The Billion Dollar Girl

(Chapter 38)

Ͼ Ella Castillo Ͽ

When I opened my eyes after the long, unexpectedly blissful night sleep, I noticed three things. Firstly, the pounding headache. You know, one of those headaches that made you want to curl up into a ball and cry. It took me a while to stop noticing that, and notice the other things around me.

Namely, the bare muscular arm that was draped over my chest. I stared down at it, my brain too slow and sluggish to realize whose it was. But before I could even attempt to work out whose arm it was, I noticed something else.

The ceiling. An ornate but understated wooden ceiling, carved with delicate little flowers that wound around the corners of the room. It was beautiful, the kind of thing you would find at in an upper-class house. And it was something I’d never seen before.

Which raised the question…Where was I?

The owner of the arm mumbled something and I turned to him. It took me a few more seconds to realize who I had in fact slept next to. Ash. And he was naked. Giving a strangled shriek, I leapt away from him, clutching the silk sheets to my body. Looking around, I tried to pinpoint exactly where I was, but it was impossible. Had Ash kidnapped me?

“Why are you screaming?” Ash mumbled sleepily, turning away.

“Because…we’re in…bed…” I stuttered, unable to accurately express my anger. “Us…naked…”

“You’re not naked,” Ash pointed out as he sat up, revealing more of his sexy chest. I couldn’t help but stare at the wall of hard muscle Ash had just managed to expose by “accidently” letting the covers fall. It took me a while to take in what Ash had said. I looked down and realized that he was right. I wasn’t naked, but in what I roughly remembered as having worn yesterday. “And technically, I’m not naked either. I’m wearing boxers.”

I looked down at the part of Ash I’d been avoiding and saw cute little red boxers with chickens all over them. Then I blushed, realizing that I’d accidently been tricked into staring at Ash’s crotch.

“You’re right,” I mumbled, quickly looking up at the ceiling again. “You are wearing boxers.”

“You sound a little disappointed,” Ash said and though I wasn’t looking at him, I could tell he was smirking. “Did you want to see more…?”

“No!” I protested, pulling the sheets over my face so I couldn’t see anything, should he decide to flash me. I winced when my loud shout made my head throb.

I could hear Ash laughing. The weight shifted on the bed and I could tell that he was right next to me. I clutched the soft sheets to my face even firmer, not wanting my innocence to be snatched away in such a manner.

“I was just kidding,” he said, his voice muffled as he pressed his face into the pillow. He tugged gently at the covers. “Ella, let go.”

Slowly, I let go of my grip on the sheets and felt them slide out of my grasp. I glared at Ash’s smug face, bemused by my innocence.

“Not funny,” I snapped.

“Don’t worry, Ella,” Ash said, quickly leaning in to press his lips against my forehead. He put his lips to my ear. “We’ve got plenty of time for that in the future…” I felt myself blush again at his lewd words. Even in the warmth of the cozy bed, I could feel Ash’s body heat against mine. A shiver ran down my spine.

The way Ash smelt in the morning was even better than the delicious smell of his cologne. Ash smelt of the sun. That was the only way I could explain it. He smelt like the sun and the grass and the flowers and the trees. Ash smelt like everything I could ever want, or had ever wanted. He smelt amazing. I found myself burying my head in his neck and inhaling deeply.