Chapter 456 - Join Us

Soon, Zoey finally finished preparing their midnight snack or their late 'dinner'. By this point, Matthew's enthusiasm of eating the first meal she made for the two of them had plummeted to nothingness.

"Wait for me! I'll serve it right away!" Zoey, feeling accomplished, grinned from ear to ear. She immediately transferred each dish to the tray while Matthew watched her excited figure.

"Mhm," A low hum escaped his lips, reluctantly standing up and trudged to where she was standing. 

"It'll be quick, you can wait…" When she sensed his presence coming closer, Zoey happily uttered. However, her words stopped as her elbow bumped against his solid abs. 

Instinctively, Zoey turned her head to him, swallowing a mouthful of saliva as he was too close. "Hehe… I know I said twenty but I finished it in thirty." Her tone was awkward, trying to keep the conversation stay on the meal and not something else. After all, his aura gave off the vibe that he wanted something else.

"I don't think I'm hungry anymore." Matthew raised his right brow briefly, glancing at the dishes on the tray. They didn't look bad, just a few burnt on the side of the eggs and a weird looking soup that seemed to have a few overcooked or undercooked meat in it.

Matthew had guessed it right. Whenthe slightly burnt smell wafted his nose earlier, he knew what she was making was a disaster. Therefore, he was trying to flirt his way out. 

"Although I don't mind having you as my…" Just before he could fill her mind with naughtiness, Zoey suddenly shoved something sweet inside his mouth.

"You will regain your appetite once you eat! I swear my cooking will do the job!" Zoey panicked. She immediately carried the tray and scooted towards the dining table. Since she wasn't looking, she failed to see his complexion had paled as he swallowed down the slice of egg with great difficulty.

'Why is it so sweet?!' Matthew covered his mouth, as he tried to stop himself from vomiting. He likes Zoey, yes! However, love was never enough especially if he knew what she would feed him was poison.

Even if Matthew wouldn't end up dead after eating what she was serving, he would have diabetes! 'Did she mistake the sugar as salt?' Matthew glanced at the jar she was using, and then snuck a glance at Zoey to see if she was looking.

In a flash, Matthew opened the lid and had a taste of what she was using earlier. 'It's sugar…' He gasped internally, closing the lid of the jar as his eyes that appeared to beam helplessness shot at her figure.

His gaze then slowly moved towards the bowls of dishes she was placing on the table, causing him to gulp down a mouthful of saliva. 'She put sugar in every dish she made…' Just the thought of the sweetness galore churned his stomach in a painful manner.

'I knew this was a bad idea…' Matthew grumbled internally, in utter distress as he didn't have the heart to tell her her food was terrible. He might be cold-blooded and arrogant, but to her, Matthew couldn't muster the courage of breaking her enthusiasm.

"Come here! Let's eat!" Zoey turned to him, inviting him to come over which nearly made him jolt in surprise.

"Mhmm," Under eye twitching, Matthew dragged his feet towards the table. He never felt fear in his life; even if he was placed in a dangerous situation, Matthew's adrenaline rush was due to excitement.

But now, his every step felt heavier. It was as if he was walking towards his death. His eyes glanced at her smiling lips, "Thank you for the meal." He lifelessly expressed, taking the head seat to see the poison facaded as food arranged properly on the table.

"Hehehe." Zoey giggled, taking the nearest seat with him on the right side. "No problem! I can always make your meals, you know!" She humored, shrugging her shoulders proudly as she looked at the food excitedly.

"Come on, have a taste!" Just when Zoey picked up her chopsticks, she noticed that Matthew hadn't picked up his. Therefore, she encouraged as she wanted to see his expression before she started digging in.

Matthew glanced at her, sighing heavily as he picked up the chopsticks on his right. "Thank you," Through his gritted teeth, Matthew still expressed his appreciation before shifting his gaze to the food on his plate.

He cleared his throat, glancing at the glass of water near him. Without further ado, his jaw tightened as he took a piece of meat on the small saucer. Matthew then shoved it inside his mouth, holding his breath as he chewed the food down.

Still, although holding his breath somehow reduced the experience of tasting the food, his teeth ached at the oozing sweetness of it. "So?" Zoey excitedly perked up, her eyes twinkling as she anticipated his compliments.

"Ahem," Matthew cleared his throat, collecting his thoughts as he acted elegantly. He didn't respond immediately as he wiped the side of his lips and then reached for the water.

After taking a few sips that wouldn't make him look desperate for water, Matthew returned his head to her. "Not bad." He answered, causing the corner of her lips to curl up into a smile while her cheek blushed.

"Really?" She sheepishly queried, happy that he liked it.

Upon seeing this, Matthew's heart clenched as his conscience tugged him. He felt guilty for lying, but if lying means seeing her happy like this, he would gladly devour all her cooking and just make sure to leave a last will of testament if ever his body couldn't take the constant poisoning anymore.

"Mhmm," Without further ado, Matthew ate another piece of meat. This time, he didn't feel like he was forced as he would eat whatever she made even if it tasted terrible. 

He couldn't waste food, after all. Nor did he want to waste her efforts making something for the two of them. When Matthew ate another piece, Zoey smiled in relief as it seemed it wasn't that bad.

With that being said and done, Zoey was about to eat as well. However, just before she could, she heard a voice coming to the kitchen. "Man, I'm starving…" Owen complained, coming inside the dining area with Ryan.

As soon as they entered the dining area, Matthew's eyes lit up. "I --" Before Owen could continue, he stopped upon laying his eyes on Matthew and then Zoey.

"Young Master! Uhh… we didn't know you were here!" Owen awkwardly explained immediately. "We're sorry for interrupting your meal. We will go…" He bowed his head, elbowing Ryan as they decided to come back later.

However, before they could go away, Matthew's cold voice stopped them. "It's fine. Join us.." He proposed, sounding magnanimous which surprised not just the two of them but also Zoey.