If Sebastian suspected that she would sabotage him, she hoped he realized he had no cause for concern. She knew how to act, what to provide and how to dress. Ashley’s skin was bare of jewels, but her simple white dress made her stand out from the dark suits and frilly and colorful dresses.
More important, she made sure everyone felt comfortable and welcome. She knew this party changed the way Sebastian saw her. She saw the admiration and pride in his eyes.
“I thought you didn’t like parties,” Sebastian said as she made her way to him.
“When did I say that?” Ashley asked. She tilted her head as she tried to remember. “No, I said I didn’t party. No late nights. No club hopping. Nothing like that.”
Sebastian didn’t try to hide his skepticism. “Not even in college? You had only been there for one semester.”
“And you think I got kicked out of school?” What made him think that? She had done some dumb things when she was a teenager, but she wasn’t a troublemaker. “No, I was struggling at school. I always had trouble with my grades. I dropped out after my parents died. I didn’t see the point in staying.”
She’d never wanted to go to school. Her parents forced her for their selfish reasons, but she had to admit that college offered her a respite from the tension at home.
“If you were such a poor student, how did you get into college?”
“My father pulled some strings and gave a big donation to the school,” she admitted with the twist of her lips.
Sebastian raised his eyebrows. “Must have been nice to have rich parents,” he said coldly. “They opened a lot of doors and gave you many opportunities.”
“That wasn’t why they did it,” Ashley said as she tightly gripped the stem of her champagne flute tightly. “They wanted me out of the way. But I know what you’re saying. I was given a lot. I had the resources to make something of myself. And where did I wind up? Broke, homeless and a rich man’s sexual plaything.”
Sebastian’s eyes narrowed. “You twist my words.”
She knew what he was saying. Really saying. That he could have conquered the world by now with that kind of financial support. “You may have had to crawl out of the ghetto but I’m sure someone helped you,” Ashley said roughly. “Teachers, neighbors, relatives. Maybe the kindness of strangers.”
“Then you would be wrong.”
Ashley felt her heart pinch. Sebastian had had a grueling and lonely journey to the top. She couldn’t imagine the strength and sacrifice it took to get to where he was. The more she learned about him, the more she admired and respected him. It made it difficult keeping her distance from Sebastian.
“And what about now?” she asked, deciding to take a different tack. “I’m sure that you would do exactly what my father did. If one of your sisters needed to get into a school, get a job or even a place to live, you would throw all of your money and influence to get it for her.”
Something flickered in his eyes, but his face showed no expression. She watched Sebastian take a healthy gulp of champagne. “Yes, I would.”
“And she would accept that help,” Ashley predicted. “That doesn’t make her spoiled.”
“Of course not. I expect my sisters to come to me whenever they need help.”
“But I’m a spoiled brat because I lived off my parents’ money?” she asked. “You think I haven’t worked a day in my life. That I’m just hanging around, working on my tan, until I land a rich husband.”
“Are you trying to tell me that you aren’t an heiress who enjoyed the good life,” he asked.
“I once enjoyed being a socialite when I didn’t have to worry about money or the future,” she admitted. The amount of money she had wasted in those years still made her sick to her stomach. “But that disappeared the moment my mother pulled a gun on my father. My friends used their connection with me to sell the most salacious and untrue stories about my family. My father’s money was gone and I inherited a mess. It has been a struggle for five years to keep what I had left.”
“You could have gotten a job,” he drawled.