L spoke up in surprise. "The family always encouraged us younger ones to date freely. Why would they suddenly arrange a marriage for Bryce?"


    As she spoke, she lightly scratched Kieran''s palm with her fingertip and added, "I''m not cold. You don''t need to hold my hand so tightly."


    Kieran rxed his grip slightly, as she suggested.


    L tilted her head, her expression thoughtful as she pieced it together. "Is it because Aunt Jasmine thinks Bryce is old enough to settle down and wants him to start a family?"


    When Kieran nodded, L didn''t say anything more, though the thought lingered in her mind.


    Before she and Kieran had gotten married, none of the younger Morgans or even the older ones, including Kieran, the youngest of his generation, had seemed in any hurry to settle down.


    It was no surprise the elders were starting to feel anxious.


    Aunt Jasmine had been urging Bryce to date for years. Since he didn''t seem interested, she must have started considering an arranged marriage instead.


    Arranged marriages weren''t umon in prominent families, but could they lead to happiness?


    L frowned slightly, though she knew this wasn''t something she could interfere with.


    Kieran nced down and noticed her pensive expression. She was still deep in thought.


    Casually, he asked, "What do you think about it?"


    "Me?" L blinked at him, her tone puzzled but contemtive as she remarked, "It depends on what Bryce wants, doesn''t it?"


    She lowered her gaze, a faint trace of worry crossing her features as she mulled over the uncertainty of it all.


    To Kieran, however, her lowered eyes seemed tinged with mncholy.


    His gaze shifted into the distance, darkening like a heavy fog. His emotions were unreadable, buried somewhere deep.


    People often say first loves were unforgettable, but as Dorian was L''s first love, Kieran never once thought she wouldn''t be able to forget someone like him.


    But Bryce?


    Their rtionship...


    His train of thought broke abruptly when L let go of his hand and suddenly dashed forward toward two familiar figures approaching them.


    Kieran nced down at his now-empty hand, hesitating briefly before following her.


    "Aunt Jasmine!"


    L''s naturally sweet voice carried across the airport terminal, lilting lightly through


    the air andnding clearly in Kieran''s ears.


    Jasmine wore a clean-cut,


    semi-casual outfit that struck the


    perfect bnce between


    professional and rxed. Her


    shoulder-length hair was tucked


    neatly behind one ear, adding to her


    polished appearance.


    Despite spending several hours on a


    ne, her makeup remained


    wless, and her well-maintainedplexion made her look like she wasn''t even 40 yet-even though her son was already 27.


    Her mature, elegant demeanor drew people in effortlessly, making it hard to look away.


    When she spotted L running toward her, Jasmine let go of her suitcase and opened her arms wide, pulling L into a warm, familiar hug.


    "It''s been so long, L."


    L breathed in Jasmine''s soft, delicate gardenia fragrance-the same scent Pa wore.


    "Aunt Jasmine, it''s been so long!"


    Her cheerful voice matched her bright expression as she took a closer look at Jasmine.


    The resemnce to Pa wasn''t just in her scent, their facial features and expressions were strikingly simr.


    Jasmine''s eyes sparkled with warmth, her gaze as soft and doting as a mother''s toward her youngest child.


    "Why do I feel like I''m invisible here?"


    L turned toward the tall, graceful figure standing beside Jasmine—Bryce.


    If Kieran was like the cold, distant moon in the night sky, Bryce was like a warm, gentle ray of morning sunlight.


    L couldn''t recall a time when Bryce''s expression wasn''t kind and weing.


    "Bryce, it''s been so long!" L said, her voice polite but cheerful.


    Just like when they were younger, Bryce reached out and lightly patted her head. "You look like you''ve lost weight."


    By then, Kieran had caught up to them. Hearing the lighthearted tone in L''s voice, he nced at her briefly before shifting his gaze elsewhere, his expression calm and unreadable.


    He reached for Jasmine''s suitcase and said, "It''s cold outside. Let''s head home."


    "Oh, right," L said, suddenly realizing what they were waiting for. "Everyone''s back at the Morgan residence waiting for you."


    Jasmine raised her arm, and L instinctively linked hers through it. The two fell into an easy rhythm, chatting as they walked.


    "Bryce just said you look like you''ve lost weight. I think so, too," Jasmine remarked.


    L touched her face and replied with a grin, "Maybe it''s just because it''s cold and I''m all bundled up. All theseyers probably make my head look tiny."