Lawrence Winters hadn’t had the fish congee and pan-fried buns from home for several days, so this time he indulged himself.
To thank Edward Foster, he invited Edward Foster for lunch.
Though Edward Foster was inwardly delighted, his outward appearance remained nonchalant as he waved his hand and said, "I’ll see if I’m free later. If I’m free, you can treat me to lunch, if not, you can treat me tomorrow."
"Sure, today or tomorrow is fine. I didn’t bring lunch," Lawrence Winters said cheerfully, putting the finished bowls and plates back into the breakfast bag and tossing them into the trash can.
Edward Foster pretended to be calm and returned to his office.
But as soon as he went in, he closed the door and laughed out loud in circles inside the office.
Good! This is a great start! Keep it up!
He couldn’t contain his excitement anymore and simply called Lucas Harlow.
"Lucas, I tell you, Lawrence is going to treat me to lunch!"
Lucas Harlow had just gotten up at his place and curled his lips, "Are you crazy? Lawrence invites you to lunch and you have to call me?"
"Yeah, why not?" Edward Foster laughed as he sat back in the chair behind his desk, while opening his computer, bragging, "I bought him breakfast this morning, he finished it all. To thank me, he wants to treat me to lunch. But I didn’t accept it outright."
Lucas Harlow snorted, "So you were still the proactive one..."
But then he felt something was off, "Edward, what are you doing? Lawrence is already married, are you pursuing him now? Becoming a marriage wrecker? Don’t you feel guilty?"
Edward Foster replied confidently, "What guilt? I don’t understand. I just know I’m already falling behind, and if I don’t catch up now, I’ll regret it for the rest of my life!"
Lucas Harlow listened but didn’t speak for a while.
He wasn’t as headstrong as Edward Foster.
Before, he could still discreetly probe and silently pay attention; now that Lawrence Winters was married, it was like an insurmountable chasm to him.
"...Edward, shouldn’t a man have some principles? Didn’t you always avoid getting involved with married women?" Lucas Harlow wondered.
Edward Foster laughed off while looking at his work schedule and slyly said, "Lawrence hasn’t held a wedding banquet yet. According to our local custom, without the banquet, it doesn’t count as marriage, even if they’ve got the marriage certificate."
"Your local custom? What local customs? Weren’t you born in Capital City and raised abroad? So abroad they don’t recognize marriage certificates?" Lucas Harlow directly mocked him.
Edward Foster rolled his eyes, "Lucas, I think you’re just jealous of me. You could also think about pursuing Lawrence, huh? Bickering with me won’t make Lawrence aware of your goodwill. I won’t give you any chance! To hell with demeanor! Conscience! Morality! I’m not breaking any law!"
"Lawrence Winters is mine! Mine!"
Shouting these words, Edward Foster suddenly felt refreshed.
He finally understood the reason behind his recent frustration, sadness, and the urge to vent his anger by speeding around.
It was because he had something he yearned for but couldn’t obtain.
He loved Lawrence Winters.
Truly loved.
Lucas Harlow’s hand holding the phone trembled slightly.
He could tell Edward Foster was serious.
He was still suppressing himself, while Edward was already releasing himself.
Lucas Harlow didn’t say anything more because he didn’t know what to say.
This was a problem without a solution.
...
When it was time for lunch, Kenneth Osborne glanced out the window.
It was almost April, the spring sunshine was bright, and the sky was a vivid blue.
If it weren’t for the willow fluff all over the city, spring would be the best season in Capital City.
He felt a bit of longing for Lawrence Winters, looked at the time, and made a call.
"Nora, have you had lunch yet?"
Lawrence Winters was sitting with Edward Foster in a restaurant within a skyscraper in the business district.
The food here was mostly home-cooked style dishes, rare in this upscale business area for a thoroughly enjoyable meal.
Of course, in this location, even if they weren’t exotic delicacies, just simple home-cooked dishes, the prices were still exorbitant.
Comparable to "imported seafood" in other restaurants.
Seeing it was Kenneth Osborne’s call, she quickly slid her phone to answer.
"Kenneth, I’m eating now, have you had lunch?" Lawrence Winters said with a smile, while ticking off a few names of dishes she wanted to eat.
Edward Foster smiled silently and also ordered a few dishes.
Kenneth Osborne was hungry too, but having just finished checking the program today, with a meeting in fifteen minutes, he only asked the front desk to order a sandwich, already delivered to his desk.