During work hours, plus a whole night of snow, the weather was too cold. Wrapped in a coat, Nora Scott was pushing a cart through the supermarket, seeing more shop assistants than customers.
But, none of them approached to ask or offer help.
Standing in front of a shelf, Nora scanned the assortment of high-gluten flour, frowning deeply.
So many brands, which one is the best choice?
"Miss, do you need any help?" A warm and polite voice came from behind.
Nora didn’t respond, slowly raising her eyes to look at the approaching shop assistant.
Just one glance from her froze the shop assistant’s enthusiasm, matching the temperature of the icy wind and snow outside.
She was an extremely beautiful young woman, her appearance stunning enough to make one forget the frigid season, invigorating the spirit.
However, that cold and impatient gaze brought one back to reality, like a cold bucket of water from head to toe, making people shiver and hesitate to approach.
Hmm, this pretty lady seems to have quite a temper.
"Maybe you should just pick by yourself; I have something else to do here and won’t disturb you." The shop assistant hurriedly spoke, turned around, and quickly walked away.
The annoyance between her eyebrows deepened.
Having not slept enough, feeling tired, she haphazardly gathered her things and went out after asking Butler Loxley about the ingredients for Longevity Noodles.
Unexpectedly encountering a whole night of snow, with the streets not yet cleared, driving was difficult, so she walked to the supermarket.
Leaving in a hurry, she only wore a coat. Walking against the cold wind and on snowy paths, with soaked pant legs from melting snow, she felt very cold.
Her mood was utterly foul.
After hesitating for a while, Nora finally took out her phone and made a video call to Butler Loxley.
As Pedro Langley stepped out of the study, he heard the phone vibrating in the living room. Glancing at the busy figure in the kitchen, he walked over to the coffee table.
His gaze swept over the phone screen and then stopped.
The next second, he picked up the phone and answered it.
Nora Scott’s face immediately appeared on the screen.
Facing the screen, without makeup, her palm-sized face with a sharp chin, very fair skin. Her long narrow eyes opened slightly, somewhat cold, lacking spirit, looking tired.
One could tell she didn’t sleep well.
Her hair was disheveled, hanging loose, but a scarf wrapped around her neck, though a few strands were quite messy.
Even in this state, she gave off a sense of "lazy casual beauty," with looks that were impeccable.
"Why is it you?" Nora expressed slight surprise upon seeing him on the screen.
She especially glanced at the notes, confirming she hadn’t dialed wrong.
"Loxley is busy," Pedro Langley said without any change in expression.
Hearing noise, Loxley walked to the kitchen door: "..." Indeed, he was very busy.
He patted his apron, thought for a moment, and turned back into the kitchen.
Nora’s hand moved slightly, the camera capturing her thin coat, which Pedro, watching the screen, noticed.
A slight pause, Pedro asked, "Aren’t you cold?"
Nora frowned, almost at the end of her patience, "I’m in the supermarket." There’s central heating.
"You walked to the supermarket?"
"Mm," Nora replied lazily, casually asking, "How did you know?"
Pedro said, "Your hair is windswept."
Normally, even if Nora just tousled her hair randomly before going out, it wouldn’t be this messy.
"...Oh." Nora showed little interest in his analysis.
"What did you want from Loxley?"
"I’m buying ingredients for Longevity Noodles and don’t know which flour to pick." After stating her reason, without waiting for Pedro’s response, she decided, "If he’s busy, I’ll just choose randomly."
Pedro’s gaze lightened, a faint smile on his lips, as he said softly, "I’ll help you pick."
Nora was startled, as if she hadn’t heard clearly, "What?"
Pedro repeated himself, exceedingly patient.
After confirming, Nora hesitated, setting a precaution, "If I follow your advice and mess up, you’ll take the blame."
"It’s your birthday; you have the final say."
That assurance was enough.
Nora switched the camera, pointing the back of her phone at the shelf, sweeping over each brand of high-gluten flour.
She reminded him, then after going through each one, she asked the screen, "Which one?"
Pedro, seated on the sofa, his gaze fixed on the phone screen, calmly said, "Go over it again."
Nora sighed, distrusting, but did as he said, lifting her phone, retracing her steps along the shelf.
Halfway through, Pedro’s voice came—
"That one." Picking the expensive one should be right.
Without a plan, Nora chose to trust him, saying, "I’m hanging up."
Pedro didn’t respond but instead asked, "Are you done picking everything?"
The camera showed the empty shopping cart, then the bag of flour he selected was thrown inside.
Then, Nora’s cool voice rang out, "Just started."
"Then keep the video on; if you have trouble deciding, I can help you choose."
The screen flashed, showing Nora’s face.
"...Where’s Loxley?" Nora once again subtly expressed her doubt about Pedro.
Unbothered by the trust issue, Pedro didn’t blink, straightforwardly saying, "He went out and isn’t home."
Nora paused, "Didn’t he even take his phone?"
Pedro calmly said, "Old age, forgetfulness."
Contemplating, Nora muttered under her breath.
At this moment, still worried about Nora buying ingredients, Butler Loxley reached the kitchen door once more, standing there.
Soon, he was untying his apron while pondering: where would be a good place to go next?
The video call remained connected.
Having someone to discuss with was better than fumbling around alone.
Moreover, with Pedro’s familiarity with the supermarket, it could save Nora time in finding ingredients.
Nora fished out her Bluetooth earphones from her pocket, put them on, pushing the cart with one hand, holding her phone with the other, chatting idly with Pedro, and consulting him when facing difficult choices.
This supermarket trip turned out to be less boring than expected.
After placing a carton of free-range eggs into her cart, Nora glanced at the phone screen, only then noticing that the background behind Pedro had changed from the living room to a cramped elevator.
Nora was taken aback, asking, "Are you going out?"
"I’m coming to pick you up."