Chapter Four

By the time Theresa made it to the Book Café, the early dinner rush was already in full swing.

"Excuse me! Excuse me!" she bellowed loudly as she darted through the crowd, weaving her way to the back room, where she donned her apron and name badge.

"Hey, Chad!" Theresa exclaimed to one of her co-workers as she slipped back behind the counter, smiling as she counted her bank.

"Hey gi-"

Chas Harris's voice drifted off as he looked over at her, his eyes nearly bugging out of socket as his eyes swept over her face. Theresa self-consciously ran her hand over the huge, nastily bruised bump on her forehead. With everything that had followed after the accident, she had completely forgotten about the knot.

"I got in a wreck," she exclaimed, shrugging her shoulders.

"Are you doin' a'ight?" Chad drawled, shifting his eyes up and down her body in a search for more injuries.

"I'm okay…but ugh! The guy who ran into me was such a total jerk! He had a rotten attitude, and he tried to blame the whole thing on me, when it was obviously not all my fault."

Chad just shot her an amused glance. He knew that when somebody made Theresa Lopez- Fitzgerald angry, she held nothing back. And he had a feeling that this case was no different.

"I mean, really, Chad. He was nothing but an obnoxious creep, and if I ever see him again, it will be all too soon."

"That bad, huh?"

The voice did not belong to Chad. With a sinking feeling, she turned to face Ethan Crane, standing at the counter, one corner of his oh-so-kissable lips turned up into a smirk.

"Oh, God, why me?" Theresa exclaimed loudly, throwing her arms up into the air. Chad glanced between the two in amusement, realizing that the guy standing before them was the total creep who had ran into Theresa's car.

This oughta be good, he mused to himself, waiting for the fireworks to begin.

And in response to Theresa's bemoaning, Ethan just let out a hearty laugh, knowing fully well that it would do nothing but infuriate Theresa even more.

Let the games began, Chad thought, folding his arms and waiting for the show to start.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

After Ethan had left the scene of the accident, he spent an hour driving around Harmony, thinking that this had been the worst day of his life. His wife had kicked him out. His mother and father were divorcing. His prized possession had been wrecked, and he had been extremely rude to an undeserving victim.

All in all, Ethan felt horrible. He normally wasn't such a prick, but there was something about this Theresa girl that…scared him.

It wasn't her model-worthy looks, or her undeniably sexy body. It wasn't the way her hair fell into luscious waves down her back or her smile radiating pure warmth. It was her eyes, and the way they seemed to stare straight into his soul, and see who he really was inside that scared him. No woman had ever frightened Ethan like this.

With Gwen…he had known her since they were in diapers. Yeah, she knew who he really was, but that was because of years spent together, loving one another.

It seriously freaked Ethan out that this Theresa girl, upon minutes of meeting him, could pinpoint his insecurities and faults to a "T".

And Ethan Crane hated feeling freaked out.

Just forget about her, Crane, Ethan told himself as he swung into an empty parking spot at the Book Café. It's not like you'll ever see her again, and if you do, you'll apologize, and get on with your life.

Get on with winning back your wife.

But as Ethan entered the Book Café, he felt his resolve fly out the window. Standing behind the counter was Theresa, her face scrunched up in concentration as she discussed something with a tall, dark guy.

The noise in the dining room was nearly deafening, but as Ethan stepped closer to the counter to order, he was able to pick up snippets of what she was saying.

"The guy who ran into me was such a total jerk!"

That caused Ethan's ears to perk up a bit as he maneuvered through the crowd.

As he reached the counter, she turned to face her coworker, her dark hair swishing lightly with her movement.

"I mean, really, Chad. He was nothing but an obnoxious creep, and if I ever see him again, it will be all too soon."

"That bad, huh?"

Ethan hadn't even realized the words had come out of his mouth until she whirled back around, an astonished look on her face.

"Oh, God, why me?" she exclaimed loudly, throwing her arms up in the air and glancing at the ceiling. Ethan couldn't contain his laughter as she rolled her eyes angrily and placed her hands on her hips.

Ethan had been prepared to apologize for his previous behavior the next time that he saw Theresa, but this was a bit too soon. And as much as it confused him, he was slowly starting to realize that bantering with this girl was the most fun he had had in a long time. She was just so easy to pick on! And the look on her face as she tried to come up with the perfect comeback…it was just way too adorable.

"What are you doing here?" she spat out, eyes narrowing into angry slits.

"Just stopped in to grab a cup of coffee," Ethan explained, pulling out his wallet.

"And out of all of the coffee shops in Harmony, you just happened to come in here? What, did you see my car in the parking lot, and-"

She stopped suddenly as the guy she had been talking to cleared his throat.

"Theresa, this isthe only coffee shop in Harmony."

Her face reddened at the guy's words. Once more, Ethan let out an amused laugh as she struggled to find something to say.

"Well, I, uh…"

"So, Theresa, are you going to take my order or what? I didn't come in here just to exchange pleasantries with you."

"So sorry, Mr. Crane. How rude of me! So, what can I get for you today?"

Ethan took his time in answering. Theresa shoved a menu at him and began impatiently drumming her fingers on the glass pastry case.

"Hmmm…the Tuna Croissant Sandwich sounds just delicious, but, so does the smoked salmon enchiladas."

"Why don't you order both? I mean, it must be difficult eating for two."

Ethan lowered the menu from his face, leaning against the counter, waiting for an explanation. She stood before him, eyes wide and innocent, which aggrevated Ethan to no end.

"Eating for two?"

Ethan glanced over at the guy Theresa had been talking to when he walked up, not surprised to see the guy straightening up around the cash register, pretending not to eavesdrop.

"Yeah. You and your ego."

Theresa smiled triumphantly while Ethan just stared at her in disbelief.

"Excuse me? I didn't come in here to be insulted, Theresa."

"Well, it's not like I insult people who aren't deserving, Mr. Crane."

It was Ethan's turn to blush furiously. She had him there.

"I guess just give me a bowl of Poblano soup, and a large mocha cappuccino, please."

She jotted down his order, and in a strained voice, asked him to please take a seat.

Ethan sat down on an overstuffed velvet couch and began flipping through the Harmony Herald, not surprised in the least to see a photo of his father on the front at a recent City Council meeting. He was glancing over the accompanying article when he felt a vibration coming from his pocket.

His cell phone.

"Hello?" he answered when he saw that it was his mother calling.

"Ethan, dear, where are you? You rushed off so quickly when we got home that we didn't even get to finish what we were discussing."

Ethan sighed softly, rubbing his temple. He really didn't feel like dealing with this right now.

"Sorry, mother, I don't want to discuss this now. I've had an extremely…difficult run in with an extremely neurotic person, and all I want to do right now is to eat a bowl of soup and catch up on some reading. Unless, of course, my psycho waitress decides to poison my soup, in which case, I don't think that I would like to eat it. I wouldn't put it past her, though. But if she doesn't poison my soup, then I would like to be able to eat it, in peace. Is that okay with you?"

Ethan had found early on in life that by stretching the truth to his mother made things in his life a bit easier. And truth be told, his run-ins with Theresa hadn't been extremely difficult, just kind of…bizarre. And Theresa wasn't extremely neurotic, just slightly neurotic.

But he still wouldn't put it past her if she did indeed poison his meal.

"Oh, my! Are you okay?"

Before Ethan had a chance to respond, he felt something gooey running down his forehead. It dripped down his face onto his lap, and before he even had the chance to see what it was, Theresa was kneeling in front of him, eyes sparkling. She had was holding a large bowl with the remnants of his Poblano soup in her hands. She set the bowl down on the table beside her, then lifted her hand to his face, running her index finger lightly across his cheek. Then slowly, she lifted it to her mouth, licking it almost sensuously. Ethan squirmed at her touch, not quite fathoming what had just happened.

Then, she suddenly stood up and leaned in towards him, her breath tickling his neck.

"No poison there," Theresa whispered into his ear, then she pulled back and practically skipped away. His cheek burned where her finger had caressed him.

"Ethan? Are you there? ETHAN?" his mother creamed into his cell phone, snapping him out of his shock. As realization dawned on him over what had just taken place, a single thought formed in the back of his mind, one that wouldn't go away.

This is war. And Theresa Lopez- Fitzgerald, you are going down.