02

WILLOW'S POV

AT JOSIE'S MODERN INN

"Welcome to Josie's Modern Inn. You're late," Miss Josie expressed disappointment, leaving me scrambling for a reasonable excuse.

"I... I woke up late," I stammered, feeling like my heart was slapping my brain. Why did I resort to the cliché "waking up late" excuse? I'm practically asking to be fired.

"Pffft... just go change and attend to that table. We'll talk later," Miss Josie instructed, handing me a menu. I grabbed my uniform and headed to the table.

"Finally, some excuse for service," hissed a young man in his early 20s, still engrossed in his New York Times. He set his papers down, and something caught my eye. It dawned on me that tonight's my shift at the casino. Due to unrelenting stress and work, I've missed several days. Life, why me?

"Fantastic, they've assigned me a darn dog as a waitress," the man snapped, pulling me back to reality. Now facing him, I gawk at the remarkably handsome man. He's so good-looking; it feels like a sin to be this gorgeous with such a foul mouth.

"Quit drooling and fetch me my coffee. Where's your manager?" he half-yelled. Suppressing my disgust, I tried to maintain composure while I tried to figure out his order.

"So what's your order sir...." I finally spoke.

"You weren't even listening... Hello, I want to see the manager!" he yelled, purposefully slamming his hands on the table. Miss Josie came to my rescue, sending me back to the counter.

I sighed, realizing I'm in a major mess. Way to go, Willow, that's one way to impress.

"What's the ruckus?" Allison joined me at the counter, and I pointed her directly at the chaos.

"OMG, is that Tristan Donovan ?" She began drooling, mirroring my reaction moments ago.

"Yeah, what's up with the dude? He acts like he can buy the whole damn city." I hissed.

"That's because he can. Don't you know? He's the owner of the biggest casino in New York. I thought you'd have figured that out by now, working in one," she said, playfully hitting me.

"Yeah, but I'm praying he isn't my boss. He's so arrogant..." I cursed.

"But he's single..." she whispered in my ear.

"I can't fathom how deep your head is in your ass. There's no chance I'd date someone as arrogant and hotheaded as him. Plus, I'm just a nobody, and he's a fucking billionaire. I have this sense that he doesn't like me at all," I remarked while Allison poured a cup of coffee.

"Nothing is impossible. Besides, you can just be friends, and maybe he can help you out so you can finally go to college – the subject you won't stop yapping about. Second time's the charm," she said, handing me the cup and pointing in Tristan's direction. This woman is definitely on something.

"You're aware he hates me, right? And I already hate him too," I gritted between my teeth.

"Stop being a baby," she said as Miss Josie and Mr. Tristan walked up to me. Allison pushed me forward, causing me to lose my balance and spill the scalding cup of coffee on Mr. Tristan.

"Fuck". Silently, I muttered a curse as Miss Josie, fueled by frustration, swung a tray at my head. Mr.Tristan took a step back, his eyes fixed on the scene. My attention shifted to him briefly before Miss Josie scolded me.

"What's the meaning of this, Miss Willow? It was stupid to spill hot coffee on Mr. Tristan. Apologize," she spat out harshly.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Tristan. It was an accident..." I began, but before I could finish, a harsh splash of warm coffee soaked my entire body.

I gasped quietly, mirroring the shock of everyone in the room. Even Miss Josie looked at me with pity.

"Fire her," Mr. Tristan demanded, and as Miss Josie stared at me with eyes full of pity, I realized that dumping coffee on me didn't mean we were even.

"Ma'am, please..." I managed to sob.

"Pack your things and leave," Miss Josie muttered harshly, yet I could discern pity in her eyes as everyone recorded the commotion on their phones. I grabbed my purse and phone.

Allison , remorseful, looked like she wanted to step in and support me, but I signaled her not to—she needed this job too.

"I'm sorry," she mouthed as she hugged me. I attempted to wipe my tears away, witnessing pity in everyone's eyes, except for Mr. Tristan, whom I already despised for being an arrogant prick

.

As I prepared to leave, Mr. Tristan summoned me. It took immense effort to control my frustration as I turned to face him.

"Remove the uniform," he said with a smirk. Perhaps he regretted his earlier coldness. Maybe he wasn't as much of a jerk as I thought.

"Alright, I'll go change in the back," I said, but he seized my hand and yanked me back towards him.

"No, take it off right here, right now," he insisted, and I wondered if he had lost his mind.

"But, sir, I can't do that in public. I need to change in the back," I argued. He approached, and our noses nearly touched, causing irritation.

"Are you afraid of a little strip show? Take it off now, princess," he whispered, his lips brushing my earlobe, sending a shiver down my spine.