Amelia knotted the scarf around her neck and slipped on her gloves as she walked down the street toward her favorite coffee shop. It was a rare day off from Raven’s Publishing and she planned to have a relaxing morning.

The café was only a few blocks away and the freezing-cold air stung. Normally she’d take an Uber when it was so cold, but the walk would help her relax.

The trees were bare of leaves and there was still some slush on the ground. It would be gone by lunch for sure. It didn’t normally snow in Portland, but it had been an unusually cold winter. One she was actually enjoying. Amelia always felt like the strange one for enjoying cold weather, sweaters, and roaring fires while everyone else complained how long winter was.

When she pushed the door open to the Black Rock Coffee Bar the smell of coffee beans and quiet chatter instantly calmed her. There was hardly anyone there on a Monday morning right after the rush which was perfect. Amelia loved having Monday’s off. It was the best day to run errands and reset her brain after the insanity of her job. Nothing was due to release for months now thanks to the Christmas rush.

After ordering her ridiculously expensive pumpkin spice white mocha, she headed over to the fireplace and settled in for a morning of working on her bullet journal and reading a book she wanted to read for once. The café was quiet and the chill from the weather couldn’t reach her inside. Amelia peeled off her navy pea-coat, and her Burberry scarf and gloves. She settled in, pulling her E-reader and journal out of her bag.

One of the baristas brought her drink in a mug, beautifully topped with whipped cream and spices, along with her small breakfast. Quietly she thanked him and settled her journal on her lap. It would be another week of getting her author through the developmental editing before they would then send it to the line editors.

Amelia couldn’t wait to see the book on the shelves. No doubt her boss would ream her for something that would be difficult to market, but she didn’t think diverse books were difficult to sell when the readers were so hungry for it.

“May I sit here?”

She recognized that voice.

Amelia looked up and found the man from the club standing in front of her. Her eyes went wide even though she tried to hide her shock. It had only been a few days and she’d honestly never expected to see him again. He was still just as gorgeous as the last time she’d seen him with his rich brown skin, sharp jaw, and long black hair. He had it out of the ponytail this time.

God, he was gorgeous. Why did the hottest man she’d ever seen in her life have to pop up on her day off? Didn’t fate have something better to do?

He smiled, showing off straight white teeth. That smile made her belly flutter and Amelia felt giddy. But of course instead of saying something nice and welcoming, her inner bitch came out. “What are you doing here?” she snapped.

That smile didn’t waver despite her tone. “I like coffee.” He shrugged. Still he didn’t sit, waiting for her to allow him into her space.

She narrowed her eyes but gave a sharp nod. This man had never been in her café before and there was only one reason he’d be here now.

The silence between them was strained as she purposefully ignored him, staring into the crackling fire as she sipped on her decadent coffee. He sat in the worn armchair next to hers. Amelia closed her bullet journal. The last thing she wanted was for him to see the scribbles and doodles and habit tracking she liked to do. It wasn’t just work in there, it was her whole life.

“So, I never caught your name,” he teased, his deep voice rumbling. Somehow it reminded her of hot chocolate and brandy. “I’m Kai, and you are?” He held out one of those massive hands for her to shake, the same ones that had made her whimper the other night.

She gave him a withering stare, seriously contemplating just getting her stuff and leaving. It pissed her off this man had somehow tracked her down and invaded her precious time off. “Amelia,” she finally said, refusing to shake his hand. There wasn’t much he could do with a first name alone.

He dropped his hand, completely unfazed by her rejection. “What a beautiful name.”

She rolled her eyes and started packing up. This was ridiculous. A one-night stand was supposed to be just that, one night. “I have somewhere to be,” she told him.

Kai stood up and she blinked. She’d forgotten how tall he was. “No, I’m sorry. I’ll go. I apologize if I’ve made you uncomfortable. It was nice to see you again Amelia.”

The gorgeous man who actually had a name made his way to the counter and in a few seconds he was handed his coffee in a to-go cup. Amelia watched him leave. Kai never once turned back to look at her. She couldn’t help the small pang of disappointment. Then she cursed under her breath for how stupid she was being.

Amelia was not a damsel in distress. She was not one of the women from her dirty romance books that needed a man in her life. She’d managed to stay out of a relationship for the last five years and she didn’t plan to start looking for one now.

Maybe Kai in her café was just a coincidence after all.

Amelia sat back down in her comfortable chair after Kai disappeared around the corner. The crackling flames mesmerized her, and her bullet journal was completely forgotten as memories of what he’d felt like inside her hit her. Damn, she’d almost managed to forget, and now he’d gone and fucked it up.

Amelia sighed and pulled out her E-reader. Maybe one of her book boyfriends would help her forget about Kai.