My dear little broccolis💚💚💚

~ So here comes a new update, and see, I'm not taking forever as I did lately. Hope you will like it, and be anticipating what is coming next.

~ BY THE WAY, for all of those who want to read my book, I am putting it on Wattpadd. Same user name as usual, and for those who knew the original fanfic, it was Beaten At His Own Game. Go ahead and check it out, and let me know what you think about it. It would mean the world to me. THE SECOND CHAPTER HAS BEEN UPDATED.

Love, Mina💚💚💚

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PART 2

Chapter11: Lunch Date (2,1K)

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Michael Jackson - You Are Not Alone

Rihanna - What Now

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Clary's PoV

"Clary?" Maia says, with a little voice while I am still focusing on assembling my cupcakes.

Maia is the salesgirl I hired when it became obvious that I wouldn't be able to bake and sell at the same time. I don't know what I was thinking, but I am not a robot, so I am not that multitasks. But I absolutely do not regret hiring her, she is a very good salesgirl who knows how to handle complicated customers (like the ones who want to order without a decent delay). And she's actually very pretty, and no matter how much I don't like to think about it, I know it is always a plus when you have a job where you have a direct contact with the clientele. She's a tall mixed girl who always has crazy haircut. One day, I asked her about it, because I honestly don't know how she gets the time to do all that hairstyling on the morning, and she winked at me, saying that she had a fairy godmother who introduced her to the magic of wigs and extensions.

She's actually older than me (but then again, who isn't), but not that much. She's twenty one, just like Paolo, and she took a huge weight out of my shoulders because she's the only dealing with customers now. I only have to focus on baking and making sure that Paolo won't burn my kitchen to the ground. Well … maybe Paolo isn't good because I haven't been a great mentor, after all. I mean, when I hired him, he did tell me that he knew very little about baking, that he's only experience in the kitchen was in restoration, and that he was mostly posted with the starters. So maybe I should have taken more of my personal time to show him things properly, instead of assuming that he just needed to see me do things for him to understand how it works. It's not because it worked for me, that everyone assimilates things the same way.

I don't know how I managed to pull it through, but I managed to bake all the cupcakes that needed to be done for today, without breaking down another time. I sent an apology text to Jace around two in the morning, promising that I would make it up to him tonight. I didn't get any answer, even though it is now, lunch time, and Jace has obviously seen the text, so I hope he's not mad at me for snapping at him and not sleeping home. I mean, I don't want my life at home to suck, when I already have such a bad situation at work. Sure Paolo came in early this morning, apologising more than necessary, but he was so scared to do something wrong that he was very slow in everything he did today.

But anyways, I make a small noise to indicate Maia that I am all ears for her, even though my eyes and a part of my mind are elsewhere; and she lets me know:

"I'm sorry to bother you, but there's a man asking for you. And he's not taking no for an answer."

I snap my head up, wondering what kind of customer would want to see me with such insistence. I mean, I never had any complaints, on the contrary, and it's something I am rather proud of. I even have a few customers who come from next town on Sundays, especially for my bakeries. And when some customers want to talk to me, they know that they just have to come by the time of the closing, when I am not swamped by baking. Few people already did this, such as the Mayor, or regular customers, just to congratulate me, or make a very specific order.

So, it is with a heave of annoyance, I takeoff my skullcap and wipe the icing off my hands with a dishcloth before following Maia out of the kitchen and into the shop. And there is waiting for me, out of nowhere: "Jace! What are you doing here?"

To say that I am shocked is an understatement. First of, it is the middle of the day, so Jace is definitely supposed to be working. Second, Jace never came to the shop. He only came for the opening, and then, never again. I don't think much of it, I just think that we have too different schedules for him to be able to come whenever he can. So I won't lie, seeing him makes me kind of happy.

Jace longly looks at me, his brows furrowing when they linger on my face, and so I tap it a little, wondering if I have flour or icing on it.

"How about I take you out for lunch?"

To be honest, lunch doesn't arrange me one bit. I don't want to leave Paolo alone in the kitchen and come back to discover he made yet again another mistake, I think I will lose it this time. But I cancelled on him yesterday night, and didn't come home either; so i nod, asking for five minutes change into decent cloths. As I pass by the kitchen, I let Paolo to take a break as well, and then I let Maia know that she can call me if she needs me for anything. Then, I follow Jace outside, walking by his side as he leads us further away from my shop.

"You seem exhausted," He points out, and I shrug to avoid saying that I am really exhausted. "Did you at least sleep a little last night?"

"I took a small nap, at some point. What about you? You look tired as well," I say, deflecting the conversation from me, and seeing the bags under his eyes. I mean, I know that Jace has always been someone who doesn't sleep a lot, but today, it looks like he didn't sleep at all last night.

"I had a very … tiring night. How about we take hotdogs instead of going to the restaurant. You don't seem that reassured to be away from the shop," He proposes, noticing that I keep on checking my phone, and I happily agree. I don't eat to seem ungrateful to Jace for having this impromptu lunch date, but I still have a lot of work to do.

So we just take two hotdogs to a sweet vendor, and go sit in a park that is between his office and my shop. Once there, we sit one next to the other, me doing my best to not devour my hotdog (I just realised that I haven't eaten in a day) and keeping my knees against my chest while Jace is elegantly sitting next to me. I must look like a nothing next to him in his neat suit and his nice hair and face. Discreetly, I let my hair wild, hoping to appear a little more like something, and Jace suddenly says:

"I … I found a secretary."

"That's great. You've been ranting about getting one for a while. It'll help you have a clearer schedule and focus more on your clients when you won't have to answer the phone," I cheer, because he's been talking about his need of a secretary for quite a while. I'm really happy, because I'm sure it will take a weight of his shoulder. But weirdly, Jace doesn't seem really thrilled by this news.

"Sure. She's … an old friend of mine. Her name is Aline," He explains, and suddenly, I don't like his tone. It seems like he's looking for his words, which Jace never did with me. He's always been direct and honest. I turn a little my head, and see that he's not looking at me. He's looking straight ahead. Or maybe I'm just being paranoid, and he's thinking of everything he has to do after we finished eating to settle his secretary. I try to recall if I ever heard of Aline, and Jace did mention her a couple of times. If I remember correctly she's a friend from high school, like Simon; but I'm not sure if I'm not mixing up things.

"Okay," I tell him, because what else can I say?

"I actually lent her my old flat. Just for the time I find a buyer. So I'll need the spare key I gave you," He informs me, making me frown. To be honest, I don't like how this conversation is making me feel, right now. I mean why does Jace need access to the apartment he no longer uses and where a friend of his is currently staying? Would he had asked me the spare key if Simon was the one in his old apartment?

"You could have texted me to leave you the key home," I placidly reply, putting my chin on my knees. Now, I feel like this lunch idea was a very bad idea. I should have turned him down, instead of hearing those unpleasant news.

"I know. But I needed to tell you something more …" Jace trails, and I really don't like the tone of his voice. It almost sounds guilty.

For a few seconds he doesn't say anything, but I can feel his eyes on me, waiting for me to look back at him. So I do, and he deeply inhales, bringing his hand up to caress my face as he says: "I'm taking two days off this weekend. I have a business trip and I might not make it before Monday night."

Okay, this is a first. Ever since I came back, Jace did his best to keep his business trips to the lowest. He had some, but he always did the back and forth within the day. So him taking two days to do a business trip is something completely new, and unexpected.

"What does that have to do with Aline?" I can't help but asking. Why did he bring up his new secretary if he came to talk about his business trip?

"I'm going with her," Jace tells me, and I keep my face unreadable as I down the information and what it actually means.

Well, I don't look at him in the eyes anymore, that's for sure, and before the news can hit me fully, I am saved by my phone ringing. I answer at the first ring, picking up the call from Maia and excusing myself from Jace, all the while internally welcoming the distraction. And even though I could settle Maia's interrogation over the phone, I tell her that I will be right there, just so I can escape this lunch turning sour.

"I have to go. I'll see you tonight," I say, getting up and Jace frowns a little, as if he's not happy about me ending our lunch.

"Clary …" He seems to think about what he's about to say, and then simply lets me know: "I think I'm going to be working rather late this week."

I give him my best smile, and tell him: "It's okay. I'll make you something that can be eaten cold."

"I'll walk you back," Jace proposes, and I shake my head.

"No, it's okay. You're not far from your office, just go straight there."

Jace doesn't fight me on that like he always does, and just kisses my forehead, telling me that he loves me before I start walking back to my shop, still not believing what just happened. The forehead. Jace kissed my forehead. The only time he does so is when my father is around or when his parents are around. Not as a goodbye kiss.

I do my best to repress the ugly thoughts and feelings rising within me. I mean, I should trust Jace. He loves me. It's not because his secretary is a girl and his friend who leaves at his flat that it means that Jace will cheat on me. Right? Even if I don't satisfy him? Right? He's still going to stay with me. Right? Or maybe it's just a phase. And he'll be back at me in a giffy. I can pretend as if nothing, right?

I rush to the shop where I find Maia with a man I've already seen on her cellphone. I think he's her boyfriend, but I'm not sure.

"Maia?" I ask, and she raises her head to me, her beautiful smile spreading her lips. I have to say that her smile is what convinced me to hire her more than another. She has a very beautiful and truthful smile. "What did the man tell you when he came?"

"That he needed to see the baker," She answers, and my insides knot.

"He never said who he was?"

"No. Is he a big customer?"

"No. He's just Jace," I say, looking down on my ringed finger and walking to the kitchen. Why didn't he tell her that he was my fiancé? Is he actually considering that we are at the beginning of the end?

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‼️READ THE NOTE BELOW‼️

💚Your thoughts and opinions are always welcomed💚

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~ So, I just wanted to remind you, that this is a new part. A whole new part that will have ups and down. Just stick with me, and you will see where it will all go. But don't give up on the story, or the characters because you think you know you figured out how it will end.

~ Anyway, question times:

` 1. What did you think of Maia? Just so you know, I have the actress Zendaya in mind when I write about this Maia.

` 2. What about this business trip? What is this about? And what do you think of Jace right now?

` 3. What do you think will happen next?

` 4. What was your favourite part?

Anyway, Cassandra Clare owns the names of the characters from the Mortal Instruments franchise, everything else is mine.

Kiss💋 Kiss💋 Bang🔫 Bang🔫.