As soon as the plane landed at San Francisco International Airport and the ban on using portable devices in the cabin was lifted, Yuri quickly turned on her phone. She had been worried that Jeho might have called in the meantime, but fortunately, there were no messages or texts left.

As per Hyunkyung’s advice, she intended not to tell Jeho that she had come to America.

Yuri rented a car and drove straight to the address Jeho had given her. It took less than an hour on the highway from the airport to her destination, Atherton, and she was able to find it easily with the help of navigation.

Yuri got out of the car and looked around with puzzled eyes. She knew Atherton was one of the wealthy neighborhoods in the United States, but the mansion in front looked more like a dazzling five-star hotel than a private residence.

Is this address really correct?

She had boldly driven here intending to surprise Jeho, but now that she was actually facing it, she suddenly felt nervous.

What if this isn’t the right house? Should I call now?

Yuri fiddled with her phone while staring at the enormous mansion. Just then, a man who looked like a gardener came out from around the fence. Noticing Yuri, the man tilted his head and approached.

“Excuse me, may I ask what you’re doing here?”

“If I may ask, is Jay at home right now? I came looking for him.”

“Oh, Jay. Yes. He’s in the backyard right now.”

The man smiled brightly and pointed to the back of the mansion.

“Thank you very much. I’ll go to the backyard to see him.”

At her words, the man nodded and gestured for her to go ahead.

The outdoor area, which seemed to easily exceed 1 acre, was equipped with a swimming pool and tennis court. It was more of a park than a backyard, requiring quite a walk to cross.

Just as she was about to turn around the pool house next to the swimming pool, a familiar voice was heard from somewhere.

“I love you. No matter what I always love you.”

It was definitely Jeho’s voice. A woman’s laughter followed. Yuri quietly stopped walking and recalled Jeho’s phone call she had overheard before. It was a similar situation.

But instead of misunderstanding, Yuri smiled softly and resumed walking. Now she wouldn’t doubt Jeho no matter what anyone said. She was just curious about who the sweet confession was for.

Suddenly, Jeho popped out of the pool house.

“Eek!”

Startled, Yuri reflexively screamed.

“Yuri?”

Just before they collided, Jeho quickly wrapped his arms around Yuri.

“What’s going on?”

Alarmed by the sharp scream, the woman who had been laughing came out of the pool house. Discovering Yuri and Jeho awkwardly embracing, she looked puzzled. But soon a smile spread across her face.

“Oh my, who could it be… It’s Yuri.”

The woman who looked just like Jeho was Mrs. Yoon Ji Seon, Jeho’s mother. Yuri quickly escaped from Jeho’s arms and bowed politely to the woman.

“Hello.”

“It’s been such a long time.”

Mrs. Yoon smiled warmly at Yuri.

“The last time I saw you, you were just a little miss…”

Mrs. Yoon came closer and gently patted Yuri’s shoulder.

“We used to be neighbors, you know. When you were little, you’d come out for walks holding your mother’s hand and play with Jeho in front of the house.”

“I did?”

Yuri looked at Mrs. Yoon with a face that showed she had no idea.

“Yes. But you might not remember since you were only three years old.”

This was completely news to Yuri. Jeho also furrowed his brow as if hearing it for the first time.

“Then we moved back to the family home, so we couldn’t see each other often.”

Mrs. Yoon shook her head and continued.

“When we moved, it was quite a scene. You clung to Jeho’s pants and cried so pitifully… What would a three-year-old know? But you must have sensed that you wouldn’t be able to see him anymore.”

“I did?”

Again, this was news to her. Yuri looked back and forth between Mrs. Yoon and Jeho with a bewildered face.

“Yes, you did.”

Mrs. Yoon smiled gently and linked her arm with Yuri’s. Then she naturally led Yuri into the house.

“Dear, look who’s here! Yuri has come.”

At Mrs. Yoon’s words, Chairman Kwon, who had been looking out the window in his wheelchair, turned around.

“…Yuri?”

“Hello, sir.”

“To see you again like this… I’m truly delighted.”

Perhaps due to his illness, Chairman Kwon looked thinner than before, but his warm smile that made others feel good remained unchanged.

A moment later, at Mrs. Yoon’s direction, an ‘afternoon tea set’ consisting of fragrant tea along with various desserts and sandwiches on a 3-tier tray was set up in the living room.

Jeho seemed to have already informed his parents that he was dating Yuri. Mrs. Yoon and Chairman Kwon treated Yuri like a future daughter-in-law. Yuri was at a loss with such a boisterous welcome.

Just then, an alarm announcing rehabilitation time rang, and a physical therapist and nurse entered the living room.

“Well then, you two have a nice chat.”

Mrs. Yoon pushed Chairman Kwon’s wheelchair towards the rehabilitation room set up at the back of the mansion, along with the medical staff.

Left alone, Jeho finally asked a question.

“How did this happen? Without any contact?”

Originally, she had planned to shout ‘Surprise!’ However, the moment he stared at her, she froze. In the end, Yuri repeated exactly what Hyunkyung had said.

“Well… We’re not the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl, so I figured we didn’t need to wait for the Magpie Bridge to be built.”

When Jeho narrowed his eyes at her awkward joke that was unlike her, Yuri had no choice but to reveal her true feelings.

“I came because I missed you. I came because I missed you so much I thought I’d go crazy. I’m sorry for suddenly showing up without saying anything. You must be very busy…”

Yuri’s voice had become smaller. She felt childish for having crossed the Pacific Ocean just because she missed him.

Unable to face Jeho any longer, Yuri lowered her head. Then she heard a soft sigh from above.

What’s that sigh for? Does he think I’m pathetic?

She felt a little hurt. It was because she was blinded by love…

It’s not a sin to be blinded by love!

As the indignant Yuri raised her head again, Jeho suddenly approached and stole her lips. As if to compensate for the time they had been apart, he showered her with hot and passionate kisses.

“…I’m the one who should be sorry.”

After a long while, he finally released Yuri and whispered softly.

“Ha, this won’t do.”

Jeho pressed his lips against hers again and tightly grasped Yuri’s left hand. Even as all her nerves were focused on her lips, she felt a cold sensation pushing through her fingers.

“I was going to do this when I got back to Korea, but I can’t wait any longer.”

He whispered lowly over her lips as he parted from her.

“…Jeho?”

“Actually, the ring production was delayed, so I had to postpone it. I finally got the call this morning to come and pick it up.”

Ring production?

Her gaze naturally fell to her left hand.

“Ah!”

A ring she had never seen before was sparkling on her finger. It was a platinum ring set with a large emerald-cut diamond. The design was just to her liking, as if she had chosen it herself.

“Let’s get married.”

“I…”

Yuri looked back and forth between the ring and Jeho with disbelieving eyes.

“Isn’t a proposal supposed to be where you ask if I’ll marry you while presenting the ring? Not just putting it on my finger and declaring ‘Let’s get married!’?”

“No. What if I ask and you refuse?”

Jeho shook his head firmly, as if she had no choice in the matter. Yuri silently turned her gaze to the ring on her finger.

Although they had confirmed their feelings for each other, they hadn’t yet talked about marriage. Of course, Jeho had said he would spend his life by her side to make up for his wrongs. But she hadn’t thought that would lead to marriage.

When no answer came from her, Jeho gently cupped Yuri’s cheek with one hand.

“What’s wrong? Does it seem too soon? Of course, Minwoo’s trial is still pending, but I didn’t want to postpone our marriage because of that.”

“No, that’s not it…”

The truth was, she had been silent because she was too moved. That he had thought of marriage first, something she hadn’t even considered… After all, she had only ever received strategic marriage proposals before; this was the first time she had been proposed to by someone she truly loved.

So this is what it feels like to be proposed to!

She was so touched that her heart was pounding so hard it almost hurt. As tears threatened to blur her vision, Yuri quickly shook her head. Tears shouldn’t cloud her vision at such a joyous moment.

“It’s not too soon. We could get married tomorrow if we wanted.”

Only then did Jeho relax his expression and gently kiss her.

“I just remembered…”

Jeho spoke as he continued to plant soft kisses on Yuri’s lips.

“There used to be a little girl next door who would laugh and run towards me whenever she saw me. Just as Mother said, on the day we moved, she really did grab onto my pants and cry her eyes out… To think that was you…”

“I. Don’t. Remember. At. All.”

Yuri emphasized each syllable of ‘at all’ as she pronounced it. It was true. She didn’t remember anything. Even if Jeho was seven years old, she was only three.

“Then you probably don’t remember how we got you to let go of me either.”

“Did they tempt me with candy or something?”

“No.”

As if he remembered that moment more clearly now, Jeho chuckled and cupped Yuri’s cheeks with both hands.

“We barely managed to separate you by promising that when you grew up, we’d let you marry me.”

“No way!”

“If you don’t believe me, ask my mother. Ask the congressman too.”

“…Hmm.”

Yuri pouted with a dissatisfied expression. She didn’t like the fact that others knew about her past that she herself didn’t remember. But Jeho seemed to find this side of Yuri lovable and pulled her tightly into his arms.

“Remember this. I kept my promise, even if it was late.”

“Heh.”

At those words, Yuri burst into laughter and nodded.

Yes, that’s right. ‘How could this matter, how could that matter.’

Kwon Jeho was her man when she was three, when she was twenty, and now.

And he will be her man forever.

The two returned to Korea together and immediately went to see Congressman Chae to announce their marriage plans.

“That’s wonderful, truly wonderful.”

A bright smile that hadn’t been seen for a while appeared on Congressman Chae’s face.

“Normally, we should start with a meeting between the families, but due to my father’s health issues, that might be difficult. We’d like to start with the wedding preparations first, if that’s alright?”

“Of course it’s alright. What need is there for a formal meeting when the families already know each other? I can go to America to meet your parents. Yes, let’s have the family meeting in America.”

The wedding venue was also decided to be in America rather than Korea.

It had been less than a year since the strategic marriage had fallen through, so there were concerns about holding the ceremony in Korea, and Chairman Kwon had not yet recovered enough to fly for the wedding.

Jeho, who had returned to work at Bauhaus, announced that he would be marrying Yuri at a company dinner that hadn’t been held for a long time. He expected everyone to be surprised, but surprisingly, most of them already knew about their relationship.

Thanks to the sharp-witted Manager Kim and Seonyoung, who had paved the way for the two.

“Congratulations to both of you.”

“Since you’re getting married in America, we won’t be able to attend the wedding.”

“But we sincerely congratulate you with all our hearts.”

All the employees, including Seonyoung, said with slightly disappointed expressions.

They hadn’t been interested in attending the wedding with Minwoo, which had been a strategic marriage. However, they seemed to genuinely want to attend the ceremony and congratulate Jeho and Yuri on their marriage, which had overcome all sorts of adversities.

Jeho, who had been quietly listening until then, made a surprising proposal.

“How about we do this?”