C27 She's Sweeter than Desserts

Du Xiaoxiao felt proud of herself when she finally left. After all, there were tons of men with square faces and large eyes. She had obviously served one of those men before in the restaurant. Let her be afraid of every man she meets.

Wang Dandan was a sweaty mess. Her eyes shifted from side to side as she struggled to remember all the clients she had served. In the end, she simply applied for leave and went back home.

Ha! If someone harmed her, she would retaliate just as much–in a cleverer way than people might expect.

Even if she didn't use Gu Tianqi's techniques, she had her own way of getting the job done.

The entire morning was peaceful. The sun was shining, the winds were calm, and she really thought that this work was cut out of her. Even the customers weren't that bad, apart from the occasional busyness.

That was until she saw the next customer that had just walked in. Gu Tianqi was seated right at the far corner. While he didn't attract any attention, his presence was enough to drag a couple of gazes towards him.

Her heart skipped a beat. What the heck was this man doing here again? Was he going to cause any trouble for her?

She reluctantly took a step forward–her forehead still a bit creased from the realization. When Gu Tianqi looked up, he raised his eyebrows. "You can't even smile when you're looking at the man who saved you?"

The corners of her lips twitched. Respectfully handing the menu to him, she plastered a smile on her face. "Young Master Gu, what do you want to order today?" If he wanted her to play nice, so be it.

He didn't take the menu. "Do you have any recommendations?"

"Well..." Du Xiaoxiao glanced at the menu. "Our specialty today is Florentine Steak. The beef we use has been directly imported from Italy, and it's less than a hundred days old. We'll use our special charcoal to roast it, adding in our truffles and secret sauce. I really recommend that."

"Anything else."

She suppressed the urge to roll her eyes. "We have braised goose liver. I'm sure we have–"

"How about spaghetti?"

Taking a deep breath, Du Xiaoxiao resisted the urge to smack him at the back of his head. What the hell was his problem? If he wanted spaghetti, he could've just asked instead of waiting for her to recite every food choices they were offering.

"We have spaghetti with caviar. The black caviar has been specially selected from prime sturgeon fishes, imported all the way from Caspian Sea. I'm sure you'd like it."

He slowly nodded. Her heart skipped a beat. Did that mean he was going to order already? Just as she was about to write it down, he raised his head once again. "How about your fish soup? I want some of your Chinese fish soup, please."

Her smile dissipated almost immediately. "If you want to drink some Chinese fish soup, then you can go home and ask your maids to do it for you. I'm just a waitress here, not some chef."

"I still want to eat what you made."

"I..." If possible, her jaw fell even lower than it had been before. There was something so bewitching about his voice that she felt as if she was being lulled to sleep. Pulling away, she pursed her lips. "We have rules here."

"And I'm more powerful than rules. Plus, I did save you last night–"

"Fine," she finally said, resisting the urge to scowl.

"I'll cook for you."

Was this how the rich spend the rest of their lives? Just lounging around and ordering people around? Was that all there is to have tons of money just lying around?

He was clearly just ordering her for some power tripping. Even then, it wasn't as if she could do anything about it.

After taking the menu away, Du Xiaoxiao stomped in Zhang Su's direction. "Manager," she said, not being able to hold back her snappy tone. "Young Master Gu had asked me to cook fish head soup. I might need the ingredients–"

"That's fine," he cut her off hurriedly. "Pick any ingredient you want. Just...make sure not to piss him off today, all right?"

Although Young Master Gu had given them tons of money to compensate them for the incident yesterday, it was still enough to drive the guests away. If this continued, then their business would go into a rut!

"But..." She sighed.

Could no one else see that she was suffering too?

Zhang Su must have seen the look on her face because he added, "Don't put on such a long face. How about this? I'll give you an extra on your bonus this month, and if Young Master Gu hands you a tip–I say keep all of it. Don't have to hand it over to us."

As long as she served him well, everything wouldn't be fine.

When she heard this, she reluctantly nodded.

She may not like the man she was serving, but at least there was money involved. It made no difference, even if she had to work with the most ridiculous man alive!

Turning around, she entered the kitchen and started preparing her dish. After what had happened that night, she wasn't really able to thank him, was she? "Might as well make this count," she murmured to himself. Besides, it wasn't as if she hated him anymore, right?

As the thought crossed her mind, she nodded and began to cook.

Not long after, Du Xiaoxiao carried the food to the dining table. Gu Tianqi glanced at the exquisite dish. It looked more complicated than the ordinary meal he had eaten before. It was obvious that she had put in more effort this time around.

The corners of his lips curved upwards. "It looks really good."

She didn't say another word in reply.

His gaze fell on the other plates and cups she had brought out. It seemed that she had also prepared something sweet for him. "You even brought me some tea."

Her cheeks turned bright red. "I've heard that it could lower your blood pressure."

"Hm." His eyes glinted. "You seem to know quite a lot about that."

Du Xiaoxiao shot him a glare. "Just eat it up. I'm going to work now."

Gu Tianqi was a man without a lot to say, but when he did say something, his words were enough to leave a woman flustered. What was with all the side comments?

He may be a well-dressed man, but in reality, he was only closetting a hooligan!

However, just as she was about to leave, Gu Tianqi grabbed her arm. "Where are you going?" he asked. "Why don't you eat with me?"

"I'm working." She shook her hand. "Besides, who wants to eat with you?"

"I've already told your manager that you can start your lunch break a little earlier." His smile widened. "Besides, you've prepared a lot–the fish head, the desserts, I wouldn't be able to finish them all."

Normally, when he'd make requests, he was usually very domineering and assertive. But now, there was a sense of gentleness in his voice–as if he really wanted her to accompany him.

Du Xiaoxiao glanced at the table, gazing at all the little plates. There was lemon pudding, green tea cakes, chocolate-covered strawberries, and so much more. Her heart gradually softened. Perhaps eating with him wasn't a bad idea.

Accepting his invitation, she sat beside him.

"These are all yours." Gu Tianqi pushed the desserts towards her. "I don't eat them anyway."

Desserts? Du Xiaoxiao gazed at them carefully.

It would be a waste not to eat them. If she didn't, then they'd just be thrown away, right? Plus, the manager did ask her to take care of him...Forget it, she could be a little bit more indulgent every once in a while.

The two of them sat in the corner of the room, where tall plants hovered over them like a makeshift wall. With no tables around them, it was very quiet. Her shoulders sagged in relaxation.

As her walls started cracking down, she quickly picked up one of the strawberry tarts and took a bite. "Delicious," she murmured.

Gu Tianqi didn't move his chopsticks. Instead, all he could do was stare at the strawberry cream dripping down the corner of her lips. His eyes narrowed at her.

"Is it good?"

"Yes, it is," she said honestly.

"Then, I'll also have a taste." Gu Tianqi didn't even hesitate as he leaned in forward. Thinking that he was going to grab a bite of the cake, Du Xiaoxiao turned to push the plate towards him. How was she supposed to know that he had intended to lean over for a kiss?

His tongue darted across the corners of her lips, licking away the little cream marring her skin. His lips were cold to touch, but it contrasted the warmth of Du Xiaoxiao's lips.

Her heartbeat raced in her chest. However, just as she was about to push him away, Gu Tianqi tightened his grip around her and pulled her even closer to his chest.

Her cheeks burned bright red.

There were people everywhere! What the hell was he doing?

Around a minute later, Gu Tianqi finally let her go. He licked the side of his lips as his eyes glinted mischievously. "The dessert really does taste good," he flirted, leaning back. "Thank you."