Chapter 630

Brian nodded at Carson with a dark expression and left.
*****
When Brian returned home at night, Jasmine asked with concern, “Has Grace returned?”
Brian’s gaze landed on a certain spot. His reaction was half a beat slower as he said, “She’s back.” Immediately after, he said, “Mom, I want to learn how to cook.”
Jasmine looked at Brian in shock. “Learn what?”
*****
In the kitchen, Brian rolled up his sleeves, put on an apron, and stood at the stove, chopping clumsily. He had already cut seven or eight potatoes to practice cutting them.
When Brian reached the tenth potato, he thought of giving up. “Mom, can we change the way we cut this?”
Jasmine yawned and said, “Why don’t you cut it into pieces and make roast ribs with potatoes?”
“Why didn’t you say so earlier?” Brian asked. Cutting the potatoes into pieces was simple.
It was easy to cut potatoes, but when Brian was cooking, he realized that the dish seemed especially complicated.
Jasmine perked up and said to him, “Remember to season the ribs with salt and pepper first. Add your favorite spice before covering it with aluminum. Bake for about 2 and a half hours or more. Then, slather the baked ribs with the sauce, and grill for a few minutes until the sauce is caramelized.”
Brian was confused. He had never seen how it is done.
Hours passed. The clock on the wall showed that it was one o’clock. When Brian made the third serving of roasted ribs, it finally looked okay.
Jasmine was already extremely sleepy. “Alright, not bad. As expected of my son. Put this in the fridge and bring it to Grace tomorrow.” With that, she went upstairs to sleep.
Brian looked at his masterpiece in
satisfaction. He took the spatula and went to wake Melvin up. “Melvin, go buy some fresh potatoes and fibs tomorrow morning. Remember to buy them before 6:30.”
Melvin was stunned for a moment before nodding quickly. “Alright, Mr. Brian.”
Brian returned to the kitchen in a good mood and tasted a piece of his
own dish. It tasted good. The corners of his lips curled up. He could not help but fantasize about how Grace would look when she ate his food tomorrow. She would be very surprised.
*****
The next day, Brian got up at six o’clock. After washing up, he went to the kitchen.
Melvin had already bought the fresh ingredients. Brian skillfully cut the potatoes, washed the ingredients, prepared the ingredients, and turned on the oven.
It was still early when the dish was
done. Thinking that one dish might be boring, Brian asked Melvin to teach him how to make a cucumber salad at the last minute.
It was Brian’s first time cutting a cucumber, and he couldn’t control his strength. With a slash, he accidentally cut his thumb.
Brian took a deep breath and his hand trembled. Melvin hurriedly asked, “Sir, are you alright?”
There was already blood oozing where the knife had cut Brian. He did not even frown as he said calmly, “I’m fine.” He continued slicing.
When Melvin saw Brian raise the knife so high, he was so frightened that he moved away. “Mr. Brian, you don’t have to use so much strength.”
The cucumber ended up looking more minced than sliced. The simple cucumber salad took Brian more than half an hour.
Brian carried the lunchbox and arrived at Grace’s office in a good mood.
However, what Brian saw was an empty table. His heart skipped a beat. He grabbed someone and asked, “Where’s Grace?”
“Are you asking about Miss Nova? Miss Nova moved everything out when she got off work yesterday,” the woman said.
Brian frowned fiercely. Without thinking, he carried the lunch box downstairs and drove to Top Group.