Chapter 2

Beneath the gilded eaves of the Blackwood family estate.

Cole Blackwood exuded an intimidating aura, his phone clasped tightly in his hand, thin lips pressed into a grim, unyielding line.

“Still no answer.”

After hanging up, Cole pressed his temples, trying to gather his thoughts before returning to the main hall.

“Cole, who were you just talking to?”

Seraphina Thorne, daughter of the prominent Thorne family, glided gracefully towards Cole, intimately linking her arm through his.

Cole’s brow furrowed almost imperceptibly as he replied flatly,

“A business partner. We have a slight issue with a project.”

He picked up two glasses of red wine from a passing waiter’s tray, handing one to Seraphina.

“It’s time to toast the elders. We can’t neglect proper etiquette.”

As Seraphina accepted the glass, she lowered her gaze to the swirling wine within.

A moment later, she brightened, turning to rejoin the guests’ convivial chatter.

In our apartment, warm yellow light spilled over the small dining table, set with two or three simple dishes.

I absentmindedly poked at the food on my plate with my fork.

My eyes kept darting to the ring on Liam’s hand, inspecting it intently.

Liam, across from me, was chattering excitedly about funny stories from the construction site.

But I wasn’t listening to a word, my mind consumed by the intertwining images of Liam and the Blackwood heir’s similar faces, and that identical ring…

Liam suddenly paused, then grinned, reaching out to touch his ring and raising his voice.

“Lily, you know what? A lot of my co-workers today said our rings look just like the ones for the Blackwood and Thorne wedding.”

“I got curious and checked online. The pictures have filters, but apparently, the Blackwood-Thorne engagement rings have both family crests engraved on the inside.”

With that, Liam smoothly slipped off his ring and held the inside toward me.

“See? Our ring is perfectly plain, no crests or anything. It’s probably just a coincidence in style, after all, a ring this good-looking is bound to be popular.”

I stared at the ring’s clean inner surface, my tense nerves relaxing considerably, a small smile involuntarily appearing on my face.

Seeing this, Liam leaned in closer, his eyes sparkling.

“Lily, you didn’t actually think I was some Blackwood heir, did you? If I had that kind of status, I’d be taking you out living the high life, not stuck in this cramped apartment!”

“Who knows? Maybe the Blackwoods copied *our* ring style, after all, Lily’s taste is top-notch!”

I couldn’t help but laugh, rolling my eyes at him, feigning annoyance.

“Hmph, always with the jokes, aren’t you? I was just thinking out loud.”

Liam immediately straightened up, raising his hand in a swearing gesture.

“Cross my heart, Lily, if I’m hiding anything from you, may I be stuck doing the toughest construction work for the rest of my life!”

Then he picked up his fork again, put a piece of food on my plate, and grinned.

“Eat up, don’t just think about all that nonsense. You’ve got a real-life hunk right here, isn’t that enough to look at?”

He made me chuckle, and I lightly patted his shoulder.

“You and your big mouth!”

Liam chewed a mouthful of food, mumbling,

“Lily, no more overthinking, okay? If you keep doubting me, I’m going to get mad!”

“Alright, alright, just eat!”

After dinner, Liam quickly cleared the dishes.

I turned and walked into the bathroom, and soon, the sound of running water filled the air.

When I emerged, wrapped in a cloud of steam, I saw that Liam had already tidied up the apartment.

Then, Liam went into the bathroom to shower.

With a soft creak, Liam pushed open the bathroom door.

I was sitting on the edge of the bed, holding a hairdryer. Seeing him emerge, I smiled and patted the empty spot beside me.

“Liam, come here, let me dry your hair.”

Liam’s eyes immediately lit up, and he obediently sat on the bed.

My fingers ran through his damp hair as the warm air from the hairdryer gently ruffled it.

Liam closed his eyes, a look of pure contentment on his face. After a moment, he murmured,

“If only we could be this happy forever.”

I hadn’t heard him clearly, so I stopped my hands and tilted my head, asking,

“Liam, what did you say?”

Liam snapped back to attention, his cheeks slightly flushed.

“Nothing. Lily, let’s go to bed early.”

“Okay.”

I softly agreed, my gaze lingering on his face for a moment before I slowly nodded.