*TW: Slight mention of past assault*

Kat stood outside the entrance to the coffee shop, fiddling with the strap on her messenger bag. She had simultaneously been dreading and looking forward to this day all week. Why she thought it was a good idea to accept a date with a handsome stranger in a coffee shop was beyond her. Larry wasn't even her usual type anyway. She usually went for tall, dark, and handsome. Not that tall, dark, and handsome usually went for her, but that was another matter altogether. Larry, at least, definitely ticked the tall and handsome boxes. Normally light and boyish wasn't her vibe, but he managed to pull it off. He had an air of mischief and mystery about him that she felt drawn to.

She still felt baffled that he was seemingly as drawn to her as much as she was to him. While she had been grateful for his help, she wasn't anticipating anything beyond that. Especially not after she'd turned him down flat. When he had shown actual interest, she had been shocked. Brushing him off had been the wisest decision in her mind since he obviously either found her easy or just felt obligated to ask after helping. However, he had been insistent that his interest was real, not faltering on that sentiment even after she'd turned him down. After their encounter he had been in the coffee shop every Thursday between 3:30 and 4:00 PM like clockwork. And although he never approached her again, she could feel his eyes on her. Every week without fail he would watch her. Instead of having a rational response and ignoring what should have been creepy staring, she decided to be bold and buy him coffee. What harm could come from that, right?

She had just been planning to apologize for being curt and ask him once again to back off. Somehow, she had ended up with a coffee date. He thoroughly confused her. Normally a man of his caliber wouldn't have ever noticed her, let alone been attracted to her. He was a whole 10 while she was a 5 on a good day. Between his tall, lean frame, exotic accent, and boyish smile he could've won over any woman in that coffee shop. Hell, he could've won over any woman in New York. So why did he have his sights set on her? It wasn't as if her late 20s, book loving, slightly dumpy, teacher self was all that interesting. Yet the way he looked at her… She shivered in what felt like anticipation. It was as if she were the only woman he saw in the entire room.

Taking a deep breath to steady her nerves, she opened the door to the coffee shop and walked inside. Immediately she stopped short. Larry was sitting at a table near the entrance, waiting for her. A coffee cup and a muffin sat across from him on the table, and he held his normal iced coffee in his hands, his long pale fingers curled around the cup. He glanced up from his cup, which it looked like he had been intensely studying. When their eyes met, a wide smile spread across his face. He looked genuinely happy to see her.

"You're early" Kat remarked, walking up to the table and setting her messenger bag on the floor by her chair. "I normally get here a good 20 minutes before you." His early arrival had her off balance. It had given her no time to mentally prepare.

"I wanted to make sure everything was ready by the time you arrived." Larry smiled at her as he stood to greet her. He leaned in and gently pecked her cheek before sitting back down. "You told me your tea order, but I had to ask the barista about the type of muffin. I hope I got it right."

"Well, let's see about that." Kat slid into her chair and wrapped both hands around the coffee cup, bringing it up to her lips to take a sip. Earl gray, just like she'd asked for. The muffin was resting on a napkin. Lemon poppy seed; indeed her favorite.

"Do I pass?" Larry asked her with a grin. She couldn't quite get over his accent. Or his smile. What was a guy that looked like that doing with a woman that looked like her?

"With flying colors" she replied, flashing him a grin of her own.

"So, Darling," Larry reclined back in his chair. "Tell me about your day." His bright blue eyes bored into her green ones. Being pinned under the full weight of his gaze felt suffocating in the best of ways.

"Well, I'm a science teacher at the high school a few blocks from here. My days are a weird mix of exactly the same and completely different. Right now they're beginning to learn about macromolecules, like the basic structures of the organic molecules in daily life. Like carbohydrates and lipids and stuff like that. Today was the first day of the unit and the poor babies are so confused. I keep telling them it will get easier but of course they don't believe me. And don't get me started on behavior problems. Today alone I had to…" Midsentence she realized she was rambling. She picked up her drink and took a sip. His attention hadn't wavered from her. Not in the slightest. "Sorry, I could talk about teaching all day. I don't get to have a lot of adult conversations outside of my classroom." She blushed. Way to admit that her social life was lacking.

"No need to apologize" Larry drawled. "I like listening to you talk, and I love your voice. You weren't boring me. Please, continue." He gestured for her to keep talking. He wasn't being serious, was he?

"I just had some students mouth off at me today, that's all."

"And how do you handle that?" She watched as Larry took a sip of his iced coffee. It was so dark it looked nearly black. She didn't understand how he could consume that much caffeine in one sitting and still remain so calm. He must have a really stressful job, or just not sleep.

"Sometimes with a detention. I don't like giving them, but there's some language I won't tolerate. Usually, I pull the student aside and have a conversation. When a student that's typically respectful decides to spout off, there's almost always an underlying reason." Kat took another sip of her tea, breaking contact with Larry's piercing gaze.

"It sounds like you really care about your students. Do you enjoy your job?" Larry raised an eyebrow inquisitively.

Kat nodded. "I really do. Teaching definitely isn't the easiest job, but I find it very fulfilling. How about you? What do you do?"

"Upper-level management" Larry said with a smirk. "I keep all the underlings in line. Sign contracts. Mostly it's a lot of boring meetings." He took another sip, and she watched his throat work as he swallowed. Watching his Adam's apple bob up and down did funny things to her stomach.

"Do you enjoy doing that?" she asked him.

"Oh yes." His eyes flashed with something that should have felt menacing but didn't. She felt her heart rate spike. "I love being in charge." The flash of menace was gone, replaced with the promise of heat and pleasure. She nearly gulped, but she stopped herself. No need to give him the satisfaction of knowing she found him as attractive as she did. He clearly already knew he was hot shit. The question was, what was Mr. Hot Shit doing talking to her? She aimed to find out.

Kat did her best to steady her voice before speaking again. "So, I figured we could take turns asking each other questions. Get to know each other better, you know?" She took another sip of her tea, letting the slightly bitter flavor spread out over her tongue, grounding her.

"Sounds fair. Any rules on the type of questions?" Mischief flashed in his eyes this time. She narrowed her eyes slightly, suspicious. He was going to be a wily one.

"Let's keep them appropriate for a public space."

"As you wish, Kitten. We'll save the other kinds of questions for later." She felt her cheeks redden at the nickname he'd given her. She wasn't sure if she'd misheard him the week before or not. There was no mistaking it now, however. "Who should go first?"

"I'll go" Kat volunteered. "Given the choice of anyone in the world, living or dead, who would you want as a dinner guest?"

"You." Larry laughed. "But you already know that, so I'll pick someone else. Probably… my mother. She passed quite recently, and I would love to see her one more time."

"I'm so sorry." Kat felt her heart sink. Well, that hadn't gone in the direction she'd hoped.

"Don't feel bad for asking." It was as if he could read her mind. "You couldn't have known." Another sip of his drink. "My turn next?" He brought his right hand up to his chin as he thought, his forefinger tracing his bottom lip. Kat just nodded; her eyes fixed on the way his long, pale fingers traced his lips. Jesus. Did he even have any idea what he was doing to her? "What's your family like?"

"Dead." Kat answered with a wince. "My parents, brother, and grandma were living here when the city was attacked last year. I had moved away and was teaching in Oregon. After everything was all said, done, and fixed up, I inherited my grandma's old studio. I took that excuse to leave a bad relationship and moved here. Haven't regretted it yet."

Meeting Larry's eyes, she could've sworn she saw a trace of guilt. It was gone as soon as it appeared. "I'm sorry for your loss."

"I'm not." She waved off his concern. His pity wasn't wanted or needed. "My family was never anything other than horrible to me. I wouldn't have wished them dead, but I can't undo what's already happened. The only one I kept in touch with after I moved away for college was my grandma. She was already dying when the attack happened. Cancer. So, I think she was relieved to go the way she did. I know she didn't want the disease to take her." She took another sip of her tea. Silence sat heavy between them for a second. "We're awful at small talk."

Larry burst out laughing, which only caused her to laugh along with him. "That we are, Pet. However, I think it's your turn."

"Right." Biting down on the left side of her lower lip, she considered her next question. Larry flicked his eyes to her lips before bringing them back up to her face. Pride filled her. Clearly, she wasn't the only one being affected here. "What do you value most in a friendship?"

Larry considered this. His fingers gently rubbing his mouth the way they always seemed to any time he was seriously thinking. Kat picked up her muffin and gently nibbled on it while he thought. She loved that he was taking her questions seriously. After a moment, his bright blue eyes snapped back to hers.

"Wit" he answered. "I need somebody who can keep up with me. I normally get bored before most conversations even begin."

"Will you eventually get bored of me?" Kat asked, suddenly feeling very stupid and self-conscious. This man was obviously a player and had just chosen her as his next acquisition.

"No, I don't think so. Normally I know whether or not I'm going to be bored before the conversation even begins. And once I'm interested in something…" He let his statement trail off deliberately and took another drink from his cup. "Let's just say I have ways of getting what I want." She had to repress a shiver. Maybe being stupid wouldn't be so bad for once.

"And what do you find so interesting about me?"

"Ah uh." Larry shook his forefinger slowly in a "no, no" gesture. "My turn. Technically I already let you ask an extra question, so I'll go twice." Kat harrumphed, leaning back in her seat and crossing her arms. Larry just chuckled. "Don't worry, you'll get a chance to ask your question, Pet."

"Go ahead then, ask away," she pouted.

"Tell me about your life in Oregon, before you moved here. What was it like there?"

Kat thought for a moment, worrying her bottom lip between her teeth. "Green. It seemed like the only colors that existed outside were green and brown. It rained a lot, especially during the winter and spring, but I didn't mind it much. On days like that I would get home from class or from work and curl up with a book, listening to the sounds of the rain falling outside. My favorite thing was the beach. The beaches over there are sandy, but cold. I loved to spend weekends curled up in the bed of my truck, reading and watching the waves. I'd pile blankets and pillows in there and just… smell the sea."

"That sounds surreal. It seems like you miss it there." Larry was observant.

"I do. I like it here too, but it's so loud and busy sometimes. I miss how tranquil it could be just sitting there and staring at the waves."

"So why did you leave?" he asked. "You mentioned something about a bad relationship."

Kat winced. "The awkward exes talk already? You sure it isn't a bit soon?"

Larry just looked at her and raised his eyebrows. "That was my question. I suppose you could opt out… but then I still would have one more question to go." The mischievous glint in his eye made her reconsider.

She took in a deep breath and let it out before answering, steeling herself. "Let's just say he didn't like to be told no, in any context, and I got sick of it. I'd rather not go into more detail."

"Not necessary, Darling. I get the picture."

"Do I get to ask about your awkward ex stories now?" She perked up a bit at the thought. This caused Larry to chuckle.

"I thought you wanted to know what I found so interesting about you, but I'm feeling generous. I'll answer both." Larry winked at her, and shifted in his chair, crossing his long legs. Why did she have the urge to slap him and kiss him at the same time? She wondered how he'd react to her slapping him. For some reason she got the feeling that he'd like it. "I've never really had a serious relationship. Either there wasn't anyone I was interested in enough, or I haven't had the time. I have had my share of dalliances, however." Larry looked up at her sheepishly. Of course he had, looking like that.

"Am I one of these dalliances?" she asked.

"Hardly. You I'm actually interested in. You're not like any woman I've ever known."

"There are plenty of women like me out there. You're the unique one. I've never met a man like you before."

Larry smiled before replying. "There are no men like me."

"So, are you going to explain this mysterious interest in me?" Kat raised her eyebrows at him.

"I did promise you that, didn't I?" He grinned at her when she mock scowled. "Settle down, Kitten. I'll answer." He took another sip from his now nearly forgotten, almost empty, coffee cup. Kat went to take a sip from her tea only to find it was growing cold. "I like that you can keep up with me. You can play games and are witty, but you're also honest. That's not a combination I see often. You're also quite pleasant to look at, and that doesn't hurt."

She stared at him in shock. Her, pleasant to look at? Did he even see himself?

"You don't believe me?" he asked, reading her facial expression. "I like that you're sturdy. I play rough." He grinned, baring his teeth at her in an almost feral way. Kat felt liquid heat slide into her stomach. Even if she did end up being just another dalliance, she got the feeling that he was at least going to make it worth her wasted time.

"Whose turn is it?" Her voice came out breathier than she'd intended, and she cursed herself for being so obvious.

"Mine, Darling. You mentioned that you like to read. Tell me about your favorite book."

"I have to pick just one?" Her mind raced through the hundreds of books laying around her studio.

"I'm afraid so." Larry said with mock pity. She threw another playful glare his way, which just made him chuckle.

"Give me a minute to think…" She worried her bottom lip between her teeth again, mentally searching the piles in her studio.

"I want the name of the book that you can read over and over again without ever tiring of it" Larry clarified.

"Alice in Wonderland. For sure. It's my favorite thing to read when I'm down or upset. I may have started collecting keys because of that book."

"Really? You collect keys?"

"I like the mystery that they hold, especially old keys. Who knows what door they could have opened?" Kat smiled wistfully at the thought. "My turn now, right?" Larry nodded. "I'll go easy this time. What's your favorite color?"

"Green." He answered without a moment's hesitation, staring deeply into her eyes. She felt her breath hitch as she sat there entranced, captured by the surprising depth of his eyes, which, at the moment, were the same blue as the ocean at rest. She could have sworn that they were brighter blue earlier. Without breaking eye contact, Larry shook back the cuff of his blazer, only looking away to glance at his watch and check the time. "Unfortunately, Kitten, it seems our time is up. Have I earned that dinner date?"

"Oh, I suppose." She sighed in faux resignation. Larry just smirked.

"I'll meet you here. Next Thursday. 6pm." He stood up from the table, grabbing his cup, uncrossing his legs, and getting to his feet in one fluid motion. He leaned down, pressing a kiss to her cheek before he left and whispered, "Wear something pretty."

Hey all! Thanks so much for reading my story! I love reviews so if you loved my story so far, please let me know! I also post this same story on Wattpad (with gifs) and post trailers on Tiktok under the username KTwilight94. So, find me on there if you use either of those!

Much love,

Kitty