"I know, I am not looking for left over food. I am looking for ingredients. And stop with the pouting." He added without turning back.
"Why would you be looking for ingredients?" She asked him with a confused expression.
"Since there is no left over food, I will fix something up for you to eat." He replied while taking out a couple of jars and boxes from the refrigerator and placed them on the counter before her.
"You can cook?" Stella looked at him skeptically.
Adam hummed in response, slightly nodding his head at the same time.
"On a scale of one to ten, how good you are at it?" She asked him, giving him a questioning look.
"I would say a 9.5." Adam replied after thinking for a while.
"Damn! I am hardly a 6." She added as she furrowed her delicate eyebrows. 'Was there anything this man wasn't good at?' She questioned herself even though she knew that the answer to that question would be a big no, in bold and capital letters.
"What would you like to eat?" Adam ignored her remark and questioned her.
"I want to eat something which has a lot of cheese in it and doesn't take too long to get done." Stella replied as she pondered over her preference of late night food. "What about Mac and cheese?" She spoke up as her eyes glinted with joy with the mere thought of having the fine, creamy texture touching her tongue.
Adam chuckled as he looked at her expressions. 'She acts like a child at times.' He thought while smiling at her. "Mac and cheese is easy. Give me around twenty minutes, my lady." Adam gave into her wish and began to prepare the dish.
He placed a medium-sized pan on the electric stove and put some water in it. He waited a little while and added elbow macaroni in it when the water began to boil. On the other stove, he put another pan and added some butter in it. When the butter melted, he put some flour, milk, shredded cheese and spices in it. He continued to stir the mixture until it turned into a sauce like consistency. He then moved his attention to the boiling water and checked on the macaroni. After making sure that it was done, he moved the pan to the sink where he put them in a strainer.
He walked back to the counter with the strainer after draining the water out completely. He added the macaroni to the sauce and cooked it for a while, letting the macaroni absorb some of the taste of the creamy sauce and spices.
When the dish was completely done, he turned off the electric stove and served it in a bowl. He garnished it with some more grated cheese which was a mixture of cheddar and parmesan cheese. The fine grated cheese melted over the piping hot dish as soon as they touched it.
Putting a fork in it, Adam placed the bowl before her. Stella looked from the dish to him and then back to the dish, her eyes wide open. She had been observing his movements since he began to cook and oh my The grace with which he moved while cooking was a sight to behold. She could watch him cook over and over again without getting bored.
"Come on, eat it. What are you waiting for?" Adam's voice interrupted her thoughts, urging her to pick up the fork and take a bite of the mouth-watering dish.
A low satisfied moan resonated in her throat as she felt the fine, creamy texture of the dish against her tongue. "Goodness gracious!" She exclaimed, still having her mouth full of mac and cheese. She ignored the man who was standing before her and continue to eat.
She let out a contented sigh after eating the last bit of the dish. She was still not over the dish when she felt a pair of eyes boring into her head. She finally looked up from the bowl, which looked as if it had been licked clean, to the man who was standing across the counter.
Adam hadn't moved from his position after serving her. He was watching her intently all this while, taking in her expressions as she enjoyed the food he had made for her. And she didn't even bother paying any attention to him, not that he minded it. He could cook for her daily if it meant he could get see her delighted expressions.
"It was delicious." Stella smiled brightly at him. "Thank you for making it for me."
"The honor was all mine, my love." He replied with a wide smile as well.
"Can you cook for me once in a while?" She asked him while trying to suppress a yawn.
"You don't need to ask me that. Just order me around. This humble man will be at your service, Ma'am." He bowed his head slightly before her, earning a giggle from her. "Give me a minute." He asked her as he began to shift the used utensils in the sink and the remaining ingredients back in the refrigerator.
"You need to go back to sleep now that you have filled your stomach." Adam muttered as he made his way around the counter to where she was sitting. He picked her up in his arms and began to walk towards the staircase.
"Oh! I forgot to ask you. Where did you place my pendant? I didn't find it on me when I woke up." Stella tightened her grip around his neck, resting her head on his shoulder.
"You fell asleep while talking to me, so I made you lie on the bed and had to remove it so that it won't disturb your peaceful slumber. You don't need to wear it all the time. I know you don't like jewelry much." Adam replied to her as he climbed up the staircase.
"But I like the pendant." Stella muttered as she pursed her lips. "No, scratch that. I love it."
"I know you do, but you are still not wearing it all the time, that's it." Adam shook his head in a no as he refused to give into her wishes.
"But" Stella was about to refute but Adam cut her off. "No means no. I don't want to argue about this." He wouldn't mind it if it was a really small locket, but the pendant wasn't exactly a small one and the pointed tips of the petals could hurt her while sleeping. There was no way he was going to take that chance with her.
"Now be a good girl and sleep." He added as he placed her down carefully on the bed. He placed a cushion under her right foot and placed a duvet over her, making sure she was covered properly except for her face. He began to walk away from the bed after tucking her in, but Stella grabbed his hand and tugged at it, stopping him in his tracks.
"Where do you think you are going? Don't tell me you are gonna go back to your study to finish off your work?" She questioned him as she furrowed her brows.
Adam took her hand which was holding on his and placed it back under the duvet. "I am just going to change into my sleepwear. I will be back before you even know it." He muttered softly, pressing a kiss on her forehead. "Be good and don't move." Adam gave her a glare before walking towards the walk-in closet.
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