Chapter 29: Chapter 29

Nathan returns with the order that Madelyn had placed.

"Do you need anything else?" he asks the woman at the table behind us.

"No, thank you," her voice sounded sweet, unlike what I was accustomed to facing.

"Okay. Just let me know if you need anything," Nathan returns to the counter and I watch his path, stopping my gaze at Gregory, who was also giving me a curious look from the other side of the counter, surely because Madelyn was in his café.

I stand up from the couch and walk up to the counter where Gregory was standing.

"You're... "

"Surprised to see Madelyn Chapelle in my café? Yes. Definitely yes," he says incredulously. "She never comes here. Not after I bought the place."

"What do you think she's doing here?"

"Based on what you told me about her, would it be naïve of me to think she only came to try one of the best cappuccinos in town?"

Our gaze was focused on her. I lean against the counter, intrigued. Looking at her, seeing her alone, with a downcast expression on her face, made my thoughts swirl with questions. She didn't even seem like herself. Even her style of dressing was different. What could have happened?

I see another person enter the café. Jack? The blonde guy who hit on me in Los Angeles had just appeared in Gregory's shop and sat at the table where Madelyn was.

"See that guy?" I nod my head towards Jack and Gregory agrees. "He was one of Joshua's friends. They had some kind of competition where they would compete for girls in their teenage years. And this guy tried to use me to reignite the old game."

"You're kidding, right?" he furrows his brow and I shake my head. "That just proves how much of an idiot he is. But what does he have to do with Madelyn?"

"I don't know."

"And what do you think about finding out?"

I look at Gregory, who had a mischievous smile on his lips.

"How are we going to do that?" I ask.

Gregory looks around and sees Nathan returning with some dirty cups and plates and calls him over to us.

"I want you to clean the window next to the last table and put this cellphone in the back pocket of your pants," he orders and quickly messes with the cellphone's screen before handing it to Nathan.

"Why?" Nathan asks, confused.

"Because I'm telling you to," he says simply. "And don't leave until I tell you to."

"But..."

"Why are you still here?" he furrows his brow. "On your first day of work and you're still questioning me?" he says curtly.

Nathan does as Gregory says, moving away from us, looking confused, and approaching the table where Jack and Madelyn were sitting.

"What are you doing?" I ask.

Gregory nods his head, signaling for me to follow him to the pantry of the café. Once there, he takes the cellphone out of his pocket and answers a call, putting it on speaker. Voices come through from the other side.

"I made Nathan keep the store's cell phone connected to my phone. That way, we can listen to what they're talking about." My mouth automatically drops open, impressed with Gregory's idea. He could easily be a crime genius. We lean against the wall opposite the door.

"...You should understand me." Says a female voice.

"I do understand, of course! But the way you've been acting since you broke up with him has turned everything into the mess it is today." The male voice says next. "Why did you come back to London after all this time?"

"You think I didn't want to come back before? Since I left, I've always wanted to come back."

"But why only now?"

"I won't let my sister sink again."

"She has a sister?" Gregory and I say in unison, looking at each other in surprise.

"And even after all this time, I still love him. And I don't want him to be unhappy."

"And what are you going to do?"

"Excuse me, sir?" Another voice interrupts the understanding of the conversation between Madelyn and Jack. "Can you bring me another slice of pie?"

What bad luck!

"Sure!" Nathan responds.

"I think you should meet with him today." Jack says, and gradually their voices fade in the distance.

Gregory ends the call.

"Okay. Madelyn Chapelle has a sister. A sister who has never been made public. But why? Why would she hide the existence of a family member?"

"I don't know. But that's really strange."

"We need to find out more about her, because if she continues with the threats, you need to be able to defend yourself." Gregory pushes off the wall. "And this all smells like controversy to me."

"I think Jack will try to arrange a meeting between Joshua and Madelyn." I comment, a little apprehensive.

"And do you think Joshua will go?"

"I don't know. But I think he would tell me if he were."

"Of course, you're together. He wouldn't hide anything from you."

I push off the wall and follow Gregory back to the reception area.

"But anyway, I have to go to work. I'll see you later?"

Before Gregory can answer, Madelyn speaks up.

"I would like to order some pastries for later. It's been years since I've tasted Louis' treats."

The girl expands a charismatic smile, which makes Gregory uneasy.

"I'm sorry, but Louis passed away a few years ago."

Madelyn's smile automatically fades in shock.

"Oh my God! I-I didn't know. I used to eat here before I left London."

"So, it was a long time ago." Gregory says.

" Yes, yes. I returned from France recently. And it was a shock to hear about Louis. Are you the new owner?" Gregory nods. "You have to be congratulated. The coffees are still wonderful." I see Gregory blush. "I'll come back later to pick up the pastries." Madelyn gives a farewell smile and walks to the end of the store, meeting Jack again before leaving the café.

"I'm shocked," he comments.

"She looks very different. The way she speaks, even the way she dresses," I say, "And it seemed like I was a stranger to her, considering she used to love tormenting me."

"Maybe she hit her head and became a better Madelyn," Gregory jokes.

I shake my head, still confused, and look at my wristwatch. I was already running a little late for work.

"I have to go. We'll talk later."

"Sure, go ahead. I'll try to find out some things."

Gregory's investigative sense was quite acute. I bid him farewell and walk quickly towards the exit of the café. As I open the door, I end up bumping into someone's chest.

"Sorry!" I say and lift my head, seeing Jack.

"Alice?" he sounds surprised. "I didn't expect to find you here."

That shows that he didn't notice me inside the café.

"Hi, Jack," I force a smile.

"I forgot my wallet in there, so I came back to get it. It's good to see you again, Alice." After trying to use me? "I owe you an apology for what happened. It was really foolish of me." "Oh, sure. And how was it?" "I'm in London for business. And since I ran into you, and as a way to apologize, I would like to invite you to dinner tonight at the hotel where I'm staying. I also need to make it up to Joshua, so I invited him too. I would really like it if you came."

I'm not sure if it's a good idea to accept.

"Thank you very much for the invitation, Jack. But I don't know if I can go."

"Please, I insist."

I take a deep breath and nod. If Joshua was going, then it was okay.

"Great, I'll be waiting for you there," he gives me an enthusiastic smile and goes back into the café.

***

I get out of the taxi and stare at the luxury hotel. I was truly amidst wealthy people. I head towards the interior, heading towards the room reserved for Jack's dinner.

"Alice! So glad you came."

I meet him coming towards me as I enter the corridor that leads to the dining room. I smile in greeting.

"You were the only one missing. I thought you would come with Joshua."

His words echo through my body like blades, painfully piercing my trust in Joshua. He hadn't mentioned that he was coming to the dinner.

"I preferred to come alone," I lie.

"I see. Shall we?"

Jack breaks into a cheerful smile and I follow him into the room, coming face to face with Joshua at the head of the table and Madelyn sitting with her back to the entrance. My gaze scans coldly, meeting Joshua's confused eyes. Apparently, he didn't expect to see me here. I take a seat in the chair opposite Joshua at the round four-seater table, placing myself between Madelyn and Jack who is still standing. It seems like the dinner would only be among us.

"Alice, right?" Madelyn appraises me with a friendly smile.

Wait. Has she gone crazy? Or is she pretending? I nod, playing along with her possible act.

"I wanted to thank all of you for coming," Jack speaks up, raising a glass of white wine. "This dinner is another apology. First, to Alice," he looks at me, "for me being an idiot. You're an amazing girl and you don't deserve to go through awkward situations with guys like me. And secondly," he looks at Joshua, "I want to apologize to Joshua. You've always been a good friend, and I almost ruined our friendship trying to reignite something from our teenage years."

Although I'm focused on Jack's speech, I feel like I'm being watched. Joshua hasn't taken his eyes off me, as if questioning my presence. I raise my eyebrows and stare back at him.

Jack finally sits down and we all take a sip of the white wine.

"I appreciate you inviting me, Jack," Madelyn speaks up. "It's been a long time since I've gathered with friends."

"You'll always be special to us, Lyn. Especially to some of us," Jack says, making my throat tighten at the thought that he might be referring to Joshua. I had assumed that Jack only knew about me coming to work for Joshua and not about our romance.

"So, Alice, are you adjusting well to London? What has Joshua put you to work on?" Jack starts a conversation.

"Yes, I'm working at S. J Cosmetic. As... Joshua's secretary's secretary," I reply, a bit shy.

"She's still in the learning phase, but I plan to put her in a more specific role," Joshua clarifies.

"Anything is better than before," Jack says briefly, but quickly realizes the insolent tone he used. "I mean, a position in a company is much better than working as a maid, right?"

"Maid?" Madelyn questions.

"Alice used to work at Joshua's parents' house before coming to London," Jack explains.

"And..." Her gaze turns to Joshua. "You offered her a job in your company?"

"She's very skilled at what she does," Joshua responds curtly.

"So, she's lucky," Madelyn turns her face to me with a charismatic smile. "Had a better path than the others."

"A better path than the others?" I ask.

"That's ancient history, Madelyn," Jack chides.

"Don't you think she should know about your iconic story?" Madelyn says playfully and looks back at me. "Jack and Joshua used to compete for the girls who worked at Joshua's parents' house." "I know that, and?" "And whoever would win the girl first would have to be with her until she gave in to sex because in the end, there would be a prize. And after that, they would drop her."

My mouth gapes open.

"We were two idiots, Madelyn," Jack chides again.

"I know! And you should thank me for showing up in your lives before you guys ruined them yourselves."

Jack and Madelyn laugh, enjoying themselves.

"I know. And I'm grateful for it." He smiles foolishly.

"And you, Joshua?"

Madelyn turns her attention to him, causing Jack's foolish smile to fade from his lips and Joshua's gaze, which was turned away from me, to fall on her.

"I what?"

"Are you paying attention to our conversation?" The girl asks.

Joshua shrugs indifferently.

"I think he's still thinking about work." Jack says amused.

"I remember when I was like that. Since I was younger, I focused a lot on my modeling career, and ended up getting obsessed with it and neglecting everything else. And that happened just when I was dating Joshua." She almost whispers her last sentence. "I think that's my biggest regret."

"Not valuing the people around you?" Joshua speaks up, sharp.

"You know it wasn't lack of appreciation." She looks at him, frustrated. "You know what happened."

"And why did you leave?"

"Because... It was the only solution I could find!"

"Your solution was the worst possible one."

The atmosphere in the room started to tense up. Joshua and Madelyn looked at each other with resentment. Marks of an unresolved past.

"Guys... The purpose of this dinner wasn't to relive the past, but to apologize." Jack said.

"I think this dinner was a mistake." Joshua stood up, furious. "I don't know what got into your head to think this would solve anything. Especially, the four of us? This was one of the dumbest ideas you've ever had."

Joshua stormed past us, leaving the room.

"I guess it wasn't a good idea after all." Madelyn commented.

"He'll get used to it. He needs to." Jack responded. "He's just a little angry for being the last to know."

Madelyn sighed, looking distressed.

"I'm sorry you had to witness that, Alice. The idea of the dinner was totally passive."

"It's okay. And... I think I should go." I get up from my chair. I needed to go after Joshua. "Thank you for the invitation."

Before Jack could insist, I hurry my steps out of the room, with the goal of trying to find Joshua. I spot him about to leave the hotel.

"Joshua!" I don't hesitate to shout his name.

He halts his steps upon reaching the sidewalk. I pass through the revolving door and stand behind him.

"What happened in there?" I ask, confused by his sudden reaction, but I don't get a response. "Joshua?" I remain unanswered. He was eerily silent. Only his breathing could be heard amidst the quietness of the street, occasionally broken by the sounds of passing cars in front of the hotel. "Joshua...?"

"I don't know!" He says agitated, moving away from me in two steps.

"Are you okay?"

"Do I look okay?" I hear a mocking laugh escape him. "Do I seem okay?" He turns to me and retraces the two steps he took before. "And first, what are you doing here?"

"Jack invited me."

"And why did you come?" I furrow my brow, noticing his rude attitude.

"Wait. Why are you angry with me? I should be the one! You didn't tell me anything about this dinner. And Madelyn is here!"

"I'm not blind!" He responds curtly.

My mouth slightly opens, indignant at how he was treating me.

"Hey! Just because your ex-girlfriend who left you is in there, doesn't mean you have to be rude to me!"

"Left me?" He lets out an ironic laugh. "You don't even know a third of the story, Alice." He moistens his lips and shakes his head. "You should go home."

"Go home? After all this?"

"It's best for you." He turns to leave.

"So, that's how it's going to be?" I question, raising my voice. "You're just going to leave without giving me any explanation?"

Joshua ignores me and walks towards his car, parked on the other side of the street.