The breakfast was silent, and this was not the way Ophelia had planned it. She had gotten Harper riled up that she did not want to talk again, but she had to get her talking about yesterday, and she had to do it quickly.
“So why did you come here yesterday?” Ophelia asked, taking a bite from the pancake on her fork.
“To see Cade boo,” Harper said, shaking a bit and trying to hold Cade’s hands. He dropped his hand from the table; he did not like the situation he was in, and he knew that this was not going to be easy for him at all.
“Why would you come to see a married man in the night?”
“The same reason you went to see Green at a bar.”
“How do you know I went to see Green?” Ophelia asked, dropping her fork to the plate and intertwining her hand over the plate. “And at a bar at that?”
Somehow, even though the conversation was greatly uncomfortable. Cade was happy that Ophelia was getting to hear this from Harper directly.
“Oh, he told me,” Harper raised her shoulder like it was not a big deal. “We speak, and because we are friends now,” she added before Ophelia could ask any more questions.
“Why would he tell you that I was with him? Were you guys planning anything?”
“Of course not.” Harper’s response was too quick for Ophelia not to suspect that something was up. She knew that there was no way that Harper would just give her insight into the secret. There was something up, and she had to find out.
“Okay, I am glad though that you and Green are friends. He is such a nice guy, but for some reason, he does not have any friends and has never been in a serious relationship ever in his life. I wonder if he ever thinks of getting married,” Ophelia said. If Green was up to something, the best thing she could do would be to set them up together, then she could monitor them from outside.
“Are you trying to set me up with Green?” Harper asked, dropping the cup of coffee to the table before she spilt all over the place.
“Yes, I am. You are single, aren’t you?” Ophelia asked. At this point, Cade wondered if he should still stay quiet or if he should say anything. If he spoke, then Ophelia would think there was something between him and Harper. He cleared his throat and stood up.
“I have to get something from the room,” he said, Ophelia glanced at him and she understood his expression. “Or I can get it after breakfast is done,” he said, cowering back to the seat.
“Is this the kind of relationship you have? the kind where your husband fears you?” Harper said. She was glad she hung around; she knew that if she stayed around them for long enough, then she would find something to capitalize on.
“What are you saying?” Cade said not liking the direction of the conversation.
“Don’t worry, Cade boo.”
“Don’t call me that,” Cade said immediately. “Just Cade is fine,” he added, and the smile on her face dropped. “And you are completely wrong about it. I just realized that we both have to get something from the room, so why not go together after breakfast?”
Ophelia was so impressed by his quick save that she wanted to give him a gold star. “Yeah, I am resuming today at work,” she said, turning to Harper, hoping that Cade could keep a straight face as if he were not just hearing the information for the first time, and he surprisingly did well.
“That is nice.” Harper’s voice was uninterested. She could not believe that what she thought was a glimmer of hope turned out to be a dead end.
“Yeah, it is, so since you are single and I am generous, I would pick a date with Green and set you up for a date experience, and don’t worry, everything is on me.”
“What do you mean by everything is on you? Why do you think I would go? Why do you think Green would go?” Harper’s voice was rising with the end of the sentence, but she knew Ophelia’s tactics for finding her a date were pulling her away from Cade.
“Green would do anything I ask him; I would pay for everything on the date so you can have a nice time together, not worrying about who pays the bill and as for you, I am sure you would go to prove that you are now over Cade,” she said, licking her lips and leaning in. “Except you aren’t over him and you are here not as his friend but to ruin his marriage to me.”
Cade was tempted to clap at how good Ophelia was at that moment; she had successfully trapped Harper and it would be hell for her to get out. They all knew that she was not over him but she could not agree to the fact that this was her way to break them up so she could have her way with Cade. It would make her a crazy person.
“I will go, and I am glad; someone is buying me food.”
“And I am sure that Green would like that as well. You, both, are on the same level.” Ophelia could not believe her kindness to him was taken for granted so much. She had only been kind to him because was around her and automatically they became friends How could he think of doing anything to hurt her? She was disappointed that she had gotten close to him only to be treated this way.
Harper cleared her throat; this was not the time to fight back. She knew that Ophelia was clearly telling her that they were in two different classes away from theirs. It was not like this was news to her. She already knew all of that, but she had thought that hers would be a fairytale book ending and she would end up as Cinderella.
‘How foolish’