Chapter 112: Waiting patiently

Before Aria could take the thought any further, footsteps approached the kitchen.

She stiffened at the sound. Tom heard them too, though he did not turn from the pan. He knew who they belonged to.

A second later, Sienna stepped into the doorway of the kitchen.

It was the smell that had gotten her out of bed. From upstairs it had been unfamiliar enough to pull her out of her room, it was an aroma that did not belong to the house’s usual rhythm. The moment she entered the kitchen, her eyes went first to the stove, then to Aria standing where she had no business lingering with that much intent in her posture.

Sienna’s gaze sharpened.

"Hey, what are you doing?" she asked, not bothering to hide the anger in her voice.

Aria recovered quickly. Too quickly, actually and responded. The smoothness of the response said this was not the first time she had needed a clean answer on short notice.

"I was helping him," she said, and nodded respectfully toward Tom.

Tom glanced back over his shoulder once, then returned to the food without comment. He was at the stage where the carrots needed attention, and he gave them that attention fully.

Sienna scoffed. "Helping from where you stood?" Her eyes moved over Aria again, "Leave."

Aria did not argue. She dipped her head and left the kitchen at once, smart enough not to test the moment. Only after her footsteps faded did Sienna move farther inside.

She went to the fridge and opened it, taking a bottle of water she did not need. The performance of casualness was thin and see through. This was the first time she had ever walked into the kitchen and found Tom cooking with his own hands. She had not even known he could.

For a few seconds she simply stood there with the fridge door open, watching his back as he worked, the plate area already half prepared and the scent of the meal stronger at close range.

He did not look at her.

Sienna shut the fridge, lingered another second longer than necessary, then cleared her throat.

"Since you are here," she began, "this is as good a time as any. L×L Boxers reached out to my team officially. They want you at the company for the signing and to go over the terms."

Tom turned then, just enough to meet her eyes. "Oh, they do?"

"Yeah. The meeting is Monday." She replied.

"Alright, Monday is fine." He said and

that was all.

He turned back to the counter, finished the last of the plating, and lifted the dish in his hands. For one brief moment Sienna’s gaze dropped to the food with open interest, the mashed sweet potatoes with the meatloaf and the glazed carrots wasn’t something she knew could smell that heavenly.

However, she couldn’t get to admire it properly before Tom looked past the curiosity entirely.

"Thanks for the information," he said, and walked out of the kitchen with his plate.

Sienna remained where she was, the unopened water bottle was cold against her fingers. The quiet he left behind felt sharper than a slammed door. Heat crawled up her neck, equal parts embarrassment and irritation.

She swallowed hard, knowing that she just confirmed her doubt. She concluded that he was obviously being cold to her.

One part of her rose to raise the complaint that being couple under a contract didn’t mean they should start acting like strangers in the same house but the other part of her reminded her that...

They never had a relationship where they conversed freely.

Still, the words did not help much. She set the water down harder than necessary and left the kitchen with the smell of his meal still hanging in the air behind her.

~~~~~~~~~~

A few minutes later, Tom was in his room.

The plate was empty. The leftover warmth of the meal had settled him more than he expected, the old taste of his mother’s celebration cooking doing quiet work under the surface.

He sat back on the bed, scrolling absently through Instagram with no particular aim, when his phone started ringing

Stella on the line...

He answered on the first ring. "Hey."

"Are you free?" she asked.

"I am now. Is there another problem?" he blinked, already sitting up to hear it.

"No." There was a faint happiness lacing her voice, controlled but unmistakably present. "Not a problem. I told you earlier I had something to say."

Tom leaned back against the headboard. "Alright. I’m listening."

"I wanted to thank you properly," Stella said. "Not just with words. You handled what Adrian did, and you didn’t make me chase the result. That matters to me."

The tension that had automatically gathered in his shoulders at the start of the call eased. "Okay."

"I want to give you something in return,aSomething you’ll enjoy." she continued, her voice sounding more elegant than it was before the beginning of her speech.

Tom’s mouth tipped slightly. "What kind of something?"

"The kind that doesn’t need explaining over the phone." Her tone stayed elegant, but there was a thread of mischief under it now.

"I’ll send the package tomorrow." she said.

"Now I’m curious." Tom said, a smile tugging the corners of his lips.

"You should be," Stella said. "When it arrives, open it when you know you’re available to embark on a short trip."

"Short trip?" He asked.

"That’s how far I can disclose so the surprise will still remain a surprise." She said.

"Accept it as a token of my gratitude and... You’re allowed to enjoy every bit of it." She added.

"Hmmm... Okay, I will watch for it." He replied quietly.

"Bye." She said and ended the call,

leaving him with the promise of tomorrow’s package and no clear shape yet for what Stella’s gratitude was going to look like in his hands.

Tom stared at her name saved after the call ended, as he wondered what she was cooking up as surprise.

He blinked then said he would just wait patiently...

At that moment, his phone beeped with an incoming message from Adrian.

"Delete every last of that recording now." The message read. A smirk tugged on Tom’s mouth as he read it and he had an idea.