Chapter 486

“Ms. Kay, you’re here! I thought you weren’t coming,” Ron said, striding in with a bag just as I was checking if breakfast had somehow disappeared into thin air.

“Ta-da! Breakfast!” he announced.

At that moment, it clicked. Breakfast had arrived all right—just not the one Wayne sent.

I gave Ron a look, waiting. He didn’t usually bring me breakfast without some kind of reason.

Sure enough, as he set the food down, he said, “I got called in at five this morning, and I was starving, so I, uh, ate the breakfast on your desk. This one’s a replacement.”

Oh, please. Like I was buying that.

But I was too tired to start anything. “You didn’t have to replace it. I already ate.”

Total lie. I hadn’t eaten at all; I’d barely had an appetite the past few days. And when I did eat, I just felt queasy.

“Come on, I can’t let you skip breakfast. Unless…you’re saying my choice isn’t good enough?” Ron asked, giving me a smirk. “This is custom-made, just for you.”

I cracked a smile. “Custom-made, huh? Guess I’ll see. If it looks good, maybe I’ll try a bite.”

I opened the container: shrimp bisque, garlic toast, and my go-to side salad.

Yup, I knew exactly who’d picked this combo.

“Perfect, right? It looks good, smells good, and it’s all the nutrition you need!” Ron said, already unwrapping the utensils.

I snapped the lid shut. “Eh, doesn’t look that appetizing. Not really feeling it.”

Ron froze. “Wait, this is all your favorite stuff. How come you—?”

I cut him off, locking eyes with him. “How do you even know what my favorite foods are?”

Ron stammered, “I—I heard you mention it. You told me, like, in one of our chats.”

Yeah, right. That was the worst cover ever. I knew Hayden had sent him to deliver this, even though we were over. And the fact he was still pulling these stunts? Frustrating…and confusing.

What was he trying to prove here?

Part of me wanted to throw the food back in Hayden’s face and demand an answer. But I held back. If he wanted a reaction, he’d get the opposite.

“Just because I used to like it doesn’t mean I still do. People change. You can stop liking someone halfway through life—why not breakfast?” I pushed the container back toward Ron.

Ron looked flustered. “Uh, okay…so what do you want to eat? Just tell me, and I’ll—I’ll have someone bring it.”

He looked desperate, like he was under orders to make sure I ate.

“Peri-bacon potato cakes,” I said, throwing out something totally random that Macy used to make back in Chiverton. Delicious, but practically incendiary.

Ron looked utterly lost. “Wait, what? Peri…what?”

Exactly. Peri-bacon potato cakes weren’t exactly popular in Seavora, so I wasn’t surprised. But Hayden would’ve known.

“See? You don’t even know what I want, let alone how to get it. Just take this so I can get back to work,” I said, waving him off.

Ron looked at the food, hesitating. “Just eat this for now, and I’ll figure out the Peri thing later.”

Hayden was obviously trying to show he still cared with this whole breakfast stunt. But I wasn’t about to give him the satisfaction.

If he wanted to play breakup games, then fine. I’d play it better and leave him hanging.

“Mr. Shane, I really can’t eat,” I said, adding an extra touch of drama. “I’ve been feeling nauseous the past few days. Just looking at food makes me want to throw up.” Perfect excuse to get rid of it.

Ron’s eyes went wide as he looked at me. A second later, he practically bolted with the food. “Okay, okay. I’ll take it.”

As soon as the door clicked shut, I swallowed hard.