Millionaire Girlfriend

Chapter 4: Chapter 4 - make you fall

"Thank you, Ashley," Clara said.

"Honestly... I don’t remember any of it, but... you’re welcome," Ashley replied.

A few moments later, the car pulled up in front of Ashley’s apartment building.

"Thank you, too. I had a really nice evening," Ashley said as she reached for the door handle.

Before she could open it, she felt herself being gently pulled back.

It was Clara.

She didn’t want Ashley to leave just yet.

Clara wrapped her in a long, warm hug.

"See you on Monday," Clara whispered, still holding her close.

Ashley didn’t feel embarrassed.

For one thing, it was dark outside.

And besides, after feeding her by hand all evening and giving her beautiful clothes as gifts, Clara had earned at least one hug.

"See you on Monday," Ashley replied as she gently slipped out of Clara’s embrace, stepped out of the car, and quietly closed the door behind her.

Clara rolled down the window.

"Good night, Ashley," she called, keeping her voice low enough not to wake the neighbors, but loud enough for Ashley to hear her clearly.

"Good night, Clara."

"And... thanks again."

Ashley smiled before walking toward the building.

Clara watched until Ashley disappeared inside the apartment complex before finally telling her chauffeur to drive.

On the way home, she couldn’t stop smiling.

She had done it.

She had finally invited out the girl she had been in love with for months.

The same girl who had barely seemed to notice she existed.

Clara was far from being a shy person.

The problem was that Ashley was always busy.

Always rushing somewhere.

After class, she practically sprinted from campus to one of her jobs.

She was almost always late for lectures, leaving Clara with very few opportunities to talk to her.

From the very beginning, Clara had been almost certain Ashley was one hundred percent straight.

Still...

She had never once seen Ashley show any interest in a guy.

If she played her cards right...

Maybe...

Just maybe...

She still had a chance with the girl who had been haunting her dreams.

When Ashley got home, her roommates practically tackled her the moment they saw all the shopping bags she was carrying.

"You lucky girl! Come on, admit it—you found yourself a ridiculously rich guy," Chloé, one of her roommates, exclaimed.

"No. I really wish that were the case, but no," Ashley replied, knowing full well her friends would never believe the clothes had actually been a gift from a friend.

"Then who else would be rich enough to buy you luxury clothes?" Elena, another roommate, asked.

The girls were so bored that any piece of gossip was enough to brighten their evening.

But Ashley had no intention of telling them that a wealthy classmate had a crush on her...

Especially since that classmate was a girl.

"Quit interrogating her," Ginah interrupted.

"She’s allowed to keep a secret."

"Thank you! Finally, someone gets it," Ashley said with obvious relief.

"Wait... don’t tell me it’s a married man. I didn’t know you were a bad girl," Elena teased, carefully watching Ashley’s face for a reaction.

"Because if I’m right, that would explain why someone took you shopping on a Saturday night."

"No, it’s not a married man," Ashley answered before grabbing her bags and escaping to her bedroom to enjoy a little peace and quiet.

Unlike her roommates, who showed no signs of going to bed anytime soon, Ashley was exhausted.

It had been a crazy day.

A wonderful day...

But a crazy one nonetheless.

That night, she couldn’t stop thinking about Clara.

It was painfully obvious that Clara liked her.

You’d have to be either blind or stupid not to notice it.

And Ashley was neither.

Clara had even gone as far as buying her expensive clothes.

But Ashley wasn’t sure she could ever return those feelings.

She had never even had a boyfriend.

The idea of having a girlfriend felt even more unimaginable.

In fact, she had never truly been interested in anyone.

She had always been too busy...

And too poor...

To devote her time and emotions to a relationship.

Having spent her entire life alone, she had gradually come to believe that true love didn’t exist.

At least not the unconditional kind.

If it did...

Her parents wouldn’t have abandoned her.

In the end, she made a decision.

She wouldn’t reject Clara’s advances.

It might have been selfish...

But Ashley needed help.

And if letting a wealthy girl keep hoping for something more could help her build a better future, then so be it.

She would rather live with that decision than spend the rest of her life regretting the chance she had been given to change her future.

---

Monday morning.

Ashley sprinted across campus, determined not to be late again.

She slipped into the classroom just seconds after the professor walked in.

No wonder I’m always in shape, she thought. I run a marathon every day just getting between class and work.

"Ashley! Ashley! Over here!" a familiar blonde voice called.

It was Clara.

She was sitting with several other students.

She had saved Ashley a seat beside her.

Maybe my prayers are finally about to be answered, Ashley thought as she looked at the well-dressed group.

She walked over and sat down.

"Everyone, this is Ashley, my new friend," Clara said.

"Ashley, this is Julia, Greg, and Marco."

"Nice to meet you, Ashley," Clara’s friends greeted her, all wearing warm smiles.

Ashley smiled back with the biggest smile she could manage despite being completely out of breath from running across campus.

"You’re wearing the dress I gave you," Clara whispered into Ashley’s ear, noticing the elegant blue dress she had chosen.

"Yeah. Since I never really go anywhere, college is about the only place nice enough for me to wear it," Ashley whispered back.

"Now I’m worried someone else is going to ask you out because you look so beautiful," Clara whispered with a smile.

"What are you two whispering about?" Julia asked.

She was a petite brunette, barely five foot one, yet unbelievably adorable.

"It’s not exactly hard to figure out," Greg, a blond guy standing around five foot nine, said with a grin.

"Those two are obviously flirting."

"It’s none of your business. It’s our little secret," Clara replied before wrapping an arm around Ashley.

Ashley let herself be pulled into the affectionate gesture.

She didn’t want Clara’s friends to realize that one of the reasons she wanted to become close to them was because of the opportunities their friendship might bring.

Once again, Ashley hadn’t understood a single thing the professor had explained.

But at least...

She had made new friends.

And they were much cooler than she had expected.

By the end of class, Ashley had almost forgotten she needed to go to work.

Fortunately, Viviane’s café wasn’t nearly as far away as her other job.

"Sorry to leave you guys, but I have to go. My boss is going to kill me if I’m late again," Ashley said before turning to leave.

"Ashley, wait for me!" Clara called, almost jogging to catch up.

"I’m coming with you."

"I’ll drive you there."

"You don’t have to. My shift doesn’t start for another fifteen minutes, and I can get there in only nine minutes on foot," Ashley explained.

"You don’t understand, Ashley."

"I want to go with you," Clara replied before taking Ashley’s hand and leading her toward the university parking lot.

"Come on. Get in."

She opened the door of a luxurious black car.

Ashley immediately recognized it as the same one that had driven her home two days earlier.

Only this time, there was no chauffeur.

"Let’s go!" Clara said as she climbed behind the wheel and drove away from campus.

"Can I ask you something?" Ashley said.

"Of course, Ashley. Go ahead."

"Why do you keep saying my name so much today?"

Ashley had noticed that Clara slipped her name into almost every sentence whenever she had the chance.

"Actually, I read somewhere that if you say someone’s name often enough, they’ll eventually start thinking about you even when you’re not around," Clara explained without the slightest embarrassment.

She briefly glanced at Ashley before returning her attention to the road.

"I see..." Ashley said.

"You do realize I’m straight, right?"

"The chances of me thinking about you the way you want me to are very low."

She wanted to make things clear from the beginning.

After all, what was worse than losing a rich friend?

Making a rich enemy.

The line between love and hate could be very thin.

"I know."

"But the fact that you haven’t rejected me yet means I still have a small chance... right?"

Clara smiled faintly.

"Besides, I don’t want to sound mean..."

"But I feel like you need me."

Ashley wanted to deny it.

Instead, she remained silent.

Perhaps it was better that Clara understood the situation and still wanted to stay by her side.

At least now she knew exactly what she was getting herself into.

"But I promise you..."

"My feelings for you are completely sincere."

The drive lasted barely two minutes.

"Thanks for bringing me," Ashley said.

Instead of answering, Clara pulled her into another long hug.

Then she gently brushed a few loose strands of hair away from Ashley’s face and looked into her eyes.

"See you later," Clara said.

---

Ashley arrived at work earlier than usual, and Viviane looked pleasantly surprised.

"You’re already here. Great."

"Watch the shop for me while I go take a nap. Wake me up thirty minutes before you have to leave for your afternoon class."

With that, she headed upstairs to the apartment above the café.

It was now Ashley’s turn to manage the shop.

Fortunately, Mondays were usually quiet.

Very few customers stopped by for cakes or pastries around lunchtime.

Then Ashley remembered something.

She hadn’t eaten lunch.

Her eyes landed on a small box containing several slices of pie.

A note with her name written on it was attached to the box.

It was from Viviane.

Ashley smiled.

After paying her rent, there was almost nothing left in her wallet.

"Hey, Ashley. Can you do me a favor?" Jacob, Viviane’s son, asked as he walked into the café.

It was the same boy who had once paid to look at Ashley’s breasts.

"No."

"If it’s the same favor as last time, your mom would kill me if she ever found out what I did," Ashley replied immediately while glancing toward the staircase to make sure Viviane was still upstairs.

"What!? It’s not that," Jacob protested, stepping closer.

"Could you buy me some alcohol? I’m throwing a party with my friends."

"No! Dude, I’m only twenty. I’m not allowed to buy alcohol either."

"Besides, aren’t you supposed to be in school right now?" Ashley asked.

Jacob was a good kid.

He had simply reached that age where he wanted to experiment with everything.

His mother, who had always known him as a calm and obedient child, was completely overwhelmed by the change in his personality.

"Relax. We’re on lunch break," Jacob explained.

"Also... don’t you have any friends at college who could buy it for us?"

"Go back to school before I call your mother," Ashley warned.

"Okay, okay," Jacob said before leaving.

For now.

But Ashley knew she probably hadn’t heard the last of his ridiculous requests.

The only thing Ashley hated more than having too many customers...

Was having none at all.

Standing behind the counter, she yawned and stared into space, painfully bored.

She almost forgot to wake Viviane, even though it was nearly time for her afternoon class.

When Ashley stepped outside the café, she noticed a black car parked nearby.

It looked just like Clara’s.

As she walked closer, she realized it wasn’t a similar car at all.

It was Clara’s car.

Knock. Knock. Knock.

Ashley tapped on the passenger-side window.

"Have you been waiting here for me?" she asked.

"Yes. I’ve been sitting here for almost two hours just for you," Clara replied with a smile, watching Ashley’s reaction.

When she noticed Ashley wasn’t amused, she quickly laughed.

"No, I’m kidding."

"I just got here."

"You know you don’t have to drive me to work and pick me up afterward, right?"

"It makes me feel a little uncomfortable when you do things like this," Ashley admitted.

They had only just met.

It felt a little strange that Clara kept following her everywhere, especially since Ashley knew exactly how Clara felt about her.

"Sorry," Clara said.

"But it’s the only way I’ve found to spend a little time alone with you."

"Besides, I usually go for a drive during my breaks anyway."

"This time, I just happened to drive past your workplace and thought I’d pick you up."

"Come on, get in."

"We’re going to be late if you keep standing there," Clara said as she opened the passenger door for her.

Ashley wanted to scold her.

But riding in a comfortable car instead of walking wasn’t exactly a punishment.

If Clara was guilty of anything...

It was treating Ashley far too well.

"Thanks," Ashley replied, still feeling a little awkward, even though she was genuinely grateful.

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