Chapter 1170:

Louise seemed distracted and didn’t notice Elyse’s forced expression. She suggested, “Could you make me something too? I would love something warm.”

“Sure, I’ll make you something as well.”

Elyse opened the refrigerator and gathered the ingredients. As she cooked, Garret walked in. He noticed the beef simmering and mentioned, “Cook it well, I’m hungry too.”

Elyse turned to face him. Seeing the added look in her eyes, Garret inquired, “Is something on your mind? Want to talk to me about it?”

Elyse opened her mouth to ask about his relationship with Louise, but considering their complicated family ties and her precarious position, she chose to act as if she knew nothing.

She smiled and asked, “What would you like to eat?”

“Anything that’s filling will do,” he responded, then walked away.

Elyse breathed a deep sigh of relief and resumed cooking.

An hour later, she placed the dishes on the table and said, “I’ve made plenty. Make sure you both eat a lot.” Garret tasted the soup first.

Noticing this, Elyse inquired, “How is it? How does it taste?”

After swallowing a spoonful, Garret kept a neutral expression and remarked, “How did you manage to make a soup where the beef actually tastes like beef and the tomatoes taste distinctly like tomatoes?”

Confused, Elyse asked, “What do you mean?”

Louise took a sip, immediately spat it out, and said awkwardly, “I’m sorry, I couldn’t swallow it. It’s just too awful.”

Embarrassed, Elyse suggested, “What about the cucumber salad? That should be alright.”

Garret commented, “Cucumbers are usually fine raw. If you manage to ruin those, maybe you should stop cooking altogether.”

Louise tasted the fried rice and enthusiastically said, “But the clam chowder is delicious. I could have two servings.”

Garret tried a bite of the clam chowder and found it quite good. He looked up, his expression complex, and mentioned, “You’ve been cooking clam chowder for me and Jayden a lot. Is that the only dish you know how to make?”

Feeling defensive, Elyse turned away and responded, “At least I make the effort to cook. If you don’t like it, don’t complain.”

Garret exhaled. “No wonder Jayden insists I don’t order out. He told me to make do with what we have. Now I understand why.”

Elyse responded with frustration, “I have my strengths. If clam chowder is good, that should be enough.”

Garret exhaled deeply, picked up the soup, and headed toward the kitchen.