Ariana reached out to wipe the grime off his face and said with a teasing tone, “For whom?"

Holden grinned and kept his messy hands away from Ariana. He leaned in and replied, "For you, of course."

He then said, "Don't be mad. Melon's just a kid. He's pure-hearted, and he couldn't tell if that woman was bad news. He followed her because he felt sorry for her and wanted to protect Adele. I've already talked to him about it."

“Okay, I'm not mad anymore." Ariana pushed his face away with a playful smile, then looked at the mess around them. She sighed and said, "Clean up this kitchen. I'll handle the cooking."

"Sure!" Holden tidied up the kitchen while Ariana started cooking. As Holden was cleaning, Melon peeked his head in from the doorway, grinning at him. Holden shot him a playful wink, knowing that their plan to make Ariana laugh had worked, and she wasn't mad anymore.