Chapter 17:Who Is This Friend?

Roseline’s POV..

“You don't look like someone who would like something so basic,”he said.

“So, just because I come from a wealthy home, does that mean I can't have fun anymore?”

I leaned back, staring at the blonde man sitting across from me. His glasses were propped high on the bridge of his nose, and a pair of intense blue eyes stared right back.

He was Date Number One in my slightly desperate campaign for a husband.

On a normal day, he wasn't my type at all. But I had promised myself I would keep an open mind. He was a nerd, definitely good-looking, with a lean, thin build, and an aggressive passion for comics and anime. I knew that because he’d spent the last forty-five minutes dropping anime character names into the conversation like it was a normal thing to do, constantly checking to see if I could follow the trail.

The fact he knew exactly who I was, and more importantly, who my father was. It made him treat my presence here less like a mutual date and more like a hidden-camera prank. He just couldn't wrap his head around why a girl with my wealth and family name would be out in the wild, actively hunting for a suitor.

“You look a little like Kugisaki from Jujutsu Kaisen,”he said, touching his glasses a little as he spoke.

Here he goes again using those Anime phrases…

When dinner finally ended, a quiet sigh of relief escaped my lips.

He offered to drive me back to my apartment, but the sudden memory of what Florian had done to the last guy he caught me with flashed in my mind.

I immediately declined, it just wasn’t worth the risk.

I took the bus home instead.

Once I stepped into the front door the aroma hit me first.

I followed the aroma to the kitchen.

Florian stood in front of the oven with his back to me, wearing black sweatpants, a white tank top, and an apron tied snugly around his waist.

One of the things that never ceased to amaze me was his apron collection; he had a different color for every possible occasion or mood.

Today, he was wearing his favorite, the black one with white stripes. He only ever wore it when he wasn't cooking for an occasion, he wore it whenever he just wanted to cook and let his brain relax.

He noticed me standing there and turned to face me with a soft chuckle. That’s when I realized I was practically drooling at the aroma

Damn I was really hungry.

It was just ice cream I had earlier on my date, I hadn't even eaten any real food since I left the house.

He placed a plate of food on the kitchen counter and pulled out a chair for me.

I sat down, composed, and took my first bite. I couldn't help but let out a soft moan, it tasted like absolute heaven.

If the feeling of coming home to a warm bath and slipping into comfy clothes had a flavor, this was it.

Florian smirked, leaning back as he watched me savor every single bite.

“Are you going to enter your food into the cookathon?” I asked, looking up at him.

“No, I don't like entering my food into competitions, that's why I need you guys to do it for me,”he said, taking a spoonful of food from my plate.

“But if you enter your food into the competition, we might have a chance of winning”

“Well that's what we need your food for”he said with a smile.

“Wait, I'm among the top chefs? But I haven't even done the test yet”.

“You don't need to,”he said and walked away.

I stared into space, a wide smile stretching across my face. I still wasn’t entirely sure how I’d managed to land the spot, but excitement buzzed through my veins, I was actually going to participate in the cookathon. This wasn't just a competition; it was the first real step toward opening my own restaurant.

Once I finally finished eating, I headed straight to my room. It had been an exhausting long day, and all I wanted was to wash it away with a warm bath and to just relax.

When I walked into the bedroom, I noticed the bathroom door was already open.

Curious, I walked up to the bathroom door and paused.

Light bubbles drifted through the air, carrying a rich, beautiful fragrance. There was Florian, standing over the tub. He was preparing a warm bath just for me, surrounded by the soft glow of lit scented candles.

“Go take your bath,”he said.

“What's the occasion?”I asked.

First food and now a warm bath, the next thing you know he's going to be rubbing my feet.

He left the room, giving me privacy, I took off my clothes and went into the bathroom.

I soaked one leg into the bathtub feeling the warmth of the water.

After a moment of soaking into the warmness of the water I stepped out of the bathroom taking the towel to dry my body.

I put on some clean clothes and headed downstairs.

I could hear voices coming from the living room, Florian was talking to someone else, a man.

It sounded like Gabriel, the guy I always saw at the restaurant, he was in charge of the restaurant and he worked for the company that owned the restaurant.

I never really understood his relationship with Florian.

I didn't want to interrupt their conversation and I didn't know if Gabriel knew about me living here with Florian.

So I decided to leave.

“I have it under control, Boss,”Gabriel said.

“No you don't, you think you do but you don't”Florian said.

“I'm sorry Sir,”Gabriel said again.

I stopped on my track to listen more.

“The investigation about the fire incident is still ongoing, we don't have any leads yet, but we are working on it sir”Gabriel said.

Whatever they were talking about it seemed to be very important to Florian.

I wondered who Florian really was for Gabriel to be calling him "Sir." Gabriel was a wealthy director of one of the biggest companies in New York, while Florian was just an average guy who said he had a rich friend.

Was Gabriel only calling him "Sir" because of that friend?

And who, exactly, was this friend?