Natalie Carver is different. She's naive, oblivious, innocent, and all around pure.
Her mother would say 'too trusting' and her father would say 'sees the good in everyone'. Because of this her life experience is a little biased and privileged.
She is all things good, so she gets treated as such. It has made her unable to see the true dangers lurking around every corner. Her family has been the biggest contributing factor, they protected and sheltered her, to the point that she is blissfully unaware that she sees the world with rose coloured glasses. Despite all of this, she is normal.
Natalie is a cashier at a local homegrown bakery. She has worked there since she moved to California the day after her high school graduation, she has been a loyal employee and has practically become family to the little Italian couple that own the shop.
Today is an unusual day for her, the power had flickered in the middle of the night and her alarm clock had reset. For the first time since moving to LA 16 months ago, she was going to be late for work.
The birds chirping outside her window was what eventually woke her. Lying in her small one bedroom apartment Natalie knew that something was wrong, she always woke up before the birds. She shot up with a start to check her clock.
"No no no!" Panicked she reached for her old school flip phone and pressed the side button to show the time. "What?" Still talking to herself, Natalie jumped out of bed and raced around her room grabbing clothes, keys, shoes, and her purse.
As she ran by the bathroom a flash of orange in her mirror reminded her to go back and brush her unruly nest of hair. Running out door in record time she almost forgot to lock her door.
Work wasn't a long walk away, usually Natalie gave herself a half an hour to take her time and get there a little early. Today though, she was forced to jog the ten blocks.
"I can't believe this." She quietly berated herself when she stopped at a crosswalk waiting for the light to change.
"Oh my God! Darling, I thought you died!" Mrs. Grimaldi, the small but loud Italian woman yelled as Natalie walked in the front door. In reality she had not looked at the clock, nor had she noticed that Natalie was even late. But upon hearing the front door open she realized that her favourite employee was in-fact half an hour late.
"I'm so sorry, Mrs. Grimaldi! My alarm didn't go off, I think the power went out at my place overnight. I almost have enough money saved up for a new phone, one that has alarms like a normal person." Natalie rushed to apologize and explain while she went around the counter and picked up her name tag.
"Darling Darling, I'm just being funny." The old woman laughed to herself. "You're fine. Between work and university you deserve to sleep in every once in a while. Forget all about it. But not the phone, you should join us in this century."
"No no, I'll stay later. I feel so terrible" Now mumbling to herself because the old woman had wondered into the back to check on the baking.
True to her word, even though she was told to go home, Natalie stayed a hour after her shift to make up for being late. She had cleaned everything in sight and was now convinced she could go home and not feel guilty. She yelled her goodbyes to the Grimaldi's out back and left through the front door of the bakery. Leaving work she turned right and started the ten block trek back home.
Natalie was so deep in thought, imagining the best way to ensure she would never be late again, that she neglected to see the light above her change as she stepped off the sidewalk. She got half way across the road when a shiny town car slammed on its breaks, narrowly missing her.
The driver blew the car horn and rolled down its window to yell at her. Natalie jumped back in fright and looked up startled. She watched like a deer in headlights as the back door of the car opened and a very attractive man stepped out to also yell at her.
"Hey-" The attractive stranger began to yell as he climbed out of his car. He assumed the woman would see his face and know who he was. But there was no recognition. The stranger didn't know that she almost got hit by Cooper Grant. When he saw her face his mind went blank, his previous sentence forgotten. This poor stranger that almost got run over by his car, was absolutely beautiful. She looked so scared standing in the middle of the road in her little pink dress. To his dismay the cars behind them started to honk their horns and the girl seemed to snap out of her shock.
"Sorry!" The scared young woman shouted back sheepishly before running across the road to the safety of the sidewalk.
Cooper had to find out who she was.
YOU ARE READING
Dangerous Daddy
Romance"Hey-" the attractive man began to yell as he climbed out of his car. He assumed the woman would see his face and know who he was. But there was no recognition. The stranger didn't know that she almost got hit by Cooper Grant. When he saw her face h...
