Pampered By My Three Brothers: The Return Of The Neglected Heiress - Chapter 1437

Chapter 1437: Waiting
“Uhh… what’s taking her so long?” Slater darted his eyes around, frowning. “Is she alright? Or maybe—”

He gasped and jumped to his feet. “Don’t tell me she got into an acci—”

“Shut up.” Before Slater could even say the ominous word, Atlas hissed. His eyes were cold, but his voice was colder. “Slater, learn to choose your words carefully.”

“Mark said she’s waiting in line,” Zoren chimed in. “Apparently, she had to wait for the restock of this cake, and she’s holding her place… quite fiercely.”

How cute.

A smile tugged at Zoren’s lips before he took out his phone. But just as he was about to make one of the most important phone calls of his life, Atlas beat him to it.

“I sent you a location. Find out who the baker is and tell him I invite him to work for me on the side. I don’t care if you have to drag him to me,” Atlas ordered over the phone. Everyone could just imagine the kind of face Allen was making on the other end.

“Hey! That’s not fair!” Slater pouted as Atlas put his phone down. “And that’s low! You can’t just abduct a baker because Penny is willing to wait hours for that cake!”

“Says who?”

“Says—” Slater stopped, catching Atlas, Zoren, Hugo, and even Haines looking at him as if he was the one not making any sense. His lips curved downward.

Instead of continuing this losing debate, Slater pulled out his phone and grandly declared, “James, I’m dropping all projects you have lined up for me unless you convince this baker to let me be his model in exchange for a weekly supply of cakes!”

Confused, James scrunched up his nose. “Huh? Slater, haven’t you had dinner yet?”

“Hungry or not, make it happen.” With that, Slater hung up. He looked at everyone proudly. “See? That’s how you do it. No threats or underhanded means. Just pure talent.”

“I didn’t see any talent in that,” Atlas commented coldly, earning an earful of justification from his younger brother.

Haines, watching this unfold, shook his head. “That baker is about to be very popular,” he mumbled, raising a brow as he caught sight of Hugo from the corner of his eye.

Slowly, Haines turned, catching Hugo literally melting where he sat.

“Hugo, are you alright?” Haines asked, making the latter peek up at him.

“I’m… hungry,” Hugo almost wept, feeling the beast in his stomach start to devour itself. “My last meal was last night at Grace’s birthday celebration.”

Everyone turned to Hugo. Though Atlas knew his second brother had been attending Grace’s endless birthday dinners, Slater had no idea.

“Didn’t she just have her birthday not long ago?” Slater asked. “How come she was still celebrating last night?”

“It’s a month-long celebration because she wants to be sixty by the end of the month,” Hugo grumbled, burying his face in a cushion. “I’m starving.”

“What were you even doing all day?” Atlas frowned. “How come you didn’t eat?”

“Right. Second Brother, are you that poor?! Should I ask James if he knows anyone from those government programs that help the poor?”

Hugo didn’t answer—talking would take too much energy. But thinking back on his day, he frowned. It wasn’t like he lacked money for food; he was resourceful enough to feed himself even without plenty of cash. However, he’d spent the day working on something to help a friend—just because he’d made a phone call to the Chief of Police and asked for a favor.

“Since Penny isn’t here yet, how about we have some snacks first?” Zoren suggested, already rising from his seat. “I’m sure she wouldn’t mind.”

“I’m alright, though I’m more worried about him.” Haines tipped his head toward Hugo. “Maybe he should eat first.”

“I agree with Uncle Haines,” Atlas added—only to pause as his stomach rumbled loudly. Yet, his expression remained impassive as he continued, “Hugo should eat first.”

“First Brother, I heard that,” Slater pointed out, a little amazed at how Atlas managed to act as if his stomach hadn’t just betrayed him. “You’re hungry too!”

Slater hesitated, pressing a hand against his own stomach and frowning. “I’m also hungry—I skipped a meal so I could eat with her.”

“I’m alright,” Hugo said pathetically. “I’ll just wait for Penny. This won’t kill me.”

Zoren scanned their faces and smiled. Although it was obvious that waiting for Penny was making them not just bored but hungry, these men were a prideful bunch.

“I guess it won’t hurt to have some soup first,” he suggested, making everyone lift their eyes to him. “Our chef always prepares food before leaving for the day. It’ll only take a few minutes to reheat.”

“I don’t think that’s a bad idea,” Haines nodded before pushing himself up. “I’ll help if there’s anything you need.”

Zoren smiled subtly, then moved his hand before following Haines to the kitchen. As they left, the Bennet brothers looked at each other.

“Hugo, get up and have some soup,” Atlas said, standing. “Don’t make her say we’re starving her husband while she’s not around.”

With that, Atlas left, following Zoren and Haines. Slater darted his eyes between Atlas and Hugo before abruptly jumping up and leaving his second brother behind.

Hugo peeked up and frowned. “What a heartless little brother,” he grumbled, mustering the last bits of his energy to push himself off the couch and drag himself to the kitchen.

***

In the kitchen, the food was ready to eat. It was still warm, a sign that it had been cooked recently. All they had to do was serve it. Since Zoren was the host, he insisted on ladling out the soup.

Standing in front of the pot, he gazed down at the contents.

“What kind of soup is this?” he wondered aloud. It looked a little different in color. But trusting his chef, he shrugged and poured some into small bowls.

And just like that, the Bennet brothers, Haines, and Zoren spent the next few quiet minutes sipping their soup. Not knowing it was about to make their night upside down.