What He Couldn't Buy

4

"I mean, it's not like he was my boyfriend or anything. We just kissed..."

Rosie Bell gave Amelia a sympathetic smile, "But it still hurts, doesn't it dear?"

"I just- I feel stupid! For all I know he's a major playboy and I'm just one of the other random girls he kisses to distract himself from charity events!"

He's rich too, I knew he was rich but not that rich. I bet he wants nothing to do with me especially since he knows that I'm "the help" or something, Amelia thought as she stared out the window.

I need to clear my head.

Amelia got up from the couch, "I'm going for a bike ride, do you need anything from the store?"

"I'd love to have blueberry pancakes tomorrow..." said Mrs. Bell as she reached for her wallet.

"No no, I've got it!" Amelia exclaimed as she quickly slipped on her flip flops and walked outside.

***

Amelia was trying to find the best container of blueberries when she was suddenly interrupted.

"You know they're cheaper and better from the farmer's market," Chris muttered from behind her.

She turned around, saw who it was, and continued inspecting the berries. Amelia wasn't necessarily mad at Chris, but she wanted to avoid conversation. After their night at the charity auction, Amelia definitely had feelings for Chris. As a result, she felt like it was best to just not think about him or talk to him so she could get over it easily.

"Hey! I'm sorry about what happened at the club, I didn't know it was you who was behind me" he said apologetically.

Amelia sighed and walked towards the checkout counter.

"Amelia!" Chris pleaded, as he followed her through checkout. He continued to plead with her as she walked out of the market.

"Amelia can you at least tell me why you won't talk to me."

She rolled her eyes, "Look. I hate to sound like someone from a cheesy romantic comedy, but we come from different worlds. The other night was great, and you seem like a great person but you belong with someone like Cece- and it sounds like you two are getting married anyway..." Amelia crossed her arms and continued, "and how do I know she's not the only girl? We just met! For all I know, you could be kissing girls at every charity event- and if that's what you like, then go for it! But I am not that type of girl. I wasn't even looking for some summer fling..."

Amelia stared at Chris, "Well? Are you going to say anything?"

He smirked, "Are you done?"

Amelia nodded.

"Good. Well look. I am not, nor have I ever been in a relationship with Cece. Our families are close and our parents have been saying stuff like that for years, but I can promise you that I am not engaged," he said with a laugh.

"But-"

"And," he cut her off "I am not going to lie and say that I've been a monk my whole life, I've been with other girls but I'm no Hugh Hefner." Then, he grabbed her hand and held her face close to his. "Lastly, the amount of money you do or do not have has nothing to do with how I see you as a person. I've been with tons of rich girls, it's not like I benefit from the money that their parents have given them. We've only spent one night together, but I would like to change that, Amelia Thatcher." Amelia smiled, looked up into his eyes, and kissed him.

***

Amelia and Chris sat on the sunny beach, eating the blueberries that Amelia had purchased for Rosie. They were feeding each other, revealing a new fact about themselves each time they ate a blueberry.

"Any siblings?" Amelia asked.

Chris nodded, "My sister Jacqueline- we call her Jackie- she just graduated from USC"

"She's not here for the summer?"

"She wants to work in fashion, as a writer or editor one day so she's interning at Vogue"

"Wow..." she said as she fed Chris a blueberry.

"So what are your parents like?"

Amelia looked upset. "Well, I never met my dad... and my mom-"

"You don't have to answer if you don't want to talk about it" Chris said gently.

"No its okay, I want to talk about it. She and I have been close for my whole life."

Amelia's head was in Chris' lap, she stared out at the ocean as she spoke so that Chris wouldn't see how sad she really was.

"When she was younger she traveled all over the country, in a ballet company. She was, and still is really really talented. Apparently my father was a dancer too. So when I was born, she had to cut her career short. She made ends meet by teaching dance classes at a local studio which she eventually bought. Now, her studio is really successful and she still teaches dance"

"And that's why you danced?"

"Yeah" Amelia was trying to fight back tears, "I basically lived at the studio too, everyone thought I was going to be a dancer just like my mom- so they were surprised when I was offered a spot at Julliard and turned it down..."

"Julliard? Amelia that's amazing!"

"Yeah, they only accept like 24 people into their dance program every year. I just- as much as I love dance, I want to make a bigger impact on the world. So I chose to go to NYU and study International Relations instead. But my mom was devastated and disappointed when I made this decision. Those emotions soon turned to anger and she told me that she wouldn't help with any of my tuition or other expenses."

"And that's why you moved out here, why you work at the club"

"Yup."

Chris gave her a blueberry, "Did you try getting a job teaching dance out here for the summer or anything? It probably pays better and you would enjoy it"

"My move out here was so last minute, those types of jobs were already taken"

Chris felt bad for bringing the mood down with his probing questions. He quickly changed the subject, "So! It's Wednesday, were going to the ballet on Friday. But I would like to see you tomorrow" he said with a smile.

Amelia sat up and kissed Chris' cheek, "well, these blueberries were supposed to be for breakfast tomorrow. I'll have to double check with Mrs. Bell but maybe you can come over in the morning? We can make a giant breakfast that will leave us feeling sick all day!"

Chris laughed as he put his arm around her, "that sounds like a plan."