Free Web NovelChapter 256: Relaxed (1)
"Would you cook breakfast, lunch, or dinner every day if I asked??"
Scarlet sat, watching as Ian prepared something small for them to eat now and then they were to go on a walk outside.
"I don’t know about every day. I am not that good of a cook to have a lot of recipes in my head. I only know the basics to not starve but I am willing to learn. Just refrain from firing the cooks as you may need them," Ian answered.
He tried not to cut his hand by his need to look back at Scarlet. She was watching him like cooking was the most interesting thing in the world and he could not stop laughing at how she didn’t offer to help him. Scarlet gracefully admitted that cooking was not something she could do.
"I wouldn’t get rid of the cooks. I cannot take their jobs from them and they cook for more than just me. I see now why it is good to own a small home. It is hard for me to walk around without bumping into you. Should there ever be an argument, we would be forced to look at each other and talk," said Scarlet.
Scarlet inspected the small kitchen once more. She would never be so crazy to get rid of her estate to buy a smaller home but when they needed a break from Lockwood, this was far better than any of the other homes she owned.
Scarlet folded her arms, wanting to go back to bed to rest a little more before it came time to prepare for dinner, but she forced herself to stay awake to watch Ian prepare their food. They still needed to go out to get more food to last them the week and Scarlet did not want to miss the first trip to the market. freewēbnoveℓ.com
She covered her mouth to not let her yawn be heard to give away that she was tired. Since taking a break from work, this was the most rest she had gotten in a long time though Ian had disturbed that rest a little.
"What are you doing? Sleepy?" Ian asked after he turned around to give her slices of apples. "Why are you trying to fight it? You can eat and then go back to bed. I can get the food we need by myself. It doesn’t take long to get to the market."
"I am going with you. You will need company and I am looking forward to heading out today," Scarlet replied, taking up a slice of the apple to enjoy the sweetness of it.
Ian looked around the kitchen. There was enough food here for him to make dinner but nothing to make breakfast in the morning if he didn’t go to the market later. The first day would be more enjoyable by just laying around in bed.
"Wait here for a moment," Ian said, having the answer to their problem.
Tomorrow when Scarlet was well rested, they could explore the town as much as she wanted.
Scarlet knew that Ian was most likely cancelling their plans to leave home but she was so focused on the apples that she didn’t bother to stop him. She was only pushing herself to leave home today because she didn’t want Ian to be alone on the way to the market and back.
"I am engaged," Scarlet said out loud for the first time. She looked at her hand which was without a ring yet it felt like one was there.
She was newly engaged to Ian and their way of celebrating was to snack on apples to then go back outside to enjoy a small picnic in the cold weather. Scarlet couldn’t help but laugh at how odd their way of celebrating was yet she wouldn’t change it.
This was far better than being in a crowd of people and being asked about the wedding already.
News of their engagement would cause quite a storm of gossip so Scarlet wished for it to be kept a secret for as long as possible so they could enjoy quietly celebrating. One concern that came to mind now was Jack.
"He mustn’t be so crazy as to cause trouble," said Scarlet.
Jack had apologised and it seemed like he was ready to move on. The last thing Scarlet would want was for her ex-husband to ruin the time she was planning a wedding with her future husband. She had so many enemies or headaches that Ian would not get pulled into dealing with.
"Why am I thinking of him now?" Scarlet wondered, wanting to go back to Ian being the only man on her mind.
"Thinking of who?"
"Jack," Scarlet answered honestly. She had nothing to hide from Ian. "I would pay anything for all the old drama to be over with. For Beth to never show up before me again. For my relatives to leave me alone. I would like peace while planning our wedding. I would find it my fault should your excitement be ruined by my old problems."
"They would need to try hard to ruin my excitement and you are right, you shouldn’t think of him now. I’ll be jealous if you do," Ian said, leaning forward to steal the slice of apple in Scarlet’s hand.
"I was not thinking of him that way. I was thinking of how my problems will become yours. Your only concern was your family and they are gone. It would not feel good for me if you were bothered by-"
Ian kissed Scarlet to stop her from rambling about something he didn’t care about. "Scarlet, I will gladly take on your problems. Your family is easy to deal with, Beth hasn’t been seen for a long time, and Jack is an idiot I like messing with. As for the town, I still do not care about the gossip. What I don’t like is the woman I love thinking about someone else now."
"Sorry," Scarlet apologised, knowing she made a grave mistake. Still, it couldn’t help that her mind went to what would cause them problems once the news got out. "I just wanted to plan so your first time is not ruined. I have been married once before while this is your first. I don’t want any of this ruined for you."
"Scarlet, I would love it if you could treat this as your first. When the time comes, I want you to plan like you have never been married before. Get the dress you want and all the decorations you need. If you want a second grand wedding, we can have that. Only when you are fully into this can I enjoy it," Ian said, hoping this was the end of her only trying to make him happy.
"Okay," Scarlet replied. What she wanted was a simple wedding with things that she liked as well as Ian. Not because this would be her second marriage but she had always enjoyed a wedding which focused more on the groom and bride rather than the decor.
"Good. Now let’s get this lunch over with so we can go back to bed. I’ve told one of the guards what I want from the market so there isn’t a need for us to leave until tomorrow morning. It is quite hot in here, isn’t it?" Ian asked, slowly pulling his shirt over his head.
Scarlet shook her head. "If this is your way of making me think about only you it pains me to confess that it is working."
