Vespera went to the shed.

“Oh, I thought you were going to have me clean your desk. I’m not in good condition right now, so that’s why I said I couldn’t do it,” she stuttered.

Dominic stayed silent, his arms crossed as he leaned against his desk. He saw right through her but wasn’t in a rush to expose her. After a moment, he let out a chuckle.

“Ms. Gdo, what’s running through that mind of yours?” he teased.

Her face bore embarrassment. It was as if he was hinting that she had been fantasizing about him. She was at a complete loss for words, looking down at the tiles awkwardly before quickly changing the subject.

“What do you need me to do? I’ll get on it right away.”

He didn’t dwell on it, sat in the chair across from her, and gave her some work instructions. Then, he continued where he had left off. The study fell into silence, with only the sound of pages turning.

For the next hour, she didn’t lift her head even once. She was so focused that she lost track of everything else. Now and then, Dominic would glance at her with a smirk.

Meanwhile, Raymond came out of the kitchen to check on them, but he couldn’t find them anywhere. He was puzzled as to why Dominic hadn’t returned from picking her up. Little did he know that Dominic was taking full advantage of his injured employee.

They were still nowhere to be seen, and he finally gave him a call once he finished cooking. Five minutes later, Dominic pushed Vespera out of the study. She was dazed, wanting to pet a afraid to move.

At the dining table, Raymond cheerfully pulled out the chairs. Dominic pushed her toward the table while he contemplated whether to lift her into a chair.

“Would you ever think it it carried you onto the chair?” he asked playfully.

She wanted to.

Raymond, unaware of their inside joke, was merely impressed by how gentlemanly Dominic was.

“That’s okay, I’m fine in the wheelchair,” she said, smiling as though she had eaten a lemon.

She screamed in her mind that she wasn’t.

The dinner was a feast. Raymond’s skills surpassed those of a professional chef. She turned her frustration into appetite, devouring the dishes bite by bite, attacking them like a tornado. Dominic missed out on his piece of meat because he was too slow.

Seeing her eat so eagerly, Raymond felt immense satisfaction. The happiest moment for any cook is watching the food they’d carefully prepared disappear, but Dominic had never enjoyed his meals quite like this.

“That good? Here, you can have the rest,” Dominic offered.

Only then did she stop, meeting his gaze as he smiled. Realizing she had been eating too quickly, she slowed down. Raymond served her another helping of chicken soup. She thanked him and praised him without holding back.

“Were you ever a chef? Your cooking is so delicious.”

He beamed with pride. She then asked for the recipes of some dishes. The two of them chatted happily.

“You like my cooking so much, feel free to come by every day,” Raymond said as their chat ended. “Sure,” she answered before thinking it through.

“I wouldn’t be right for me to come every day. I’d be imposing,” she corrected herself immediately.

Chapter 81

Once she finished speaking, a gentle voice floated through the room. “There’s no need to feel shy.”

Vespera glanced at Dominic. Hearing Dominic’s words, Raymond quickly said, “It’s settled then. I’ll prepare two additional dishes every day from now on.”

Vespera was taken aback and fell silent.

Hold on. She had just been having a casual conversation. How had it turned into an invitation for a daily meal?

And as for Dominic’s comment, wasn’t he subtly teasing her about how much she had just eaten?

After dinner, Vespera wanted to leave quickly. But she remembered the unfinished work in the study. She discussed it with him. “Mr. Deld, can I take the work home to complete it?”

Dominic replied, “No need.”

He meant he didn’t require her to do it anymore. However, to Vespera, it sounded as though she couldn’t leave until the work was done.

“Alright.”