The Billionaire's Never Notice

"The beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears, the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair. The beauty of a woman is seen in her eyes, because that is the doorway to her heart, the place where love resides. True beauty in a woman is reflected in her soul. It's the caring that she lovingly gives the passion that she shows & the beauty of a woman only grows with passing years."

----Audrey Hepburn

Jade's POV

"Good morning, Mrs. Chang. Did you sleep well last night?" I greeted my employer happily, Mrs. Grace Chang, a 65 year-old widow. I was concerned because she often had severe headaches and couldn't sleep well at night.

Mrs. Chang owned the small Coffee shop, in Manhattan, New York, where I got my family's bread and butter. I worked from eight a.m. till eight p.m. Monday to Friday as a cashier.

The place was understaff, so I often worked all around. I did the waitressing, coffee preparation, and sometimes cleaning the place after work. I couldn't complain, since Mrs. Chang was paying me well. Actually, not so well, but enough for my family to eat a decent meal every day and pay off the bills.

"Hi Jade, yes, I did. The pain reliever I took last night finally worked." She smiled adoringly at me.

"That's good. What did the doctor say?" I asked while putting my worn-out leather bag and old knitted coat inside a closet, and then I adjusted my black wig and took off my eyeglasses, to clean the lenses.

"It's just a migraine, nothing serious."

I was relieved that finally she listened to me. I told her several times to seek medical attention, but she wouldn't. She had a phobia of hospitals, medical clinics, syringes and doctors. She probably had a traumatic experience when she was a kid.

"George's wife had a normal delivery last night."

"Really? I'm so happy for them, after five years of trying, they finally have a baby. It's a girl, right?" I instantly became so excited for George, the barista.

"Yes, it is. Anyway, he can't report today. Could you fill in his place?"

OH. That would mean doing two jobs at the same time. Whew!

"Okay, no problem about that Mrs. Chang. I can manage." I smiled at her assuredly and fixed my crumpled brown floral vintage dress. Actually, it was my favorite dress and loved wearing it often. It belonged to my grandmother, as well as most of the dresses in my closet.

It was already eight o'clock, and time for the Coffee Shop to open. I wondered why the other employees, Suzanne and Kurt hadn't arrived yet. Suzanne was the waitress, who took the order and served the food. Kurt cleaned the tables, the floor and the bathroom.

Recently, I found out that Suzanne and Kurt were lovers. I caught them making out inside the bathroom. They forgot to lock the door.

"You retard! Don't tell Mrs. Chang about this or I'm going to break your bones." Kurt threatened me. He even twisted my arm behind my back. A tear suddenly fell on my cheek because of the burning pain.

"I won't, I promise. Let me go, please." I pleaded and finally he let go of my arm.

"Good. Remember that." His eyes were glaring at me angrily.

I rubbed my arm, it was so sore and my flesh turned red.

"Now, go, ugly monkey. You're not wanted here." Suzanne laughed and pushed me out of the bathroom.

Yup, they often bullied me, calling me names and I was used to it. I pretended not to hear their hurtful words. I just avoided messing up with them. I needed my job so badly and my family relied on me, besides Mrs. Chang was a good employer.

"Jade, I'll be in the kitchen. Just call me if you need help."

"Sure Mrs. Chang." I put on a black apron, getting ready for the first customer. I went inside the bar counter and turned on, the electronic cash register, as well as the coffee machines.

I learned how to prepare coffee from George, the barista. For almost a year that I'd been working in the coffee shop, he taught me how to do the coffee art works and the techniques in preparing a very good espresso. I learned the barista's complete guide to coffee and embraced the knowledge wholeheartedly.

I was cleaning the bar counter when the first customers came inside. Two men wearing black suit and dark glasses entered the coffee shop. They reminded me of the movie, 'Men in Black.'

I looked at the tall-clad figure of the man who came in first. He was younger than the other man. He halted at the front door and his eyes scanned the room. He stood there, tall, devilishly handsome, with a beautifully proportioned body.

I froze. My mind stopped working and my body turned numb. Something about his appearance disturbed me. He looked vaguely familiar.

Is he a movie star, a model or a celebrity? He was probably into sports, because of his athletic physique.

His dark glasses hid his eyes. It was impossible to find out where his eyes were focusing on. But I was certain that he was not looking at me. He carried himself with a commanding air of self confidence. He looked very powerful and extremely rich.

He said something to the other man, and then they strode in the room. They took their seats in the center of the room.

I grabbed a pen and the order slip pad. I hurriedly went towards them to take their order.

"Good morning, what's your order, sir?" I stood in front of the two men and smiled at them. I wrote C#1, shortcut for customer number one in the order slip.

"Good morning. Can we have a cup of espresso and a café latte?" The older man removed his dark glasses and smiled at me. He was probably in his mid forties.

My hands were trembling when I wrote their order. I didn't know why, perhaps because of the younger man's appearance. He looked like a very important man. His face was bronzed by wind and sun. The set of his chin suggested a stubborn streak and his lips were firm and sensual.

He made me so edgy and nervous as hell, and he didn't even seem to notice me. He was very busy talking on the phone. I couldn't help listening to his voice. It was so deep, with velvet-edge and strong.

"Is there anything else, sir?" My eyes shifted from one man to another.

"That's all, Miss." The older man replied, then nodding at me, a sign of dismissal.

I served their coffee within five minutes. I stared at the younger man again. He seemed really familiar. I was sure I'd seen him before. I wished he would take off his dark glasses so I could see his eyes, and figured out where I saw him. Then I noticed, he drank his coffee. The cup of espresso was his.

A few customers came in. I became so busy taking their orders and prepared their coffee. But I couldn't help glancing at the two men sitting in the center of the room, from time to time. I tried to ignore them and focused on my job.

After a while, I saw two girls approached the two men. The girls were giggling flirtatiously at them. The younger man looked at them and said something that made the faces of the girls turned sour. He probably said something very insulting, since the girls immediately went out of the coffee shop with stony faces. Well, he was rude.

The men left without asking for their bill. I went to the table, they earlier occupied and saw a one hundred dollar bill under the espresso cup.

What! A hundred dollar bill? I couldn't believe it. I was over the moon! They left too much tip for the coffee.

Later that morning, Suzanne and Kurt called simultaneously that they were sick. So, I was with Mrs. Chang in the coffee shop the whole day. She took my place on the cash register. I did the rest of the job. I tried to serve the customers so fast, so they would stop complaining about the slow service.

Before I went home, I mopped the floor and scrubbed the bathroom. I was so tired, but I didn't have a choice.

It was already eight thirty when I left the coffee shop. I took a bus to the South Bronx, where my family rented a small one-bedroom apartment. The moment I was seated in the bus, I ate the burger that I grabbed near the bus stop. After eating, I took a power nap.

"Guess what Mom. I got a very big tip today. Two rich-looking men left a hundred dollar bill for their coffee."

"What? That's too much." My mother, Ruby Collins narrowed her eyes.

"Yeah, I couldn't believe it. I told Mrs. Chang that we could split the tip, but she said that it was all mine."

"Awe... she's so sweet."

"Yeah, very sweet. I'm lucky to have her as my employer." I took my wig off and pulled the rubber band that held my hair in a bun. My long silky red hair instantly cascaded down to my waist. I took a hairbrush and combed my hair, until it shone.

"How's baby Hannah?" I asked about our neighbor's baby. Mom worked as a babysitter for almost a year now.

"She's still very adorable, but getting heavier. I don't think I can handle her anymore." Mom rubbed her chest. She had a mild coronary heart disease. It started six months ago. She was advised by her physician not to do strenuous activities.

"Then stop babysitting. I don't really want you to work. You are risking your health. Don't worry, I have a job. I'll work during weekends too, to have an extra money. We can manage."

"You're working too hard for us, Jade. I'm so sorry for being a burden to you."

"Mom, please don't say that again. I love you and I'll take care of you and Sapphire. I promised dad that I will." I hugged my mom, with moisture in my eyes.

Dad died of stage four lung cancer two years ago. I was eighteen at that time. He got it when he worked in an asbestos manufacturing company. A year before he died was the most traumatic year in our lives. We fought for his life. We lost our little savings and our cottage, just to keep up the medical expenses. It was like a nightmare, seeing dad's health deteriorated. He was a good man without vices, God-fearing, jolly person, and full of vitality, a very loving husband and caring father to us. I couldn't help but wondered why the good and godly people passed away earlier than their time.

The day when we finally lost dad, our world collapsed. We were so dependent on him. We looked up on him and solely relied on him financially.

"What's wrong?" My sister Sapphire went out of the bedroom. She shrieked with panic seeing me and mom hugging. She thought something bad happened again.

"Nothing really. We just want to hug each other. We miss dad." I smiled at my fifteen-year old sister, showing my braced teeth.

"Oh! I thought something bad happened. Anyway, Jade, I have news for you."

"What is it?"

"I was chatting with Joseph an hour ago."

"Joseph?"

"Yup, your one and only love!"

"What?"

"He asked for your Facebook account, and I told him you didn't have any social media accounts anymore. Then he asked for your phone number."

"Did you give it to him?"

"No! You said not to give your number to anyone, right?"

"Right."

"But he gave me his number. He asked you to call him, anytime. He'll be waiting."

I heaved a sigh. Joseph.

It had been two years since I last saw him. I totally cut our communication.

No. I can't face him anymore. I'm not the same girl that he used to know. I'm different, totally different now. The old Jade was gone, dead and buried.