Jaden’s lips curved into a soft smile.“Honey,” he said gently, his eyes warm and unguarded, “you have a great figure.”Selena felt her cheeks heat instantly. She tried to maintain composure, but the faint tremble in her voice betrayed her.“Is that so?” she asked, attempting to sound casual.“Yes,” Jaden replied without hesitation. “Very much so.”There was no teasing in his tone. No exaggeration. Just honest admiration.Before Selena could respond again, Jaden stepped forward and pulled her gently into his arms.Her body stiffened at first.“Jaden…” she called softly, half-warning, half-nervous.But he didn’t rush her.He lifted his hand, brushing a strand of damp hair away from her face, his fingers lingering against her cheek. Then he leaned down and kissed her.Selena let out a soft sound of surprise.“Mmm—”She pushed lightly at his chest at first, more out of instinct than resistance. But as his kiss deepened—slow, patient, affectionate—her strength faded.Her hands, which had

There was a rumor that the governor of Ironvale himself had visited Rosary Teahouse three days running, specifically hoping to drink tea brewed by Rosemary. Each time, she had declined to see him personally, sending her disciples out in her place. Rather than damaging the teahouse’s reputation, the story had the opposite effect. Word spread quickly, and the consensus was unanimous — if even the governor couldn’t earn a seat at Mary’s table, then her tea was something worth wanting. It became a quiet point of honor among Ironvale’s elite, something to mention at dinner.Jaden and Selena arrived hand in hand and found a table by the window — a good one, with a clean view across Rose Lake and the open sky above it. The afternoon light sat on the water in a way that made it easy to forget how busy the city was just beyond the tree line.A tea specialist arrived promptly and set menus before them.Selena opened hers and her expression shifted almost immediately. She scanned the page once,

The entire teahouse seemed to hold its breath.Wula, Tommy, Yura, and half the guests nearby were staring at Jaden with the same expression — a mixture of disbelief and secondhand embarrassment. The kind of look people give someone who has just said something so far beyond their station that the room doesn’t know whether to laugh or simply wait for the inevitable.The governor of Ironvale had come three days in a row and left without so much as a glimpse of Mary Sharp. And this man — this man who had just ordered the cheapest pot on the menu, who everyone at this table knew lived off his wife’s family — had just called someone and announced he wanted her standing at his table in three minutes.Yura recovered first. Her expression hardened and she stepped closer. “I don’t know who you think you just called, but I’d strongly suggest you collect yourself and move to your assigned table right now. If you keep this up, I’ll have security remove you.”As if on cue, several men in dark suits

“I will personally brew Mr. Rift some tea as my apology.” Rosemary’s voice was calm and final. She turned to Yura with the same composure. “As for you — pack your things. You are no longer my disciple. I suggest you see yourself out.”The color drained from Yura’s face. Her knees hit the floor with a loud thud. “Madam, please — please don’t do this!”Rosemary didn’t look at her again. “I have told you more times than I can count — before you can learn to brew tea, you must first learn to conduct yourself with decency. You have failed at that consistently.” She folded her hands. “Go home. Reflect on what kind of person you want to be.”Yura pressed her forehead toward the floor and sobbed openly, her shoulders shaking. The pride and contempt she had worn all afternoon had collapsed entirely, leaving something small and desperate in its place. The surrounding guests watched in silence. Nobody moved to help her.It made no difference. With a quiet gesture from Rosemary, two subordinates

Rosemary didn’t retreat, however. She lingered, her eyes finding Jaden with a warmth that went a little beyond professional admiration. There was an eagerness there — something that surfaced whenever he spoke, whenever he glanced in her direction. For a woman known for her composure and her indifference to virtually everyone who walked through her doors, it was striking.Selena noticed. She noticed very precisely. She kept her expression pleasant and her hands folded on the table, but something had tightened quietly in her chest, and she was doing her best to be reasonable about it.Jaden looked at Rosemary with a faint, polite smile. “I’ve been quite busy lately. I’ll think about being in touch some other time.”The room reacted as though he’d said something incomprehensible.These were men who came to Rosary Teahouse week after week, month after month, largely on the hope of catching a glimpse of Rosemary moving through her teahouse. Being served by her personally was the kind of st