For some reason, the formatting of the story messed up! So I fixed it and here is the better formatted one. Sorry for the inconvenience. Enjoy!

Chapter 1

The snow had just started to fall as I ducked into The Mortal Coffee Shop.

I was greeted with the crisp smell of freshly grounded coffee that sent a warm feeling through my body. The place was filled with paintings, and books to read. It sent off a welcoming vibe. I was looking forward to settling down on the big plush couch and sit by the warm glowing fire.

I walked towards the lineup but didn't bother looking up at the today's special, I had it memorized; Friday's Special: Caramel Latte with a warm croissant on the side.

The familiar tune of the piano was playing and my body started to relax. Today had been a rough day at the art studio and I knew that coming here would be a secret little escape from reality.

"Excuse me, it's my first time here, do you have any recommendations?" spoke a deep, almost raspy voice.

I turned around and found myself staring at a pair of gold eyes blazing like fire.

"uhh.. well today's special is the Caramel Latte, but their freshly brewed coffee is what I normally go for." I said, and managed a weak smile.

"Sounds good, I'm Jace, Jace Herondale," he stuck out his hand and I shook it; his hand felt strong.

"I'm Clary… uh, Clary Fray." I said awkwardly, realizing I was next in line I turned and saw the familiar face of Alec behind the counter.

"Hey Alec, the usual please." I said, I enjoyed talking to Alec he was always sweet and fun to be around, now that could be an influence off of his boyfriend Magnus but I wasn't complaining.

"One coffee, 2 milk 1 sugar coming right up!" He beamed at me, and looked behind me, his smile turned into a smirk. I figured he noticed Jace standing behind me.

"And your friend?"

"Uh, he's not my-"

"I'll have today's special please, I'm Jace by the way." Jace and Alec shook hands and started to have small talk while I waited for our drinks, I guess he's my friend now…

Our coffees were ready and were served in mugs; each mug in the shop was different. Mine was black with white daisies, and Jace's was dark blue. We walked over to the couches and I took a seat in the corner which felt cozy and comfortable to me.

Jace took a seat across from me, and I finally got a chance to really look at him. He was about my age, maybe a year older and he had jaw length blonde wavy almost curly hair. His eyes were a bright golden brown, and his jaw line seemed to be chiseled to perfection. He was clean shaven and was wearing black jeans, a fitted shirt and a sleek leather jacket.

"You know you're staring right?" He smirked and I looked down at my feet and felt my cheeks turn crimson.

"Sorry" I replied quietly, I dared to peak a glance at him and he was looking at me with curiosity.

"So..Jace you new to the city?" I looked up as I set my coffee down on the table between us.

"Nah, I live about a block from here, and I was walking down the street and saw the shop, so I decided to come inside to see what it was like." His body seemed to relax and he leaned back into the couch, crossed his legs and his arm was resting on the arm of the couch.

I felt an awkward silence dropping in on us so I took a bite of my croissant hoping he'd break the ice.

"I would ask you the same, but clearly you're a regular here."

"Yeah I come here almost every day, I love the atmosphere, the people here." I take a deep breathe of the air, the smell of the fire burning.

"It's a home away from home" I say, and smile up at him.

"I can tell you enjoy being here, you look at ease. So Fray, what do you do?" He sits forward and places his elbows on his knees and props his chin in his hands.

"I own an art studio a few blocks from here. I just recently opened it with a friend, so you could say I'm an artist."

"That's pretty cool, maybe I should drop by one day." He says and takes a sip of his coffee.

"Maybe you should." I reply and smile.

Jace nods his head and looks around, he then gets up and walks over to Alec and hands him some change. He walks back with two freshly baked brownies and hands me one.

"I smelt the chocolate from here and couldn't resist," he says in between his gigantic bites.

"Well I'm guessing you like it, cause you're basically done." I say and giggle at him as I take a bite of mine. He looks down at his brownie and realizes It's almost done and frowns. I laugh and hand him mine.

"I'm not the biggest fan of chocolate, so have mine."

"Hmm, not a big fan of chocolate note taken." He says with a wide grin plastered on his face.

"And to answer your unspoken question, I'm a personal trainer. I work for a private training company, but I hope to start my own business soon." He says enthusiastically, I could tell he had a passion for what he did.

"If you really want it, you'll get it." My mother used to tell me that all the time after I finished college, I miss her.

Jace glances at his watch and his eyes widen.

"Oh crap, it's already 10:30, I should get home before my roommate locks me out, he has this weird curfew thing going on." He says and finishes the rest of his drink and places it down on the table. He gets up quickly and digs through his jacket pocket for something. He takes out a piece of paper and runs to Alec, and comes back a few moments later.

"Here's my number, call me when you're free, maybe we can catch a movie or something."

I take the paper from him and put it in my pocket, "goodnight Jace."

"Goodnight Clary Fray" he says with a smile and turns to leave to coffee shop.

Feeling exhausted, I walk back to my apartment and drag myself up the two flights of stairs. I get inside I take off my coat and hang it by the door, and drag my feet to the couch. I fall onto it and take out the paper that Jace gave me.

"646-864-7863

Jace Herondale, personal trainer and chocolate fanatic

Maybe I should give him a call tomorrow, see if he's up for another cup of coffee, I say and smile to myself.