Do it for her? Juniper tilted her head back to look at Shanley, her clear, doe-like eyes sparkling. “Okay,” she said, then pulled her backpack open and dumped a pile of workbooks on the desk in front of him. "These need to be done too. Thanks.


    Goodnight."


    With that, she guiltlessly climbed into bed and burrowed under the covers.


    Staring at the mountain of homework, Shanley pinched the bridge of his nose and let out a soft, helplessugh. The girl really didn''t hold back.


    "Go to sleep," he said, tucking her in. He turned off the main lights, switched on the small deskmp, picked up a pen, and began to diligently work his way through the assignments.


    In the bed, Juniper stirred, slowly opening her eyes. She watched the silhouette of the man under themplight, a faint smile gracing her lips.


    ...


    Juniper woke up feeling well-rested. Her gaze instinctively scanned the room and, just as she''d hoped,nded on the figure on the sofa. Shanley, dressed in loungewear, was ufortably curled up, his long legs awkwardly propped on the armrest. It was clear he hadn''t slept well.


    On the nearby desk, her homework and test papers were stacked in a neat pile. A quick nce revealed that the handwriting was a near-perfect imitation of her own. "Looks like I''ve found someone to do my homework from now on," she thought with a smirk.


    She padded over and crouched beside him, resting her chin on her hand as she studied his face. He was handsome, had a great physique, and an even better presence—the whole package. A dangerous thought popped into her head: she wanted to hide him away, to keep him all to herself.


    ...


    Downstairs, Dana was setting up breakfast.


    "Good morning, Ms. Payne," she said, then nced behind her. "Is Mr. Schwartz not up yet?"


    "No. He had a rough night. He''s still sleeping." Juniper replied, taking a seat at the table and listlessly nibbling on a piece of toast. She didn''t have much of an appetite without him there.


    At that moment, Felton and Flint walked in and nearly bit their tongues. Their boss had a rough night? Did that mean... he and Ms. Payne... did that?


    The two men exchanged looks, their expressions a mixture of shock and confusion. "But shouldn''t Ms. Rayne be the one too tired to get ou + Of bed?" they wondered. Is their boss really in such bad shape?"


    Dana froze, holding a bowl of soup, her eyes wide with shock. Had their rtionship progressed that quickly? Ms. Payne was so young! How could Mr. Schwartz do such a thing?


    Seeing their expressions, Juniper realized she''d been misunderstood. "Oh, I mean he was up all night doing my homework. He''s exhausted."


    Doing homework? Dana, Felton, and Flint were stunned once again. They had seen their boss take people out, but doing homework? It was an image they couldn''t even begin to fathom.


    "I''m heading to school,” Juniper said, putting down her knife and fork and walking past the dumbfounded trio "Tallshantextm going to the training grounds this afternoon. I''ll be leaving at seven."


    ????!


    Not long after she left, Shanley came downstairs, his hair slightly disheveled and dark circles under his eyes, looking utterly drained That girl must have saved up days of homework; he''d been writing essays and filling out test papers until six in the morning. He''d never put that much effort into a


    billion-dor deal.


    "Boss," Felton said, rying Juniper''s message.


    "Seven o''clock?" A small smile yed on Shanley''s lips.


    "Cancel my evening appointments,” he said calmly. "I''m going to the training grounds to pick her up."


    It was the perfect opportunity to see for himself just who this Melvin character investigating her was.