Chapter 305
As Eva’s car drove away, Leslie’s car stopped before her.
After getting into the car, she asked in confusion, “Mr. Synder, why did you invite me to lunch? Is there something wrong with the food I prepared today?”
“No. It tasted great. They all wanted a bite,” Leslie said.
“They? Your colleagues, you mean?” she asked.
“Yeah.”
“I’ll prepare a bigger portion tomorrow. You can share it with your colleagues.”
She needed to cook anyway, so the portion didn’t really matter.
“It’s fine,” he said.
Leslie didn’t care about the others. It was his lunch, after all.
The kitchen would be sweltering every time she cooked. Since Aurelia was naturally thrifty, she wouldn’t turn on the air conditioner in the living room whenever she was cooking.
Leslie had Daniel ask around, but since the buildings in that residential area didn’t leave space for air conditioners in the kitchen, they would have to tear everything down if they wanted to install one.
Aurelia would never agree to that. She hated being a nuisance and would likely feel guilty for the rest of the month if he proceeded with the installation.
After giving it some thought, Leslie placed a fan in the kitchen instead.
“Mr. Synder, the light turned red.”
Aurelia’s voice interrupted Leslie’s thoughts.
Leslie stepped on the brake and glanced at the countdown timer, momentarily stunned.
He had been thinking about Aurelia all this while and even imagined her cooking for someone else, which upset him.
It was an emotion he had never experienced before. Taking a breath, he turned his focus back to driving.
Aurelia continued, “Mr. Synder. Since everyone at work already knows about our relationship, why not invite your colleagues over for dinner this weekend?”
Leslie paused and glanced at her.
“Why?”
“Mr. Synder, I know you’re smart and capable, but is essential to maintain good relationships with your colleagues. As a new product developer, you’re bound to have both admirers and detractors. If
you’re unwilling to share even your lunch, others may think you’re too proud and sabotage you.”
Aurelia experienced something similar in her office as well.
During her internship, her mom would wake up early to make her lunch.
Considering the small portion, she couldn’t bear to share it with anyone else.
Hence, when her senior colleague wanted a bite, she refused. Text property © Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org.
She thought it was her own lunch and had the right to refuse.
By the end of the day, she was assigned a lot of extra work and had to stay until midnight.
She suddenly realized something when she returned home, feeling hungry and exhausted.
The following day, she prepared double the amount of lunch and sought out her senior colleague during lunchtime. She explained that she had already eaten yesterday’s portion and felt that sharing
what she had eaten with someone else was rude.
She then explained she had made a fresh batch.
They all sat together as if nothing had happened, and her senior colleague even praised her cooking
skills.
She understood her senior colleague’s actions at that moment.
For a whole week, she made double portions of lunch. Gradually, her workload returned to normal, and her senior colleague even offered her advice and assistance.
She knew this was wrong but didn’t know what else she could do.
In the workplace, one must be careful in both actions and interactions.
This was why she worried Leslie’s cold and direct nature might disadvantage him. If someone were to sabotage him, all his previous efforts would be in vain.
After hearing her out, Leslie stopped the car and looked at her with mild surprise.
“So, you’re inviting them to dinner for my sake?”
“Yes.”
Aurelia nodded, then added cautiously, “Did I… overstep? Or should we keep our relationship low- key?”
She chuckled awkwardly, feeling she might have been too meddlesome.
“No, let’s do it this weekend. I’ll accompany you to buy groceries on Saturday,” Leslie said.
He felt a bit melancholic as he watched her smile.
“Okay.”
Aurelia hurriedly opened the door and stepped out of the car.
As they headed to the restaurant, she thought about the dishes she should prepare.
She was taken aback when Leslie led her into the restaurant, and they sat down.
“This… Why is the restaurant like this?”
The restaurant was connected to the adjacent jewelry store by a glass wall, and the dazzling array of jewelry on display made the plates on their table sparkle.
Aurelia wondered if people nowadays were accustomed to dining while staring at jewelry.