Evangeline looked at his grin, which held a hint of mischief, and her body instinctively stiffened.


    She had only been living with him for two days, but she''d already learned that Finn''s stamina was dozens of times better than she had ever imagined.


    At first, he was afraid of hurting her. But when she saw how much pain he was in from holding back, she told him it was okay. After that, things spiraled out of control.


    Her whole body ached intensely.


    Initially, the thought of Victor, a sword hanging over her head, had caused her some worry. But with Finn keeping her upied, she hardly had any mental energy left to be concerned about much else.


    Finn didn''t head toward the bedroom. Instead, he walked out of the room and went downstairs.


    Evangeline was a little confused, but when she saw the dining tableden with exquisitely prepared dishes, herst glimmer of hope died.


    For the past few days, Finn had been cooking for her, creating a different menu every single day.


    To be honest, the presentation of Finn''s cooking was stunning. Every dish could have been served at a state banquet.


    But the taste...


    If one were to score the dishes on appearance, aroma, and vor, the appearance would get a thousand points.


    The vor, however, would get negative a thousand.


    Aside from the simpler soups, which were decent, the other dishes were so nd they were nearly impossible to eat.


    Evangeline didn''t have the heart to waste the food he had worked so hard to prepare, so she could only force herself to take a few extra bites.


    Eventually, she couldn''t stand it anymore and tried to cook herself, but Finn stopped her.


    He hugged her from behind, gently holding her hands, his tone both earnest and suggestive. "If you don''t like the taste, I can learn. But it''s my fault if you still have the energy to be in the kitchen doing this."


    "How about you try this time?"


    She was contemting whether to sneak off and make some instant ramen when Finn ced some food on her te with his fork, his eyes full of anticipation. Evangeline abandoned the thought.


    Her cooking was terrible when she first started, too.


    It was a first for everyone.


    She had to be tolerant, understanding, and encouraging.


    With that in mind, Evangeline steeled herself and put the food in her mouth as if she were marching to her doom.


    Surprisingly, it tasted much better than she had expected.


    Evangeline''s eyes lit up.


    "Did you secretly sign up for a cooking ss?" she asked suspiciously.


    Finn''s lips curved into a smile, but he didn''t feel the joy of being praised. Instead, he


    felt an indescribable sense of awkwardness.


    This time, the techniques weren''t from the inte.


    He had swallowed his pride and asked Glenn for help.


    "How is Theresa doing?" Evangeline couldn''t help but ask.


    Theresa had said she would leave the ce below the cliff in a few days and would find a way to contact her then.


    Having not heard anything for two days, Evangeline felt a growing sense of unease.


    She figured Theresa was worried her phone might be tapped and had resorted to other means of


    Speaking of which, Finn also felt something was off.


    Ene


    Yesterday Theresa had called him telling him she was returning to Serenity City and wanted to secretly stay at the Lockridge estate. She asked him to help her figure out a Way.


    ?.[U?


    When he hadst seen Theresa, he could tell her attitude was resolute.


    Because of what happened with Jinian, Theresa felt nothing but hatred for Victor; there were no feelings of love left.


    He assumed she wanted to make a move against Victor, so he told her inly, "If you''re nning to kill him, this n is impossible."


    "He''s extremely vignt. You might be discovered before you even get close to him."


    The turmoil within the Lockridge family, coupled with the many people whoter wanted him dead, had forged the sharp and ruthless Victor of today.


    Theresa chuckled softly. "I know. I''m not nning on revenge."


    "It''s just that the most dangerous ce is the safest ce. Victor is searching for me everywhere; he


    would never imagine that I''d be right under his nose, seeing him every day."


    "I know him. He''s arrogant and conceited. Whether I''m a maid or a gardener at the


    Lockridge estate, he won''t even spare me a second nce."


    Finn thought her words made a lot of sense. After asking a few more questions and confirming her decision to stay, he agreed to help.