Chapter 23

“Sorry for imposing, Zach.” I smiled embarrassedly. Zachary shook his head frantically. “No, no, it’s okay! Have a seat!” Laurel and I sat on one side, while Zachary sat opposite us. We ordered some ingredients, and the waiter came to place the coal on the round stove and cover it with a tray. There were various plates of ingredients on the table. After Laurel learned that I was a University of Avonopolis graduate, she became more animated and chatted with me about college. Zachary helped us grill some pork belly and glanced at Laurel dotingly from time to time. He also looked at me with a complicated gaze. During our pleasant meal, Laurel’s phone beeped. She picked it up and read a text message. I glanced at it and inadvertently saw the phone number, which was a long series of the number 8. I couldn’t think of anyone but Henry who had such a phone number. Henry really took the initiative to contact Laurel. After seeing Henry’s text message, Laurel’s expression changed. She seem