Winning Back His Ex's Wife's Broken Heart by Hayley

Chapter 76

Richard's

Pov.

After that strange text, my mind wouldn't let it go. "Enjoy the laughs while you can." I'd kept the message to myself, not wanting to worry Sarah.

I didn't even know what it meant, and I didn't want to freak her out for no reason. But the words hung there in my head like a bad smell.

I had to shake it off, though. Tonight was supposed to be fun, light, relaxed - exactly what she needed after that weird guy with the camera.

We'd just gotten back from the comedy club, and Sarah was looking at me with that soft smile of hers, eyes shining.

I figured maybe I could keep things light, get her laughing again. What better way than to cook dinner myself?

"Stay right there," I told her, leading her to the couch and giving her a little nudge to sit. "I'm gonna whip us up something amazing. You just relax." She laughed, raising an eyebrow. "You? Cooking?"

"Hey, I can cook," I said, puffing my chest out a little. I wasn't exactly a five-star chef, but how hard could it be?

She just grinned, sinking into the couch with that amused look that meant she was in for a show. "Alright, Chef Richard, impress me."

I rolled up my sleeves and stepped into the kitchen, ready to take on this "culinary challenge."

I figured pasta would be simple enough. Just boil it, add some sauce, throw in a little extra to make it seem fancy. Piece of cake.

Or so I thought.

of water. I filled it up, placed

kept glancing at it every few seconds,

call from the living room, trying to stifle a laugh, "you know it

know that," I muttered, rolling my eyes even though she

saw some bubbles, and I tossed in a

the rim of the pot, but I figured they'd

I turned to the sauce. I found a jar of marinara in the fridge and dumped it into a saucepan, thinking maybe I'd get fancy and add some

sauce started bubbling, popping little red spots all over the stove. And, unfortunately, all over my

She'd peeked into the kitchen doorway,

wooden spoon and stirred, hoping it would calm down, but the sauce just kept bubbling, popping, and spitting everywhere. I couldn't help but laugh at myself -

you need some help?" she asked, stepping

no," I insisted. "This is my surprise for you.

her hands in surrender, smirking. "Alright, if

hear her giggling as she walked back to the living room, and I took a deep breath, turning back to the sauce that was now splattered all over the

sprinkled some in, then tossed in a bit of

looked like it had doubled in size and was now threatening to spill over

out without burning myself. The steam billowed up, and I waved it away, feeling like I'd just run a marathon. Finally, I dumped the drained pasta into a bowl, poured the sauce over it, and gave it a quick stir. It wasn't the prettiest thing I'd

setting it down in front of her with a flourish. "Try it." She picked up her fork and took a tentative bite. Her face lit up in

laugh. "See? I told you I

eating, and despite the mess I'd made, it was actually pretty nice. Just sitting there with her, laughing, feeling normal. Every time she giggled, I felt a little lighter, a little more at ease. The text message, the guy with the camera... it all

I said, trying to sound casual, "if I were a professional chef, would you hire