Since Andrew didn't mention what time he was going to pick her up tomorrow, Ashley decided that it
was best to pack her things that night.
Assuming that she would come back here often, she only chose a few items of clothing and toiletries to
pack. Once she had finished packing, she had a nice warm bath and put her pajamas on.
As soon as she stepped out of the bathroom, her phone rang.
It was none other than, Andrew, the man she married today. Even the sight of his name on her cell
phone screen made her heart do little flips.
'Why is he calling me at this hour? Does he have something important to tell me?' she wondered.
Ashley went into her room to answer the call. "Hello?"
There was a soft tone in her voice that she wasn't even aware of.
Andrew was calling her from his villa. He was sitting leisurely by the French windows with a goblet filled
with wine in his hand. On the desk beside him was an expensive bottle of 1982 Chateau Lafitte
Rothschild.
He swirled the wine in the goblet slowly. The saffron light shining from the lamp made his hand look
fairer and svelte. His fair skin was in stark contrast with the color of the blood-red wine.
Andrew's facial features were hidden in the shadow of the darkened room, however, the finely chiseled
outline of his face could be seen clearly and his deep dark mysterious eyes glistened in the dim light.
Although his handsome face was cold and hard, many girls seemed to be fascinated by it.
His face softened when he heard Ashley's voice on the line.
"Are you ready to move in with me?" he asked in his low husky voice.
Ashley felt weak at the knees and her heart melted when she heard his enchanting voice murmuring
seductively in her ear.
Ashley had no intention of letting Andrew detect that she felt dizzy just by the sound of his insanely
sexy voice.
She sat on her bed and cleared her voice while she fidgeted nervously with a teddy bear. "Ahem... Oh,
yeah," she replied casually.
"I'll come over to your house and pick you up tomorrow," Andrew said.
"Fine," Ashley responded in a quiet voice.
Although they had become husband and wife, she felt like they were just strangers. She didn't know
how or what to talk to him about.
Silently, she sat and could hear him breathing softly on the other end of the line.
After a long awkward silence, Ashley took a deep breath and said softly,"It's getting late. Go to bed.
Good night."
"I will. Good night," he replied.
When she ended the call, her cheeks were flushed pink and her whole body felt warm and tingly.
Ashley stared blankly off into nothingness and after a few moments, she shook her head trying to get
him out of her mind. To avoid ending up with dark circles under her eyes again like last time, she lay
down and closed her eyes and soon fell asleep.
Both Ashley and Ellie got up early in the morning. The two left their apartment and Ellie carried her
small suitcase and several bags filled with various herbal tonics which were beneficial for older people.
They arrived at the station and Ashley said affectionately,"If anything happens, call me any time. Don't
suffer alone. I will always be there for you." The girls hugged tightly before Ellie got into the bus.
Ashley knew Ellie very well. If she ever had any problems, she would always try to face them alone
without telling anyone. That was why she felt the need to remind her friend that she didn't have to deal
with them alone.
"Okay, I will. You should go back. I have to board the bus," Ellie said after she had hugged Ashley.
Ashley gave her a stern look and said,"I know you. Don't ever try to keep anything bottled up inside
yourself. I will always back you up no matter what is going on with you. So no secrets. Can you
promise me that?"
Ellie gave her a resigned look and heaved a sigh. "Fine, I promise you. I will never keep things from
you like I did last time, okay?" she yielded.
"That's good to hear," Ashley said smiling approvingly.
Once Ellie was on the bus and it began to leave, she waved goodbye and headed to the bakery.
Ashley didn't find the right moment to tell her about her marrying Andrew, and she also didn't know how
to tell her.
But the thought that she might divorce Andrew one day brought her much relief.
When Ashley had arrived at the bakery, several customers were inside buying their favorite pastries.
Since it was early in the morning, it wasn't very busy. But once people finished work in the afternoon,
the bakery would be swarming with customers.
"Good morning, Ashley," Cheryl greeted her with a bright, cheerful smile. She glanced behind her and
didn't see Ellie. Out of curiosity, she asked,"Where's Ellie?"
Ashley and Ellie always came to the bakery together and since Ashley was alone, Cheryl wondered if
something might have happened to her.
"Something is going on at her family home, so she won't be here for a few days," Ashley replied.
"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Is she all right?" Cheryl asked with a worried look.
"She's fine. Nothing serious. She'll be back soon. Focus on your job," Ashley reassured the girl.
Cheryl nodded and dropped the topic.
She was about to go but then turned back to Ashley excited. "Oh, I've got some good news to tell you,
Ashley. Guess what it is?" she said with a cheeky grin.
When there weren't any customers in the shop, Cheryl and Nina would get together and gossip for they
didn't have much work to do.
Ashley didn't mind them taking a break. As long as they did all of their jobs, she had no problem with
them relaxing when they didn't have any customers to deal with.
"Well, let me guess," Ashley responded, resting her head on her hand and putting on a fake pensive
look on her face.
"Does it have something to do with the bakery nearby?" she asked after a few seconds.
With surprise all over her face, Cheryl praised her with admiration,"How did you know, Ashley? You're
really amazing!"
Ashley smiled, and she had foreseen what Cheryl was going to say. 'The Teddy Bear Bakery was
finding it hard to survive after the stunt.
They had put their daughter's life in danger just to bring down their competitors. What they did was
unforgivable. They are such bad people and I doubt their employees are good either.
No one wants to buy anything from their bakery anymore. Perhaps their pastries aren't even safe to
eat, ' Ashley mused.
"Do you know what happened to that bakery, Ashley?" Cheryl continued.
"I have no clue, but I'd like to know," Ashley said casually. She really didn't have any clue what was
going on with that bakery. She had been busy dealing with the Mu family and Andrew these past days.
And she just didn't have the time or energy to pay attention to that bakery.
"Ashley, please have a guess," Cheryl insisted as she stared expectantly at Ashley.
Ashley sighed inside, 'How could I possibly know? I'm not a fortune teller.'
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