She removed the cup of iced americano and dropped it in front of him. She did the same with the Almond cake.
"I just can't stand seeing someone bullied in front of me," She said as she took the tray from the table.
She squinted her eyebrows when she saw how intently he was looking at her face. "Why are you looking at me like that?" Joanna questioned.
"For the two times you came to the cafe I found out that you can't seem to take your eyes off me, what is it?" She demanded, but in a calm tone.
She watched as he picked up the biro and scribbled something on the notepad.
He lifted the notepad and turned it around after he was done.
"Nothing… it's just that you are very pretty," She chuckled after reading the word he scribbled. She stretched her hand and dropped the notepad in front of him with a smile on her face.
"Of course I know I am extraordinarily beautiful. That is a fact I am very aware of," She responded not minding that she sounded very narcissistic.
Joanna returned to her spot at the counter and continued with her work. As she walked around serving the customers she didn't forget to take a peep at her wristwatch every five minutes.
Thirty minutes to the time Audrey was supposed to have her first class for the day Joanna informed her colleague about the urgent matter.
At the cafe, Mrs Parker was seen racing out of the cafe while taking Joanna's name.
"Oh my... why are you in such a rush?" Mrs Parker complained after she had managed to grab Joanna's attention.
"Anyone who sees you in such haste will at first glance assume you are hurrying to catch your cheating husband in the act," Mrs Parker joked as she looked at the lady that just walked to where she stood.
"I am very single so why would anyone have such an absurd thought?" The panting Joanna asked.
Even though she had over twenty minutes to spare she was in a haste to reach the campus on time.
Joanna didn't want to miss the chance of talking to Audrey for anything in this world. She preferred to go an hour or two earlier than to miss such a golden opportunity.
"I know there was no way I was gonna win against you from the onset so I will accept defeat early to save myself the trouble," Mrs Parker smiled instead, finding Joanna's reply offensive.
She revealed the hand she was hiding behind her back.
Joanna was stunned to see Mrs Parker extend a white envelope to her.
"What's that for?" Joanna demanded without taking the envelope from her.
"You will know after you open it," Mrs Parker replied and shoved the envelope into Joanna's hands.
Reluctantly Joanna unsealed the envelope. Joanna's eyes widened when she set her eyes on the crispy white dollar note.
She diverted her attention from the crispy dollar note in her hands and focused her questioning gaze on Mrs Parker's face.
"I learned from Lia that you were very supportive and your performance was outstanding during my six days of absence. That's a bonus for all your hard work," Mrs Parker explained.
She didn't return from her trip on the fifth day as she promised. Because of an unforeseen situation, she ended up spending an extra day.
"I was only doing my job Mrs Parker so there is no need for you to praise or award me," Joanna said as she extended the brown envelope to Mrs Parker.
"Also if it was really a bonus you gave me like you said I would have happily accepted it but the money you are giving me is equivalent to my one-month salary so how could I bring myself to accept it?" Joanna asked.
She tried to shove the money into Mrs Parker's hands but having expected this the smart woman moved backwards.
"Whether or not you deserve that sum of money, let me be the judge of it…,"
"And how could I accept the money when I know that my other colleagues haven't…,"
"Why are you so sure that I haven't given Leah the bonus too?" Mrs Parker argued.
They left the pathway after seeing a group of customers approaching the Cafe's entrance.
"Leah has been looking for extra money to take her little sister to the park. There was no way she wouldn't have bragged to me if you had given her a bonus," Joanna explained in a calm tone.
"This is the problem with smart people who analyze everything… I wonder why she had to be so smart. If only she applied this much intelligence to her love life then she wouldn't have…,"
"What are you mumbling Mrs Parker, I can't hear you," Joanna, who has been watching the woman's moving lips, interrupted.
"I said you are overthinking…,"
"I am not. I know exactly what I am saying," she said with confidence in her eyes.
The two of them went quiet afterwards.
"Mrs Parker, did Amos ask you to give me this money?" Joanna asked out of the blue.
"Is he also perhaps the reason you have been so good to me…,"
"Were you lied to all your life, little girl?" Mrs Parker questioned sternly.
"I haven't been lied to all my life but I guess the way I have been treated ever since I came into existence makes me doubt people's intentions," Joanna said meekly. She walked two steps forward and turned her back on Mrs Parker.
"None in this Kingdom has treated me as nice as you do except my friend and a few of my loved ones…,"
"Being a late shifter was never a crime. People only make a big deal out of your case because you happened to be the King's mate. I have never been the type to follow trends so why should I hate you for no reason?" Mrs Parker demanded firmly.
"Even at that, I don't think I deserve this…,"
"Stop trying to prove stubborn and take the money. Also, don't forget you have little time to get to campus," Mrs Parker interrupted her gaze centred on Joanna's wristwatch.
Joanna was surprised when she lowered her gaze and saw how many minutes had passed.
"Dammit," she exclaimed. "I am running out of time," She said and started running away.
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