"I'll be going there later. He's not off work yet." The one minute was up while she spoke, and the microwave let out a loud ding.

Cayden was about a meter away from her, mulling about the "he" she mentioned.

That man was going to be someone who would walk into her life.

Avery did not dare to overthink things. She was afraid that she would lose control of her feelings, so she forced herself to focus on the bowl.

It was something she learned from the internet.

One minute was up, so she tore open the seasoning pack and poured its content into the bowl before using a fork to separate the noodles.

After that, she put the bowl into the microwave and set the timer for another two more minutes.

Once the time was out, she took out the bowl and put two eggs in. However, she did not stir the eggs into the noodles. She put the bowl back in the microwave for another minute.

Cayden watched her the entire time. For a moment, he felt as if he was watching his wife making food for her husband even though she was busy as well.

She was putting her all into the noodles.

She was not at all half-hearted by sticking to the traditional ways of making that bowl of noodles.

Indeed, Avery's focus was fully on the food. A minute was up. She took out the bowl and used a fork to scoop some of the noodles to cover the eggs.

Then, she put it into the microwave for one last time.

Like before, she set the timer for a minute and patiently waited for it to be done.

However, when a minute was up, she sensed that the man had come closer to her and that somehow made her feel uneasy.

After turning off the microwave, she took out the bowl. Her hands shook, and the cloth she had been using to hold the bowl fell. Immediately, her fingers touched the scalding hot bowl.

She furrowed her brows and retracted her hand.

"Where did you hurt yourself?" came the man's voice as a pair of large hands grabbed Avery's hands.

She turned and retracted her hands away from his. "I'm fine. It's not that hot."

Cayden frowned, but he had no choice but to let her go.

Avery was not wearing any oven mittens, for the housekeeper had been too preoccupied with the instant noodles and had forgotten to give her a pair. Hence, Cayden took the bowl out himself.

"Pour it into the insulated bowl," Avery said to him as she watched him hold the bowl as if it was not hot at all.

Cayden's fingers were slender but powerful. Avery could not avert her eyes away from them until his breathing brought her back to her senses.

"The noodles are done. If there's nothing else, I'll be off now."

With that said, Avery left the kitchen and went to the bedroom.

After taking her bag, she bid farewell to the two children.

"Ms. Ery, are you leaving now?"

Zachary was baffled. Before he could get an answer from her, he asked, "Is it because my daddy is mean to you? I can actually tell my daddy to go to the office and don't come home."

A weak chuckle escaped Avery before she reassured the boy, "He's your daddy, but I'm not part of your family."

"Why don't you become part of my family? Marry my daddy and become my mommy, or you can get my grandma to take you in as her goddaughter. That way, you can stay in my house," Zachary said innocently.

Avery's heart lurched.

How can I possibly want to be Allie's goddaughter? If anything, I'm going to be her biological daughter. Nevertheless, I don't ever want to be known to the public as her biological daughter. As for marrying Zachary... That's impossible too.

"Rest well. I'll come and visit you whenever I'm free." After saying that with a smile, she turned away from him and began frowning.

Quietly, she went down the stairs and headed right out of the house.

Avery was immensely tempted to stay with the people in that house, whether it was the children or the father.

That was why she had to escape as soon as possible.

Every time she stepped into the land they frequented, she would find herself sinking and unable to escape as if she had stepped into the quicksand. Therefore, running away from them as quickly as possible was the only thing she could do.

The taxi she hailed had yet to arrive, but a message did.

It was from her classmate. She said: I just gave your number to my boyfriend's friend, and he has added you. You guys can chat first.

Avery replied: Okay.

Then, a verification message appeared on her WhatsApp.

The man used his photo as his profile picture, and he seemed like a rather serious person. The twenty-six-year-old-looking man wore glasses, and he was wearing a pair of white slacks as well as a light gray short-sleeved shirt.

He texted: Hello, I'm Brodie Checkfield.

Avery: Hello, I'm Avery Rumpley.

Brodie: I think you're quite a modest person.

Avery was not good with her words, especially with the blind date he was about to meet. Hence she replied: Am I?

Brodie: It's a feeling. I've learned a little about psychoanalysis.

Avery kept responding to him until her taxi came and she went into the taxi.

They had initially agreed to meet and have a meal together after work. But while she chatted with him, Brodie grew impatient to meet her. Once he found out that Avery was free, he took leave and left his company to go on a blind date with her.

Avery had no choice but to head to the location he told her to.

In the taxi, she kept telling herself to recollect herself. I should be serious in the relationship if he's a suitable man. I should be aiming for marriage. If the guy isn't picky with me, I should treat him well too.

Meanwhile, at the Moore residence, the children turned gloomy and refused to eat their noodles.

The housekeeper felt anxious as she watched them. Children tend not to like stepmothers, but those two children were both eager for their father to get a stepmother for them.

Of course, the stepmother they wanted was Avery.

The housekeeper dared not jump to conclusions about what was going on between Avery and Cayden and why they could not marry. Maybe it's because Ms. Avery is standing on the moral high ground and doesn't want to marry into a rich family. Maybe she doesn't want to be a puppet after joining a wealthy family and be forced to endure her husband's cheating ways in silence.

One loved the other, but the other did not want them to become a couple. Hence, it was natural that they ended up walking down different paths.

While the housekeeper was keeping away the bowl and was about to leave, she encountered Cayden entering the room. Promptly, she stepped aside to let him pass.

"You scared Ms. Ery away again!" Zachary started to pick a bone with his father again. He hated how his father was so indifferent to many things.

Cayden took the car keys before turning around. "Your Ms. Ery is busy with blind dates."

At that, the two children shared a look.

"Blind dates? What's that?"

"Blind dating means finding a husband. That's what one of our aunts told me when I met her. She went on blind dates before," Rory told her brother, still remembering the event.

Zachary scratched his head. "But doesn't she have Daddy already?"

Rory snorted. "Ms. Ery doesn't like Daddy."

It's all because Daddy isn't trying hard enough.

As if encouraged by her words, Zachary took off the fake cast on his leg and put on his slippers before running down the stairs.

The black Land Rover drove out of the garage, and Cayden was lighting his cigarette with a lowered head. Then, he put his hands back on the steering wheel to keep driving, but his son had stood in front of the car at one point.

As Zachary stood in front of the car with a sad look, he frowned and cried out, "Daddy, can you please go after Ms. Ery? I've waited for five years before I finally met someone I want as my mommy. If you don't go after Ms. Ery, you might as well run me over."

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