Chapter 1

On my twentieth birthday, I carried the cake I'd set aside upstairs to give to my brother, Richard Rossi.

But unexpectedly, outside the door, I heard the familiar voice of my childhood friend, Eugene Shields.

"I want to break off the engagement," he said.

I froze in my tracks.

After a moment of silence, Richard's calm, deep voice rang out. "Are you declaring war on the Rossi family?"

"No, Don Richard. Jasmine doesn't like the engagement either. It's a burden to her. I want to set her free," Eugene replied.

My breath caught.

Inside, the sound of porcelain shattering echoed, and then Richard erupted in fury. "That's because the doctors misdiagnosed her before, saying she wouldn't live past eighteen. She didn't want to drag you down.

"If you dare to let Jasmine down, I swear I'll make your family pay a bloody price."

I instinctively moved to stop Richard.

Richard had fought so hard to keep the Rossi family together. I couldn't let it be thrown into turmoil again because of me.

I pressed the doorknob.

At the same time, Eugene's mocking voice rang out clearly. "What a hypocrite. Acting like some good brother. You're scared I'll snatch Wendy, your precious foster sister, away from you, aren't you?"

The door swung open, and the three of us stood there, facing each other in silence.

Finally, Richard broke the silence. "Jasmine, when did you get here?"

I stepped forward and set the porcelain plate with the cake down on the cold marble tabletop. A soft click sounded in the room.

Both men froze when they saw the cake.

Eugene, my fiancé, quickly explained, "Something urgent happened today. The shipment bound for Arland was hijacked, so I had to deal with it personally. Anyway, I didn't mean to miss your birthday party.

"This is a birthday gift I picked out especially for you." He opened the jewelry box and presented the necklace inside to me, as if offering up a treasure.

Inside was the Heart of Philo. It was the gift I'd told him I wanted for my birthday.

Eugene used to joke that he'd rather let me slap him a couple of times for not getting the birthday gift I wanted than spend a fortune on some fancy trinket like this.

I stared at the ruby necklace, unable to move for a long time.

In the end, Eugene took my hand and pressed the necklace firmly into my palm. "There, now you can't hold it against me for missing your birthday."

The cold, hard gemstone dug into my palm, making it ache.

But that was not what I really wanted to ask.

I hesitated, about to speak, when Wendy's voice called out from the distance.

"Eugene." Wendy walked straight over to Eugene and casually set a pair of swimming goggles down on the table. "You left your goggles at my place. You are so careless."

Wendy winked at me. "Happy birthday, Jasmine. It was my first time diving, and I had so much fun that I totally lost track of time."

Richard, who had been silent for a while, suddenly spoke up, his voice tinged with barely hidden anger, "Diving?

"Eugene, you missed your fiancée's birthday, said you had urgent business, but you went diving with your fiancée's sister instead? What a model brother-in-law."

Eugene realized what was happening and instinctively tried to explain himself to me.

But when Wendy's eyes filled with tears and she reached out to take his hand, he suddenly froze.

"She's not my fiancée." He pressed his lips into a thin line. "I'm breaking off the engagement with Jasmine."

"You wouldn't dare!" Richard slammed his hand on the table, making the cake collapse a little. "If you break off the engagement, I swear I'll—"

"I agree," I said calmly.

All three of them stared at me in stunned silence.

Richard's anger lingered, suspended in the room. "Jasmine, what did you say?"

"I agree to break off the engagement," I repeated. "But your family will need to pay up for the damage this breakup will cause."

Eugene looked at me, stunned, and muttered, "Okay."

It wasn't until Eugene left the room with Wendy that Richard finally calmed down. "I don't understand."

Like he'd indulged me countless times before, Richard never really understood my stubbornness, but he always went along with it without hesitation.

"I thought you liked Eugene. So why?" he asked.

I took a deep breath. "Because of my illness."

Richard's frown deepened. "That was a misdiagnosis. You're cured now. You'll be healthy from here on out."

My hand in my pocket clenched and unclenched, crumpling that flimsy medical report until it was a mess. "I only have a year left."

I didn't want to make enemies for the Rossi family or lose friends over an engagement that was doomed to end within a year.

Richard took the crumpled paper from me and carefully smoothed it out.

Admitting I didn't have much time left was a bitter pill to swallow, especially after believing I was finally cured.

"The doctors said that because I was so well cared for as a kid, my symptoms didn't show up for three extra years. That's why it seemed like I was cured, but I really wasn't," I said. "This will be my last birthday."

I looked into Richard's eyes and managed a small smile. "Wish me a happy birthday, Richard."

Richard didn't smile. His lips were pressed into a thin line.

He reached for the intercom. "Bob, get the medical team to the estate. Bring the Princess's special equipment."

The butler, Bob, replied quickly, "Yes, sir."

I stood there quietly, watching, not stopping him.

After all, when I first found out, I kept double-checking with the doctors, unable to wrap my head around it, not to mention Richard, who'd treated me like the most precious thing in his life ever since I was a kid.