Beaten and Bruised

Chapter 2: Riley Smith

            I watch the jerk in the suit walk out of my coffee shop, but his friends stays behind. I look at him in disbelief. I am astonished at how arrogant people can be sometimes. I take the money out of the jar and put it into the register. The man who stayed behind was coming up to the counter.
"I'm sorry for his behavior, he's been through a lot" the man makes an excuse for his friend. 
"Yeah, well so have a lot of other people" I say back trying not to let my anger get the best of me. 
"You're right" he says as he flashes a beautiful smile. He was actually kind of handsome. 
"Why are you friends with a guy like that anyway?" I ask pushing my bounderies with a staranger. I had no business asking him that. 
"I actually work for him" he laughs. 
"Oh" I say a little suprised. He seemed like such a gentleman compared to the rude man he walked in with. 
"I'm Logan, by the way" he says holding his hand out toward me. 
"I'm Riley. It's nice to meet you Logan" I smile back at him. I was use to seeing strangers come through this coffee shop all the time, but he was different from all the others. 
"I'll see you around" he takes his latte and turns to walk out of the door. 
 I watch him walk away and notice the bulk of his body. He wasn't a body builder by any means, but you could tell he worked out. His eyes were ice blue and his curly blonde hair complimented them. 
        I finish out my shift at the coffee shop. I owned this place, but I still had my own shifts to work. I bought this place after my Mom passed away. She always wanted me to pursue my dreams, and this coffee shop was one of them. Not a day goes by that I don't miss her. She was the glue that held our family together. My Dad has been a mess ever since she passed away. Always drunk and passed out on the couch. I can hardly ever get him out of the house these days. The most he gets out is to buy more alcohol. 
        I finish cleaning up the shop and start to lock up. I turn around from locking the door and see the same handsome stranger from earlier. He is leaning against a black chevelle. It fit him well. He also didn't have his boss with him this time. 
"Uhm, we are closed" I say hoping I don't sound rude. 
"I saw that. I'm sorry to bother you again, but I realized that I might want to see you again outside of the coffee shop" he smiles as if hes nervous. 
"Ah, I see"  I say as I walk a little closer to him. 
"I should have asked for your number earlier, but here I am looking like a creeper" he laughs and I stare at him in awe. Men and relationships were the farthest thing from my mind right now. My last relationship was terrible.
"Thank you for showing the interest, but I kind of just got out of a bad relationship and I'm not really ready to jump into anything" I say hoping I don't sound to cliche. 
"We don't have to jump into anything at all. All I know is that I saw a beautiful girl working in a coffee shop, and I had to shoot my shot" he looks at me and not once does his smile fade. 
"Thank you, but I really need to get home. I have an early shift tomorrow" I acknowledge his compliment and make a way for my crappy cobalt. 
       I pull out of the parking lot that held all of my ambitions. I watched as Logan started up his car and drove the other way. What does he even see in a girl like me? I'm probably just another pretty face to him. He was sweet and kind but we were from two different worlds. Maybe I should have gave him my number. 
     I pull up to my childhood home and I know what I'm going to walk into to. I jiggle my key in the front door lock, it liked to stick and needed to be replaced. I walk into to see my Dad passed out on the couch, again. I push through the empty beer cans he had managed to finish today. I throw a blanket over him and grab the empty liquor bottle off of the table. I make it to the kitchen and open the fridge. What do you know, no food. Just like always. Why did I have to be the one to step up. I forget about trying to eat something and make my way up the stairs so I can shower and sleep. At this point, there was nothing I could do. 
       I finally get my nightly routine done and lay down. It felt so good to be off my feet after a long day at the shop. I lovedmy job, but I really needed a few more helpers. Jenny was the only other person I trusted to work at at my coffee shop, we had been friends since elementary school. She was there when my Mom died. She helped me dig myself out of the black hole of depression I had let myself into. I battled with many things, but Jenny always told me my Mom would have wanted me to stay strong. Till this day, I choose to lead a life of kindness just like my Mother. Thoughts of my Mom drift through my mind as I feel my eyes flutter shut. 
    BEEP, BEEP, BEEP. I hear that dreaded alarm and sit up in my bed. I hear my Dad rustling around downstairs. There is no telling what he is doing. I get out of bed and make my way for the shower. I get in and let the hot waterrun down my body. I was so tense, and somewhat stressed. My life was a huge mess, and I am trying to navigate as best as I can. You would think I was a successful business owner, but small towns don't have much business at all. 
       I finish up my shower and throw on my work clothes. I pick a cute red dress with little white flowers on it and I slip on a pair of white flats. I throw my hair up in a simple messy bun, as usual, and I use very minimal make up. I was ready for the day. I had a short shift today so I was ready to get it out of the way. 
    "Riley" I hear from downstairs. My Dad must be looking for something to eat. His hangovers were the worst. His drinking caused him to eat like a teenage boy, hence why we never have a fully stocked fridge. 
"Coming" I say as I grab my bag and make my way down the stiars. I see my Dad standing in front of the empty fridge as if he is waiting for something to appear. 
"I'm hungry" he says turnng around to face me. 
"Yeah, me too. We would have food if you would quit going on your benders" I say hoping to strike some kind of emotion out of him. 
"Sorry, you know I'm trying to change" he says to me as I look into his sorry eyes. He always says he is trying to change, but never holds up his end of the deal. I'm tired of always having to be the parent to my Dad. I was the his kid, I should be the one being taken care of. 
"Yeah, I know Dad. I'll see you after work. I'll bring some groceries home with me" I say as I make my way for the door. 
    My drive to work consisted of thoughts about my future. I wanted to know if any of this was worth it. I have my own business, but I'm not truly happy. Everyday it's the same thing. Work, store, sleep, repeat. I never do anything for myself. Starting today I made the decision to start taking risks and living my own life. 
     I pull into the parking lot and see that same black Chevelle sitting right in front of my store. This guy just doesn't give up. I check my hair in the visor mirror before getting out. I grab my things and lock my car up and I see Logan making his way towards me. 
"Hey" he smiles at me. He one of the most genuine smiles I had ever seen.
"I know you can see that my store isn't open yet" I laugh back at him. 
"Yeah, but I needed another latte this morning and you have the best" he jokes. 
I motion for him to follow me into the store. I unlock the door and set my stuff behind the counter before I start to craft his latte. 
"So, are you like a personal assistant for that guy?" I ask. I know it was none of my business, but if he is going to be persistent I might as well get to know him.
"You say that. I've known him for years. He's honestly a good friend" he says back. I turn back around and finish steaming his milk. Lattes are an artform.
"What about you? Do you like working here?" he asks me. 
"I own this place" I say as I turn around and hand him his drink.
"A business woman, I like that" he says taking a sip. He burns his tongue and the latte lands on his shirt. I had him a towel and he tries to wipe the stain from his white button up shirt. 
"I don't think that is going to come out" I giggle at him. 
"It's okay. I have more like it" he says as he starts to unbutton his shirt. He had a white cotton t-shirt underneath that fit his body perfectly. I turn around when he looks up and his eyes meet mine. I didn't need him to see me blushing. 
"It's okay, you can look" he laughs and I try not to embarress myself. 
     Logan talked with me the entire time I opened up my shop. He was actually good company. Different company.
"Look I need to get going, but now that you know a little more can I get your number?" he asks with hope in his eyes. 
"I guess I can do that. After all, you did keep me company this morning" I flirt a little. I take his phone and put my number in. He gave me one last big smile before he jumoed in his car and left. 
      I worked my shift and handed over everything to Madison before I left. She was one of the best workers I had. She always did everything how I would. I appreciated her more than she would ever know. I get in my car and make my way for the grocery store when I saw that same black chevelle parked behind the local drug store. I thought that was odd, but I kept driving. 
       I walk down the grocery store aisles and try to keep in my budget. We usually ate a lot of spahgetti and chili dogs. They were cheap meals and we usually would have enough for left overs. I knew I would be back in a few days anyway. It really is so exhausting being the only responsible one. I pay for my groceries and start to walk back to my car. 
"Hey, let me get those" I hear from behind me. I turn around and see the same handsome man from earlier. 
"Are you following me?" I ask Logan. 
"Not at all. I was in the area and saw your car" he smiles taking the bags from my hands. 
"I thought that was your car behind the pharmacy" I say as I pop open the trunk of my beat up car. 
"Uh, yeah. I had a few things to take care of" he says placing my bags in. 
"You mean to tell me you actually do other things besides stalk me?" I joke with him. 
"Yeah, well I need to go now. I'll see you around" he says as he rushes off. 
"Logan! Wait, I was just joking" I yell out but he keeps walking until he gets into his car. 
       I throw my hands up and get in my car. That was weird. Logan had been so sweet the last few days, so why was he being weird? This is exactly why I didn't like messing around with men. All they do is confuse you and hurt you. I didn't need that in my life, I had t much to lose. I need to focus on running my business. Besides, I already had one messed up man at hime to deal with. 
   I get home and walk into the same thing I always do. My drunken Dad was laying in the same spot as always. I take the groceries in the kitchen and start to make dinner. I was starving and my muffin from this morning was nothing but a memory at this point. 
    I devoured my spahgetti and decided to go to bed. I still couldn't stop thinking about the way Logan was acting when I made that stupid joke. Did he have something to hide? Why am I even worried about it? I think I've tried so hard to protect myself from relationships that I don't know how to even react to affection anymore. I'm lonely and I know it. I'm just to stubborn to let myself be happy. It was times like this that I really missed my Mom. She would know the exact words to say when I felt this way. I drift into my dreams while thinking of my Mom and wishing she could be with me now. 
     "Riley, wake up honey! You are going to be late for school" I hear and try to open my eyes.
"Okay, I'm coming!" I say running down the stairs. It all seems so familiar.
"You ready?" my Mom says buckling her seatbelt. 
"Ready" I smile. 
We drive through the residential streets of my neghborhood and stop at the stop sign at the end of my street. I look both ways just as my Mom does. I see a black SUV coming for the drivers side of our car. 
"Mom, look out!" I scream as my eyes dart open and I sit up in my bed. 
I can feel my body ppanting for air and the sweat pouring down my face. I have had this nightare before and I've always hated it.  I picked up my phone and see a text message from a random number. 
Hey...It's Logan. I'm sorry I left like that today. I'm also sorry it's so late, but I didn't want you to think it was anything you did. 
2:30 a.m  

I felt a little relieved, but I didn't know how to reply to that. 
Hey. It's okay.

3:27 a.m 

I set my phone back down and try to go to sleep, but my phone starts to vibrate. I see Logans number flashing. I let it ring a few seconds, but something told me to pick it up. I have to start taking risks. 
"Hello?" I say into the phone. 
"Hey, Riley..." he says in a guilty tone. 
"What's up?" I ask not sure how to carry the conversation. 
"I'm really sorry about earlier today. I get weird sometimes..." he says.
"It's okay, really." I say back. He did nothing wrong. 
"Can I make it up to you with a date?" he asks. 
I thought about what my options were. I needed to find happiness for myself. This was just a ste in the right direction. 
"Yes. You can, Logan." I say trying not to sound to excited. 
"Great. Can I pick you up tomorrow at 7?" he says.
"Okay." I giggle into the phone. 
"I'll see you tomorrow night, Riley. I'll let you get some sleep now, goodnight." He says.
"Goodnight, Logan." I say as I hang up the phone. 
       The thing about taking risks, is you never know what the outcome could be. You don't know how it can affect your happiness until you try. I didn't know if Logan was going to be the answer for me, but I know if I didn't give him a shot I would never know. The chances we don't take are missed opportunities. I hadn't given myself enough courage to try anything different after my last realationship, and that wasn't fair to me or anyone who wanted to be apart of my life. Who knows, there could be someone out there for me, and I just have never given them a chance. I went back to sleep that night with butterflies in my stomach. I couldn't remember the last time that I felt this way. I was ready to see what tomorrow night had in store for me.