Chapitre 7: Tea or Coffee?

By 4 AM, Anne was busy supervising the maids as they completed all of the tasks that Thea had given them specific instructions to complete before she went to sleep.

For instance, when she instructed the chef to prepare solely chicken and beef dishes, all of the maids began to express concern at their little miss's peculiar behavior. But, they all decided to remain silent and simply watch, including Anne.

But, when she entered the kitchen, she was astounded to see Thea skillfully slicing the meat and veggies while cooking in the pan like a star chef on a culinary program. She was equally perplexed and concerned.

Her young miss is known to the servants to hate her fiancee, so she worried that she could add something to the dish to fool the visitor. But, her worry was appeased when Thea allowed her to taste the food she had prepared. That was delicious.

After the incident on her 25th birthday, Anne noticed a change in her young miss. She also had a positive mood when she first entered the mansion and a composed demeanor when the butler informed her that her parents would not be able to attend her engagement meeting.

Unlike what Anne had anticipated, her young miss never again had a tantrum at their expense. All the other staff was taken aback, but not Anne.

Thea has always been a sweet and considerate child to Anne. As Thea's personal nanny, since she was five years old, Anne was aware of this. She wasn't conceited or spoiled back then; her bad behavior didn't start until she was 12 years old, when her mother passed away, her father remarried and had their own child, leaving Thea in the care of her grandfather, who was constantly working. This caused Thea to demand her father's attention, which he would never give her.

The return of what Anne felt to be her young miss's true self from before her mother's death made Anne delighted to see. They are now waiting for Thea's fiancee in front of her vanity mirror, and Anne smiled as she slowly stroked Thea's hair.

Anne exclaimed in shock at what she had earlier seen in the kitchen, "You astonished me back then, Young Miss! I didn't know you could cook! Where did you learn it from? I never saw you cook in the kitchen not even once."

As Anne asked a question, Thea flinched her shoulder and blurted the first thing that came to mind. The nervously laughing woman said, "No, you know my pastime is browsing the web... and I simply watch a few culinary videos here and there... and alas... I learned from it... I did even realize I had this gift Anne...hah.

Thea nearly forgot that people around her would start noticing the sudden changes in her attitude and skills that a spoilt brat like her would never know because she was too preoccupied with plotting how she will win Erik's heart.

Before going back to the past, Anne's questions make her understand that she needs to be more cautious when demonstrating some of the talents she has learned through her experiences. Thea smiles brightly as she turns to face Anne, who gladly accepts her response without question.

She smiled brightly and glanced at Thea's face, saying, "I always thought you're a genius, a true La Roche."

"..." 'oh... Anne quit flattering me. I'm not brilliant.

"I'm done, you look gorgeous, young miss," Anne exclaimed as she clasped both of her hands. She was overly smug about her accomplishments. For the first time, Anne assisted Thea in choosing her clothing, and this time the young lady selected a pale blue knee-length dress that flawlessly accentuated her hourglass figure. Thea appears more refined, and thanks to the easy-to-make curls at the ends of her hair, she looks gorgeous and lovely.

Thea can't help but admire Anne's work and says, "Thank you for helping, Anne." She had never felt this attractive or at ease in her own flesh. She used to favor clothing with vibrant neon colors in her past life solely to annoy her father and grandfather. Yet she opted for clothing that she felt at ease in today.

The General will be surprised by your beauty, I'm sure," boasted Anne.

Thea grinned and said, "He will definitely be astonished, but not by my beauty."

Anne confidently glanced at Thea and exclaimed, "Of course, Miss, I bet my life on it.

Thea chuckled at Anne's compliments. The first time Thea let Anne talk to her without being interrupted, Anne was perplexed and uncomfortable. However, as Thea explained that having someone to talk to made her feel more at ease, Anne understood.

Thea's request is quickly accepted by Anne. And now that we are here, Anne is chattering uncontrollably.

When they both heard a knock at the door, their chat came to an end.

When the Butler appeared when Anne opened the door, she cocked her head. We never ordered tea because the young miss will be having supper with the master, she says, turning to look at the tray he was holding.

Butler Alfred moved forward and turned toward Thea while ignoring Anne. "Young Miss, I brought tea for you to unwind, you could feel worried meeting your fiancee who you don't know," the man said.

Before Alfred could go, Thea responded while she continued to look at the butler and said, "Thank you, Alfred. Just put the tray on the table."

Has the visitor already arrived?

Sure, Young Miss, General Warton, and the Master are currently speaking in the study; I'll call you when they are finished.

"Thank you, Alfred."

Thea looked about the room when she thought it had been silent and couldn't find Anne, who was still peering at the Butler's retreating back.

Thea crossed her arms in her chest and teasedly asked Anne, "Anne, what's with the dissatisfied look; I thought you and Alfred had a thing."

Anne quickly raised an eyebrow and shook her head in disapproval, saying, "No, you're getting it, wrong miss, I noticed him acting unusual this past few days."

"What do you mean?"

Butler Alfred, who constantly seemed to be out and on the phone, said, "Oh, the day you were discharged. That was my first time hearing him get that enraged with someone over the phone."

That's suspicious, I guess.

I wonder whether his family had an emergency.

"Butler Alfred has no family, he's an orphan, and your father recruited him after Lady Cassandra's death," Anne said, shaking her head.

That's new information, and the fact that Anne feels comfortable speaking to me helps me a lot since I can learn things quickly.

"I just noticed his strange actions," Anne continued.

Thea rose up, approached Anne, and patted her shoulder while grinning. She smirked, "Hey Anne, you seem to watch Butler Alfred around a lot, are you sure he's not your type?"

Anne shook her head at her little miss's silliness. She was happy to see that her miss had been upbeat lately; perhaps the engagement had played a significant role in her positive outlook.

Are you interested in drinking the tea, miss?

Thea requested, "Not tonight since I'll be having dinner instead, I like your coffee. Can you serve it after dinner?"

Anne agreed by nodding.

A knock then caused them to be interrupted once more.

Young Lady, the General is now in the living room, Master Thomas ordered you to go.

Thea and Anne exchanged giggling glances.

'Erick, here I come!