The Viper's Den (Randy Orton)

1

A/N: Hey y'all! This is my first attempt at dark mafia romance, so please have mercy 😂 this chapter is mostly written in Cora's POV. I know most of these things are slow burns, but I CAN'T STAND slow burns lmao. This chapter is mostly tension/getting to know Cora. Trigger warnings here would be stalking, cursing, and kidnapping. Sorry for spoiling but if I don't spoil, people will come at me with a pitchfork. Anyway, that's enough of my rambling.

My name's Cora. I'm a pretty simple gal. I work at a coffee shop in Manhattan, just down the street from my apartment. The rest of my family are in the mafia. I wanted to be normal. That's the life I always dreamed of as I spent my days in the bedroom my abusive father locked me in. The room was hardly mine; it had a few things that I liked in it, but those were mostly from my mom. My mom was murdered and dad always told me that the rival mafia, run by a guy named Randy Orton killed my mom. Although, I heard some things that night that made me question that statement's truth. To put it simply, I've had a shitty life. I should probably go to therapy, but I'd rather listen to Skillet, Citizen Soldier, and drink some wine.  I stretch as I wake up to a Skillet song that I've heard too many times. My alarm's one of them special ones that make you do something to shut it up. The default is having to shake your phone. So, after shaking my phone a shit ton of times, I finally shut the damn thing up, and walk into the bathroom, taking my phone with me. I get into the shower and give myself a quick rinse with some body wash. I know I sweat in my sleep, so when I can, I take a quick morning shower. After that, I dry off and get dressed, I decide on an all-black outfit that I'll pair with my favorite combat boots.

Then I put on my makeup, which is maroon eyeshadow paired with lipstick that's a reddish blue and then I brush out my hair and leave it down.

Then, I grab my purse, get in my car, and head to work. Once I'm at the coffee shop, I put my things in our staff locker, except for my phone and a pair of earbuds. I keep both of them in my pocket and walk to my register, sighing as I start another long-ass day. Several hours and near arguments later, I'm on break, sitting at a table, drinking some strawberry coconut milk I made for myself. I'm checking Tumblr and listening to
Music, laughing softly at a few funny posts. Around fifteen minutes later, my break is over, and I sigh, take one of my headphones out, and tuck my phone back into my pocket, singing softly as I make various drinks for various people. Making sure to say "Here's your drink, have a good day." when I hand people their drinks and "You're welcome." to the occasional "Thank you." When I look up, I'm a mixture of angry and surprised. out of every coffee shop in Manhattan, He picked this one "How can I help you?'' I ask coolly, but my voice has an undertone of venom. He smirks slightly, and says "Can I get a large Coffee? Black with three sugars'' I almost roll my eyes. That's three sugars from the most basic coffee in existence. He could make that at home, and I'm tempted to charge him extra just for asking for something so damn basic, but that would not only be wrong, it'd probably get me fired. I kinda like this place, so I ring it up like the basic-ass coffee it is. ''okay, that'll be $3.75, and can I get a name for the order?" He tilts his head slightly, his aquamarine-blue eyes staring into mine for a moment. It's almost uncomfortable, and if I'm being honest, a little arousing. Finally, he breaks the silence. "You already know my name'' I have to bite my lip, the audacity. Is he serious right now? I need a name for your order, asshole. "I'm sorry, I didn't hear you; can I get a name for the order?'' I ask politely, causing him to chuckle softly. ''I'm Randy, sweetheart'' he says, setting a ten-dollar bill on the counter. I smile as if I don't already know that, taking the ten off the counter and making change, " do you want your change?'' I ask sweetly, holding $6.25 in change. He shakes his head. "Nah, keep it as a tip'' he says, closing my hand with his. For being the man who supposedly killed my mom, his touch is surprisingly gentle. He holds my hand for a second as if contemplating something. While he's gently holding my hand, I can't help but notice how his hand practically dwarfs my own and just how tall he is. At 5'7, I'm tall for a woman. But, Randy's got to be almost a foot taller than me, which makes him, about 6'5. what breaks me out of my half-staring, half-thinking state is him gently kissing my hand, before letting it go. "uh, okay thanks.'' I stutter out, placing the change into my pocket. "You're welcome, my little sapphire'' he says, gently brushing a lock of my sapphire blue hair out of my face. He walks off to a nearby table and sits down, while I turn to Lyra, my best friend and coworker. "hey girl, I got a simple one for ya.'' She turns to me, looking surprised. ''oh really? what is it?'' I smile for some reason before answering. "large black coffee with three sugars.'' Lyra nods, and in almost record time, she's setting the coffee in front of me. I smile and thank her and turn around and Randy's standing right there at the counter, I almost jump in surprise as I hand him his coffee. "have a good day'' I say, almost genuinely. "You too, and sorry for startling you, little sapphire." he says turning around and walking out of the cafe. leaving me slightly shocked and a bit more aroused than I care to admit. I try to say "it's no problem", but the words die in my throat. When I come back to reality, Lyra is laughing her ass off. "Seems like you're smitten with Mr. Dark and mysterious," she says, continuing to laugh as I playfully hit her arm. "Shut up." she laughs some more, fanning me dramatically. ''Gotta make sure you don't overheat, you're red as a tomato right now'' I smack her hand away, clearly completely embarrassed. For some reason, the rest of the day flies by. Maybe it's because I'm thinking less about the people who are ordering coffee and more about Randy. At the end of my shift, I go to the staff locker and get my things. while I'm there, Lyra walks up and hugs me from behind. I turn around with a laugh. "you wanna get some drinks tonight?'' Lyra asks, letting me go. I shake my head. "Not tonight Ly. I'm gonna use a bath bomb tonight and maybe even read a book.'' She sighs dramatically."Ever the introvert, Cora.'' I roll my eyes playfully "I'm heading home. be safe and don't get too drunk, okay?'' she smiles and gives me another hug, which I happily reciprocate. ''have a good time reading Shatter Me'' I laugh softly. ''Thanks.'' After my conversation with Lyra, I get my things and head to my car. I take a moment to decompress before starting it and heading home. Once I get home, I unlock my door and walk in. ''Ah, so you're finally home. it took you long enough to get here.'' My head snaps up at the voice and I come face to face with the cold, cruel eyes of my dad, Mark. I feel a prick on my neck, and the last thing I think before I pass out is "Damn it, I should've gone out with Ly.''

A/N: Hey Y'all! That was angsty, and I thought I'd mention, the next chapter is in Randy's POV and I've got an interesting twist. all I'll say is, this world isn't as normal as it seems.