Chapter 1132:

Catching his perplexed look, Linda smiled warmly. Why did he seem so endearing?

Edward, noticing Linda’s peculiar gaze, leaned toward Elyse and whispered, “Is it just me, or is Linda looking at me strangely?”

Elyse looked up briefly. “Strange how?”

Edward touched his face. “She’s looking at me like I’m clueless, yet I clearly look intelligent.”

Elyse gazed at him, her expression filled with bewilderment.

After slicing the steak with scissors to ensure it was well-cooked, Elyse used tongs to place it on a clean white ceramic plate and handed it to Edward.

“Here you go, try this,” Elyse said.

Edward eagerly accepted the plate, grabbed a fork, and immediately tasted a piece of the steak. His face contorted briefly, but noticing Elyse’s gaze, he quickly composed himself.

As Elyse was cleaning up the grilling tools, she glanced over and casually inquired, “How’s the taste? Is it to your liking?”

Pressing his lips tightly together, Edward smiled and slowly nodded.

“Great, then it’s all yours,” Elyse said with satisfaction as she removed her apron, draped it over the chair, and sat down next to Linda.

Once Elyse had moved away, Jayden whispered, “I saw her adding a lot of salt. I tried to warn you, but you didn’t listen.”

Edward almost drooled from the intense saltiness. He managed a strained expression. “How much salt did she use? It’s excessively salty.”

Jayden said, “She’s not very experienced with cooking, so she doesn’t really know how much salt is too much. She thinks if the meat’s cooked, it’s good enough.”

Overwhelmed by the saltiness, Edward struggled to speak, his initial enthusiasm for the steak now turning sour. How was he supposed to discreetly dispose of it?

Noticing Edward’s struggle, Jayden smiled and said, “Here’s an idea. Why not rinse the steak to wash off some of the salt? Then you could still enjoy it.”

Edward frowned. “What a terrible suggestion! You expect me to wash the meat in front of Elyse? What are you trying to do?”

Jayden’s grin widened. “Just ensuring you don’t get off too easily in front of Elyse.”

Edward clenched his teeth in frustration. Jayden was truly making things difficult for him.

As they talked, Jayden and Ken both completed their grilling nearly simultaneously and began serving their dishes.

Linda, now faced with a challenge, said, “You two finished at the same time. How am I supposed to decide who did better?”