Chapter 13 Entering the City (5)...
At the same time, Leo looked at his clothes that exuded a woman's fragrance with a cold expression, and finally made up his mind.
He would not give in to his desires, and he would part ways with Irene once they got to the city.
Because he found that he had never been so flustered by someone's words or actions.
She was clearly before his eyes, yet he was worried that she would leave in the future; she was clearly standing beside him, yet he always wanted to take a few more glances at her.
It seemed as if there was an invisible thin thread in her hand wrapped around his wrist, pulling him to her side.
But no, this can't be done.
Leo clearly felt the strong desire conveyed to him by his reason - he must never step into the cage again, and he must never become a servile house dog.
He wants to live an upright life like a human being, be respected and understood, instead of getting entangled with a woman who is a habitual liar.
He had to stay away from her, Leo was absolutely sure of that.
The young boy didn't realize that his attitude towards Irene had changed drastically - from wanting to kill her to wanting to stay away from her.
And this change was just because of an unintentional kiss under the action of gravity.
Leo and Irene pretended to be cousins, while Hannah dressed in men's clothes and drove the car, and the three of them drove into the city in a dignified manner.
Nowadays, no one would actively suspect the wealthy noble ladies who were dressed very well, especially when they were accompanied by a black male servant. The patrolling guards simply asked a few simple questions and let them into the city.
Only when the guards disappeared did Irene finally feel relieved and began to look at Mobile in the late 19th century.
This was completely different from her impression of Mobile, the oldest city in Alabama.
Today it is still a young city with a population of nearly 10,000. Along the red and black roads that run through the city, there are densely packed stores, including shops, banks and theaters.
As an important port city in Alabama, Mobile had countless merchant ships docking at the dock every day, carrying away warehouse after warehouse of cotton and bringing in slaves in a steady stream to various plantations, large and small.
This not-so-big city prospered rapidly and even had a railway.
Irene and her two companions were about to set off from Mobile and take a cargo ship on the Mississippi River straight to New Orleans.
But before they set off, they still had to prepare some things.
First of all, Irene wanted a small pistol like Leo's. Guns were not difficult to buy at that time, but they were only for men. If she wanted to do it, she had to let Leo go.
Leo wouldn't refuse to help her with this, Irene thought uncertainly.
Secondly, she also wanted to buy some ready-made clothes to learn the style of this era. She had only seen them in books and videos before, but now that she could see the real thing, she naturally wanted to learn it carefully.
Then buy the necessary tools for fashion design - scissors, measuring tape, wooden ruler, sewing needles, pins...
It would be better to have an iron and a mannequin. Irene sighed in her heart, not knowing whether she could successfully buy a set of tools.
But it didn’t matter if she couldn’t buy it, she comforted herself, at worst she could go to New Orleans to buy it, and the boat ride would only take two days at most.
The reason she wanted to buy it early was just to fulfill her previous promise to Leo - it was no problem to make a shirt for Leo in two days on the boat.
It also showed that she took his words very seriously. Moreover, she finally had an inspiration and she wanted to start to restore the feel of making clothes as soon as possible.
Just as she was wondering where she could buy all these things——
“Gululu——”
Suddenly, a very clear bowel sound was heard.
The stomach pain that had been lurking for a long time came rushing over with bared fangs and claws.
Erin curled up and pressed hard against her stomach.
Damn it, I forgot to feed this ancestor again.
If there is anything that people who study design have in common, it’s probably that they all have a poor stomach.
Irene especially likes outdoor activities. She would set up a tent in the mountains and live there for several days. She relied on biscuits and instant noodles to survive. She was lucky not to starve to death.
Leo subconsciously took a step forward and reached out to support Irene, but Hannah was one step faster than him. She dodged and supported Irene's arm, and seemed to accidentally push him away.
The young man followed closely behind Irene and Hannah, his eyebrows lowered, making it impossible to see his expression.
Fortunately, there was a parish cafe on the street, and Irene ordered bread and Galician octopus, a typical Spanish dish. There were no typical British dishes on the menu, otherwise Irene would have ordered fish and chips.
After all, Leo is British, so he can eat more of the food he is used to. He is so thin now that he can't even hold up his clothes.
How can she be a model? People will think she is abusing children.
With that in mind, she ordered another English plate for Leo.
While waiting for the food to be served, Irene asked with her chin hanging, "Leo, do you want to go to Rochester with us?"
Her vocal cords were so tense that they tightened and even her voice became slightly shrill, as if she was afraid that he would disagree.
The boy unconsciously grabbed the armrest of the chair and turned his head away from Irene's sight.
He was about to shake his head and refuse.
But Irene looked at him with a smile on her face, her eyes as bright as the stars, and Leo could almost smell the warmth coming from her skin.
For some unknown reason, he nodded unconsciously.
"Okay," the woman's tone suddenly became cheerful, her joy evident in her words, "Then it's settled, we'll go to Rochester together!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the bread came up first.
Irene picked up the cornbread with a bitter face. If it weren't for the stomachache, she would never eat such bland food.
It's absolutely unpalatable. I don't know why, but the bread here always gives off a weird sweet aroma that makes my throat choke.
She really missed the soft and fluffy Chinese steamed buns with a wheat aroma. Irene bit off a big piece of bread with hatred. When she had the chance, she would definitely steam the buns herself.
Hannah was eating bread and beef stew. Irene took one look and quickly looked away. She had been eating this kind of food for several days and knew what it tasted like with her eyes closed.
Leo held the fork, and in the blink of an eye, the plate was half empty. It seemed that he hardly chewed at all, just chewed twice and swallowed it.
Was it because he hadn't eaten for too long? Irene frowned. She had a bad stomach, so she paid special attention to these problems when eating. Leo was the fastest eater she had ever seen.
I have to ask him to change this in the future. Eating so fast is not good for his health.
After looking around the table, her eyes finally landed on Leo and the plate in front of him.
Bacon, eggs, sausages and baked potatoes - a standard British breakfast.
Although she had eaten English breakfast for many years, she thought the food on Leo's plate looked good, perhaps because she had gotten used to eating soy milk, fried dough sticks and spicy soup in China in recent years.
The most important thing is that Leo ate very seriously, as if this ordinary breakfast was delicious.
There was no grease on his lips, his Adam's apple was slightly raised, his short hair was gathered behind his head with a headscarf, and his delicate eyebrows and eyes, illuminated by the sunlight, made him look like an angel who had come down to earth to transcend tribulation.
Hiss, I want to blaspheme——
This thought suddenly popped up in her mind, and then was quickly cut off.
What is obscene? Do you understand what obscene means? He has a gun and has killed people before. He would not dare to be so bold as to do such a thing.
Having said that, it’s not too much to take a few sneak peeks.
The boy half lowered his head and ate his meal seriously, as if he didn't notice that Irene was looking at him.
So Irene looked even more brazenly.
From the face, neck, to collarbone, his eyes circled along the straight shoulder line and climbed all the way up to Leo's lips.
There was a light flesh-pink color between her lips, her chin was pointed, her eyelashes were long, and the golden brown color like crow feathers trembled.
Even her heart skipped a beat.
Irene swallowed her saliva. The more she chewed, the more she felt that the bread in her mouth had no taste.
I want the black pepper roasted potatoes on Leo's fork, I want the bacon on Leo's plate.
It looks delicious.
She stared at the boy without blinking.
…
The iron fork pierced the baked potato. Irene looked at him with burning eyes. No, it seemed that she was not looking at him——
She was probably just looking at the baked potato on his plate.
Leo couldn't lift it, nor could he let it go.
Was she trying to eat the food on his plate?
Only close people would share a plate of food - usually only couples would share food.
The woman's unconcerned gaze was like that of an unfettered young animal, examining him and his plate wantonly.
Leo knew that she might not understand British social etiquette, but he still felt an inexplicable anger welling up in his chest. This anger was not pure, and it also carried a bit of shame and anger that made him want to find a hole to crawl into.
I want to be looked at by her, but I don't want her to look at me.
Even he himself didn't understand where the anger came from, and there was a secret joy mixed in with the anger - although he didn't want to admit it, but when Irene's eyes fell on him, he unconsciously straightened his back and ate like the so-called aristocrats in the restaurant.
He was very clever, and in no time he learned to cut the bread into small pieces, spread butter on it, put it in his mouth with a fork, chew it, and swallow it, as if he had eaten like that before.
When Leo realized that he was unconsciously imitating the noble he once hated the most because of Irene's existence, he wanted to pick up the plate and stay away from her.
But when he tried to stand up, all the blood in his body seemed to freeze and even flow against his blood vessels to stop him.
My body was so stiff that I couldn't even lift my hands.
Be patient, be patient a little longer. This is the last meal with her. He will leave after this meal.
To the devil be damned Rochester, he couldn't stay there a quarter of an hour.
Leave after dinner, he repeated in his mind.
Leo clenched his fork, so what was he enduring?
Tolerate Irene, or tolerate not seeing Irene?
When did he become so indecisive?
It's all her fault.
The taste of Mexican hot sauce quickly spread in his mouth, and the hot touch burned his lips and tongue, as if even the food carried a hateful smell.
The boy suddenly glared at her coldly, with flames of anger burning in his light blue pupils, which made Irene confused.
It’s strange, why is he angry with her again?
It's simply unreasonable.
But how come he is so beautiful even when he glares at people.
For the sake of this face, Irene chose to forgive him generously, and pushed the cornbread on her plate in front of Leo, saying considerately:
"Eat more. You're so thin."
When he saw a shallow ring mark on the ring finger of the hand that Irene used to push the plate in front of him, a raging rage mixed with resentment completely exploded in Leo's veins.
He stared closely at the pale white mark around his knuckles, and the speculation that had been lingering in his mind grew rapidly like a cursed thorn.
She does have a lover.
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