Kallie

Kallie couldn’t think straight. Ash’s hot pursuit of her had her twisted up in knots. The brunch was fantastic, and she couldn't help but moan over all the food. And she was much hungrier than she originally thought. She felt herself letting her guard down. Letting Ash back in. As they lay there, eating while still tangled up in the sheets with their naked bodies, Kallie began wondering if a relationship between them could work. If something like that was plausible.

Ash wasn’t a typical rich man. He wasn’t the stereotype, like James. Despite his surroundings, she still felt comfortable with him. She didn’t feel judged by her lack of money. If anything, she sort of got the impression that he resented his money. How people saw him because of how rich he was. He wasn’t trying to flaunt it or toss it around to try and impress her. He simply offered it to her and didn’t think twice when she wasn’t accepting of it.

When she looked into his eyes, she could still see the Ash she had connected with on the island.

Was it possible he hadn’t lied about that? Was it possible Ash was still the same man even though his financial status had changed?

Kallie began to wonder if the issue was with her. Maybe she’d been too worried about his money. Maybe James and his family had soured her toward the wealthy, and her overall judgment of them did Ash a disservice. Kallie was so angry at James and his family for always judging her about her lack of money, and there she was passing judgment on a man who did have money.

That didn’t seem right to Kallie.

Just because James and his parents were asshole didn’t mean that everyone with money were assholes. And Ash was beginning to prove that to her. At no point in their interactions since the club did she ever feel like he was encroaching on her. Trying to stifle her with his wallet. They both lay in bed with full stomachs against the plush mattress they’d slept on, and that was the only thing that reminded her of his wealth. He wasn’t talking about business or his finances or on his phone talking to his “portfolio guy.”

His attention was on her.

Just her.

“Spend the day with me,” Ash said.

“You don’t have to work or something?” I asked.

“Who works on the weekends?”

“Rich people do.”

“Well, good thing I’m not one of those then,” he said with a wink.

Kallie giggled as she rolled over onto her back. Her stomach was full of smoked salmon and cream cheese bagels. The mimosas they had shared were beginning to seep into her veins. A day with Ash sounded phenomenal, and she didn’t have anything going on. She wasn’t due back at work for another couple of days. What else was she going to do with her time.

“Okay,” she said. “But I have to go home and change.”

“Not if you don’t want to,” he said.

“I took a shower, yes. But my clothes are sweaty. I’d like to not put those back on.”

“Not what I meant,” he said.

“Then what do you mean?”

“So, when my father divorced his second wife, she left behind a closet full of clothes. If they fit you right, you can help yourself.”

“She just ... left clothes?” Kallie asked as she caught his stare.

“Welcome to why I don’t like the rich. Come on. Let’s go see if something fits.”

Kallie felt his hand slide into hers and she giggled as he helped her out of bed. She clung to the sheet around her body, walking through his massive penthouse apartment. They walked across the hallway into another gigantic room, and when Ash threw open the closet door she gasped.

The entire closet was easily the size of the living room, and it was packed to the brim with women’s clothes. Beautiful fabrics. All sorts of colors and designs. Kallie was speechless as she stepped into the illuminated space. The sheet dragged behind her as she gawked at the designer shoes. Valentino heels and Oscar de la Renta boots. René Caovilla and Jimmy Choo and Gucci.

The woman left behind Gucci heels.

Her fingers glossed over the fabrics as she lost herself in the sea of clothing. Silk and lace and full-length gowns. Slim-fit pants and beautiful flowing blouses and rows of jewelry. Designer sunglasses. Hair clips studded in diamonds.

Kallie turned back around to Ash and found him grinning at her.

“How in the world could she just ... leave all this stuff?” she asked.

She watched Ash shrug as he pushed his scantily clad body off the doorframe of the entrance.

“My dad’s second wife left with millions in the divorce. Four hundred, if I remember correctly.”

“Four hundred million dollars?” Kallie asked.

“She probably bought all-new stuff,” he said.

“So why is it still here? Why didn’t your father get rid of it?”

“My guess? There are a few empty spots in the jewelry drawers. Some sunglasses that went missing. Some shoes that left dusty spots behind. My guess?”

“He wouldn’t,” Kallie said.

“He was probably regifting them to the woman who’s now his third wife,” he said with a grin.

“Oh that’s bad. She’ll kill him if she finds out.”

“Probably not. She’s as petty as they come. As long as it’s pretty and shiny, she doesn't care what its origins are.”

“What morals,” Kallie said flatly.

“Help yourself to anything. Take what you want. It’s not being used and it’s taking up space. Even if you don’t wear it today but you think you might wear it eventually, put it in a suitcase.”

“What?” she asked.

“There are several suitcase sets in the corner in the back. Pick one and take some things with you.”

“Are you serious?”

“Why not? They’re gorgeous clothes. They should be on a gorgeous woman.”

Kallie flushed at his comment before she turned her gaze back toward the clothes. Shaking her head, Kallie started toggling through the clothing. Though the endless amount of shirts and blouses and dresses and rompers. All of it was expensive. All of it designer. All of it way out of her league price-wise. Kallie couldn’t dream of even partially owning some of these pieces.

And they were simply hanging in a closet.

Unused.

Unworn.

And some even still with the tags.

She chanced a glance at the prices as Ash sat down on a personal leather chair in the corner. Her eyes widened and his chuckle blanketed over her body. Ten thousand dollars for a skirt?

Kallie didn’t even feel worthy of touching something like that.

Finally, she ran over a summer dress that didn’t look too luxe for her tastes. She held it up to herself and turned toward a mirror, running her fingers along the silken fabric. The asymmetrical design of its flow intrigued Kallie, and the high-low skirt would make it comfortable for the warm summer day in the city. But it didn’t have a built-in bra and she didn’t have one with her, which meant she’d have to find a way to keep her chest in place in the dress.

One by one, she started opening the drawers. She hung her head between the hanger and the fabric of the dress as she riffled through things. She opened a drawer that housed panties and bras of all shapes and colors and fashions. Some even still had the tags on them.

Great. Fresh undergarments.

But the more Kallie perused, the more tags she found.

All of the undergarments still had the tags on.

“Amazing,” she said in a whisper.

Kallie got dressed and picked out a hair clip that wasn’t so studded with diamonds. She twisted her hair up to get it off her neck, then picked a pair of sunglasses for their day. She turned to look at Ash and held her hands out, then gave him a little twirl.

“No one could make that dress look as good as you do,” he said with a grin.

Kallie picked out a pair of comfortable shoes to walk around in while Ash put some clothes on, then the two of them headed to Central Park. And it shouldn’t have shocked her to see that it was only a few steps from the front door of his building. Kallie felt Ash thread their fingers together and she looked up at him, enjoying the way he smiled around her. It felt like the island again. Things were cozy. Simple. Familiar. They walked slowly around the park, taking in the giggling children and the random games of Frisbee going on. Kallie leaned into him. Relaxed her head against his strong arm. The deeper they got into the park, the more she felt him relax.

Yet another thing that reminded her of her island man.

Getting him farther away from the city put him more in his element. He seemed relaxed in nature. They walked among the trees as the summer wind whipped through them and she watched Ash smile. Close his eyes. Take a deep breath of the fresh air barreling around them. He looked more in his element with every step they took, and she liked that he wasn’t a fan of the city.

But soon, her stomach started rumbling.

“I heard that,” Ash said with a smile.

Then Ash’s stomach growled out and it caused Kallie to laugh.

“Sounds like you’re ready for some food too,” she said.

“Would you like to grab a bite to eat with me?”

“I think I can spare some time,” she said with a wink.

After their quiet stroll, the last place she expected to be taken was the iconic Tavern on the Green. The maître d' recognized Ash immediately and whisked them both away to the best table overlooking the park they had just walked around in. But instead of recoiling at it, Kallie found it endearing. The table was private and quaint, and the view was fantastic. They weren’t surrounded by snobbish, stuck-up individuals who would make Kallie the butt of their endless jokes.

She felt comfortable with Ash in a place like that.

And she supposed there were some perks to being with “the richest man” in the city as his friend so delicately put it last night.

“Eris,” Kallie said with a whisper.

“What?” Ash asked.

“I have to check on Eris,” she said.

“Then go. Give her a call. I’ll be right here.”

Kallie excused herself to the bathroom, digging her phone out of her purse and turning it on. Damn it. She hadn’t turned her phone back on. Eris had probably blown her up trying to figure out where she was. But instead of getting bombarded with text messages and missed calls and voice mails, there was nothing.

Was Eris okay?

“Hello?”

“Are you still asleep?” Kallie asked.

She heard shuffling around in bed before some hushed tones reverberated through the phone. Kallie’s eyebrows shot up to her forehead and a grin crossed her cheeks.

That explained a lot.

“Yes. I’m still asleep,” Eris said. “What gives?”

“I was calling to check on you. I’m surprised you didn’t do the same with me.”

“Well, you sound good. I’m alive. Now let me sleep,” Eris said.

“You went home with Jeremy, didn’t you?” she asked.

A silence fell over the phone and she could’ve sworn she heard Eris giggling.

“I’ll talk with you later, okay? Promise.”

“You better tell me everything,” Kallie said.

“Gotta go. Bye!”

Well, at least Kallie knew her best friend was okay.