18| Dinner With Anderson

Travis was still not sure if inviting Zoey inside her house at this time of the night was a good idea, but it wasn't like he had any choice. She pretty much invited herself on her own.

"Do you seriously want me to cook something?" He asked, just to confirm if she wasn't joking.

"Do I need to spell it out for you?" She responded, making her way to the kitchen while he silently followed her.

"So what... What do you want to eat?" He asked.

"Do you know how to cook pasta?" She asked and Travis nodded in return. "Well, then pasta it is."

Travis watched as Zoey made herself comfortable on a counter and crossed her legs. She was wearing skinny jeans and a red shirt, her hair flowing down her shoulder in natural waves. He felt troubled on having her there with him but he didn't have any option now, do he?

Zoey watched in amusement as Travis moved around in the kitchen, obviously not happy with her presence. She liked pushing his buttons because he himself wasn't a saint either. He left no chance of demeaning her so she wasn't going to be easy on him either.

As much as he irked her, he still was a sight for sore eyes. Tall height, light brown hair, defined jaw and a proportioned body; everything about him was drool-worthy. Too bad, he was a plain dick.

"What is this red thingy?" Zoey asked, scrunching her nose upwards.

"Diced tomatoes. You don't know how to cook, do you?" Travis replied.

"No. I never cooked before. The maids do the cooking." She said and then stopped mid-way, almost forgetting about Rose. Travis' jaw clenched a little and Zoey immediately changed the topic. "When did you learn to cook?"

"I guess, three, four years ago, right when Mom started to work." He said slowly and Zoey nodded.

"My father would kill to have a son like you." Zoey attempted to make a joke but Travis just continued working instead of responding.

After a long silence, Zoey started again. "What do you do for fun? And please don't say crap like I don't have time for fun as I am not a spoilt brat like you."

"How did you know I was going to say that?" A corner of Travis' mouth lifted as he angled his neck to look at her, causing Zoey to roll her eyes. "I sketch and paint. And sometimes, I write."

"Wow, so we have a Shakespeare here with us." Zoey commented as she looked around in the kitchen. The house wasn't large but it was neatly kept and cozy. "Won't you ask me what I do for fun?"

"No, the newspapers are enough to tell me that." He said, obviously hinting towards some of Zoey's rebellious activities.

Thinning her mouth in a line, Zoey climbed down the counter and made her way to him. He was making sauce for the pasta, looking extremely focused in that. "Careful Anderson, don't judge a book by it's cover."

Keeping the cooking spoon aside, he turned to Zoey, staring down at her from his tall height. "On the contrary, I think the best way to judge a book is by its cover."

For a brief moment, their eyes remained locked together, causing Zoey's heart to beat fast. She couldn't understand why she felt like hyperventilating as it was definitely not the first time she was standing this close to a guy.

"Your sauce is burning, my friend." She reminded him and that's when the trance broke. She smirked as she watched him try to save the sauce by adding some more water.

The rest of the cooking session went in silence. Once the pasta was done, it's delicious aroma filled the air and Travis served it in two plates. Together, they made their way to the lounge and sat down on the couch.

As she took the first bite, her eyes closed at the delicious taste and she bit back a moan that was threatening to release her mouth. It was amazing, just on par with his mother's cooking. "Wow, it's so tasty. You must be giving Rose tough competition."

"No, she is definitely a better cook. Though, she doesn't cook at home much often." He said with a hint of sadness in his voice. It was unfortunate that Rose spent most of his day away from her son so that she could earn enough for all three of them.

"Where is your Dad?" She asked, looking around.

"He doesn't leave his room much often." He replied and took another bite.

"Oh." Zoey said and silenced herself. "Do you want to come to the gala? You can come as Maya's date."

"I'd rather not. Parties aren't my thing." He said, digging his fork in its plate.

"What is your thing then?" Zoey raised her eyebrows. "Whining? Being rude? Trying to act over-smart?"

A faint smile appeared on Travis' face at this. Instead of replying to her question, he asked, "What are you doing here, Zoey?"

"Eating." Zoey replied calmly.

"You could've eaten at your house. Why do you avoid being there?" He was the one who raised his eyebrows this time.

A sigh left her lips as she searched the corners of her mind for an answer. "I don't know. That big-ass house feels lonely sometimes."

There were many sarcastic remarks just at the tip of his tongue but Travis avoided this time. Zoey's voice genuinely felt sorrowed as she said that and for the first time in ever, Travis felt a hint of pity for her.

"It gets lonely here too." He whispered under his breath but she heard it anyway.

"So privileged or unprivileged as you like to describe us, we still have something in common." Zoey grinned and Travis fought the smile that wanted to appear on his face.

"Apparently." He said and looked away from her pretty face because it definitely makes his heart race faster.

"So that's why you work at the store? To stay away from an empty house?" She asked.

"It is one of the reasons. But mainly because it helps me share some of Mom's burden." He said and Zoey smiled.

It felt nice to have a conversation without any of them embarassing the other one. But it didn't last longer as the minute their food finished, they heard Rose's voice coming through the door.

"I am home early, Trav." she said and all the color left Travis' face. He didn't want his mother to see them together, having a comfy dinner. He didn't want her to think that there was something going on between them when there wasn't. "What smells so nice?" Rose asked, entering inside and a frown appeared on her face as she found Zoey inside.

"Hi Rose," Zoey waved at her enthusiastically.

"Um... Miss. Zoey, what are you doing here?" she asked in confusion.

"Your son invited me on a dinner date." Zoey smirked and Travis' face paled even more.

"She... She is lying, Mom." Travis hopped out of the couch while Rose just kept looking between both of them.

"Tell me Travis, why would I lie?" Zoey made an innocent face and Travis looked like smoke was coming out of his ears.

"Mom, don't fall for her innocent face. She is an evil---"

"Travis, you can't talk to Miss. Zoey like that. Apologise to her." Rose admonished and Travis just groaned in return. "Now."

Zoey enjoyed his aggravated expression but she didn't want an apology out of him so she decided to clear the confusion. "Don't worry Rose. I was the one who invited myself in. Hope you don't mind."

"Of course not." Rose said, giving her a smile. "Make yourself home."

"Oh, I will." Zoey said and subtly winked at Travis without getting noticed by Rose.

Once Rose had left, Travis turned to her, hyperventilating due to her action. "You could have landed me in trouble with your lie." He blurted dryly.

"Oh, stop it. Going on a dinner date with me would be highlight of your boring life." Zoey said smugly.

"Yeah, right." Travis rolled his eyes and walked past her to the kitchen, taking the empty plates with him.

"Bye, Anderson. Tonight was fun. We should do it again sometime." She said behind him to irk him more as she made her way outside to her car.

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

Do you enjoy their bickering?