3
Dylan wouldn’t stop talking after that.
Once he started exposing Ashton’s old crush, it was over.
He kept piling story after story onto the table like he was trying to host a live confession special.
Sienna’s eyes turned red from being so moved.
She looked at Ashton and said shakily, “I knew you always sent me gifts when I was overseas. And every holiday, you’d text me. But I didn’t know… I didn’t know you liked me for that long.”
My fingers tightened around my cup.
I asked quietly, “The gifts he sent you… were they expensive?”
Sienna nodded without hesitation.
“Mostly luxury items. The newest collections from designer brands. And handmade art pieces too. Some of them looked insanely expensive.”
Then she lifted her wrist and showed me a bracelet.
Hearts cut from pink stones. Delicate. Sparkling.
“Look. This was my birthday gift from him last month.”
“It’s gorgeous,” I said.
And it really was.
I’d seen that bracelet before.
In a fashion magazine on Ashton’s coffee table.
I remembered flipping through it while waiting for him one afternoon.
Even then I’d noticed the price and thought, wow.
Whoever gets this must be very loved.
I looked at Ashton.
“You’re really generous with your girlfriend.”
There was a second half to that sentence that never made it out.
Who would’ve guessed a guy who took out student loans and built everything from scratch would spend money like that?
Ashton avoided my gaze and looked at Sienna instead.
“Because it’s you,” he said softly. “You deserve it.”
I laughed under my breath.
So that was it.
I didn’t deserve it.
We’d known each other for seven years.
Dated for one.
And in all that time, Ashton had never bought me anything remotely like that.
Not that I’d ever demanded luxury gifts.
But still.
The contrast was humiliating.
Especially because every birthday of his, I’d gone all out.
The year he started working, I spent forever choosing a Cartier watch for him.
He tried to refuse it at first.
“Chloe, you’re still in school. You don’t need to spend this much on me.”
But I was so deep in love then.
So stupidly happy that my secret crush had finally become real.
I fastened the watch onto his wrist myself and told him, “You’re handsome, capable, and amazing at what you do. But the working world is shallow. A nice watch makes people respect you more. If you’re happy, I’m happy.”
At that, his eyes had gone suspiciously shiny.
He kissed my forehead and held me for a long time.
Ashton had lost both parents young. His grandmother raised him. After he came here for college, she passed away too.
My mom felt bad for him. She always told Dylan to look out for him.
And me?
I did more than look out for him.
I cared for him.
I worried about him.
I remembered his deadlines, brought him food, folded his laundry when he was too busy, sat beside him during those long nights when he was starting his company and barely sleeping.
By then he’d already become successful.
Graduating was one thing. Building something real by twenty-five was another.
Ashton had changed a lot.
He dressed better. Carried himself with quiet confidence. Even standing still, he looked like someone meant to win.
He was harsh with himself.
But with me, he’d always seemed generous.
At least that’s what I thought.
Now I was sitting there realizing those pieces of kindness might not have even been one-tenth of what he’d really been capable of giving.
My gaze fell to the watch on his wrist.
The one I bought him.
My chest hurt so badly I could barely breathe.
Did Ashton ever really like the things he said he liked about me?
My sincerity.
My sweetness.
My loyalty.
Or did he just like how much I gave him?
By the time dinner ended, I felt scraped hollow.
Ashton went to pay.
My phone rang.
It was Ryan Carter, a guy from my department who was helping organize the school showcase.
He asked about some planning details, and before hanging up, he said, “I’m near the mall anyway. Need a ride back to campus?”
I almost said no.
Then I looked up and saw Ashton walking back with Sienna, their hands clasped together.
Something inside me snapped into place.
“Sure,” I said. “I’ll send you the location.”
Ryan answered right away. “Stay there. I’m on my way.”
Dylan leaned over.
“Who’s coming?”
Then he looked at Ashton and started laughing.
“No way. Don’t tell me both you and Chloe are going official tonight.”
Ashton scoffed immediately, all confidence and certainty.
“How is that possible? Your sister’s too well-behaved for something like that.”
I cut in before he could finish.
“Yes, Dylan.”
The words came out clean and calm.
Dylan’s face changed.
“What?”
I folded my hands and smiled sweetly.
“My boyfriend’s picking me up.”
Both Dylan and Ashton went completely still.
The air turned sharp.
They insisted on waiting with me outside.
Dylan kept asking questions.
Ashton stayed silent again, though I caught the mocking edge in his eyes.
A second later, my phone buzzed.
It was a message from him.
“You don’t need to pretend you have a boyfriend just to get back at me. Chloe, this is childish.”
I locked the screen and slipped my phone into my bag.
Then headlights flashed near the curb.
Ryan got out of the car and walked toward us.
The evening breeze lifted his hair. He looked good in that careless, college-golden-boy kind of way.
Tall. Relaxed. Too charming for his own good.
My heart skipped for a completely different reason this time.
Not because I liked him.
Because if he messed this up, I’d die of embarrassment.
So I hurried over and looped my arm through his before he could say anything weird.
“Dylan. Ashton. This is my boyfriend.”
Ryan’s arm stiffened for half a second.
Then he recovered beautifully.
He smiled at them both.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Ryan Carter.”
He tilted his head toward me, then grinned.
“Chloe’s boyfriend.”
Dylan looked like he’d just swallowed glass.
Then he grabbed the back of my jacket and yanked me away from Ryan like I was an escaping toddler.
“Chloe Barrett, are you out of your mind?”
“You like him?”
“Do you not remember what kind of menace he was as a kid?”
“Our families have known each other forever! This idiot once set off fireworks and blew a hole in your skirt!”
Ryan raised one eyebrow.
“Dylan, man. In front of outsiders? Save me a little dignity.”
Dylan froze.
Because of course he knew who the outsider really was.
Not Ryan.
Ashton.
Sienna stepped in with a gentle smile.
“Chloe, your boyfriend is really handsome.”
Then she glanced at the car and lowered her voice a little.
“And successful too, right?”
I smiled faintly.
Before I could answer, Ashton let out a cold laugh.
“Sure. He’s handsome. Let’s just hope he’s actually reliable.”
That did it.
My mood soured instantly.
He had some nerve.
He was the one cheating, lying, juggling two girls—and somehow he still had the right to judge another man?
I looked straight at him.
“You don’t need to worry about that.”
“Some people look reliable on the outside and turn out rotten underneath.”
His eyes flashed.
“Chloe—”
Sienna quickly tugged on his sleeve.
“I know you care about her,” she said, trying to smooth things over. “But this is Chloe’s relationship. If she likes him, that matters most.”
Ryan clapped once.
“Finally. Somebody reasonable.”
Then he took my hand and gave it a light swing.
“It’s cold, and Chloe gets chilled easily. I’m taking her back now.”
He smiled at Dylan, glanced at Ashton with deliberate laziness, and led me away without a second look.
Behind us, Dylan’s voice drifted through the parking lot.
“He’s already holding her hand right in front of me?! That punk—”
For the first time all night, I almost smiled for real.