He paused for five seconds and said, “It seems that we don’t have any vegetables for dinner. Our diet is not balanced.”
“Don’t we have mushrooms and chestnuts? We could go to the forest to find some wild vegetables tomorrow morning. Then, we could have salad and pork pies for lunch tomorrow,” Stella Grace looked at the mushrooms that she had just washed.
Jasper Milton nodded and said, “You should cook the pettitoes then.”
He continued peeling the chestnuts.
Why did she think he was so cute?
She put the pettitoes in the water to remove the blood and other gunk. The fire was raging, all she had to do was add wood from time to time. After having covered the lid, she peeled off the skin of the chestnuts, exposing the yellow flesh.
“Aren’t you cooking the pettitoes?” Jasper’s voice came from behind her.
Stella giggled. She understood what Jasper meant. She looked back at him and said, “Well, Mr. Milton, am I that unreliable? This is just a piece of cake for me. Don’t forget that I was using a scalpel when you knew me.”
Jasper did not speak, but he increased his speed of peeling off the shells. He murmured, “I shouldn’t have plucked so many.”
Stella was amused by Jasper once again. She lowered her head and peeled the skin of the chestnut as she said, “You’re going to pluck some more with me tomorrow. We need to stock up more. These are seasonal, so we can’t get it after this season. Especially in winter, there will be less food, right?”
Jasper looked at her back and consented softly.
If possible, he wouldn’t mind spending the entire winter with her here. Anyway, as long as there was a network, he could make video calls to deal with his work. He just had to go back to inspect from time to time.
However, what if she was pregnant or sick?
Jasper took a deep breath. These matters were too far-fetched, and he didn’t want to think about them for the time being. All he wanted to do was to cherish the present.
After he was done, he took over Stella’s knife and said, “I’ll cut it. You just have to peel it off.”
Stella did not retort anymore. She peeled off the chestnuts obediently.
The water was boiled, so she picked up the pettitoes and rinsed it under the running water. After she poured away the water in the pot, she added some oil in the pot and added more firewood. She stir-fried the pettitoes for a while so that the skin would not stick to the pot. Then she added some seasoning, spices, and water and braised it for 2 hours.
It would probably take quite a while still before dinner was ready. Fortunately, they had a late lunch.
She then went to check on the pork ribs that were roasting in the oven.
After that, she came over and continued to peel the chestnuts.
“Are you tired? You have been busy for a whole day and you haven’t rested yet,” Jasper felt sorry for her.
“I’m not tired but rather I feel like my day has been enriched. I will sleep well tonight. I used to suffer from insomnia. You know right,” Stella said with a smile.
“Let’s not go hunting and picking wild vegetables tomorrow. I’ll ask someone to send some vegetables here. We could sleep in late and have a good rest. Then. we just have to pluck chestnuts in the afternoon.”
“Can I ask your people to bring some more things here?” Stella asked.
“Of course, what else do you need? Write it down on paper, I’ll ask someone to bring it here tomorrow.”
Stella made an OK gesture.
Half an hour later, the kitchen was full of the fragrance of their cooking, which increased their appetites as soon as they smelled it.
Roasted pork ribs were quite easy to make. After removing the membrane on the pork ribs, the sauce and other spices were brushed onto the ribs.
Twenty minutes before the pork ribs were done, Stella added some mushrooms to the tray. The mushrooms would be very juicy as they were fresh.
“It’s delicious. It’s as delicious as the one we made two years ago,” Stella ate two pieces of pork ribs and felt satisfied.
Seeing that she was happy, Jasper was also in a good mood and he had a good appetite.
She noticed the red dots in his palm. She held his hand worriedly and asked, “What happened?”
“I peeled it too fast just now and accidentally pricked myself. It’s okay. It’ll be fine tomorrow,” Jasper withdrew his hand and said indifferently.
Stella felt guilty.
The reason why he peeled so quickly was that he wanted to help her. If she just let him do all of it, he would not have been so hasty.
“Jasper, I’ll listen to your orders in the future. I will do whatever you want me to do. I will no longer be stubborn. If I’m reluctant to do something, I’ll tell you properly. After we analyze the pros and cons, it’s up to you to decide,” Stella promised.
Jasper chuckled, “I’ve not been able to change your stubbornness for so many years. I just got pricked by some chestnuts fruits and now you feel sorry.”
“So do you agree or not?” Stella asked.
“Yeah, but I still hope that you could continue to be yourself and be happy. Don’t be sad and distressed. I will be happy if you are happy,” Jasper said softly.
She understood.
From the time they rescued the pregnant woman together, they had known each other for five years. They had experienced a lot of things together. Jasper seemed to be resolute and domineering, but he still tolerated her most of the time. Even if she made mistakes, he was angry not for the mistakes that she made, but because she didn’t cherish her life.
Love was just like a waltz. With progress and retreat, it could be managed well. After all, it required two hands to clap.
“I see, you’re right. I’m a little full. It wouldn’t be good for my digestion if I were to sleep now. Could we go have a walk by the beach?” Stella asked.
“It’s more dangerous outside at night. Many felidae have superior night vision, but we don’t. Thus, they are more nimble at night compared to us,” Jasper explained patiently.
“Mm, that makes sense,” Stella agreed.
Jasper held her hand and said, “I will accompany you to have a walk on the rooftop after washing the dishes.”
Stella smiled and said, “Sounds good. You could tell me stories about your past.”
“It’s all about killing. There’s nothing to talk about,” Jasper didn’t want to mention it and gloominess flashed in his eyes.
She noticed that she had misspoken. Jasper didn’t want to recall nor reminisce about the past.
“Then, I’ll tell you something interesting that I’ve seen instead,” she changed her words immediately.
Jasper smiled, “Okay.”
They washed the dishes together after the meal. There were still a lot of leftovers. Now that the weather was cold, it would not spoil easily, so they just put them into the cabinet.
Jasper took a cardigan for Stella before going to the rooftop. Then, he took her hand and opened the door to the rooftop.
The moon was bright tonight and the rooftop was well-lit. Although the sea breeze was cool, it was comfortable to feel it blowing on the face.
She was overjoyed and excited. She turned around and hugged Jasper’s waist. She looked at him lovingly and the reflection of the moonlight was in her eyes.
“Jasper, thank you for giving me a home.”