from one foot to the other. A few seconds passed before Winter regained her wits and took a seat. Shaking off the nerves, Winter extended her hand to shake his. "I'm Winter. Sorry about this."

Joe shook her hand warmly, "Well, Winter. I believe this belongs to you," he said, brandishing her phone from his pocket.

"Right," she examined her phone, noting the newly broken screen, "and here's yours." She handed Joe his phone back.

"So, coffee?" Joe prompted.

"Sure, I'd love one. Black."

Joe waved over the barista who took the order and returned quickly with a fresh cup of black coffee for Winter. Bringing the cup up to her nose, she relished the warmth of the cup in her hands and the bitter scent that awakened her senses. Winter took a long sip and closed her eyes.

"Rough morning?"

Winter opened her eyes again, focusing on Joe, "You have no idea."

Joe was absentmindedly twiddling with a napkin on the table, "Wanna talk about it?" His soft chocolate brown eyes twinkled and the corners of his mouth lifted into a small grin. "I feel like I deserve to know the story that brought us here."

Seeing him tease, Winter nodded slowly and began explaining the situation. She told him all about the meeting and the ultimate demise of the meeting. About how her nerves had her distracted which is what resulted in the icy sidewalk slip up. About how hard she had worked to get to this point. Suddenly, the magnitude of the day's events sank in and Winter breathed out heavily and dropped her head into her hands.

Joe noticed her shift in behavior and leaned forward, "Hey, it's ok. There are plenty of opportunities in the world. Don't let one bad meeting get you down, Winter. What's that saying...when one door closes, another one opens."

"It's not - I mean, it's MORE than that. I owe my success to my boyfriend and I feel like losing out on this deal will really let him down," Winter lamented.