CAFÉS LIGHTS 

I picked up a tray holding grilled salmon, mashed potatoes, a bottle of wine, and an empty glass.

“A gentleman is waiting for his order,” I said flatly while adjusting the tray carefully in my hands.

“Mhmm. Run away from the conversation.”

“Go get yourself busy, Ivy.”

She laughed softly and stepped aside to let me pass, but before either of us could say another word, the supervisor’s voice suddenly cut through the room.

“Ivy.”

She froze immediately and turned around.

“I’m still waiting for the order in your hands.”

“Oh... sorry.”

The supervisor glanced between us before narrowing his eyes at her suspiciously.

“You are obviously in love with this guy.”

Ivy’s jaw dropped in horror while I fought back a smile and quickly walked out before she could defend herself.

The café buzzed quietly with soft music and low conversations as I approached another table. The man seated there barely acknowledged me, his full attention remaining on his phone while I uncorked the wine bottle carefully and began pouring into the glass.

Then, without meaning to, my eyes flickered across the room.

Straight toward Jace.

He was already watching me.

The intensity behind his gaze startled me enough that my hand jerked slightly, and wine spilled across the table, several drops splashing against the customer’s trousers.

The man shot to his feet immediately.

“What the hell is wrong with you?”

My stomach ached painfully.

“I’m sorry...”

“Are you blind?” he snapped harshly, glaring down at the stain.

Several nearby customers turned toward us, their conversations dying down almost instantly.

“I said I’m...”

His hand struck my face before I could finish, the sound cracking sharply through the café.

My head snapped sideways from the force, and for one horrible second, all I heard was ringing. Heat spread violently across my cheek while humiliation flooded through me so fast it nearly stole my breath. My fingers tightened around the wine bottle as I became painfully aware of the eyes now fixed on me from every direction.

Some customers looked shocked while others appeared visibly uncomfortable, and a few pretended not to stare at all as silence slowly swallowed the entire café.

Then the atmosphere changed, the shift sudden enough to make my pulse stumble, as a cold heaviness swept through the room like invisible pressure settling over every table and chair in the café. It was dangerous and suffocating, and my eyes lifted at once toward Jace, who was already on his feet.

The calmness on his face looked far worse than anger, his jaw locked tightly as something dark and violent flickered behind his eyes, barely restrained. He stared at the man and began to walk toward us, each step deepening the pressure in the café so heavily that the customer’s confidence began to falter.

“I am here for a date with my fiancée,” the man barked angrily, pointing at me. “And this stupid...”

“Hey,” Jace’s voice sliced cleanly through the tension, cold and steady, cutting off whatever insult the man had been about to throw. He stepped between us slowly, his eyes locking onto the customer with a weight that made even me uneasy, before speaking in a low, firm tone. “Watch how you speak to people here.”