Love at First Novel by Gu Lingfei

Elora went quiet for a moment before speaking up. "Mom, I might not have dated anyone yet, but I'm not naive. When a guy's nice to a woman, there's always a reason behind it. From day one, Tatum was good to me-no, scratch that, he treated me like I was already his fiancée. His kindness wasn't random; it had a purpose."

They just hadn't paid much attention to it back then.

"What about those private chefs we had before...?"

Elora trailed off. She didn't need to finish. The chefs she'd hired in the past weren't like Tatum.

They were older, married, with kids of their own. They wouldn't dream of crossing lines with her, the eldest daughter of the family.

"Elora, listen," Mrs. Ormond said, her tone warm but firm. "Tatum's a solid guy. Our whole family's taken a liking to him—that's just the truth. Even if you two don't end up as a couple, we'd still want him around. You were off on that business trip the past couple days, over at FC Manor, and he didn't cook while you were gone. Your brothers couldn't deal, and honestly, neither could I. He's only been here a few months, and he's already got our taste buds wrapped around his finger."

let out a heavy sigh. "That's not exactly a good thing. Maybe you should bring in some other chefs, mix it up a bit, so

eaten. But

and Angelo

them into little animals the boys loved. He'd even recreate characters from whatever cartoon was trending, nailing the look and the flavor. How could the kids not go crazy for

paid attention

they did homework. Tutoring wasn't really needed; both kids

supervision

knack for keeping them on track. Whether it was homework, reading, drawing, or piano practice, he'd get them to buckle down without breaking a sweat. And when it was time to play, he let

was a