"Mommy!" I wailed.

"What is it, Dearest?" My mother cooed as she appeared in my doorway.

"Look at what Addie did to my new scarf!" I pouted, holding the brand new silk material out for my mother to see the hideous creases. "Look at the way she folded it! I can't wear it with these wrinkles in it!"

My mother nodded and called for our newest housekeeper. "Addie!"

Addie appeared in the doorway, trembling in fear. She knew that voice; it was the voice of one very unhappy Mrs. Norwood and she knew she was going to get in trouble...again. I secretly took delight in terrorizing our servants, and I had learned from the best – my mother. I enjoyed the fact that they shuddered when my mother or I entered the room. And well they should. I was one of the most important people in the country, part of the most powerful family on the East Coast. Besides, it gave me a feeling of control and satisfaction to have them cowering under my hand.

"Addie, this scarf cost $4500! How could you be so careless?" Mother demanded.

"I'm sorry, ma'am," Addie replied. "What exactly is the problem, if I may ask?"

"Look!" Mother shrieked, while I sat smugly behind her. "Look at the creases! This is not the way you fold a Dolce and Gabbana scarf! How many times have I shown you how to properly put away Ashten's clothing?"

"I'm sorry, Mrs. Norwood. It won't happen again," Addie said, and then she was dismissed.

"You should fire her!" I demanded.

"Ashten, I know she's made some mistakes, but I can't keep hiring new housekeepers. I will make sure she does a better job at handling your garments, all right?"

"She'd better!" I muttered and went back to applying my makeup. I had given my personal assistant, Danielle, the day off so I had to do the tedious job myself. I took extra care with my lips, knowing that Richard would want to kiss me after our date. I had to make sure the lipstick was smudge-proof and perfect. I couldn't be humiliated by appearing in public with some kind of blemish on my face.

"Dearest!" Mother sang from downstairs. "Richard is here!"

Richard James Banning III was my long-time boyfriend, and he also happened to be the sole heir to the largest oil corporation in the Western Hemisphere.

"Hello, darling," Richard greeted me with a kiss on the cheek. He knew better than to go for the lips until the color had set.

"Hello, Sweetheart," I replied, batting my eyelashes at him.

"Have a good time, you two," Mother said, waving us off while the servants closed the gigantic doors behind us.

We were driven to the airport by Richard's chauffeur, where we climbed aboard his private jet.

Fabulous, we're probably going overseas again, I thought. "So, where are we going tonight?" I asked Richard, feeling a little bored of our usual haunts.

"Paris, La Tour d'Argent," he replied, without looking up from his phone.

"We always go there!" I whined. "Can't we try something different?"

"We have reservations there for tonight, but how about I let you choose the restaurant next time?"

"All right," I pouted, but then I asked, "Can I choose the city, too?"

"Sure thing, darling, just let me know a few days ahead of time, all right?"

"Oooh, I knew there was a reason I loved you so much!" I said, giving Richard a kiss on the cheek. His eyes were still glued to his phone, which was typical. Our "dates" never really started until we were properly seated in a restaurant. That was fine by me; he was always very attentive during dinner and whatever activity we chose after that.

Once we were sat down at the finest restaurant in Paris, like clockwork, Richard switched off his phone and asked me, "How are you doing, my love?"

"I'm always wonderful when I'm with you," I said flirtatiously.

"You know what I mean," he said with a little more seriousness in his voice. "You're supposed to leave for Harvard in the fall. Are you still feeling apprehensive about that?"

"Of course I am," I said, rolling my eyes.

"Don't do that," he corrected me. "You know I hate when you do that. It makes you look so immature."

"Thank you," I mumbled sarcastically.

"You're much more beautiful when you smile," he emphasized. "As far as Harvard, I know you'll be away from home, but you can take two of your servants with you, and your parents already bought a house for you. And you can come home on the weekends. I don't know what you're worried about."

I sighed. I didn't exactly know either, but I felt so...unhappy...about going to Harvard. Sure, it was the most prestigious school in the country, but I knew I'd be expected to work hard, to perform. You know, show off for the faculty, prove that I was truly the famous Berk Norwood's daughter, follow in his footsteps. I thought I'd already done that. I didn't want to have to do any more work, school or otherwise. I was already filthy rich, so why did I have to get a stupid degree? I wasn't planning on getting some ridiculous full-time job after college, so why bother wasting four to eight years of my life?

"I just don't want to go to Harvard," I simply said.

"Well, then where do you want to go?" He asked.

"That's just it. I don't want to go anywhere. I don't want to go to college. I like my life the way it is. All my needs are taken care of, so why do I have to learn to provide for myself?"

"You know your father won't have that," Richard pointed out. "The Norwoods have always been well-educated. He can't have his daughter breaking the family tradition."

"I know," I said unhappily.

He moved on with the conversation as if we were finished talking about Harvard. I knew I didn't have a choice in the matter of whether to attend Harvard or not, but I liked that I could at least talk to Richard about it. He was the only person I could talk to about it.

I watched him as he finished his dinner. He was more than perfect. He was my best friend. I talked to him about everything. He was sweet, thoughtful, and he took very good care of me. And he was undeniably handsome. I stared at his eyes – they were the exact color of sapphires, and they sparkled like gems, too. His pouty red lips were so adorable and I enjoyed the feeling of them on mine.

Then why did it always feel like something was missing when I was with him?

After dinner, we walked the streets of Paris, as usual. We stopped into a jewelry store and Richard went straight for the bracelets. He asked the proprietor to take one out of the case. "Do you like this one, my darling?"

I stared at the diamond-encrusted bracelet for a moment and then I said, "It's beautiful, but I think it's very much like the one you bought me last time."

"Well, how about some earrings, then?"

I lit up and gushed, "Yes, please." We moved down the counter to the selection of earrings. I found a pair of drop earrings made of white gold, with diamonds and sapphires in delicate spirals. "These are perfect, Richard," I said, batting my eyelashes again. I knew he would buy me anything I wanted, so it didn't take much persuasion.

Once we were done in the jewelry store, I suggested we return to the jet. "I'm feeling rather tired. I hope that's okay."

"Anything for my angel," he said warmly. He placed his hand on the small of my back, guiding me toward the limo that would take us back to the airport.

Once we were on board, Richard wasted no time getting close to me. That was how it always went with him – he would spoil me during the entire date, and then he would expect some action at the end.

I was inspecting my new earrings when he placed his fingers under my chin and lifted my face to his. Then he kissed me warmly. I returned the kiss, letting it linger for what I deemed a proper amount of time. When I pulled away, he slid one arm around my waist and the other one up my back, bringing me back to his lips for more. He pushed deeply into the kiss, opening his mouth to push his tongue against mine. It was pleasant enough, but I wasn't usually interested in long make-out sessions, and I knew that Richard was getting impatient with me.

When he noticed I wasn't fully participating, he sighed. "Ashten, when are we ever going to get to the next level?"

"You mean sex?" I asked innocently.

"We aren't even close to sex yet," he responded, the disappointment clear in his voice. "We've been together for five years. When do you think you'll be ready?"

"Well, I certainly wasn't ready when I was thirteen," I reasoned. "But you know I love you, Richard. I just think we should wait...."

He sighed, this time more heavily. "Can't we at least make out? I promise my hands will stay above your waist."

I laughed. "Okay."

When I got home and got ready for bed, I wondered if I would ever be ready for sex. I mean, developing sexual desire was part of growing up, wasn't it? I had a marvelous, handsome, attentive boyfriend. Why wasn't I ready yet?

Besides going away to Harvard, this was the other main issue that regularly bothered me. Maybe I was just a prim and proper girl who wanted to wait for marriage, but deep down, I wondered if there was something really wrong with me.

When I awoke the next morning, Danielle was instantly at my side, waiting for me to instruct her as to how I wanted my day to proceed.

"I think I'm going to relax by the pool today," I said. "Get my purple string bikini."

I heard Danielle mutter under her breath, "You could try saying please once in a while."

I turned around and snapped at her. "I do not say please to my servants! I'm not asking you for a favor. It's your job to do what I say when I say it! Do you understand?"

"Yes, ma'am," she said and walked into my closet to retrieve my bikini.

I stepped into the shower and grabbed my razor. Ugh, it was time to schedule a wax again, but shaving would have to do the trick for now.

When I came out of the bathroom, my bikini was laid out on my bed, along with my favorite swim cover-up. I changed right in front of Danielle. I didn't care that she saw everything. It was kind of fun to show off my body for someone, since Richard hadn't seen me in the buff yet, and I wasn't planning on showing it to him any time soon.

"Danielle, do my hair in that cute little braided bun," I commanded.

While she set to work on my blonde hair - a beautiful "sunrise" color that I had the salon create just for me - I told her to make a wax appointment for me. "Oh, and I need another color appointment. I can see my roots already!" I saw the hints of my natural mousy brown peeking out from my scalp, which I hated immensely.

Once my hair was perfect, I slipped on my pool sandals and went outside to my favorite chair. I had given Danielle instructions to come and apply sunscreen for me in an hour, and also to bring me a bottle of ice water. I had just settled into my favorite chaise when I heard Richard's voice.

"Hello, love of my life," he grinned, his eyes scanning slowly up and down my body.

"Hello to you, too," I said, returning the grin. "And stop staring!" I playfully yanked my cover-up over my exposed body.

He sat down next to me and said, "I need to talk to you about something. I have to go away for a while."

"Okay," I said hesitantly.

"It's just a few weeks, but Daddy is really tied up at the moment and he needs me to check on some of his operations overseas."

"Oh, okay," I smiled and gave him a playful wink. "I'm sure I'll survive without you."

"But, I do have something very, very important to ask you when I return," he said solemnly, and then he stood up to leave. "Good-bye, my dearest." I could tell he was hoping for a passionate good-bye kiss, so I stood up and faced him, locking my hands around his neck. He leaned in to kiss me deeply and then he slipped his hands inside of my cover-up to run them along the bare skin of my waist and up to my bikini top.

"Hey, now," I teased. "You had enough of that last night."

"Good-bye," he said again and gave me one final peck on the nose, and then he left.

I laid back, kind of shocked by his sudden news, but I didn't feel sad or anything. He had broken it to me in such a way that I thought he was going to tell me something much worse. I closed my eyes, still wondering why he seemed so serious about leaving.

I felt the sun begin baking my skin in a comforting and delightful way when I heard Danielle's voice. "Do you want me to do your sunscreen now?" She asked politely, setting a chilled Perrier next to me.

"Actually, no. I think I'll be fine without it for now. You may take your lunch."

"Thank you," she said quietly, leaving me alone once again.

I really wasn't in the mood for talking. I enjoyed the feeling of the heat from the sun soaking into my body, and I just wanted to relax.

It wasn't long, however, before I heard yet another voice, this time an unfamiliar one.

"Are you sure about that sunscreen? It looks like your skin is already turning a bit pink."

I opened my eyes to see a man standing at the foot of my chaise lounger. I had never seen him before and I sat up in shock. "Who are you?!" I demanded. "And what are you doing on my family's property? No doubt, you were sneaking in to take a swim!" I accused him, noting that he was dressed in just swim trunks and flip flops. I had a hard time keeping my eyes off his bare upper half since he had some gaudy lettering tattooed across his collarbones. I hated tattoos – they were so...lowerclass.

"Does that mean you don't want me to rub some sunscreen on for you? Because I'd be happy to oblige, seeing that your sent your personal servant on her lunch break."

"You will do no such thing! I don't even know you, and for your information, I don't even let my boyfriend help me with sunscreen!"

"Yeah, what's his deal anyway? I heard him talking about his Daddy. What grown man still calls his father Daddy?" The intruder scoffed.

"Were you spying on me? Were you listening in on my conversation with Richard?! I will have you arrested, you, you...stalker!" I suddenly felt a little too vulnerable lying on the lounger so I stood up and spread my feet apart like my self-defense instructor had taught me. I clenched my fists by my sides and kept my arms low.

He laughed out loud at me and said, "I'm not going to attack you. And I doubt your mother would like it if you had me arrested. She just hired me to take care of your pool for the summer. You need someone to make sure the chemicals are balanced for your delicate skin, don't you?"

I picked up on the sarcasm lacing his voice and shouted, "How dare you! There's no way my mother would have hired someone without telling me. Where is Raoul? He's taken care of the pool for as long as I can remember."

"Apparently, Raoul needed a break. Something about getting away from the stress of his job for a while...."

"Mother!" I screamed, ready to run inside, away from this maniac.

She appeared within seconds. "Oh, Dearest, I didn't get a chance to tell you that I gave Raoul the summer off and hired a new pool boy until September."

"No, you didn't, did you, Mother?" I said through gritted teeth. It was embarrassing enough to have this stranger say such bold things to me, but to not even know he was one of our servants was downright humiliating.

"I'm sorry, dearest. You were out so late last night that I just hadn't gotten the chance to speak with you yet. How was Paris?"

"Lovely, as always, but it's getting a little old. I told Richard I'd like to go somewhere different next time. And he mentioned that he had something very special to ask me when he returns from his business trip."

"Oh, did he now?" Mother asked with a twinkle in her eye and then she hurried back into the house, not allowing me to ask any more questions about our the newest addition to our household staff.

"You went to Paris just for the evening?" The newcomer asked with a hint of accusation in his voice.

"Yes, of course," I answered defensively. "Richard insists that every date be perfect. Paris is his favorite, so we go there quite often." I looked straight at him for the first time and noticed that his eyes were a stunning blue. Richard's eyes were beautiful, but I'd never seen eyes the color of this man's irises before. I had been staring for several awkward moments when I snapped myself out of it and finished, "Not that it's any of your business."

"No, it's not, really," he admitted. But apparently, he didn't know when to shut up because he continued, "I just can't believe you people waste that much money on one date."

"That is certainly none of your business!" I reprimanded him. Now that I knew he was a servant, I was ready to put him in his place, which was to obey my every command. "Now, get back to your pool cleaning....whatever your name is!" I realized that my mother didn't properly introduce him; not that it mattered since he was just a servant. But I definitely needed to know his name so I could make sure that he learned how to grovel, just like every other servant in our home.

"Louis," he smirked. "My name is Louis." And he walked away, leaving me feeling like I hadn't gotten the last word. 

And I always got the last word.