'Marry you?' Andrew repeated the words in his head feeling mixed emotions.
He looked at Ashley with furrowed brows and confusion behind his eyes. Ashley smiled nervously back
at him and was about to open her mouth to tell him that she was only joking around. Then, after staring
at Ashley intensely for a few moments he nodded his head and said in a determined voice,"Fine. Let's
get the marriage license tomorrow."
Now it was Ashley's turn to be stunned. She gaped at him in shock. It hadn't crossed her mind for one
second that Andrew would agree to her proposal of marriage in such a short time. She expected that
he would at least give it some time and thought. After all, marriage wasn't something to be taken lightly
and it was a big commitment.
"So, what now? Do you want to back out?" Andrew asked in his magnetic voice. Ashley was still in a
daze when Andrew came close to her and whispered in her ear,"You were the first woman that I made
love to, so you should be responsible for me now."
Ashley's cheeks immediately turned crimson when she heard what Andrew had whispered to her. She
pushed him away and blurted out,"You must be kidding. You didn't act like an inexperienced virgin, that
night."
When Andrew confessed that she was his first, his ears turned red with embarrassment and his heart
raced.
But when he heard what Ashley had said, his anxiety had eased, and he felt content that he must have
performed well.
Ashley reacted like that because she felt tenser than he was.
The second she spat those words out she regretted it. Feeling abashed, she resisted the strong urge to
slap herself. 'What was I thinking by saying something like that?' she screamed in her head.
Ashley was so embarrassed that she didn't even notice Andrew watching her. He saw her sweet rosy
cheeks and how she averted her eyes from him and fidgeted awkwardly with her beautiful hair. And at
that moment, he thought to himself, that she was the most adorable girl in the world.
With lips pressed, he stared at Ashley and said in earnest,"That really was my first time."
Ashley was in no mood to discuss the topic further with him.
She shifted from side to side and smiled awkwardly at him and then, she gathered all of her strength
and bolted towards her apartment building.
Once she was inside her apartment she leaned her back against the door puffing out of breath. Her
mind was a total mess and her heart was racing, and she didn't even know how she managed to get
home.
That night, Ashley lay in her bed tossing and turning not able to sleep. Andrew's words kept swirling
around in her head and echoing in her ears, giving her no peace, at all.
The next morning when Ashley got up, she had dark bags under her eyes. And no matter how much
she tried to hide them with face powder, the dark bags were still evident.
When Ellie saw Ashley trudged out of her bedroom, she was taken aback by the sight of her. She
asked in a surprised tone,"What happened to your eyes, Ashley? Didn't you sleep well?"
Ashley blushed when she recalled the reason why she didn't sleep well. She mumbled back to her,"I
had a nightmare, but it's okay. I'll have a nap later."
Ellie didn't notice the anxious look in Ashley's eyes and accepted the reason without any doubts.
Ashley and Ellie got ready and headed off to their bakery. Once they got there Cheryl greeted them
warmly.
The two smiled back with the same enthusiasm.
Cheryl and Nina Ye were the two employees at the Memory Bakery. Cheryl was extroverted and
outgoing whereas, Nina Ye was more conservative and composed.
"Ashley, Ellie, I have great news. Ever since we posted the little girl's test results in the shop window,
more and more customers are coming to our shop.
And many of them have commented on how much they love our cakes. Whereas, hardly anyone went
to the other bakery, especially when they found out how deceitful the owner was," Cheryl beamed
happily, looking at Ashley and Ellie.
Nina Ye smiled slightly as she silently listened to Cheryl talking with great enthusiasm.
Initially, both Cheryl and Nina were annoyed that Greyson had arranged for both of them to work at the
bakery.
They used to be waitresses at Harkim where only the well-educated elite could work here. Their wages
were high and they earned good tips from the customers.
That was the reason why they were upset to have to leave Harkim. However, after settling into the
Memory Bakery, they found that they both enjoyed working here and that waitressing here wasn't bad
after all.
Besides, working for Ashley and Ellie at the Memory Bakery was a lot more relaxed with fewer rules. It
was nowhere near as stressful as working at Harkim.
Ashley smiled and felt satisfied with Cheryl's news. She had expected this sort of results.
Cheryl chatted a little longer with her bosses before she left them and continued with her work.
Once Cheryl left, Ellie gave Ashley a concerned look and advised her to go to the break room and have
some rest for she looked really tired. Ashley agreed since she felt sleepy and plodded off to the break
room.
She lay on the couch and closed her drowsy eyes. Just as she started to drift off to sleep her phone
began to vibrate.
Ashley rolled over trying to ignore it, but it just kept on vibrating. Finally, she couldn't ignore it any
longer and rolled back over and pulled it out. With heavy eyes, she looked at the screen and when she
saw that it was Andrew calling her, she quickly sat up. 'Why would he be calling me?' she wondered
wide-eyed.
After some hesitation, she finally answered,"Hello?"
"We agreed to go and get the marriage certificate today, do you remember? Did you get your identity
card and residence booklet with you? Would you like me to pick you up?" a low, magnetic voice
bombarded her with questions.
"What?" Ashley responded with a stunned expression. She had trouble following him.
'What did he say? Get a marriage certificate? Bring identity card and residence booklet? Pick me up?'
A barrage of questions flooded her.
Ashley checked the ID caller to make sure that it was Andrew on the other end of the line.
'It's him all right. Has he called the wrong person and mistaken me for someone else?' she thought.
She was just about to tell him that he had dialed the wrong number, when a flashback of their
conversation from the previous night entered her mind.
"Are you clear now?? I am chasing you."
"Will you marry me?"
"Fine. Let's get the marriage license tomorrow."
"So what now? Do you want to back out?" "You were the first girl I made love to, so you should be
responsible for me now!"
...
Andrew's enchanting voice from last night kept resounding in her ears. Ashley felt like she had just
been struck by lightening.
'Oh, my goodness!
Why would I propose to him last night?' she shrieked silently, as she scratched her head.
"I... I'm on my way home. You, you can pick me up later," Ashley faltered. She didn't know why she just
stammered.
When she realized that she had stammered a reply to Andrew she felt so foolish and embarrassed.
She wished that he hadn't heard her.
'What's wrong with me? I'm making a fool of myself.
I have never stammered before when I spoke to him. Why was that?' she wondered.
Andrew was at his company, the Lu Group, in his office sitting at the desk when he called Ashley. When
he heard Ashley stammering nervously he couldn't help but burst out laughing.
Ashley heard his loud laughter through the phone and it made her whole face turn red.
She was certain that he was laughing at her.
But the fact was that Andrew was just amused by her dopey reply.
When Ashley hung up the phone, she tried to fan her red hot cheeks. She didn't leave the break room
until the redness on her face was gone.
She found Ellie and said,"I've got something that I have to do. I need to go out for a while."
"What's up? Did something happen to you?" Ellie asked with a concerned look.
"Oh, nothing important. I'll tell you later. I have to go," Ashley replied before leaving the bakery.
'What happened? Why is she in such a hurry?' Ellie muttered to herself as she stared at Ashley's
retreating figure.
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