Chapter 17\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cJules, are you feeling unwell? You\u2019ve been spacing out all day.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Juliet\u2019s heart jolted. She stood frozen for several seconds under Zachary\u2019s watchful gray eyes before snapping back to herself.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m fine,\u201d she said, retreating half a step. The warmth in her palm vanished, yet the skin there seemed to burn even hotter.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The meal was prepared quickly. Barbeque ribs, a fresh vegetable salad, and mushroom soup. They were simple, home-style dishes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The two sat facing each other at the small dining table. There was a hint of awkwardness in the air.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cTry it. I haven\u2019t cooked this in a while. I\u2019m not sure if it\u2019s still as good as I remember, Zachary said as he picked up a rib and placed it on her plate. On the white plate, the rib glistened, coated in a glossy barbecue glaze.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThank you for cooking, Zach.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was nothing. Come on. Try our joint effort.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
1\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Juliet lifted the rib and took a bite. The meat was falling-off-the-bone tender, sweet, and tangy, just the way she liked it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s delicious. I love it!\u201d Juliet praised him sincerely. \u201cZach, is there anything you can\u2019t do?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The smile on Zachary\u2019s face deepened, like sunlight on a warm afternoon.\u00a0<\/p>\n
This meal made Juliet feel exceptionally at ease. Zachary was good at setting the mood. Not matter the topic, he could always pick it up and make it interesting. From stock market fluctuations to an obscure old film. From a new gallery exhibition to embarrassing stories\u00a0<\/p>\n
about a teacher from their school days.\u00a0<\/p>\n
His voice was gentle and pleasant, like a finely turned cello. For a moment, Juliet almost had an illusion. It was as if she and he were the perfect match. If Zachary had been the person she\u2019d fallen for in the beginning\u2026\u00a0<\/p>\n
The moment the thought surfaced, Juliet startled herself. What was she thinking? This was\u00a0<\/p>\n
Asher\u2019s closest friend.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Juliet hurriedly shook her head, forcing the unrealistic fantasy out of her mind. That was when she noticed the wound on the back of Zachary\u2019s hand. It had split open.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u0645\u0648\u0628\u0648\u0631\u06cc\u0644\u0632 \u0645\u06cc\u06ba \u062e\u0648\u0634 \u0622\u0645\u062f\u06cc\u062f \u2013 \u0627\u0633\u0679\u0631\u06cc\u0645 \u0688\u0631\u0627\u0645\u0627\u00a0<\/p>\n
X CLOSE\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cZach, how did you hurt your hand? Don\u2019t tell me Mr. Wilson hit you again?\u201d She got up, fetched the first-aid kit, and returned to tend to his wound.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Zachary watched her as she carefully applied the medicine. Her pale face glowed warmly under the light.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As she bent forward, her collar dropped slightly, revealing her smooth, soft skin. The sight made it hard for him to look away.\u00a0<\/p>\n
This was the woman he had loved for over a decade. Even a simple smile from her could touch him, let alone this quick glimpse of her softness.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Zachary crossed his legs, hiding his reaction. All his focus fell on the small, gentle hand covering his. The same hand that had made him happy countless times in his dreams.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Once done, he couldn\u2019t help himself and lightly tapped the top of her head. \u201cJules, you\u2019re so good. How could there be anyone who doesn\u2019t cherish you?\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cZach, you\u2019re exaggerating. I\u2019m just an ordinary person.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m telling the truth.\u201d He looked at her intently, his gaze burning. \u201cJules, you\u2019ve always been so capable. How many people can rely on themselves to buy a home?\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The compliment warmed Juliet\u2019s heart. She lowered her head to drink her soup, hiding the sudden sting of emotion in her eyes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It had been a long time since anyone had acknowledged her like this. In the Greene family, she was Mrs. Greene, an accessory to Asher. Everything about her was stamped with the Greene family name.\u00a0<\/p>\n
When her artwork won international awards, people only said, \u201cMrs. Greene is so talented\u201d, or \u201cMrs. Greene is truly blessed.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
When she worked tirelessly to organize charity galas and secured massive sponsorships, people praised, \u201cMr. Greene is unstoppable with Mrs. Greene\u2019s support.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
No one had ever said Juliet Stone was capable. As if everything she achieved could only have been done because of the title \u201cMrs. Greene.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThank you too, Zach. You\u2019re wonderful as well. You\u2019ve always taken such good care of me,\u00a0<\/p>\n
she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re friends, aren\u2019t we?\u201d Zachary smiled, changing the subject.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201c1\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chapter 17\u00a0 \u201cJules, are you feeling unwell? You\u2019ve been spacing out all day.\u201d\u00a0 Juliet\u2019s heart jolted. She stood frozen for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-396","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-save-your-pleas-im-with-your-best-friend-now-novel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/396","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=396"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/396\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":436,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/396\/revisions\/436"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=396"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=396"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kezpres.xyz\/novelreading\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=396"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}