Chapter 35

"Angel!" Avery got back to her senses and turned sharply to glance at her son even though he had called for his father. She glared at Damon as though he had done something wrong, even while knowing that he didn't do anything unexpected.

The thought of that made her frown at her ridiculousness and huff, paying attention to her son instead.

The boy had finished washing the vegetables and according to him, he had won the contest. She had almost forgotten about it.

She quickly took up her position and cooked as soon as Damon finished chopping them, which he did at a ridiculous speed. Did he go to a culinary class after their breakup? She didn't need to know so she ignored her curiosity and finished Angel's game.

Magically, he grabbed his plate of vegetables as soon as Avery served them and gobbled them up, including the carrots he hated the most. He even seemed to enjoy them.

"That's…" Avery didn't know the right word to use. Unexpected? It would be an understatement.

"Deception." Damon filled it in on her behalf. "He only ate them because we made him think they were a prize that we all looked forward to." Of course, he explained in Angel's absence in case the boy learnt that he had been fooled.

Still, she hated to admit that Damon was right. "He was just hungry."

"If you say so." He chuckled. "Are you up for a game of chess?"

"I'm not playing any games with you. Don't you have something to do at home?" She shamelessly shooed him off.

"Nothing that's as important as spending time with my son." He shrugged and slotted himself onto the couch beside her, where she was trying to have some rest.

"Just die." She groaned. Mabella had left ages ago. Why was he hell bent on overstaying his welcome? He wasn't even welcome to begin with.

He smiled despite having been scolded and scooted close to her. He took her hand that was between them and placed it on his lap.

"What are you doing?" She recoiled.

"Continuing what we started in the kitchen earlier." He snaked a hand around her waist.

"Let go of me!" She growled and he pulled away. She pushed his chest. "Nothing happened in the kitchen. Do you understand?"

He raised an eyebrow. "Even though you liked it and would have gone on if our son didn't interrupt?" He looked at her seriously. "You don't need to deny what you feel."

"You are right." She nodded in agreement. "If only it were that easy. I want nothing more than to kill you but I can't do that. What makes you think I should do what you want?"

He raised his hands in surrender. "That's not what I said." He stood to leave, knowing that he would get into a fight with her if he didn't. "I'll be on my way. Don't hesitate to give me a call if you miss me."