"Can you?"


    He had just made the rtionship official and suddenly found the nerve to ask such a reckless question.


    "What do you think?" Juniper retorted without a trace of a smile.


    "I think..." Shanley choked on his words, hesitating for a few seconds beforeughing awkwardly. "I wouldn''t dare push my luck."


    "Well, at least you know your ce." Juniper reached out and lightly stroked his chin, raising an eyebrow. "Were you that certain I''d marry you so early on?"


    "I wasn''t sure at first," Shanley admitted, wrapping his hand around hers with a growing smile. "But then I noticed you liked my face, and my money, so I figured I had a pretty good shot."


    Juniper was speechless. He made it sound like she was some superficial gold digger. Everyone appreciates beauty, and as for wealth, she believed in earning it the right way. But when a handsome man willingly hands over himself and his fortune, who was she to refuse?


    "I''ll make sure to put on a good performance from now on." Shanley leaned in and pressed a gentle kiss to her cheek. "I''ll work hard to get promoted from boyfriend to


    husband as soon as possible."


    "Then you better work hard."


    Before they knew it, they had wandered upstairs. Every detail of the design hit Juniper right in the heart. She was in a great mood, and her words reflected it. Just as she was inspecting a decorative piece out of curiosity, her eyes were suddenly covered.


    "Shanley..." Plunged into sudden darkness, Juniper immediately tensed up.


    "Don''t be afraid, it''s me." Shanley held her hand, his voice a soft murmur. "I have one more thing to show you."


    After that, Juniper was led blindly by Shanley to some unknown spot in the house.


    "When I count to one, you can take off the blindfold. Three..."


    *Rip-*


    Juniper had no intention of following his orders. The moment he said "Three," she pulled the fabric off her eyes. The surroundings were still dark, making the sudden


    ven


    appearance of a birthday cake and its glowing candles incredibly striking.


    "Happy neenth birthday, Juniper."


    Shanley held the cake, his eyes overflowing with such intense adoration that it seemed to envelop her entirely.


    Birthday? Juniper froze for a few seconds before remembering that today was indeed her birthday.


    "My actual birthday isn''t today, you know." It took her a moment to find her voice, which came out slightly raspy and tinged with a hint of mncholy. "This is the day Grandpa adopted me."


    She had asked her oldest brother about her real birthday. He told her it was in March, right when the spring flowers began to bloom.


    "I know," Shantey said softly, crouching down in front of her. The candlelight flickered over the cake an his hands, casting a warm glow her beautiful face. "It doesn''t matter. We''l celebrate two birthdays from now


    on. Because..."


    He paused, his gaze fixed intently on her face as he enunciated every word. "This is the birthday Grandpa chose for you. We can''t forget it. From now on, I''ll take Grandpa''s ce and celebrate this day with you every year."


    Hearing those words felt like a heavy blow to Juniper''s heart. It stung with a bit of sorrow, but mostly, it was overwhelmed with profound emotion.


    "No tears on such a happy day," Shanley teased gently, tapping her nose before offering her the cake like he was coaxing a child. "Grandpa is still waiting to share some of our little Juniper''s birthday cake."


    "Yeah." Juniper stared at the cake,


    her eyes turning red, looking so fragile she might shatter. "Grandpa loved cake more than anything. But because of his health, he couldn''t eat too many sweets only ever let I him have a tiny slice, and the grumpy old man would throw a fit and ignore me for days."