The morning dew was still prominent on the road one early autumn morning as an old pick-up truck rattled down the road; its rusty, faded blue coat an eyesore to the beautiful town of Glendale.
The owner of the truck was considered much the same to the people as his truck was to the town. The moment the stranger arrived five years ago, the town was abuzz at the sight of the new-comer, but they kept their distance. Everyone did. No-one ventured close to the man who could quite easily be called a beast.
His name was Chevron, and he lived in a small cabin on the outskirts of the town. The only reason people knew this was because he worked as a lumberjack for the town's logging company. He kept to himself most of the time and, while the other employees were still skeptical of him, they grew accustomed to his silent, recluse ways.
He was a hard worker, but that was all they knew.
And it was on this crisp morning that Chevron found himself making his way to work, as he has done so for the past five years. He took a deep breath and rolled his neck as he glanced around the rousing town. It was too early for any businesses to be open yet. However, there was always one particular building that seemed to have life early every morning without fail.
Chevron's mismatched eyes flickered towards the quaint building with a delicate sign which stated 'Daisy's Deli'.
It was a cute name for the little shop, and Chevron often noticed the owner hard at work preparing for the day as he would drive by. Today was no different. He spotted the young woman unpacking chairs as his truck passed the large windows of the building.
Her name suited her well. She was undoubtedly beautiful. Her hair appeared to have been kissed by the sun while her eyes were the warmest shade of caramel. The jeans she wore highlighted the curves of her legs while a pretty, white blouse brought out her naturally tanned skin.
As if feeling his stare on her back, Daisy turned to look out the window at the truck driving by. Chevron quickly looked away, and picked up speed until he was out of sight.
He had never gone to the deli before; he knew that he would resemble a bull in a china shop if he did. Pretty little treats coated with delicacies, and delicate china were not his cup of tea – he preferred coffee.
Besides, he knew he would be an eyesore if he entered the homely establishment.
Chevron sighed as he glanced at the mirror in his truck. His dark hair flopped into his mismatched eyes and he brushed the strands to cover his left as he looked back at the road, his callused hands clenching on the steering wheel.
No, he definitely did not belong in that place.
There were many a story of how Chevron came about the scars on his face; the scars that made him resemble a horribly, mangled beast.
They were deep and ran in haphazard shapes and lines which spread all over the surface of the left side of his face. Some areas of the scars had risen in the healing process, making the contour of his skin uneven and jutted. It used to look worse. The scars used to be a deep red which would turn purple if he lost his temper or exerted himself while exercising. Now they were the softest pink that, in a few more months, the scarring would be the closest shade to his natural skin tone as it possibly could be.
Chevron gritted his teeth before letting out a slow breath through his nose. The scars weren't even the worst part – it was his eyes. Both were once a vibrant blue. They were his best feature many said, but now the one was the colour of ice due to its blindness.
Chevron could never hold a conversation with anyone because of his eyes and so he soon used his hair to cover the useless one. He noticed how people would murmur wherever he went, how they would discretely move to the opposite end of the road when he walked down the street. He would just bow his head and let his shoulder-length, dark tresses barricade him from the onslaught of stares.
It was easier to ignore than to confront.
It was the sole reason Chevron enjoyed his job as a lumberjack. He didn't have to speak to anyone and no-one had to speak to him. It was just him, his chainsaw, and the nature around him.
He didn't need anyone, and he knew that the last thing he deserved was for anyone to need him.
-
Five o'clock finally rolled around, signalling the end of another day and another week. Chevron blocked out the voices of the lumberjacks around him as they all packed away their equipment and called it a day. He stuffed his hands in his pockets as he moved towards his truck. He didn't say goodbye to anyone and they didn't say anything to him as they all went their separate ways.
It was the end of the month, which meant that Chevron needed to do his dreaded monthly shopping. He hated being in public places more than most people because he always left a trail of whispers and curious glances in his wake.
But he pushed the trepidation aside as he drove down the slope towards town, his old truck puttering along the road at a steady pace. After a few minutes, he brought his truck to a stop outside the town's grocery store and hopped out the seat. He shoved his hands into his pockets, bowed his head and walked inside, making sure to keep to the quieter isles as much as possible.
For some unknown reason, Chevron eventually found himself in the baking isle – a section he had never once gone to before – and noticed a certain blonde-haired woman straining to reach for a tin at the very top of the shelf.
Chevron thought of diverting his path to another isle, but the sight of her huffing in her attempt to reach the tin seemed to gravitate him towards her.
"Oh, come on," Daisy muttered as she stretched for the last tin of pie apples. She wasn't short as far as women went, but it was still a tricky feat when there was only one tin remaining. "Why do they always put the best things right at the-"
Her words died in her throat when a large, callused hand suddenly came into her line of vision and grabbed the very tin she was reaching for with no effort.
She scowled. "Hey, that was-"
Her breath caught in her lungs as she turned to come face-to-face with the one man everyone avoided. Fear twisted her stomach and she stumbled back a few steps, her eyes taking in the sight of his scars peeking out from beneath his left side-swept hair. The massive, broad frame of his body appeared as foreboding as the mountains that surrounded the town.
For a moment, she was paralyzed as she stared at his one visible eye. He always hid the other behind his dark locks. Her heart slammed against her rib cage as his piercing blue eye stared at her with an intensity that could see right through her. She stumbled back another step as a lump formed in her throat.
"I-I'll just get going," she stuttered, and quickly turned to leave when the man spoke.
"You forgot your tin."
His voice was as deep as a country well and as soothing as hot tea. It was something Daisy didn't expect to hear coming from such an intimidating figure. She turned slowly, confusion etched on her face.
"Excuse me?" she asked, her delicate eyebrows pulling into a small frown as she glanced up at him, her fear momentarily replaced by confusion.
The man gestured to the tin he held in his large hand - a hand which seemed capable of squashing it with no effort.
Daisy realised then what a fool she had made of herself, and she gave a hesitant smile, but dared not draw closer to the stranger.
"Oh, I'm so sorry. I didn't think-"
"I know."
His deep voice cut hers off as his intense gaze bore into hers, sending a chill down her spine. "People rarely think before they act."
Daisy stared at the mysterious man completely frozen in place. His words seemed to carry a load of hidden meaning to them and rendered her speechless. In that moment, she wasn't sure if he was referring to her actions or to himself.
Her eyes flittered to the scars which couldn't quite be concealed by his long hair, wondering if he was perhaps referring to them.
The man seemed to stiffen when he noticed her gaze and he quickly turned, placed the tin on a lower shelf, and left without another word.
[A/N] Hello, my lovely readers, and welcome to the first chapter of Chevron! I know I said I was only going to release my next book in November, but I couldn't wait any longer to share it with you. My main fear was releasing this and then going MIA for a few weeks due to university pressures, but I know that won't happen now because I already have nine chapters ready for you which will be released weekly and will get me through my last two and a half months of university without the need to spend a whole evening concocting a chapter from scratch for you.
As you all know, I own all rights to this book and any and all copying of it in any way, shape or form is strictly prohibited, so please do not do so. Any relation to persons living or dead, places and instances is entirely coincidental.
I know this may be difficult because this is a mystery-entwined romance, but please DO NOT put spoilers in the comments in later chapters. I will have to delete them if there are which I don't like doing, but I want people to enjoy this book. So please, from the bottom of my heart, I'm asking that you respect that this book has a lot of mystery and I don't want it spoiled.
Any-who, I hope you all enjoy!
Katelyn Grace