Closing her eyes, Shirley took a few deep breaths. Thest thing she wanted was to be affected by this


    man. She was the first to go. downstairs, and the servants had prepared five different dishes and a


    soup tonight. Even though it was his birthday, there didn’t seem to be anything different from usual.


    Is Tonying back? she wondered. However, it was alreadyte, and he wasn’t back yet, so she


    reckoned that he wasn’ting back tonight. Am I the only one spending his birthday with him? Having


    never spent a man’s birthday alone with him, she started to feel nervous, and the situation was a little


    ambiguous and awkward for her.


    Just then, sounds of footsteps came from the staircase. Upon lifting her head, she saw a freshly


    showered man who had changed into a ck knitted sweater paired with a pair of casual gray trousers.


    Beaming with an aristocratic-likeid-back aura, he seemed a few years younger, and even his hair


    was falling on his forehead casually.


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    “Sir, the food is ready, a servant informed, stepping forward.


    “Thank you. You’re done for the day,” he said.


    Tacitly, she nodded. “Okay.”


    The moment she was gone, the room fell into pin-drop silence. “Are you sure you’re not going to invite


    your family over to celebrate your birthday with you?” Shirley asked, curious about the situation. He


    raised his head and smiled. “To me, it’s enough just to have you.”


    “I’m only your bodyguard,” Shirley answered helplessly.


    “Tonight, don’t be my bodyguard. Be my friend instead,” he said and pulled out a chair for her. “Take a


    seat.”


    She was rooted to the spot, but the man cast her a determined stare, demanding her to go over. Only


    then did she strode toward him and plopped into the chair that he had pulled out. Then, the man sat


    next to her. “Let’s eat. Once we’re done with dinner, we’ll share the cake together,” he said.


    “Would you like to wait for Tony?” she asked.


    “He’s noting back,” he replied.


    She blinked nkly. “Did you ask him already?”


    “Yeah. His answer sounded confident because he had told his nephew not to return tonight.


    There was nothing else Shirley could say, and they began eating in silence. While eating, Zacharias


    added food to her te, and she looked at him. Returning the favor, she, too, ced more food on his


    te. A smirk tinged the edge of his lips. “Why are you so ceremonious?”


    She returned his smile. “I have to. After all, you’re Mr. Vice President.”


    “I said that we’re friends tonight. I’m Zacharias, and you’re Shirley. There’s no Vice President in this


    room,” he reiterated, raising a brow.


    Shirley nodded in agreement. “Okay, then I’ll spend your birthday with you as a friend tonight,” she said


    and pointed at the bag on the couch. “Look, I even prepared a birthday gift for you.”


    “I can’t wait to find out what it is,” he said, smiling.


    “You’ll find out for yourselfter,” she said. The element of surprise would be gone if she had revealed


    what the gift was.


    Zacharias nodded. “Okay, but no matter what you’re giving me, I’ll treasure it.” Her eyes turned into


    crescents as she smiled. “As long as you don’t mind it.”


    “I won’t. It’s a present from you, and I’m more than happy to receive it.”


    His deep eyes looked at her, and she lowered her head to avoid looking into them before saying, “You


    should have told me earlier. I’ve bought such a huge cake, and it’s going to waste.”


    “We can give it to Royter and let them have it,” he suggested.


    She nodded. “That works out because the cake is big enough.”


    After dinner, Shirley cleared the table and even did the dishes. In the meantime, Zacharias was


    watching the news on TV. As it was still early, he wasn’t in a rush to have the cake. However, a few


    times, his gaze drifted to the bag, and he wondered what she had prepared as a gift for him.


    Around 8.30PM, Shirley came into the room. “Would you like to blow the candle and make a wish first?”


    “Sure,” he answered with a nod. So, she brought the cake to the coffee table and took out the candles


    in the shape of the number twenty-nine. At the sight of that, Zacharias couldn’t stop himself from


    grinning. “How did you know that it’s my twenty-ninth birthday?”