Chapter 4 – The Invitation to Midnight

(Jasmine's POV)

I barely had time to process the note before the shop bell chimed again.

I panicked.

Without thinking, I grabbed the midnight rose and the note, stuffing them behind the counter just as Celeste walked in.

My heart was still racing, but I forced my expression into something neutral.

Calm. Casual. Normal.

She glanced around the shop, her sharp gaze sweeping over me like she could sense something was off.

"Busy morning?" she asked, slipping off her shawl.

I nodded quickly. "Yeah! You know, the usual. Lots of orders. Some… interesting customers."

Celeste raised an eyebrow, clearly not buying it.

Mira, bless her chaotic soul, jumped in immediately. "Oh yeah, totally. So many orders. Just this morning, we had this one guy who wanted nothing but daisies. Only daisies. Can you imagine? Who even likes daisies that much?"

Celeste looked at her, unimpressed. "Plenty of people like daisies, Mira."

"Yeah, but a whole room full of them?" Mira shook her head. "Creepy. Suspicious."

I bit my lip to keep from laughing. She was so bad at lying, but it was oddly convincing.

Celeste sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. "You two are up to something."

I straightened. "What? Us? No! Of course not!"

"Jas," Celeste said, giving me the look. "I raised you. I know when you're hiding something."

Mira jumped in again, slinging an arm around my shoulder. "She's not hiding anything! She's just busy tonight. We have plans! Girl's night. Just the two of us."

I nodded quickly, seizing the excuse. "Right! Plans. Mira and I. Big plans. Very important plans."

Celeste narrowed her eyes.

"Where?" she asked.

Mira opened her mouth, paused, then looked at me. "Uh, where was it again?"

I cleared my throat. "Oh, you know… that… new café?"

Mira snapped her fingers like she just remembered. "Yes! That one place! The… uh, Moonbeam Café!"

Celeste crossed her arms. "Moonbeam Café closed down last month."

I internally cursed.

Mira coughed. "Uh. Not that Moonbeam Café. The new one. Different place. Same name. Weird branding choice, honestly."

Celeste stared at us.

I swallowed hard.

After what felt like an eternity, she let out a sigh. "Fine. But don't stay out too late."

I exhaled in relief, nodding quickly. "Of course! Early night. Very responsible."

Mira gave her best angelic smile, which only made Celeste look more suspicious.

Finally, she shook her head and turned toward the back room. "I'll be in the office for a bit. Try not to burn the shop down while I'm gone."

The moment she disappeared, Mira turned to me, grinning.

"That was painful. But I think we pulled it off."

I groaned. "She's going to kill me if she finds out I lied."

Mira shrugged. "Well, yeah. But we'll worry about that later. Right now—what's the plan?"

I hesitated.

Because the truth was, I didn't know.

I should have ignored the note. Tossed it in the trash. Told Celeste everything.

But something deep inside me wouldn't let it go.

The midnight roses in my dreams.

Now, one appearing in my shop—in the hands of a stranger.

It couldn't be a coincidence.

"I need to go," I admitted. "I need to see who left that note."

Mira sighed dramatically. "I hate this plan already."

I gave her a look.

"But," she continued, "I also really want to know what's going on. So—we're doing this."

I smiled. "You don't have to come."

"Excuse me?" Mira scoffed. "And let you do creepy midnight secret meetings alone? Absolutely not. This is some horror movie decision-making right here, and I refuse to let you die first."

I laughed. "Fair enough."

Mira grabbed my shoulders. "Okay. Step one: Look hot. Step two: We meet at the address. Step three: If I don't text you in exactly five minutes after getting there, assume I've been kidnapped by a cult."

I rolled my eyes. "Noted."

But even as we joked, excitement stirred in my chest.

Because whatever was waiting for me at midnight…

I wanted to find out.