Chapter 2550
Night of Destiny
Closing her eyes, Shirley took a few deep breaths. The last 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 didnât seem to be anything different from usual.
Is Tony coming back? she wondered. However, it was already late, and he wasnât back yet, so she
reckoned that he wasnât coming back tonight. Am I the only one spending his birthday with him? Having
never spent a manâs 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 black knitted sweater paired with a pair of casual gray trousers.
Beaming with an aristocratic-like laid-back aura, he seemed a few years younger, and even his hair
was falling on his forehead casually.
âSir, the food is ready, a servant informed, stepping forward.
âThank you. Youâre done for the day,â he said.
Tacitly, she nodded. âOkay.â The moment she was gone, the room fell into pin-drop silence. âAre you
sure youâre not going to invite your family over to celebrate your birthday with you?â Shirley asked,
curious about the situation. He raised his head and smiled. âTo me, itâs enough just to have you.â âIâm
only your bodyguard,â Shirley answered helplessly.
âTonight, donât be my bodyguard. Be my friend instead,â he said and pulled out a chair for her. âTake a
seat.â 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. âLetâs eat.
Once weâre done with dinner, weâll share the cake together,â he said.
âWould you like to wait for Tony?â she asked.
âHeâs not coming back,â he replied.
She blinked blankly. âDid you ask him already?â âYeah. 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 plate, and she looked at him.
Returning the favor, she, too, placed more food on his plate. A smirk tinged the edge of his lips. âWhy
are you so ceremonious?â She returned his smile. âI have to. After all, youâre Mr. Vice President.â âI
said that weâre friends tonight. Iâm Zacharias, and youâre Shirley. Thereâs no Vice President in this
room,â he reiterated, raising a brow.
Shirley nodded in agreement. âOkay, then Iâll spend your birthday with you as a friend tonight,â she said
and pointed at the bag on the couch. âLook, I even prepared a birthday gift for you.â âI canât wait to find
out what it is,â he said, smiling.
âYouâll find out for yourself later,â she said. The element of surprise would be gone if she had revealed
what the gift was.
Zacharias nodded. âOkay, but no matter what youâre giving me, Iâll treasure it.â Her eyes turned into
crescents as she smiled. âAs long as you donât mind it.â âI wonât. Itâs a present from you, and Iâm more
than happy to receive it.â His deep eyes looked at her, and she lowered her head to avoid looking into
them before saying, âYou should have told me earlier. Iâve bought such a huge cake, and itâs going to
waste.â âWe can give it to Roy later and let them have it,â he suggested.
She nodded. âThat works out because the cake is big enough.â 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 wasnât 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. âWould you like to blow the candle and make a wish first?â
âSure,â 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 couldnât stop himself from
grinning. âHow did you know that itâs my twenty-ninth birthday?â