Watching Duke hurriedly walking away, Rachel bit her lip and clenched her fists. A sinister smile rose to the corner of her mouth and spread across her face. Since Duke was completely unaware of this, he would act passive in the upcoming days.
Why did you suddenly come here?" Belinda frowned, looking doubtfully at Duke who just pushed the door open and entered her office. She shifted her eyes back to the computer screen full of data.
"I came to bring you lunch. What, you don't want to see me?" Duke unpacked the lunch boxes and placed them on the table. He had called her secretary to get her lunch schedule. He knew that Belinda had asked her secretary to order takeout for her to eat in the office at noon, so he volunteered to bring her lunch.
"I didn't say that. Don't try and stir up trouble between us. It's not good for our relationship." Belinda glanced at him. Although she didn't show it, she was really happy that he had brought her lunch.
"Okay, let's eat now." Aside from Leena, Duke seldom served a woman the way he was doing now. So he knew that his actions made it very clear that he was willing to do such trivial things for Belinda.
"It smells good, what did you bring me?" Belinda stood up as soon as she sniffed the sweet aroma of the dishes. She suddenly felt very hungry.
"These are from the Westin Western Restaurant. I got all your favorite dishes." Duke looked at the dishes on the table in satisfaction. He clapped his hands and smiled gently when he was done setting everything on the table.
"You enjoyed preferential treatment, didn't you?" Belinda narrowed her eyes as she looked at Duke. Westin Western Restaurant never provided takeout food for any customer. It was a marketing tool to make people feel that the food from the restaurant was very precious. As she thought about this, Belinda reached out her hand to take a dessert from the lunch box, only to have Duke pat the back of her hand, gently stopping her.
"Wash your hands first! I never thought that you'd be so careless about your hygiene." Although Duke was scolding her, his tone was affectionate. Even he wasn't aware of his loving manner himself.
"My hands are very clean! I didn't touch anything that I shouldn't touch. In fact, it won't make a difference whether I wash my hands or not. You always like nitpicking!" Belinda pursed her lips. But she still reluctantly walked towards the washroom to wash her hands.
Duke narrowed his eyes at her. What was she implying by saying that? She said that she didn't touch anything she shouldn't touch. Was she implying that he had touched something he shouldn't have?
Belinda grinned at her triumphant reflection in the mirror. She didn't deny that she used the topic of hygiene to test him. As the saying goes, "The wise man knows that he knows nothing, but the fool thinks he knows everything." If Duke thought there was any underlying meaning behind her words, then it meant that he was guilty. Otherwise, he wouldn't find anything wrong with her casual response.
"You seem happy today," Duke teased. He pouted and looked at her smug face with his arms folded in front of his chest.
"No, you're taking it the wrong way. I'm just hungry." Belinda lowered her head and walked past him. Even though she was really happy, she wouldn't tell him so blatantly.
Duke didn't push any further. He smiled and followed her as she walked. His usual cold expression was gentle and soft.
"Take your time. Nobody will take the food away from you." Looking at Belinda hurriedly gobble down the food, Duke frowned and took out a napkin for her. It was obvious that she was really hungry. She left home in a rush this morning without eating breakfast. When he rushed out to check on her, she was already gone. He could only see the faint exhaust smoke coming out from the back of her car.
"You might steal my food. I can't take my time, I'm starving to death. How did you know that I haven't had lunch yet?" Belinda asked as she ate the delicious food. With the way she was wolfing down the food, she didn't look like a graceful lady at all.
"If I want to know something, I'll find out with just one phone call." Duke said with an arrogant smile and sat down beside her. Different from Belinda, he ate slowly and gracefully in silence.
"Huh! What do you mean? Do you have someone watch me in my company?" Belinda was shocked by his response. She coughed violently as she choked on the food.
"I told you to take your time. Drink some water first." Duke quickly poured some water into her glass and patted her back soothingly.
Belinda took the glass and drank some water. She stared at him in annoyance. "It's your fault that I choked."
What does it have to do with me?" Duke picked Belinda's favorite dishes and put them into her bowl. His movements looked so natural, despite it being completely different from his usual cold demeanor in public.
"It's because you surprised me just now. Duke, do you really have someone watch me in my company?" Belinda paused eating. She suddenly leaned closer to Duke and gazed thoughtfully at him.
"What do you think? Who do you think is most likely to be my spy in your company?" Under Belinda's gaze, Duke put down his chopsticks and looked into her eyes with interest.
"How would I know? There are so many employees in my company, I can't check them all one by one!" Evading his intense gaze, Belinda shifted her eyes away and focused on eating her food.
"In that case, you will never know." Duke winked mischievously and continued to pick her favorite dishes for her. He barely ate anything himself.
"Duke, you're making me uncomfortable with that look. Why do I feel like your bringing me lunch is like a fox guarding the henhouse?" Belinda noticed that Duke had been acting very strange recently. After her drunken incident, he seemed to have changed into a different person. No matter how much she challenged him, he always smiled gently in response and let it pass. His strange behavior made her feel uneasy.
"Why? Do you have a guilty conscience?
Why else would you feel uncomfortable?" Duke smiled. He didn't feel upset at all. Keeping what Daisy said to him in mind, he decided to be more modest and to learn how to compromise. Since then, he had acted according to Daisy's advice and tried to behave by this principle. He knew that he had many shortcomings and that he sometimes unwittingly showed off his pride and arrogance as a nobleman, while simultaneously disregarding what Belinda might feel about his behavior.
"Bullshit, why would I feel guilty? If there's someone here who would feel guilty, that person would be you." Belinda took the glass from the table and drank a lot of water in an attempt to hide her nervousness.
"Sorry to disappoint you, but I'm honorable and righteous. My conscience is clear as day." Duke leaned back casually with his legs crossed. His eyes had been focused on the movement of Belinda's pink lips as she spoke. Suddenly, he chuckled self-deprecatingly while holding his fist against his lips. He was struck by the last part of her sentence.
"Fine, why should I care? But aren't you going to eat anything?" She noticed that Duke didn't eat much but pick some food for her and sit there without eating anything. The sight of him barely eating made her feel strange.
"I'm not that hungry, just keep eating," Duke said, calmly refilling her glass with water.
"Are you really bothered by what I said just now?" Belinda suddenly paused again. She was only joking when she said that he might steal her food. She wasn't serious at all.
"You said many things, how am I supposed to know what you're referring to?" Duke looked at her doubtfully. He was confused by her words.
"When I said you might steal my food, don't take it seriously. I was only joking." Belinda touched her nose in embarrassment. She wished he hadn't misunderstood her.
"I know you were only joking. I didn't take it seriously. Stop worrying and eat your lunch. It's getting cold." Duke shook his head helplessly. He didn't think she actually meant it when she said he might steal her food. She must have misunderstood him for some reason just now.