Chapter 4

As if worried that Archer was still going to leave, Violet immediately got the maids to move Archer's suitcases into the largest guest bedroom they had. Valerie turned around gleefully and gave Dylan a haughty look. "It's late. Why are you still idling here? Go and make dinner now! Also, Archer can't eat spicy food, so make sure none of your dishes are spicy." Although the Padden household employed many maids and servants, Dylan was still the only one tasked with cooking for everyone. That was because Violet was an extremely picky eater and was very hard to please, refusing food even from famous chefs abroad. However, she seemed to find Dylan's food somewhat palatable. Yet, however much time and energy Dylan spent on cooking for her, Violet would still only eat a few mouthfuls of the food he made. Sometimes, Valerie would eat his food, but not without critiquing it every single time. Now, Dylan shook his head and said two words that shocked everyone. "I can't." Violet subconsciously turned to look at Dylan when she heard his rejection. From what she could remember, Dylan had never dared to disobey anything they said in this household. This was the first time he rejected her. Just as Violet opened her mouth to ask, Archer's eyes suddenly turned red. "I'm sorry, it's all my fault. I shouldn't have stayed with you. I'm just an outsider after all. Mr. Cloud has no obligation to cook for me." With that, Archer turned to head for the stairs, intending to get his suitcases to leave, but Violet stopped him. "It's got nothing to do with you." Then, she turned to look at Dylan and said in a low voice, "Didn't you say that you weren't angry? What is the meaning of this?" Dylan just lifted his fingers, showing two band-aids wrapped around his second and third fingers. "I hurt myself and can't get them wet for a while." Actually, Dylan wasn't hurt at all. It was just that he didn't want to continue wasting more of his time and effort on Violet now that his contract was over. So, he purposely wrapped his fingers with the band-aids as an excuse not to cook anymore. The atmosphere went tense immediately. Dylan had always been in charge of household chores ever since he moved in, so the household servants and maids would always leave at the end of the day. As of now, the only person left in the whole villa who knew how to cook was Dylan. Nobody else even knew how to crack an egg. It would be too late for them to get the servants back and cook for them. Valerie frowned unhappily and grumbled, "Why didn't you say so earlier? Were you trying to starve us on purpose?" Valerie was about to jump at Dylan when Archer held her back. "Val, don't be like this." Archer then looked at Violet next to him and said, "Vi, after being abroad for so long, I'm craving that pizza place we used to always go to back when we were still in high school. I remember that we always ate there after classes. Should we just have some pizza tonight?" Of course, Violet would never reject Archer's suggestion. She answered gently, "Alright. I'll take you there." They then left for the pizzeria, bringing Dylan along with them. Violet chatted happily with both Valerie and Archer in the backseat while she drove there. They eventually got to the topic of their high school, and Archer seemed excited to reminisce with her. Valerie also joined in the chat every now and then. When they brought up something funny, all three of them would laugh heartily about it. Halfway though laughing, Archer suddenly seemed to recall something; he looked over at Dylan in the front passenger seat, smiling. "I'm sorry, Mr. Cloud. It's not that we want to ignore you on purpose, but you're just not part of our past from back then." It wasn't just their past that Dylan wasn't a part of—he wasn't going to be a part of their future either very soon. Dylan just hummed in response and closed his eyes. Violet rarely ever glanced at him, but she did this time. She somehow thought that there was something about Dylan that had changed. After parking the car, Dylan excused himself to go to the restroom. He splashed some cold water onto his face and looked at himself in the mirror. He had good looks and flawless skin too, but he looked tired and worn out. Both he and Archer had each been married for five years. However, while Archer still looked young and energetic, Dylan looked old and tired. Still, he only had to hold out for a bit longer before he was finally free. That was what Dylan kept telling himself. When he finally got back to the table, the other three had already placed their orders. "We'll have the five-cheese pizza and the marinara pizza. Since Archer doesn't eat meat, we'll add extra mushrooms and basil, but skip the onion," Violet said, giving her order to the waiter. Although it had been many years ago, Violet could still remember everything Archer liked. "Anything you don't eat, Dylan?" This was the first time Violet had ever asked for his food preferences in their five years of marriage. Dylan sat on the other end of the table and grabbed a napkin to clean the utensils. "I'm fine with anything except seafood." When the pizzas were out, Violet kept making sure that Archer's plate was full. She barely ate anything herself as she continued offering Archer the sides and drinks. Halfway through their meal, the table next to theirs happened to start a brawl. Two of the people even started to fight each other physically. The other patrons in the restaurant came over, wanting to break up the fight. However, one of them had a terrible temper and suddenly grabbed the huge bowl of piping hot cream of mushroom soup on the table and flung it at the other person, who managed to duck. Unfortunately, the hot soup was headed straight for Violet's table. Screams rang out. Violet subconsciously shielded Archer next to her with her body. Meanwhile, Dylan wasn't able to duck in time. He stared in horror as the bowl of hot soup flew straight toward him.