Aurora had been wondering which woman was lucky enough to meet such a romantic man, only to discover that all of this was prepared by Julian just for her.
“I don’t want to. It’s getting late. I should go…” Before she could finish, the door behind her suddenly shut, and she heard the sound of the key locking.
“Master, I’m going to bed now. I’m a heavy sleeper. I won’t hear anything loud,” the voice of the butler came from outside.
Aurora thought back to the kind old man she had previously seen as benevolent, only to realize he had set a trap for her to walk right into!
“What do you mean by this?” Aurora grabbed Julian by the collar.
The man smiling in front of her had clearly calculated everything from the start, predicting she would return the ring he gave her.
Thus, he waited here like a hunter for his rabbit, creating this perfect scenario.
She had to admit the man was incredibly romantic. Before she knew it was for her, she even felt a bit envious. Now that she knew she was the intended, she felt a bit embarrassed.
“Aurora, don’t be mad. It was the butler who locked the door. What does it have to do with me? After all, we will be neighbors from now on. Why treat your cute neighbor like this?”
Was this whimsically charming man really the cold man she once knew? They say women are fickle, but men apparently change even more.
Aurora was somewhat unaccustomed to this type of man.
“Since we can’t leave anyway, and the key is with the butler who won’t be up until 6:30 A. M., why don’t we find something to do?” Julian suggested.
Aurora glared at him, recalling how on several occasions, they had nearly…
“What do you want to do?” she asked cautiously as Julian snatched a box from her hands and sat down on the floor.
Beneath the roses was a layer of soft carpet, but the thick layer of roses made it hard to notice.
Aurora blushed, realizing he just wanted to open the box, and she had been overthinking. The man slowly opened the box layer by layer.
Then, using a scraper, he began to scrape off the coating bit by bit. Aurora saw an eye revealed, then a nose.
Gradually, all the facial features appeared until Julian had scraped off all the layers, revealing a portrait of her on the box.
Though she had guessed it was a woman’s portrait, the final revelation that it was her own face was thrilling.
Julian knelt on one knee when he said, “Aurora, I drew this portrait with my own hands, waiting for this day for many years. I know you’ve been deeply hurt in the past, and it was my fault for not protecting you, but in the future, I will make sure no one can harm you.”
“Your heart is full of defenses, and you don’t dare trust anyone, often suppressing your feelings for me.”
“So today, this ring is not an engagement ring. I just want you to accept me and to be with me. Will you be my girlfriend?”
What Julian really wanted to say was to make her Mrs. Barnet, but considering her sensitive heart, he couldn’t ask for too much at once.
Aurora looked at the man kneeling before her. Who else would make a confession feel like a proposal?
He was not in a hurry, noticing the hesitation in Aurora’s eyes. “Aurora, do you really have no feelings for me?”
“You get up first. I need some time to process it.” Aurora’s mind was in turmoil and she didn’t know how to respond.
Considering it was good that she hadn’t refused, Julian strategically stood up slowly, “Whether you agree or not, put on the ring first.”
Without any further discussion, he slipped the ring onto Aurora’s finger, which fit perfectly.
“How did you know my ring size?”
“If I’ve held your hand so many times and still don’t know your size, then I must be a fool,” Julian said, gently teasing her nose.
“It’s fine if you need time to think it over, but you have to give me a time frame. I can’t wait forever, hoping to have a bunch of cute kids like you.”
Aurora pondered briefly before she said, “I’ll give you an answer a week from now.”
“Alright then, I will wait another seven days,” Julian said tenderly.
Hayden and Susan’s engagement ceremony would be held in a week. Aurora intended to completely end her past on that day.
“Then I’ll give this ring back to you for now,” Aurora said, starting to remove it.
“No need. If you agree by then, this ring will be our token of engagement. If not, consider it a neighborly gift.
If you still don’t like it, you can just throw it away. I never take back what I’ve given out,” Julian insisted, holding her hand.
Throw it away? That was something Aurora simply couldn’t do, so she let the ring stay on her finger.
“Can I go back to sleep now?” Aurora asked.
“As long as you can open the door,” Julian replied, his obstinacy making him a tough opponent.
She frowned, saying, “You know it’s been locked from the outside. Just call the butler to open it.”
“The butler is old, and if woken from sleep, might not be able to sleep all night. Can you bear to wake him up?” Julian asked, raising an eyebrow.
Clearly, it was the butler who had intentionally locked her in, yet now it seemed as though she was at fault.
Aurora’s mouth twitched. “You can’t possibly expect me to sleep on the floor tonight, can you?”
“Why not? The carpet is newly replaced and even has roses on it. Don’t you think that’s romantic?” Julian questioned.
Even though Aurora felt it was romantic, she wouldn’t admit it outright, turning her head away when she stated, “It’s not romantic at all.”
Julian seemed to have anticipated her response. “Hold on a moment.”
He then pulled out two pillows and a thin blanket from a nearby cabinet. “Lie down.”
Aurora lay down hesitantly with the pillows, and he covered her with the blanket, the fragrance of roses wafting around her.
Sleeping on rose petals was new for her, a completely novel experience.
Julian stood up, and she instinctively grabbed his leg, asking, “Where are you going?”
“You’ll see in a moment.” Julian simply walked to the wall and turned off the light. As darkness enveloped them, Aurora’s eyes widened.
Above, where the ceiling had been, there now appeared a vast expanse of stars, indistinguishable from the real thing.
She thought the surprise had ended there, but there was more to come.
As she lay in astonishment, Julian also lay down beside her, his voice gentle. “Is it romantic now?”