?Chapter 1796:


    “Alright, you win—I’m off,” Colleen said, a twinkle of amusement lighting up her face as she finally turned toward the bathroom.


    A sense of renewal followed Colleen as she stepped out of the shower, her hair still damp, just in time to see Brady setting the meal on the table. Colleen’s eyes widened with delight. “This smells amazing!” she eximed, reaching eagerly for the te of ravioli. “What did you put inside?”


    “Mushroom and pork,” Brady replied with a smile. “Hadley mentioned it’s your favorite.”


    “She knows me too well.” Augh bubbled up from Colleen. “Back in the, if Hadley had a spare minute, she’d whip up a whole batch of these. Hers were always the best.”


    She wasted no time, plucking a ravioli and popping it into her mouth, cheeks puffed adorably as she savored every bite.


    “Honestly, I could never keep up with you two. I also studied abroad, but the best I managed was pping together sandwiches and microwaving hot dogs. I was no help to anyone in the kitchen.”


    Brady dismissed her words with a shake of his head. “Don’t say that.” A ss of fresh juice appeared at her elbow as he slid it over. “You were tackling one of the hardest degrees out there. No wonder you barely had a spare second for anything else.”


    If any students had it rough, medical majors took the prize.


    “It doesn’t matter to me,” Brady added, ncing over at her with gentle eyes. “Getting to cook for you now—that’s more than enough.”


    Silence settled between them. For a split second, Colleen sat utterly still, the weight of Brady’s words sinking in.


    No argument came. Instead, she simply let it be, epting the meaning behind his gesture without a word.


    She broke the silence atst. “Could you hand me the sauce?” She reached across the table.


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    “Of course.”


    As she savored her meal, she asked, “So, what brought you to Hadley’s ce today? Was there a reason?”


    “Yeah.” A nod confirmed it. Brady exined theplications with moving the family graves.


    Frustration crept into his voice. “It’s proving moreplicated than I expected.”


    Understanding flickered in her eyes. “Right, I remember hearing something about that…”


    Colleen considered the problem, then suggested, “Let me check with my folks as well—someone might have connections that could smooth things over.”


    A look of gratitude passed over Brady. “I appreciate that.”


    She shrugged it off. “It’s just a few calls. Way simpler than pulling together dinner.”<fn273e> Readplete version only at Find~Novel</fn273e>


    After Brady headed out, the issue still tugged at Colleen’s thoughts. She lingered at the table for a while, then picked up her phone and dialed Zane’s number. “Hi, Zane.”


    “Colleen, hey.”


    Noise buzzed in the background—Zane was likely still out at a social event. “Everything okay?”


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