Chapter 379: Unattainable

The young woman’s hand, held out over the clean, exquisite dining table, was so fair and slender. It complemented her entire body perfectly, making her unbelievably beautiful.

Amina looked at her own hands. Even though she’d just had them cared for, they were still rough and dark, her palms full of calluses.

She was even afraid she might scratch her if she shook her hand.

Amina quickly touched the other woman’s hand, then pulled hers back.

"Hello."

Yvonne Thorne could sense her insecurity and unease.

Although the woman was very pretty and young, one look at her clothes told you her life was hard.

Interacting with someone like this made it all too easy to boost one’s own confidence.

Yvonne Thorne, who was usually considered nothing special in her social circle, felt her confidence soar in front of Amina.

"Don’t worry, I own this restaurant. Order anything you want to eat or drink, it’s on me. Uh, from your clothes, it looks like you’re a delivery driver? I guess that makes us colleagues, in a way. You’re welcome to come hang out with me whenever you’re free."

This location was so prime, the restaurant so large, the decor so beautiful, and she was so young to have opened it all on her own. Amina was deeply impressed.

Most importantly, she was so accomplished, yet so friendly.

"Thank you."

Yvonne replied with confidence and warmth, "You’re welcome. I’m 26. How old are you?"

"I..." Amina was too embarrassed to say.

Mrs. Walton answered for her.

"She’s a few years younger than you. Yvonne, in my mind, you’ve always been such a naive little kid. How did you suddenly turn 26? You don’t look it at all. Still so young and pretty, with such a great figure."

"Oh, you’re too kind, Mrs. Walton," Yvonne said, demurring.

"I often feel a sense of panic, honestly. I’m about to hit thirty and I feel like I’ve accomplished nothing. Say, I heard Zeke Walton’s startup is doing incredibly well. Why didn’t he come today?"

"He’s at the office. You said it yourself, he’s busy with his startup. I barely see him myself these days. I remember you and Zeke were classmates, right?"

Yvonne replied, "Yes, we were. In the blink of an eye, we’re all grown up. The last time I saw him was when we were studying abroad."

Mrs. Walton said, "You graduated from Columbia University, right? Where did you get your master’s?"

Yvonne named a university. Her English pronunciation was so flawless that Amina didn’t understand the name.

Mrs. Walton looked at her with a beaming smile.

"That’s so impressive. You’re beautiful, a great student, and you even started your own business. Your parents must have gotten incredibly lucky to raise such an outstanding daughter. Any family that gets you as a daughter-in-law will be truly blessed."

Yvonne put on a shy expression.

"Not at all, Mrs. Walton. My grades weren’t as good as Zeke Walton’s, and my business isn’t as successful as his. My parents are always getting on my case about it. I only make a few million a year, which is just enough to support myself. I don’t even have time to properly care for them. I’m nothing compared to Zeke. Everyone is envious that you have such a wonderful son."

Mrs. Walton smiled happily.

"Not at all. You’re both good kids, both of you. Yvonne, are you seeing anyone?"

It seemed Yvonne had been waiting for Mrs. Walton to ask this question, and she immediately acted shy.

"Not yet. My parents are always telling me I’m getting too old and need to find someone soon, or in a couple of years, no one will want me."

Mrs. Walton said, "Nonsense! How could anyone use such superficial standards to judge our Yvonne, who’s so beautiful and capable?"

Yvonne, delighted, shook Mrs. Walton’s arm.

"Mrs. Walton, does Zeke have a girlfriend?"

"Not yet. Just like you, he doesn’t take it seriously. I was just about to have a talk with him about it. He’s not getting any younger. It’s time he started dating."

Hearing that Zeke didn’t have a girlfriend, a flash of delight crossed Yvonne’s eyes. Then, she spoke with a pointed tone.

"It’s not that Zeke isn’t looking, it’s that he has high standards. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be short on options. You must have been looking for potential matches for him, right, Mrs. Walton?"

Mrs. Walton looked at her with a cheerful smile.

"I actually haven’t meddled in his affairs, but since we’re on the topic, I think you’re wonderful. Yvonne, if you wouldn’t mind, how about I try to set the two of you up?"

Yvonne grew even shier. "But it’s not up to us, is it? Shouldn’t we ask for Zeke’s opinion too?"

Mrs. Walton looked completely confident. "What opinion could he have? If Zeke has one virtue, it’s that he’s filial. He’s my only son, I risked my life to give birth to him, and he listens to me more than anyone. You two were childhood friends, practically grew up together, and our families have similar backgrounds. I can’t think of a more perfect match. What opinion could he have? As long as you’re okay with it, I’ll find a time and place to arrange something. The two of you can have a meal, chat, and who knows? If it’s meant to be, we might really become family one day."

Yvonne was ecstatic.

But on second thought, she added with some concern.

"I heard Zeke was engaged to Simone Vaughn before. If he wasn’t interested in the young lady of the prestigious Vaughn Family, Mrs. Walton..."

Mrs. Walton patted her hand, sidestepping the main point.

"You never know with fate. You have to at least give each other a chance..."

The two of them were getting along like a mother and daughter-in-law, chatting so enthusiastically that Amina felt like a complete third wheel.

Listening to their talk of education and family background, for the first time in her life, she felt a visceral sense of her own insignificance.

Just then, the food started to arrive.

A waiter placed an S-shaped metal rack in the center of the table. On top of the rack sat an exquisite ceramic tureen. Inside was a very light-colored broth with a few green sprigs floating on top—some kind of garnish she didn’t recognize.

Small, bowl-like dishes were placed in front of each of the three women.

Amina, unable to get a word in, sat there awkwardly. When the food finally arrived, she thought, ’I’ll just have a few quick bites, then I can make an excuse that I’m full and leave.’

’It’s so stupid just sitting here like this.’

She wanted to have some soup, but the waiter had only brought the tureen, not any spoons.

Seeing the waiter about to leave, she quickly called out to him.

"Excuse me, are there any spoons?"

The waiter, perhaps not hearing her clearly, just shook his head.

Amina looked at the broth and thought, ’No spoons? Don’t tell me you’re supposed to drink it directly from the bowl?’

She didn’t dare to be the first one to take a sip.

She remembered how back home, whenever there was food or drink, the first portion always went to the elders.

She stood up, poured a bowl of the broth for Mrs. Walton, then took Yvonne’s bowl and poured one for her, and finally poured some for herself.

After she had poured the three bowls, the tureen was nearly empty.

She picked up her bowl and was just about to drink from it when Mrs. Walton and Yvonne suddenly stared at her as if she were an idiot.

"What are you doing?"

The look in their eyes told Amina she had made a fool of herself. Her hand froze in mid-air.

"He said there were no spoons..."

"That’s right, there are no spoons. This is for washing your hands. You weren’t actually going to drink it, were you?"

Amina: "..."

’Such a beautiful tureen, and water that looked so much like soup... was actually for washing hands?’

Her face turned as red as a tomato, and she wished she could find a hole to crawl into and disappear.

"I’m sorry, I didn’t know."

"It’s okay, it is your first time, after all. You’ve never been abroad, so it’s perfectly normal not to know. Let me show you."

Yvonne stood up with a grin, poured the water from Amina’s bowl back into the tureen, and began to demonstrate how to use it.

Amina kept her eyes down, not daring to look at Mrs. Walton, but she could feel the older woman’s gaze fixed on her the entire time.