Love’s Cruel Stroke

Chapter 42 Cheesy Pick-Up Lines

Rachel looked at Damian solemnly and said, “A man needs to learn how to articulate his words instead of sniveling and crying for no reason.” Even Olive hasn’t cried this much since the day she was born.

“I won’t cry anymore, Miss Rachel…” Damian sniffed, then said in a watery voice, “I just haven’t seen you for so long, and I missed you.” As he said this, the tips of his ears turned a bright shade of red.

To the side, Jordan felt the corner of his lips twitch in disbelief. Where did Damian learn such a cheesy line, and how did I not know about it? More importantly, he wanted to know what was so special about Rachel that Damian would shed his menacing behavior and assume such a piteous one instead.

Rachel, too, was a little flustered by the little one’s emotional display. She actually liked the child, but seeing as he was Jordan’s son, she didn’t want to get too close to him for fear that others might think of her as angling to get in the Fords’ good books.

As such, she carefully hoisted Damian off her and placed him on the ground, then said softly, “I need to get going now to run some errands, so I’ll see you around.”

“No!” Damian cried and quickly wrapped his arms around her leg to keep her from walking away. He sounded like he was on the verge of tears as he mumbled, “You only just got here, and you can’t leave when I haven’t even seen you properly.”

Jordan was rendered speechless by his son’s behavior. Just where did he learn all these cheesy pick-up lines?

Exasperated, Rachel pressed a palm against her forehead and said, “Look, Damian, I really have to go—”

“Why is this happening to me?” Damian whined, and the tears that he had been holding back finally spilled over. “Daddy locks me up in the house and makes me study every single day. I couldn’t eat well or sleep well, and I didn’t even have lunch. I’m starving to death as it is! And you don’t like me at all, Miss Rachel, or you would have stayed instead of walking away minutes after you saw me! Am I that unlikeable?”

The little boy released his hold on Rachel’s leg and crouched down, burying his face in his little hands as fat teardrops streamed past his cheeks and onto the ground.

Rachel’s heart gave a tight squeeze, and inexplicably, the pain of seeing this child crying before her threatened to suffocate her. She crouched down as well and asked softly, “Did you really skip out on lunch?”

Damian howled miserably. “I haven’t had food for a week, and I’m starving! I think I might die!”

Upon hearing this, she looked up at Jordan. There was no mistaking the accusatory gleam in her eyes as her gaze fell upon the man, as though she was silently asking him why he had allowed a child to go hungry for a week.

Jordan pursed his lips unhappily. He didn’t think he owed her an explanation, and he certainly didn’t have to answer to an outsider on matters concerning his child.

At the sight of this, Joe quickly interjected, saying, “Young Master Damian is a picky eater, and he doesn’t like any of the food our chefs have made for him thus far. He would take all but a few spoonfuls before he threw a fit. Master is growing worried as well.”

When she heard this, Rachel realized that the child had indeed gone hungry for days now. She reached for his little hand and offered kindly, “How about if I make you lunch today?”

Damian looked up immediately, his eyes wide with disbelief. “Are you serious, Miss Rachel?”

“It depends on whether your father will allow me to borrow the kitchen for the day.”

This was all it took to get Damian up on his feet and turn around to hug Jordan’s leg. “Daddy, could you let Miss Rachel have the kitchen today so that she could make me lunch? I promise I won’t ever talk back to you again, Daddy, and I won’t run off without your permission, too.”

It was strange to have Damian wrapped around his leg because he had not had such close physical contact with his sons ever since they started to make sense of the world. Damian had also never spoken in such a coquettish manner, at least not while addressing him anyway. Never did Jordan expect that Rachel would be the one to drive the demonic rage out of Damian and tame the boy. This was, by far, the greatest surprise of the day.

Presently, he nodded and said, “You’re the one who asked for this, Damian, so you’ll have to finish whatever food she makes for you, got it?”

“Yes, Daddy!” Damian nodded excitedly and even bowed at his father. He was sure that a woman as pretty as Rachel would be a culinary genius, and for the first time in a long while, he was looking forward to lunch.

Jordan, on the other hand, was indifferent. As far as he was concerned, he didn’t think a gently bred young woman such as Rachel had much experience in the kitchen, much less know how to whip up proper dishes. Even if she did pick up cooking lessons over the years, he highly doubted that her skills and palate could compete with those of the expensive chefs the Ford Family had hired.

Rachel couldn’t care less about what both father and son thought as she followed Joe into the house and through to the kitchen. There was a myriad of fresh ingredients laid out on the counters, and the whole space looked like it belonged in a hotel kitchen.

She surveyed the ingredients and grabbed tomatoes and spaghetti, inspired to make a simple spaghetti bolognese.

Standing by the side, Joe noted the ingredients she had chosen and pointed out, “Young Master Damian does not like spaghetti.” He was implying that she should try another recipe instead.

However, she merely chuckled like he had just told her something amusing. “The little guy’s been starved for days. I figured spaghetti might be easier on his stomach.” With that, she turned on the stove and began to cook, her movements swift and mechanical.

Joe remained by the side as he observed her in silence. Young Master Damian usually doesn’t care much about anyone else, but he seems to have taken a special liking to this woman. Not to mention, she appears to be on friendly terms with the Master, for he allowed her to come into the house. Reasoning with himself, the butler decided that the woman was someone who got along well enough with both Jordan and Damian, which meant he could not risk offending her.

It didn’t take long for the spaghetti to be ready. Rachel spooned the noodles into a plate and walked out of the kitchen, thereafter serving the food on the dining table in the adjoining room.

When Jordan saw the sauce-coated spaghetti, he couldn’t help frowning. Just as he expected, cooking was not Rachel’s forte, but he found himself wondering if she was just humoring Damian by serving plain old spaghetti. After all, Damian refused to dig in without first seeing a feast decked out before him. The little devil might even flip the table if there was any sparse area on the dining table.

And yet, much to everyone’s surprise, Damian clapped his hands happily when he saw the spaghetti. “Wow, Miss Rachel, you sure are efficient! You whipped up this whole plate of spaghetti in no time!” he exclaimed cheerily, then breathed in the tangy fumes of the dish. “This smells amazing! It’s delicious! I don’t think I’ve ever smelled anything more delicious in my life! Can I dig in now, Miss Rachel?”

Rachel smiled and rubbed his head affectionately. “Be careful; it’s hot.”

Without another word, Damian grabbed his utensils and began slurping up the spaghetti, and he didn’t seem like he would stop eating until the plate was licked clean.

Joe gaped at the little boy in shock.

The previous chefs had made spaghetti before this, but the moment they brought it out to the dining table, Damian would sweep the entire plate on the floor in disgust. After that, no chef ever dared make spaghetti again. And now, Young Master Damian is going to devour that whole plate of spaghetti in record time. Could it be that the chefs I hired were all phonies?

As things were, Joe couldn’t help doubting himself and his judgment.

Meanwhile, Jordan was also in utter disbelief. Damian had been a picky eater since he switched over to solid food, and now he was shoveling the spaghetti into his mouth like it was the most delicious thing in the world.

Is it really that good? Jordan’s gaze flickered over to the spaghetti. There was nothing extraordinary about it that looked like it could win over Damian’s ultra-refined palate.

All of a sudden, Jordan had the urge to grab a fork and take a bite of the spaghetti just to see what made it so special.

However, perhaps through some innate father-son connection, Damian seemed to sense his thoughts and quickly pulled the plate toward him, warning, “This is my plate of spaghetti, Daddy. Miss Rachel made it for me specifically, and you can’t have any!”

Jordan nearly sputtered. As if I would snatch food from a brat! I’m not that desperate to try the spaghetti.

As though deciding that his father might strike to steal his spaghetti at any moment, Damian grabbed the plate and scooted over in Rachel’s direction. Just then, he lost his balance and fell forward, and the whole plate of spaghetti landed, without warning, on the front of Rachel’s shirt.