Luellen completely dropped her smile.
Even Leander’s head ached. He hissed through his teeth. "Beck, it was only funny yesterday. Stop doing that in front of her."
"Heheh, I just want her to know that I know the right person to tease." Beckett walked up to them and smothered his face against Sydney’s fur. "You should have seen your company’s chats. So bizarre! They mistake you for that other person? So blind, so infuriating. I can feel Sydney’s back fur rising!"
"It’s your breath that makes her angry." Leander snorted and led the group to the kitchen. "Cook if you want to cook."
Beckett turned to the maiden. "Hey, hey, Luellen, can you feed Sydney for ? Andy won’t like it if I handle Sydney seconds before I touch his food."
...
Luellen, Leander, and Beckett spent the whole day cleaning what they could in the big house. Perhaps the hardest part was the yard work. It didn’t help that Beckett barely moved since he was still in recovery. Leander kept him from moving with stray gazes. Luellen wasn’t that useless, either. She carried what she could.
Perhaps Luellen’s greatest challenge was not ogling Leander. Unlike the custom suits that hid his body, Leander worked in a tank top and cargo pants. When Houston said Leander had a house gym, Luellen didn’t doubt that. All those muscles went to work on that day, and Luellen shouldn’t be caught staring too much.
"Thanks for the hard work!" Beckett laughed as he served cupcakes to the exhausted pair. He smiled widely at Luellen. "You’re so cool!"
"Mr Beckett..." Luellen was too tired to play with this guy. She only gripped the cold glass of coconut juice in her shaking hands. She sipped halfway before picking up one cupcake. After one bite, she felt energized. "Mm! Wow, this is so good!"
Beckett sat on a vacant seat beside her. "I asked for that recipe from a chef working in a five-star hotel. You can say I kept practicing till I got it right."
Luellen nodded in agreent and happily nibbled at her cupcake. If she could, she might ask for the recipe. She wanted to make so for Sumr and August. Then again, her real cooking skill, combined with her [Chef’s Kiss 1], might not be enough to make it taste this good.
"He made a lot. Maybe you can bring so ho." Leander arrived at the outdoor patio where Beckett and Luellen were. Unlike earlier, he now wore a simple polo shirt and linen pants. Then again, Luellen could tell they were from a luxury brand just from the look.
"I can?" Luellen gasped with a smile. She then flinched and lowered her head. "I an... thank you... if you ever give so more."
Beckett giggled. "Why not? I will even share the recipe with you! I’ll just make a fresh batch tomorrow. Why don’t you stay overnight again, Luellen? I have a movie Andy won’t watch with . Do you want to experience our ho theater?"
Luellen froze and panicked within her. Spending the weekend in her boss’s house didn’t seem proper. She was only paid for today’s cleaning work.
Before she could say anything, Leander humd and placed an envelope on the glass center table. "That’s for today’s work. Thank you for coming."
"I’ll leave you guys to talk." Beckett slowly got off and picked Sydney up from the couch. "Let’s go find a more comfortable place to sleep, Ms Sydney. The heat out here is bad for you. What is it? You also want a pup ice cream? Sure, sure!"
"Clean up after her." Leander sighed and waited for Beckett to close the glass door behind him. He then looked at Luellen. "Didn’t I promise you answers today?"
"Yes, you did, Mr Leander." Luellen brought her glass down. She wore a weak smile. "Mr Leander, did you an for to pay you back for that surgery?"
Leander humd and leaned on his chair. He also crossed his legs and picked up his glass. "No, but you can’t be indebted to forever. If you pay it back, you will be free to look back on that surgery without regret. Take it as your ticket out. Not that I don’t want you around . I only an for you to be free."
Luellen stared at him. Her fists balled tighter, her short nails grazing her knees. She then brought her eyes to the table. "I see. Can I still work for you after I pay it back?"
"Why not? You’re more satisfactory than what your old departnt sent. Also, aren’t you looking to buy a bigger house?" Leander chuckled.
"Ah, oh... yes, I did dream of moving out of my small apartnt..." Luellen nodded without lifting her face high enough for Leander to see. Her lips pressed together. "Can I have another question, Mr Leander?"
"Just ask if you feel like it."
Luellen nodded. "Are you going out with Ms Gala? You have been inviting freely to your house. Ms Gala would be upset if she found out I’ve been here again."
Leander snorted. His derisive tone made Luellen look up at him. However, Leander only sipped on his glass. Only the weight of Luellen’s gaze made him explain. "I’m not going out with Gala. I have a fiancée, but she’s working in her father’s company overseas. You can say that Gala is her spy.
"Gala just had her own intentions. She knew about Valerie’s infidelity and thought I would take revenge by sleeping with her instead." Leander shook his head, hiding a roaring laugh that might scare Luellen. "How ridiculous."
"Mr Leander’s fiancée is cheating on him...? That’s insane..." Luellen lowered her face and frowned at the table. "Why would soone cheat on soone like you?"
"I’m not a perfect man, Ms Piper." Leander chuckled and drank more of his juice. "You might see more of my flaws if you spend more ti with ."
Luellen looked up at him and shook her head. "I don’t think I’ll ever see you in a bad light, Mr Leander. You are willing to spend money to help the needy. You also don’t want them to spend their lives for you. Mr Leander asks to be free and promises to help get back what is mine. Why should I look at you like you were a sinful man?"
Leander only smiled. However, it seed to mock Luellen for being naive.
"Didn’t you say you want enough money to buy a dress for our welcoming party?" the man soon reminded her. "Do you want to shop with Henny tomorrow?"
"Uhm, I... I might ask Sue, I an, Sumr instead. I don’t want to bother Madam." Luellen slowly reached out to take the envelope for her pay. However, when she held it, it felt so thin. She checked inside and only saw a cash card. "Mr Leander...?"
"I don’t know how much you need." Leander chuckled behind his glass again, just in ti for Luellen’s subtle glare. "Just let know when you find one you like."
Instead of controlling her mouth, Luellen snapped out of character. "Does Ms Valerie think you’re an ass, too?"
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