Quickly, Annie placed a palm on the phone’s speaker and gestured for the man to keep silent.
“What are you up to, Annie?” Andrew frowned.
“Annie, is someone there with you? Why am I hearing a male’s voice?” Mrs. Lin’s loud voice came from the other end.
Understanding the situation, Andrew turned around and left the bedroom after glaring at the girl.
“Why are you silent, Annie? Who is that person?” Mrs. Lin’s voice sounded again, pulling Annie’s attention back to the phone.
“It’s – It’s from the TV, Ma.” Annie cleared her throat and said with a sigh. “I’m in the living room watching TV?”
“Are you sure?” Mrs. Lin sounded skeptical.
“Ma, please make sure you investigate Chen well. He should know something about Dylan’s whereabouts.” Annie changed the topic. “Ask Mrs. Ming to help you investigate him.”
“That boy doesn’t listen to his mother. Don’t worry, I’ll investigate him well. If I sense that he’s lying, I might as well teach him a lesson.”
With that said, Mrs. Lin bid her goodnight and hung up. At the other end, the woman couldn’t help but think again about that voice.
Mrs. Lin had a feeling that the voice sounded familiar. She could swear she had heard that unique kind of voice from somewhere before. And didn’t the person mention her daughter’s name?
That was a bit strange.
Annie dropped her phone and let out a huge sigh, staring at the ceiling. After collecting her thoughts, she dropped the phone then picked up her tablet and walked out of the bedroom.
On her way to the living room, her nose caught the smell of burnt food from the kitchen. She frowned then dropped the tablet on the couch before proceeding to the kitchen.
“Mr. Lim…” She trailed off, seeing the man standing behind the counter. The pot was sitting in front of him and the food inside it looked as dark as the night. What was even darker was the man’s expression.
“I didn’t know you to be this careless. Didn’t you know the food was burning?”
How could Annie know? She had been so engrossed in making the phone call with her mother.
She walked forward and took a proper look at the food inside the post. Then she breathed out a sigh and picked up a small trash bag.
“Don’t give me that look, Mr. Lim. I’m also hungry.” The man was staring at her as if she had committed a great sin and Annie found it funny.
Andrew rolled up his sleeves and slapped her hand off before she could touch the pot.
Annie was taken aback and she quickly retracted her hand. “What is wrong? Mr. Lim shouldn’t be so mad over burnt food, right?
Andrew stared at her hand, his expression relaxing. “The pot is still hot.”
While she was in a hurry to touch the food, the man had instinctively reacted by pushing her hand away. “Does it hurt?” He asked.
Annie rubbed her hand and nodded. “Why do you even ask? Your hands are as hard as a rock while my fingers are fragile. Of course, it would hurt.”
“Let me do it.” Andrew took the bag from her and scooped the burnt food inside it. “You’re acting as if I’ve wronged you. If I hadn’t stopped you, you would be crying in pain now.”
“From a simple burn?” Annie chuckled. “I’m sure the pot is not even that hurt, Mr. Lim.” She reached forward and touched the pot slightly. “See? I have a feeling you did that intentionally.”
“Take it out.” Andrew pushed the trash bag into her hand, giving her a blank look.
Annie’s lips twitched at the sides and she grabbed the bag from him. After disposing of it in the trash can outside the apartment, she returned to find the man trying to cut some vegetables.
“Are you planning to cook for yourself?” She held herself back from laughing. “Since when did Mr. Lim learn how to cook?”
“At least, it is better than you feeding me burnt food.”
Annie shook her head at his words then walked toward the fridge. She brought out some ingredients and started arranging them.
“Compared to your cooking, I’m sure the food I’ll cook will taste better even if it’s burnt. Mr. Lim, if you hurt yourself, I won’t take responsibility.”
“Really?” The man stopped what he was doing and looked at her. “Even if you feed me poison?” He asked.
“Huh?” Annie raised a brow. “I’m not that heartless, Mr. Lim. We’re not on good terms, but I won’t have the heart to do such a thing to my husband.”
“How sure are you that you’re not feeding me poison with your words, Annie?” Out of nowhere, the man was mad again. “Cook fast and don’t waste more resources.”
“Mr. Lim is living rent-free in my apartment. You also get to eat free food. Don’t you sound funny for accusing me of wasting resources?”
“If Mrs. Lim hadn’t been stubborn in agreeing to live with me, we would both be surrounded by servants. And there won’t be burnt food or burnt fingers.”
“How unfortunate. If Mr. Lim doesn’t like this simple lifestyle, you might as well pack and leave.”
“You–“ the man glared at her. “Is your tongue made of venom, Annie? Should I cut it off so you don’t get into trouble someday?”
“If you cut my tongue off, I won’t be able to interact much with people. And If I’m not able to interact with people, how can I continue working? If I don’t work, Mr. Lim, who will bring food to the table?”
The pot was bubbling hot on the stove as the couple bantered. Andrew finally decided to leave her alone and he left the kitchen.
Very soon, Annie was done cooking and she walked out of the kitchen to find him waiting on the dining table. The man had freshened up and was now dressed in his pajamas.
“Annie…” As they ate silently, he called her name. “Obviously, I’m the one marrying you. Why do you call yourself the breadwinner?”
“Isn’t it obvious, Mr. Lim?” Annie let out a soft laugh.