The atmosphere at dinner was relaxed and pleasant. Mrs. Brown joined them, making the meal feel warm and cozy. The dishes Agnes prepared were indeed delicious, and everyone had a good appetite, leaving hardly any leftovers.
Mrs. Brown praised, “Agnes’s cooking skills are really impressive. You wouldn’t usually guess she could cook so well at such a young age.”
The girl replied, “I started learning to cook when I was fifteen. Sometimes my parents were very busy with their shop, so on weekends, my sister and I would make the meals at home.”
“You have a sister?”
“Yes.”
“Has your sister found someone special?”
“My sister is already married,” Agnes said happily. “She married her first love and is now living a very happy life.”
“She must be an outstanding girl as well,” Mrs. Brown remarked, seeing Agnes and imagining what her sister might be like.
“Outstanding,” Tom couldn’t help but give her a thumbs up. “When I get back to Arkpool City, I’ll visit your sister and Spencer first.”
“Sure,” Agnes responded cheerfully, eager to introduce her family to him. Plus, winning over her sister and Spencer would increase the chances of getting her parents’ approval for their fake engagement. This was definitely an advantage; she needed to bring these two onto her side.
Tonight, Tom unusually had two bowls of rice and two bowls of soup. In the past, he always adhered to the principle of eating less for dinner. This made Agnes particularly happy.
What is happiness? Happiness is the ordinary days spent together through four seasons, having three meals a day.
Even after dinner, Agnes didn’t ask Tom about those hours that had worried her so much-where he had gone and what he had done.
As Mrs. Brown was clearing the dishes, Tom took a large gift bag from the cabinet and brought it to the girl.
“What is this?” Agnes was a bit surprised and didn’t look closely but instead looked up at him.
“Open it and see. It’s something I bought for you,” Tom said gently, anticipating her delighted reaction.
The girl took the bag and noticed some rainwater on it-it must have been bought just now? She turned around and placed it on the table to open it. Inside were more than ten packs of beef jerky, the same kind she had eaten in his lab office with identical packaging.
Agnes turned abruptly, looking at him in shock. “You went out… to buy beef jerky for me?”
“Yes,” Tom nodded and explained, “Because it’s quite far away-only that place sells it-it took about two hours by car, and I got caught in traffic on the way back… so it took a few extra hours.”
Agnes was deeply moved; tears welled up in her eyes as she struggled to find words.
Tom could feel her emotions and didn’t want to see her sad. He reached out to gently pat her head.
Unable to control herself, Agnes threw herself into his arms again in front of Mrs. Brown, hugging him tightly.
“Thank you, Tom.” She was truly touched.
“I’m not used to you calling me so formally.”
“You bad cat!” Agnes looked up from his embrace, holding onto his shirt at his waist with both hands, smiling brightly. “Go take a shower!”
Seeing the girl smile made Tom smile with relief as well. “Do you like them? The beef jerky?”
“Yes, yes! I love them!” Agnes turned around to pack up the bag neatly.
Then she went into the bedroom with Tom.
Mrs. Brown saw the door close and couldn’t help but smile too.
The next morning.
When Agnes opened her eyes, she found it was already bright outside. She was still resting on a familiar arm, surrounded by a sense of security.
As Agnes looked at him, he happened to be looking at her too-she didn’t know when he had woken up.
“You…” Agnes came back to reality. “What time is it?”
“No rush,” Tom noticed her tension and spoke softly to her. “I’m not going to the lab this morning.”
“Not going?” Agnes was slightly surprised; he hadn’t mentioned it yesterday. Wasn’t his work quite busy these days?
“Yes, I plan to take you around nearby,” Tom asked her. “Are you interested?”