Elena instinctively leaned back.
She didn’t dare take the box. Instead, she waved her hands frantically and looked up at Richard, clearly flustered.
This was way too much!
“No! Really, you don’t have to!”
She tried to choose her words carefully, but couldn’t figure out what to say and ended up rambling.
“This is far too valuable! We just met! I mean, even if we hadn’t just met, you still shouldn’t be doing this…”
Richard lowered his eyes to her flustered expression, finding it rather adorable.
He was exceptionally good at reading people. Naturally, he could tell that when the girl had looked over the jewelry just now, there had been nothing but amazement in her eyes, not greed.
And her refusal now was genuine as well.
“Do you think,” Richard said leisurely, “that I can’t afford these things?”
Elena was rendered speechless.
The man standing before her had spent years at the top of global wealth rankings. He was a regular on the covers of financial magazines, a man who controlled a business empire worth hundreds of billions.
To him, the box of jewelry that had made her heart skip a beat might be little more than an ordinary person treating a friend to bubble tea.
But even so—
Wasn’t friendship supposed to go both ways?
What could she possibly give him in return for all this?
An instinctive answer surfaced in Elena’s mind, one that made her cheeks heat up.
She pressed her lips together.
The tiny diamond studs in her ears were cool against her skin, reminding her that she’d already accepted one favor from him.
“I don’t think that…”
Elena spoke softly.
“But…”
Richard simply looked at her, completely at ease.
Elena took a deep breath.
In the end, she obediently reached out and accepted the box from the butler.
It was heavier in her arms than she’d expected.
The soft velvet brushed against her fingertips, and she felt her heartbeat quicken.
She quickly set the box down on the dining table.
“I… don’t have anywhere to keep all of these.”
She muttered softly, the tips of her ears turning red.
“I’m living in a dorm right now. My family isn’t local, and it’s not exactly convenient.”
Elena believed she didn’t need to spell it out. Surely this man could understand.
It wasn’t that there was literally nowhere in her dorm to keep the jewelry.
There was.
But the environment wasn’t exactly secure.
Richard might not care about the value of the jewelry, but Elena certainly wasn’t going to risk having everything stolen just because he could afford it.
“How about…” Elena said quietly, “you keep them for me for now?”
Richard looked at her thoughtfully for two seconds.
“…All right.”
“Thank you.”
Elena let out a small sigh of relief.
“I feel like I’ve said thank you to you so many times already. Anyway, if there’s ever anything I can do for you, just let me know.”
Richard glanced at her again.
—There was plenty.
He thought silently.
However, the various implications that answer brought to mind were not exactly suitable for further consideration here. Otherwise, something rather unfortunate might happen.
Richard didn’t take the bait.
Instead, he raised one hand, palm up, his long fingers slightly spread as he held it out toward her.
“Your phone.”
“Huh?”
Elena froze for a second.
“My phone?”
“Your phone,” Richard repeated patiently. “Unlock it.”
This time, Elena didn’t dare ask any more questions. She obediently pulled her phone from her pocket, unlocked it with her fingerprint, and handed it to him with both hands.
Richard took the phone, its case decorated with a cute white cartoon cat, and silently swiped through a chaotic collection of colorful app icons.
…It was surprisingly hard to find.
After more than ten seconds, he finally spotted the messaging app and quickly tapped it open.
Elena stood there blankly, watching the impossibly handsome man in front of her lower his head, completely focused as he operated her phone.
His thumb stopped on the Add Contact screen.
Richard entered a string of numbers, sent a friend request, and then handed the phone back to her.
Elena’s heart nearly leaped out of her chest.
“My private number,” Richard said calmly. “If you need anything, tell me.”
As he spoke, he took out his own phone and immediately accepted the friend request.
Elena lowered her eyes to the contact list.
There was now a new black profile picture.
The username was simply X.
Almost as if under a spell, she tapped it open.
The chat window was still completely empty, except for the brief introduction automatically sent when the contact request was accepted.
But Elena understood one thing.
The distance Elena had been trying so hard to close had suddenly narrowed, all because he’d taken the initiative.
Elena lifted her head, doing her best not to let her smile show too much.
But the slight curve of her eyes and the corners of her lips that she couldn’t quite suppress betrayed the delight in her heart.
“…All right,” Elena said softly. “I know you’re very busy with work, so I won’t bother you too much.”
Richard caught the expression on her face. There was no hiding her thoughts in those bright, slightly dewy eyes.
He didn’t ask what she was so happy about, nor did he expose the little trick she thought was so clever.
He simply turned and walked toward the door.
“I’ll be heading to the airport later. Someone will take you back to the university.”
Jonathan and several members of the accompanying staff were already waiting by the entrance.
Elena watched the man’s tall figure.
“…Mr. Sterling!”
She couldn’t help calling out to him again.
Richard’s steps paused.
He turned slightly and looked back at her.
“Have a safe flight!”
Elena smiled and waved at him.
The corner of Richard’s lips lifted almost imperceptibly, the movement so subtle it was nearly impossible to notice.
He gave a slight nod, turned around, and strode away.
Two hours later.
On the tree-lined avenue outside Westbridge University, beneath the lush canopy of trees, several young people stood together chatting.
“Really? The Sterling family’s princess invited Adrian Cole to her villa?”
“Uh, she didn’t invite only him. There were other people too! Seven or eight, maybe? Or even more? And apparently Adrian brought his girlfriend…”
“Why does Elena Hayes even like him? His family isn’t anything special…”
“He’s handsome,” one of the boys snorted. “Do you think only men care about looks? Women care about appearances too, you know?”
“Adrian will dump Elena sooner or later,” another girl said with a curl of her lips. “I saw Victoria Sterling talking to Adrian in the library before. Tsk, tsk… The way those two looked…”
The group exchanged knowing glances.
Even if Elena truly possessed extraordinary beauty, how could she possibly compare with the Sterling family’s overwhelming power and influence?
Richard Sterling had only one daughter, Victoria.
If Adrian could become the Sterling family’s son-in-law, it would be the ultimate leap up the social ladder.
As for looks and figure, Victoria was nowhere near Elena, but she was still considered beautiful.
“…Someone like Elena, once Adrian gets tired of playing with her, who knows what will happen to her.”
The speaker continued, “Maybe you could try going after her then?”
“That actually wouldn’t be a bad idea—”
Before he could finish, a deep blue-black sedan glided smoothly onto the tree-lined avenue outside the university.
It eventually came to a silent stop before the magnificent gates of Westbridge University.
Westbridge University was one of the country’s most prestigious institutions, and wealthy students were hardly unusual there.
Luxury cars were a common sight outside the gates.
A Porsche or a G-Class pulling up on the street would usually earn little more than a casual glance from passersby.
But the moment this particular car came to a stop, the young people chatting outside the university gates fell completely silent.
One of the wealthiest students among them, recognizable by his limited-edition sneakers, stared at the car in disbelief.
He couldn’t even stop himself from swearing.
“Holy shit… am I seeing things?”
“What?”
His companion jumped at his reaction and followed his gaze.
“That car looks pretty low-key. Aston Martin? I’ve seen plenty of their sports cars, but not many sedans.”
“Low-key my ass! You don’t know what you’re looking at!”
The rich kid stared intently at the car’s impossibly smooth carbon-fiber body and imposing front fascia, his voice rising with excitement.
“That’s a Lagonda Taraf!”
“The production run was limited to roughly 120 cars worldwide. They’re hand-built, and this isn’t something you can simply buy because you have money. When it was released in the U.S., it was priced at around one million dollars.”
“This thing was built for an absurdly exclusive clientele. Who the hell brought a car like this to the university?”
The other young men sucked in a collective breath as they listened.
A million-dollar Aston Martin Lagonda.
Even among the wealthy students of Westbridge University, that was another level entirely.
Then, right before their eyes, the car door opened.
A chauffeur in an immaculate suit and white gloves stepped out of the driver’s seat.
He walked around to the rear of the car with practiced precision and respectfully opened the door.
Then Elena Hayes ducked slightly and stepped out.
The crowd fell completely silent.