"Hello," Caius says warmly, giving Ann his absolute most charming smile, "My name is Caius and I-."
"Cash, check or credit," Ann interrupts staring up at him with a bland expression. Caius admits he falters for a moment, not sure how to proceed.
"Er, cash. I wa-," once again, Ann cuts him off.
"That'll be $9.43 sir," she tells him and when Caius glances over his shoulder to look at Demetri, the other man is wearing a crestfallen expression that matches what Caius is feeling internally.
"Right," Caius says while fishing for his wallet. When he hands over his money, their fingers brush for just a moment and he savors it to be the only thing he thinks he'll ever get from her.
When she hands him his change, she doesn't even glance his way and crisply barks, "Next!"
Caius leaves with his proverbial tail between his legs. Demetri follows after and suggests, "She did tell me last time she does not appreciate being accosted at her place of work. Perhaps we simply need to stage a running into her outside of her job."
Caius considers that as he sinks dejectedly into the passenger seat of the car. He hopes the other man is right, because if she rejects him a third time he doesn't think he'll have it in him to continue on.
…
This guy is just so persistent, Ann thinks to herself as she clocks out for the night. That's the second time in two days he's tried to chat her up and one would think the enema incident would dissuade him from continuing. Apparently not, because he was in again tonight, this time buying a thermos.
Don't get her wrong, that smile was the sexiest thing she's ever seen in her entire life. If she'd been even a little bit less annoyed she probably would have jumped his bones right then and there.
Ann sighs and stops in the bathroom to look at her reflection. Not in a vain way, rather searching for what it was he might have been interested in. She just sees plain old Ann Fisher and that guy was sex on legs. It doesn't make any sense.
She huffs and turns to go home. If he tries that shit again while she's working, she's calling security on his ass.
…
If asked, Ann Fisher would tell you that she has no passions in life. She would say that her life is waking up, going to work, and coming home.
She'd be lying to you.
In reality, Ann does have a secret passion. For some reason she gets so darn embarrassed whenever it's brought up; she thinks it's because she struggles to accept compliments.
Ann likes to barrel race. She was a 4H girl just like every other kid she grew up with and her passion started there.
If asked, Ann Fisher would say she's just so-so at barrel racing; that it's mostly just a vague hobby. The trophies in her bedroom would tell you she's lying.
That's actually how Demetri cooks up his next plan to get Caius to interact with the future queen of the vampire race.
Caius looks up from his phone when Demetri slaps the printed out information about the upcoming rodeo down in front of him. Caius scowls and looks up at him, "What is this?"
"A rodeo," Demetri says simply, "Queen Anna-Louise will be competing there this Friday."
Caius immediately straightens up and snatches the papers up off the hotel room coffee table.
"You don't say?" Caius mumbles to himself while flipping through the information, "Well we must go then."
"Yes," Demetri agrees, then, he gives a grimace to Caius' Armani suit, "However, you will need to get different clothes."
…
Aro phone makes a small pinging noise that alerts him to a new message. Eagerly he grabs it off his desk and is opening the group chat between himself, Caius, and Marcus.
Caius doesn't include any message; rather, he simply just sends a video clip.
Aro watches intently as a woman riding a horse goes racing past to circle some barrels. The way she commands the horse is incredible and Aro finds himself watching and then rewatching several times.
At last, after several minutes, Caius includes a brief message.
Our Anna-Louise likes to barrel race.
…
Ann is still feeling the flush of joy of racing when someone approaches her while she's riding her horse out of the arena.
Dressed in possibly the finest, and most ridiculous looking cowboy attire, is the enema man from Walmart. Ann lets out a surprised laugh at his appearance and, still feeling good from earlier, talks to him.
"Well aren't you just a vision," she comments while leaning her elbow on the horn of the saddle.
The man, Caius she thinks his name was, looks a little embarrassed but his face lights up rather adorably when she talks to him.
Ann decides then and there that she'll give him a single chance to woo her tonight.
…