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Chapter 13

Chapter 13

“Let’s eat together!” Conrad didn’t even ask for my opinion before agreeing

Haley sat down, eyeing the dish with desire. “Grilled salmon, eh? I’ve been craving it lately.”

“How about we add a serving of foie gras for you?” Conrad’s manner of speaking was utterly natural.

“And let’s top it off with a dessert. I want frozen yogurt with strawberry sauce. For my drink, I have orange juice.” Haley finished, then tumed to me, “Felicia, would you like some orange juice, too?”

“No, thanks. Ill stick with water,” I replied, biting the foie gras on my fork.

It tasted smooth and delicate with a hint of creaminess.

“Rad, is the foie gras you’ve brought me before from here, too? Haley’s question made me pause mid–bite.

I looked at him, noticing his slightly awkward expression, “Yeah

multiple times, and it was only my

No wonder he knew the foie gras at the restaurant was good. It turned out he had bought it

it for others m first time, his guilty attempt at compensation.X

Suddenly, the foie gras in my mouth tasted awful and felt nearly impossible to swallow

“No wonder I felt the foie gras smelled familiar as I passed by.” Haley said with a laugh, looking at Conrad. The tenderness in her eyes was like a net making me suffocated.

She then looked at me again. “Felicia. Rad must have brought you here often since he knows the foie gras is good and has brought some for me

It was like stabbing me wasn’t enough. Haley had to twist the knife, too. That was the exact feeling I had at that moment.

I also looked at Conrad. “No, this is the first time, I guess I’m not as lucky as you are.”

Haley’s smile stiffened, then she lowered her gaze, her voice trembling, “Aiden left me and… the child. What luck is that?”

As she spoke, tears started to fall.

I was shocked. How did a simple conversation lead to tears?

“Felicia!” Conrad called out sharply, then passed a tissue to Haley “Don’t be too sad. You shouldn’t cry too much now it’s not good for the baby

“If Aiden were here, I wouldn’t be dining alone,” Haley said, taking the tissue to wipe her eyes, “Sorry, my emotions are all over the place because of the pregnancy. I’ve ruined your mood. I should probably leave.”

As she tried to rise, Conrad reached to hold her back. “You’re overthinking it. Besides, we’ve ordered the food for you. Try the grilled salmon. It’s good.“2

As Conrad was about to place a piece of salmon on her plate with his fork, I reminded him. “Conrad, shouldn’t you be using serving utensils to serve others?”

My words made Conrad pause, with the fork halfway to the plate, making the atmosphere awkward.

Haley looked at Conrad and spoke considerately, “Rad, you don’t have to serve me. I can do it myself.”

Conrad placed the salmon back on his plate but then took mine and carefully removed the bones before putting a piece on my plate. I had choked on a fish bone before, and since then, Conrad would remove the bones for me whenever he was around.

Conrad always had this way of balancing things with a slap followed by a sweet gesture.

M

*Felicia, Rad is good to you,” Haley remarked.

“He should be. I’m his fiancée. Who else would he be good to?” I said, taking a bite of the salmon and sipping water before continuing, “If he’s this nice to someone else, that would be wrong, wouldn’t it, Haley?