Chapter 3

The early dinner shift turned into an extra midnight shift when one of Wolvie's waitresses called out of work for the night. Other than the fact that her feet hurt tremendously, Anna couldn't be too upset. Jean, the other waitress, was a single mother of a young girl. Her daughter, Rachel, was running a high fever and the babysitter was unwilling to watch her while she was sick. In addition, this opportunity provided Anna with extra tips in her pocket. Anna had always noticed a sort of attraction between Logan and Jean, but neither ever spoke or acted on it. Subtle glances and kind moments between Logan and Jean were all she ever witnessed; yet, she just knew.

At the moment, Anna was helping Logan move a large bag of flour from the pantry to the kitchen. Since arriving at Wolvie's, Anna had been slowly helping Logan revamp the diner's menu. She took many of Kayla's old menu items and added her own little twists. One of her changes to the menu was the addition of her signature dessert, beignets topped with fresh strawberry whipped cream. A slight addition of orange zest to the dough added a layer of freshness that drove the customers mad, and the strawberry whipped cream put the flavors over the top. They had seen a steady increase of customers since its recent debut on the menu.

Anna generally began the process of making beignets the night before in order to prepare them for the next day. All those beignets required lots of flour. Anna wasn't sure if it was sheer exhaustion or her lack of attention, but she inadvertently bumped into the corner of a metal counter in the kitchen. The pain caused her to drop her end of the bag, resulting in a large cloud of white flour to mushroom into the air.

"Damn it," Anna yelled. It was just a perfect addition to her already long day. She caught a glimpse of her image on a small mirror that hung on the wall. The whiteness of the flour covered her hair completely. So much that you couldn't even tell she already had a white streak of her own. This coupled with the soup stain down the front of her uniform and the dark bags under her eyes qualified Anna for what many would call a "hot mess".

"Leave it, kid," Logan sighed, seeing the tears begin to well up in her eyes. He knew he shouldn't have asked Anna to cover for Jean, but he figured that she needed the money for school. "I'll take care of the flour. Take a couple minutes to get yourself cleaned up."

Anna merely nodded, too worn out to verbalize even a sound.

As Anna walked into the bathroom, Logan heard the bell jingle as the diner's door opened.

"Someone'll be right out to help you," Logan yelled out from the back. He gave out another deep sigh as he grabbed the broom to gather the flour from the floor.

~oOo~

Ding, a small golden bell sounded as Remy pushed open the diner's doors. He would have thought he was alone, except a man had just called out from behind a set of swinging doors.

"Whenever you get a chance," Remy replied. "Not like I'm in a rush to be anywhere," Remy continued in a volume that was just under a whisper.

As he waited for someone to take his order, he surveyed his surroundings. To call the diner quaint was an overstatement. It looked as if someone had once taken enough care to give the diner a home-like feel. Small little touches, like personal framed photos, adorned the walls of the establishment called Wolvie's. The curtains that hung around the windows reminded him of his grand-mere's house. The pale yellow walls and plaid themed chair cushions gave it a calm, country home feel.

There was a loud crashing sound coming from the area where he assumed the kitchen would be. He wondered if he should get up to see if there was a struggle going on. However, in his current drunken state, he wasn't sure if he would be of much help anyway. As Remy's impatience grew, he decided that he would only wait two more minutes for a cup of coffee.

As Remy waited in one of the counter seats, he heard the slightest of buzzes. He realized that the sound was coming from his pocket and remembered that he had put his phone on vibrate while he was at Foxes. "Belle, merde," Remy cursed. This woman was not going to stop calling. Finally surrendering to her relentlessness, Remy answered his phone. "Hello, cherie."

"Don't 'cherie' me, Remy LeBeau," the shrill voice yelled through the speaker.

~oOo~

Anna walked out of the restroom after cleaning up most of the flour in her hair. Trying to dust it out, of course, only resulted on more flour on her uniform. She convinced herself that she looked like the walking dead. The dried tomato soup on her skirt even looked like old blood. As she walked back toward the kitchen, she noticed one of the most handsome men she had ever seen sitting at the counter. She was mortified given her current appearance.

She dashed through the swinging door back into the kitchen. In her haste, Anna collided with one of the large mixing metal bowls Logan had set out for her beignet dough. As the large bowl clanged on the tile floor, Logan gave her a befuddled look. He reminded himself not to ask the kid to work a double shift in the near future. It was obviously too much for her to handle.

"Everything okay with you, kid?" Logan questioned.

"Um," Anna hesitated, "yea. Everything's fine."

"So," Logan paused. "You gonna help that customer, or you need me to take care of this one?"

"Huh? Oh, no. I got it, Logan," Anna answered. She ran her fingers through her hair and fixed her ponytail. She dusted off more of the flour off her uniform and took a deep breath as she walked back into the main dining area.

By the time she walked back out, he was now on his phone. She took notice of his slightly long chestnut hair and chiseled features. Anna was surprised by how she was reacting. It's not like she hadn't seen a good-looking guy before. But, after she gave it a quick second thought, her only recent male company as of late had been Logan. Although Logan had an appealing look to him, he was just too gruff and too old for her taste.

As she walked up to him, Anna could hear that he wasn't happy. She waited for him to acknowledge her, not wanting to interrupt his phone call. Suddenly she heard him say, "Hold on." He turned to her and she held her breath. A pair of dark brown eyes further hypnotized Anna.

"Coffee and uh…" the handsome customer paused. "What do you recommend, petite?"

"Umm, the beignets here are to die for," Anna replied. Did he just call her petite? Why did that excite her so much?

"Bon, coffee and beignets. Merci," the man replied, turning his attention back to the phone call.

Anna walked back into the kitchen and prepared an extra special batch of her extra special dessert.

~oOo~

"Belle, I already told you that I am not with a woman right now," Remy argued.

"No? Then who was that I just heard?" Belle disputed.

"That was the waitress, Belle," Remy explained.

"I'm not stupid, Remy. I know that you're with a woman right now. I'm coming over right now." Belle insisted.

"Well, if you do that, you'll see that I'm not there because I'm not home! Mon dieu, how many times to I have to tell you the same thing?" Remy was getting angrier by the minute. The waitress emerged from the kitchen with his coffee. Remy took notice of the cuteness she possessed, despite her horrendous appearance.

"Here's your coffee, sugar. The beignets will be out in a minute," the waitress said.

"Merci, chere," Remy smiled at her. He noticed her blush slightly.

The bickering with Belle turned into a full out argument within minutes. Remy was almost embarrassed to be having such a ridiculous conversation in public. The cute little waitress emerged from the kitchen once again, this time with a plate of hot fresh beignets. She placed the food in front of him and walked back into the kitchen. The aroma made Remy's mouth water. As he took a bite of a piece of fried dough, Remy let out a delightful moan. It was as if his mouth had an orgasm. The dough was prepared well and fried to perfection. The addition of the strawberry whipped cream was an unexpected twist.

"What exactly are you moaning about, LeBeau? I knew it! You are with a woman!" Belle screamed.

"Belle, don't be silly," Remy said with his mouth full. "I'm eating the most delicious beignet I've ever had, chere."

"Right," Belle replied sarcastically. "You expect me to believe that Remy LeBeau is moaning over a beignet? I'm not stupid. That's it. Either you're at your house in a half hour, or I pay a little visit to your father in the morning."

"You're crazy woman," Remy argued.

"Twenty nine minutes and fifty seconds," Belle replied coldly.

"No way am I responding to threats," Remy said.

"Twenty nine minutes and forty seconds."

"You're acting like a child, Belle."

"I'm sure your father will agree with me on this. Twenty nine minutes and thirty seconds."

"Fine," Remy surrendered. "I'll see you in a few minutes." He pulled out some cash from his wallet and left enough to cover his coffee, the beignets, and a tip. He shook his head in disappointment as he stared at the wasted plate of beignets. It was almost criminal to leave them uneaten. Before leaving the diner, Remy bit off one last mouthful.

~oOo~

"Why are you grinning so much," Logan asked suspiciously.

"No reason," Anna answered. What was she going to say? She was acting like a silly little schoolgirl because there was there was this gorgeous man sitting at the counter. She continued to prepare some honey for the gentleman, just in case he wanted some for his beignets. However, her heart sank as she walked back out to give it to him. The man was gone. The sudden disappearance of the customer wasn't nearly as painful, though, as was the sight of the barely eaten dessert. Anna was glad to see that he at least left money to pay his bill. Her jaw dropped, however, as she picked up a one hundred dollar bill.

~oOo~

Robert Drake stormed up the pathway that led to the large oak doors of the Xavier home. He fixed his hair before ringing the doorbell. After waiting about a minute, a tall slender woman opened the door. She had long, flowing hair that was as white as snow and café colored skin. Her eyes were a pale, sky blue. Often regarded as the most exotic and beautiful of Xavier's daughters, Ororo had dabbled with modeling in her teens. However, she found the world to be too superficial and decided to follow her passions. She was currently working as a field assistant engineer for NOAA, or the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Anna often teased Ororo, calling her a glorified weathergirl.

"Bobby," she said with a puzzled look on her face. "What are you doing here?"

"Ororo," I need to talk to you. "I was wondering if I could come in."

Ororo let out a sigh and answered. "It's not a good time. We just got home from Scott's latest exam. We're all very tired. I'll give you a call tomorrow, and we can talk then."

"Don't even think about shutting that door, Ororo. Listen you need to hear me out. I fucked up. I get it. I shouldn't have cheated on Anna with Kitty," Bobby pleaded.

"No, Bobby. You shouldn't have cheated on Anna period, with Kitty or anyone else," Ororo replied with an edge in her tone.

"I know. And that's why I need you to tell me where she is," Bobby explained. "I'm admitting my mistake. But, you have to admit. Anna taking off and disappearing is pretty fucking messed up."

"Bobby, I've had about enough of your language. Please try to show some respect for this family. You've done enough damage already." Ororo's patience was thinning. "Besides, I have no idea where she is. She won't tell any of us."

"Fine, I'll leave." Frustrated with the lack of an answer, Bobby turned to walk back toward his car. "I know you're lying,'Ro. I'm going to find out where she is, whether you help me or not."

Ororo watched as Bobby's tires screeched down their driveway. She waited until the car's brake lights disappeared in the distance before she went back into the house. Ororo leaned against the door and closed her eyes. Ororo felt a sense of dread wash over her.

"I hope you're safe, little sister."

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