Chapter 105
Chapter 105 A Dinner Together
“Make yourself at home-look around, wander wherever you like p>
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Leighton walked toward the living room and spotted Zora sitting quietly without moving an inch.
He stepped over, set down a fruit platter filled with strawberries, grapes, and sliced kiwi, then placed a carton of milk beside it.
“Mm.” Zora nodded softly.
“What would you like to eat, Zora?” Leighton asked, offering to make her something she fancied.
“Anything is fine,” Zora replied. She knew better than to be picky when dining at someone else’s home.
“Then I’ll fix you some meat. I noticed you liked meat last time p>
Leighton studied her. They were still practically strangers, nowhere near as close as she was to Jensen. He knew Zora would never open up to him so easily.
Zora’s eyes flickered. “Mm p>
When she heard he planned to cook himself, she glanced up at him in surprise. She’d never imagined someone born into old money, raised in utter luxury, would know how to cook at all.
She’d assumed he’d just have a caterer drop off meals. Never did she expect he’d make dinner with his own hands.
“Stay seated for a bit, I’ll get cooking-it’ll be ready soon. You can work on your schoolwork while you wait p>
Leighton checked the time; it was nearly six o’clock. Classes let out at half past five at Havenridge High. After a full day of studying, he was worried she might be hungry. Growing teenagers needed regular meals to stay healthy.
Zora’s admiration for him weakened slightly when he reminded her of the cruel reality of schoolwork before leaving.
Anyone who brought up schoolwork lost their charm instantly. Anyone!
Zora picked up a strawberry with a fork and popped it into her mouth. She grabbed her backpack, slid off the couch, and sat cross-legged on the bare hardwood floor. The cool wood chilled her legs, so she adjusted her dress and draped a throw rug over her lap.
She pulled out her exam papers from her bag. Senior year was defined by one endless thing:
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Chapter 105 A Dinner Together
worksheets. Piles and piles of them. Daily assignments for every subject, constant quizzes, weekly exams-tests that never seemed to end.
Zora settled in and got to work on her literature essay.
One person cooking in the kitchen, another studying quietly in the living room-there was little conversation, yet the air felt strangely calm and peaceful.
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Leighton stole a glance out from the kitchen now and then, watching the small girl focused on her work. A quiet, unrecognized tenderness softened his features as he looked at her.
The still room held only the sizzle of cooking oil and the faint rustle of turning paper pages.
“Zora, put your schoolwork aside for now. Wash your hands-dinner’s ready p>
Leighton carried all the dishes to the dining table before calling her over.
“Okay p>
Zora set down her pen, gathered her supplies, and tucked them back into her backpack so she could leave quickly later. She also pulled out her calming herbal sachet and set it within easy reach.
She headed to the kitchen to wash her hands, then walked to the dining table.
Her eyes widened with surprise at the spread; the food looked every bit as good as her mentor’s home cooking.
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Her mentor was always able to turn simple ingredients into incredibly flavorful meals.
The table was set with four home-cooked dishes and a bowl of soup: scrambled eggs with herbs, pepper pork skillet, seasoned roast beef, sweet glazed cabbage, and vegetable meatball
soup.
Every dish looked incredibly appetizing-especially the generous portions of meat.
One glance at the spread was enough for Zora to know it would taste amazing, a judgment honed from years of watching her mentor cook back home.
Growing up in Maplewood with her mentor, Zora had never cared for fancy, elaborate dishes. Simple home-cooked meals were more than enough for her.
It was much the same with Seacrest itself. She’d never taken to bustling city life. If given the choice, she would spend her whole life in that quiet little village with her mentor: planting vegetable gardens each spring, fishing for shrimp by the stream in summer, collecting ginkgo leaves in autumn, and building carrotnosed snowmen all winter long.
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Chapter 105 A Dinner Together
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They never had much money, yet every moment spent with her mentor was pure, perfect happiness.
Jolie always said she was born for a plain life, unfit for luxury-and Zora couldn’t help but think she might be right.
She disliked the rigid formality of the big city, the way everyone weighed every word before speaking, the crowded streets where you could accidentally bump into wealthy socialites at any
turn.
If she could choose, no amount of wealth or luxury could ever replace having her mentor by her side.
All Zora had ever truly wanted was to stay with her mentor forever.
Pushing those tangled emotions aside, she spoke softly, “It smells and looks wonderful p>
“Taste my cooking and tell me what you think. If it’s not to your liking, I’ll adjust it next time p>
Leighton caught the faint shift in her mood. He handed her a dinner fork, a faint easy smile playing at the corner of his striking features, his voice warm and pleasant to the ear.
Zora sat across from him at the long dining table but made no move to start eating.
Leighton took his own seat as well.
“Go ahead and eat. No need to be formal here p>
Noticing she still hadn’t touched her food, Leighton picked up a clean spare fork and served
her a portion of the beef, the dish he’d seen her glance at several times earlier.
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