Chapitre 62: Betrayal
Jade's cheeks instantly turned rosy as she replied, "Yes, I did."
"Oh? Hohoho!" Harriet let out a playfully mocking laugh.
"What's with that laugh?" Jade's flustered attitude quickly turned sharp. "And what's with that look? I don't know what you find so funny."
Under Jade's glare, Harriet continued to laugh, as if her glare only made a cute reaction a moment ago funnier.
"You two really are something," the usually reticent Patrick commented before laughing at the duo.
…
After the lunch rush, a few of the regulars stuck around—some of whom had been invited, and some who were hoping to get a free drink out of it.
It had been arranged that Harriet would go out to fetch her fiancé when her shift was over, so Jade and Patrick used that time to decorate the store. It was nothing fancy—the simply put up some bunting, balloons, and the sign. They also had napkins and cups that said good luck on them.
"So what's her fella like?" one of the gossiping crones asked.
"Yeah, I've been wondering that myself."
"I saw him once. He's nothing much."
"Yeah, she could do better. What do you think Jade? You must know him better than us."
'Ergh, not again…' Jade walked closer to the gossipers' table and replied, "I don't really know. I've only spoken to him a couple of times briefly when he's come to pick up Harry. He seems nice enough though, and Harry adores him, which is all we need to know."
Jade said that last remark to try to stop those ladies from gossiping about the two stars of the party, and it seemed that the ladies took the hint, because they soon moved onto another topic.
"Jade, when are you finding yourself a nice man?"
"She's already found one, hasn't she?"
"Who, that young businessfella? He's handsome, I'll give you that."
"I thought she liked that older gentleman, the one whose son works here."
"Not the son himself? But he's got such a good face!"
Before Jade could even politely brush off the question, the crones were answering for themselves, discussing the various men whom they had seen around Jade.
To the side, Patrick overheard their conversation, since it was not particularly busy and the women were speaking loud enough for everyone in the cafe to hear, and his face went bright pink, a stark contrast to his usual pure-white skin tone.
Jade sidled away from the table with an embarrassed laugh and hid herself behind the safety of the counter.
Ting ding!
As she was just double-checking that everything was ready for the umpteenth time, the door bell chimed. Her eyes shot up as usual, and she saw a small woman walking through the door.
"Mrs Harper! Come in," Jade greeted excitedly. "Can I get you anything? Would you like me to help with your coat?"
Mrs Harper was Jade's idol in many ways, the woman she wanted to be like when she grew old. This view had been solidified by the way that she had helped Jade during the vandalism incident.
'She's such a sweet old lady. I know she'd never ask me any awkward questions.'
Jade helped Mrs Harper into her seat a couple of tables away from the crones.
Just as Jade was about to head back to the counter, Mrs Harper smiled sweetly and said, "So when will I be invited to your engagement party?"
'Even you, Mrs Harper?!'
L’AVIS DES CRÉATEURS 
DaintyTeapot
DaintyTeapot Although I've neglected to mention it in the past few chapters, Lurker has kindly done it in my place—please join our Night Cafe Discord server if you want more information on the novel, the status of chapters, or a chat. The link has been posted in the comments of the past few chapters and is in the novel's synopsis.
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