The dishes are made to order, requiring time; thus, they won’t be that quick to serve, and it was only when Ava Sterling was seated here that she started feeling hungry. However, before the meal, the restaurant had already served some pre-meal snacks in advance, including fruits and some nuts. Ava picked up the fruit and ate it directly. It was sweet, sweet to her heart. Poe Vaughn, on the other hand, sat in the chair holding a book. The restaurant provided books, mostly ancient texts. He flipped through them with a composed aura, appearing not at all hungry. While eating the fruit, Ava watched him, and suddenly a memory popped up of that night at the old house. He was sitting on the bed reading, looking just as he did now—calm, indifferent, yet exuding a noble air. Attractive people look good doing anything, especially something so artistic, which makes them even more captivating. Ava watched as the fruit in the plate gradually diminished. Poe Vaughn turned the pages of the book slowly, unlike how he usually skimmed documents rapidly. The atmosphere in the private room quieted down to just the sound of Ava biting her fruit and his occasional page-turning. In the summer, amid blazing heat, the sunlight streamed generously through the windows, illuminating everything inside, and even caused the orchid by the window to uplift its branches. At this moment, Ava rested her chin in her hand, eating fruit while watching the person sitting across, and Poe Vaughn leaned back in his chair reading, his distinctly jointed fingers turning the pages. This moment, the room felt quiet and serene. Everything was just so perfectly in place. The dishes soon arrived, one after another. First was the Clear Water Crab, which Poe had ordered and which Ava loved. The name "Clear Water Crab" might sound like crabs boiled in water, but it’s not the case. The water for the Clear Water Crab is special spring water flown in daily, not overnight, and the preparation process is extremely intricate, involving over ten steps. Especially the dipping sauce, unique to this place. Ava loved this Clear Water Crab, even more than spicy shrimp. When the crab was served, Ava immediately donned gloves to skillfully shell the crab and extract the meat. All these tools were provided as a complete set. The crab was not pre-shelled, ensuring freshness. Poe Vaughn closed his book, watching as Ava swiftly and deftly opened an entire crab, extracting meat from all parts and neatly placing it on the plate, then took off her gloves, pushing the plate towards him: "Sister Wei said you don’t eat much seafood. You probably haven’t tasted this Clear Water Crab, right? Here, I’ve prepared it for you. Try it—it’s especially fresh, tender, and delicious." With a face full of smiles, Ava followed up by pushing the sauce towards him: "This sauce is spicy. You can just dip a little to taste; it’s absolutely unique." Realizing only then that he also had a plate of sauce in front of him, she retrieved hers and picked up his empty plate, and then began shelling another crab. The source of this content ɪs novelFirｅ.net The Clear Water Crab is served accordingly—one per person. With two here on the table, she shelled one for Poe Vaughn, so naturally the other was hers. When shelling her own, Ava didn’t extract all the meat as before, but rather took it part by part, dipping it directly in sauce and biting into it. Poe Vaughn watched her eat so straightforwardly; one might think it unrefined, but instead, it was quite pleasing and captivating. She bit into the crab shell, crackling away, and somehow swiftly extracted the meat to eat, leaving the shell empty. She ate happily on her own, not looking at him, solely focused on eating the crab. In no time, Ava nearly finished the entire crab. Poe Vaughn saw that all she had left was a large claw. Lowering his gaze, he picked up his chopsticks, and took the neatly arranged crab meat, dipped a bit of sauce, and ate it. Of course, he had eaten crab meat before, but it was always pre-shelled. He never squandered time on food, let alone on the meaningless task of shelling a crab. But just now, watching Ava skillfully shell each piece, arrange it neatly on the plate, he suddenly felt that shelling a crab was a highly meaningful endeavor. The dishes came and went with Ava eating dish by dish. Just as one was nearly finished, the next would come, one after another, until the last dish was served and Ava finished eating, her belly full and comfortably satisfied. For Ava, being full was happiness. Whenever she was full, with no other matters, that was her happiest moment. Just like now, she felt very happy. Leaning into her chair, touching her still-flat belly, she looked at the person sitting across: "How was it? The seafood here is quite good, isn’t it?" Poe Vaughn wiped his lips with a napkin, his movements dignified and graceful: "Mm." Ava’s eyes lit up instantly: "Next time, let me treat you again!" "We’ll come here again!" Inviting someone for a meal usually implies a favor is needed, as a first step, you must extend a meal invitation. Seems simple, but in practice, it’s quite challenging. Inviting someone is hard, especially this one. Today she had invited this person, and getting his assent, next time, with more invitations, wouldn’t their relationship grow closer? Thinking this, Ava was stirred with excitement. Hopeful, very hopeful. Poe Vaughn listened to her suddenly excited words, reminiscent of her unexpected overtures that morning, quite uncharacteristic. He paused briefly, laid the napkin aside, and looked at her. Ava’s eyes were very bright, sparkling, as they had been that morning, exceedingly dazzling. Poe Vaughn remained silent. He saw a scheme behind her eyes, something she had been brewing, refusing to let go. Ava thought Poe Vaughn would agree. Given his demeanor, there was no reason for refusal, yet unexpectedly, he remained silent. Ava blinked, watching the person who stared at her. His deep eyes were different than usual, seemingly piercing, as if to see through her heart. Ava’s heart skipped a beat, her eyes flickering away to dodge his gaze. Was she too straightforward, wouldn’t he have overthought it? No, not wouldn’t; undoubtedly. Too blunt, too direct, it would be odd not to overthink, especially for someone with Eyes of Golden Flame. Cold sweat formed inwardly; Ava indeed felt guilty, for her intentions were not ordinary, difficult, unusual. This person would absolutely never agree, so she couldn’t possibly say it outright; she could only plot secretly. The phone vibrated suddenly, making Ava jump, immediately looking at the person across.