Page 90 of Rich Girl
She looks just as shocked as I feel. Jealousy is terrible. It is even worse when you’re jealous of someone who had a relationship with the person you love before you even met.
“I love you,” she tells me without warning. “I’ve never felt like this about anyone in my life. It scares me so much.”
My first instinct is to take her in my arms and hold her, tell her how we’ll make it work, how everything will be alright. But that would only hurt us again in the long run.
“I love you, too, babe.”
Her chest rises and falls with the sob ripping from her throat.
“But we both know this is a bad idea. Really, really bad. I don’t have what it takes to sustain the life you are accustomed to.”
She covers her face with both hands and cries. I don’t know how to comfort her without getting us both further down into this black hole of despair.
“You lied to me,” she whimpers.
I frown at hearing her words. I can’t fathom what she’s talking about. If anything, I’ve been painfully honest at all times, from the day we met in person. I never continued my relationship with her under false pretenses.
“What did I lie about?”
“You live in this small apartment at your shop.” She flails her arms about. “You made me believe this is all you have, that you can’t afford more. Alex said you have millions…”
My heart turns to stone.
“What are saying?”
“I can’t believe you have all this money,” she cries out.
I burst from my seat, ready to tear this whole fucking apartment apart. I want to destroy it and never remember she actually lived here with me, even for a short period of time.
“I can’t believeallyou care about is money,” I scream in her face.
Her tears stop in an instant, and her face looks stricken with grief. I pull back, unsure of what’s about to happen next. This is a fucked up situation for sure.
Her next words prove to me that I don’t know her as well as I think.
“That’s all I know,” she whispers. “That’s all I know…”
TWENTY-FIVE
The doorbell ringingincessantly feels like a hammer to the head. I roll over to look out the window, surprised to see it’s almost nighttime again.
I’ve been home for almost three weeks, and I’ve never hated it more. I expected to feel relief once I walked into my house. It was just as I’d left it, pristine, not a decorative pillow out of place, not a speck of dust on the furniture.
Maria was beyond excited to see me. That took me by surprise. We’d always been friendly to each other, but there was a line that we did not cross. After all, she was my employee.
However, after working for Evie for all those weeks, Maria felt like a kindred spirit. I pulled her into a hug and told her that I missed her, surprising us both.
“Miss Hayden,” she now gently knocks at my door. “Your friend Adelina is here to see you.”
I smile at her accent. She’s never been able to pronounce Adeline, giving it the Hispanic twist, and I’ve never found it more endearing than in this moment.
“I’ll be out there in the minute,” I call out to her.
Closing my eyes again, I push my face into the pillow. I don’t feel like getting out of bed. It’s comfortable and soft, and I havenothing better to do anyway. I tuck the comforter tighter around my body. It feels like I’m being cuddled. The thought makes me burst into tears in an instant.
I’ve been doing this a lot lately, just crying for no reason. And it’s not getting better with time, quite the opposite. I miss Ray something fierce. I lay awake at night, remembering every touch and every kiss. I replay in my head the way he told me that he loved me. And also the way he sent me away like I was nothing.
I am so into my own head that I don’t realize someone walked into my bedroom until they touch my shoulder. I jump and scream, ready to fight.
