Chapter 159

The next day, as Yannis drove Zinnia to the Jenkins residence, she looked at him and said softly, “I’m going to the Jenkins residence today. Make sure you eat properly while I’m gone.”

“Zinnia, are you really worried about me?” Yannis kept his eyes on the road. Stopping at a red light, he turned to look at her, his deep eyes shining with affection.

“Yannis, Toby told me you get so busy with work that you forget everything. When I’m not staying at your place, you don’t even bother to cook,” Zinnia said, recounting what Toby had told her during her last office visit.

“How dare he tell you? I’ll cut his pay when we get back,” Yannis said, playfully raising an eyebrow.

Just then, Zinnia tugged on his sleeve. “I was the one who asked Toby to tell me, so don’t cut his pay,” she said, giving his sleeve a soft shake.

Yannis looked at her fingers holding his sleeve, his voice full of fun. “Zinnia, why are you being so cute again? Looks like I can’t say no now.”

Yannis couldn’t help but wonder if she had figured out he was a pushover when it came to her. Last time, she tugged his sleeve for snacks; now, she was interceding for Toby.

“How about I pay for what you’re going to cut from Toby?” Zinnia suggested after a moment’s thought.

Yannis shook his head. “No way.” The light turned green, and the car moved forward.

“How can I make sure you don’t cut his pay?” Zinnia begged, sounding worried. “He’s already poor. Any cut would hurt him.”

“Why don’t you tell me what exactly you were thinking when you looked at me yesterday?” Yannis teased, still curious about a look he couldn’t decipher. Now was the perfect opportunity to get her to talk.

‘Honestly, I looked at him several times yesterday. How would I know which look he’s talking about?’ she wondered.

“Can you at least give me a hint about which moment you mean?” Zinnia asked.

Yannis grinned, teasing her. “So what you’re saying is, you’ve been looking at me many times, you even remember when?”

“Go ahead and cut Toby’s pay,” Zinnia said. “It’s not my money. I don’t care. If anyone gets upset, it’s Toby, and if there’s a grudge, blame his stingy boss.”

“If Toby knew you gave up on saving his paycheck so fast, he’d probably cry,” Yannis teased, amused by her easy surrender.

“If you cut his pay,” Zinnia said, “he’ll be clinging to your leg and crying. Not mine.”

“Alright, I’ll give you a hint,” Yannis said. “It was when you and Jackson teamed up against me.” He gently encouraged Zinnia to elaborate.

“We weren’t ganging up on you,” Zinnia protested. She hadn’t teamed up with Jackson; they were simply stating facts.

“Alright, if you say so, I’ll trust you,” Yannis said. “But what were you thinking at that moment?” He wanted to know her perspective.

Zinnia hesitated, then looked at him. Remembering her thoughts from yesterday, she said, “I don’t think you’d want to hear it.”

Yannis thought, ‘I’ve already lost all dignity in front of you. What’s worse?’

“Are you sure you want to hear this?” Zinnia asked sincerely.

“Go ahead,” Yannis encouraged.

Zinnia paused, searching for the right words. “I just thought you seemed pretty down-to-earth,” she said softly, choosing her words carefully.

Chapter 159

Yannis’s smile froze. Zinnia added, “Maisie said, when people hold in their feelings until they break, they tend to go a little crazy.”

“Great, now I am a guy who freaks out,” Yannis thought, his smile fading, his mouth drooping.

“I told you that you wouldn’t want to hear it,” Zinnia whispered, stealing a quick look at his dark face.

He thought, ‘Look what she’s done to my sweet girl. Her words are getting bigger, but they’re all weird.’

Yannis took a deep breath and said, “Zinnia, how about I move you to another class? I can set it up. She’s really not good for you.”

“You’ve been spending too much time with Maisie.”

“No way!” Zinnia shook her head firmly. Yannis was only joking; he didn’t really want to move her to another class.

She had learned phrases about people parting ways, which made him uneasy.

Zinnia looked at him carefully and asked softly, “Are you really still going to cut Toby’s pay?”

“If I say I will, will you call me a liar?” Yannis asked, a little annoyed. She was still worried about Toby’s salary.

Toby only said those things because Yannis had given him silent approval. But Zinnia didn’t know that. She was really worried Yannis might cut Toby’s pay.

Zinnia didn’t say anything, but her steady gaze showed that was exactly what she thought. Yannis got annoyed but held tight to the steering wheel.

Zinnia saw his upset face and took a piece of candy from her bag. She fed it to him, softly saying, “Don’t be upset. Here, have this.” It was a special treat from her master.

She could only have one a day, but she gave him the one meant for herself. “Zinnia’s trying to cheer me up?” Yannis asked, looking at the candy and her earnest face. Instantly, his mouth curled up into a smile.

Zinnia stayed quiet. She thought, ‘Was I trying to cheer him up? I didn’t know. I’ve never been good at this. But I just upset Yannis, and I didn’t want him to stay upset.’

Her silent effort made Yannis smile happily. He took a bite of the candy. “Where did you get this candy, Zinnia? It’s really good. Tell me, and I’ll buy more,” he said kindly. The special flavor of the chocolate melted in his mouth.

It was surprisingly tasty. He noticed a hint of hesitation in her eyes; she clearly didn’t want to give it up but still offered it. Just thinking about that made a warm feeling spread through his heart.

Yannis thought, ‘So I do have a place in her heart. She’s trying to cheer me up. Though she’s kind of awkward about it. Maybe she’s never done this for anyone before. Maybe I’m the first. That makes me happy.’

Yannis thought he couldn’t refuse her attempt to cheer him up, but he could always buy more for her later. “This was a gift—made by someone special. You can’t buy it anywhere,” Zinnia said.

Though she felt a little sad giving it away, the feeling soon passed. She truly didn’t mind giving it to Yannis. The candy worked its magic, and a bright smile returned to Yannis’s handsome face.

Yannis thought for a moment and said, “How about we copy it? Or I could pay your friend to make more for you.”

Yannis suddenly felt bad about taking the candy, but it was gone. All he could do was think of how to make it up to her.

Zinnia smiled softly, her eyes bright and clear, “Don’t worry, I still have plenty—more than enough for myself.”

Zinnia thought, ‘I don’t even know where Master is. He’s always the one who contacts me. But I still have a whole jar of candies left. Once I finish them, he will come back. With that, the wait didn’t seem so long anymore.’

Chapter 160