Jeanne spent about half an hour walking around the office before receiving a call from Serenity. Instead of heading back up to Sonny's office, she headed straight for the exit.
"Aunt Seren!"
Seeing Serenity, Jeanne jogged out of the building.
Serenity had not bothered driving into the company parking lot to avoid the hassle. Instead, she had just pulled up by the front gates and gave Jeanne a call.
Watching Jeanne jog toward her, Serenity smiled and said, “Slow down! You're in heels."
However, Jeanne did not stop.
"Did you let Sonny know you were leaving?" Serenity handed her a large bag of snacks and reached out to gently stroke her cheek, adding, "You've lost weight. Have you been skipping meals? I know work is important, but your health comes first. You need to eat on time and stop staying up so late.”
"I lost weight? I thought I was gaining some."
Jeanne took the heavy bag of snacks from Serenity. They were all her favorites. When she was a little girl, she had been a total foodie who could not go anywhere without a stash of treats. Now that she was an adult with a grueling work schedule, she rarely had time for snacks anymore.
Yet, her elders never forgot what she liked. Every time Serenity came to visit, she always brought a massive haul of Jeanne's favorite comfort foods.
"You've lost weight, a lot of it. And look at those dark circles under your eyes. It's obvious you've been burning the midnight oil. Even your makeup can't hide how exhausted you are."
Serenity pulled out her phone and dialed Sonny's number. As soon as Sonny picked up, she said, “Sonny, I've got Jeanne with me. If you're free tonight, come over for dinner."
"Of course, I'll be there."
Since they were not heading back to Wildridge Manor but were staying at Serenity's downtown penthouse instead, Sonny would not miss it. Besides, his own apartment was not far from Serenity's place.
"Good. We're heading out now. Make sure you come over right after work, and don't you dare log any overtime tonight. You need to give yourself a break and relax every now and then."
In Serenity's eyes, Sonny was an absolute workaholic.
Then again, almost everyone around her was a workaholic. Even she had spent her younger years traveling all over the country to build her business. At her busiest, she had once gone more than ten days straight without being home.
When Callia had missed her terribly, the little girl had cried bitterly over the phone, asking her if she did not want Callia and Heath anymore. Serenity still vividly remembered how her eyes had welled with tears at that moment.
That very night, she had driven straight back to Wiltspoon from out of town, and from that day forward, she never allowed her work to keep her away from home for that long again.
Now that her children were grown, she had significantly cut back her workload to enjoy a more relaxed pace of life. She was just waiting for her kids to settle down and start families of their own so she could retire, become a grandmother, and spoil her grandkids at home.
In her downtime, she pictured herself traveling with her old friends, gardening, rearing fish, and enjoying quiet afternoons with a nice cup of tea.
"I will, Aunt Seren."
Serenity gave him a few more gentle reminders before finally hanging up.
Once Serenity and Jeanne were settled into the car, Serenity turned to Jeanne. "What are you in the mood for tonight? I can take us to the grocery store. The chefs usually follow a set menu every day, and I was worried you wouldn't like them."
Jeanne munched happily on the snacks while she replied, "Aunt Seren, the food at your house is always amazing. You don't need to go out of your way to make anything fancy. Just some simple, home-cooked comfort food is good enough.” Despite Jeanne's protests, Serenity took Jeanne to the grocery store and bought a wide variety of ingredients before heading home.
Once they arrived, Serenity immediately started cooking.
Jeanne followed her into the kitchen to help with prepping the ingredients, but Serenity tried to shoo her away to watch some TV in the living room.
"Aunt Seren, I have to leave Wiltspoon tomorrow. Our time together is already so limited, and I have so much I want to talk to you about. Let me help you! This isn't my first time in the kitchen."
In fact, she was incredibly skilled in the kitchen.≈