All Chapters of TOO RICH TO BE MINE.: Chapter 1 - Chapter 10

36 Chapters

Wrong Street, Right man.

The engine gave a sick, sputtering cough—then died completely.Catherine Smith stared at the dashboard of her Bentley Continental GT, stunned. As if the car had the nerve to malfunction on this street—where cracked sidewalks met rusted fences and not a single doorman stood in sight.“Unbelievable,” she muttered, pulling out her phone. No signal.Of course.Her father had warned her not to drive into “these kinds of neighborhoods.” Her mother would have a panic attack if she knew Catherine had crossed into Brooklyn alone, without a driver, wearing heels worth more than the rent on the corner laundromat.But Catherine had wanted space. A break. Air.Now the car that symbolized her freedom sat lifeless in front of a grease-stained auto repair shop called Blakes Auto.She sighed, pushed open the door, and the moment her Louboutin hit the cracked pavement, she regretted everything.A bell chimed overhead as she stepp

Last Updated : 2025-06-13

Reasons to Return.

The next morning, Catherine sat in the back seat of a black Rolls-Royce Phantom, one perfectly manicured hand gripping a travel mug of green juice, the other scrolling her phone.Messages, meeting invites, and one stern text from her mother blinked on the screen:Catherine, your father expects you at the board brunch. No excuses this time. Wear white. Bring your polish, not your pout.She rolled her eyes and dropped the phone into her Hermès bag.Yesterday’s grime-streaked garage should’ve been forgotten by now. Elijah’s smirk, his voice, the oil-smudged shirt clinging to his back—none of it belonged in her world.And yet, when she looked out the window, watching rows of glittering Fifth Avenue boutiques blur past, he was still there. In the back of her mind. Like he’d carved out a space without asking.Why?He wasn’t rich. Wasn’t powerful. Wasn’t anyone.At least, not on paper.But he looked at her like he wasn’t afraid of her last name. He spoke to her like she was just a girl with

Last Updated : 2025-06-13

Things That Don’t Belong.

Catherine sat on the edge of her bed that night, barefoot, robe loose around her shoulders, staring at a dress she didn’t want to wear. It was a pale blue gown — sleek, expensive, lifeless. Just like the man she was expected to wear it for. James Carter. Heir to a chain of luxury resorts. Handsome in a hollow way. Safe in all the wrong ways. Their families had been “suggesting” an engagement for over a year now. Her mother called it strategic. Her father called it inevitable. Catherine had always called it a prison in silk. She turned away from the dress and reached for her phone. A new message flashed from an unsaved number: Your car’s driving like new. Just like I promised. —Elijah She stared at the screen longer than she should have. She didn’t text back. She didn’t delete it either. Elijah stood alone in the garage, late that night, the lights dimmed and the radio off. Just the hum of silence and the soft tick of cooling engines. He should’ve locked up an hour ago.

Last Updated : 2025-06-13

The Lie Between Us.

The lights from the bridge shimmered across the water like melted gold. Catherine leaned her elbows on the railing, the chill biting her skin, but she didn’t move.“I haven’t done this in years,” she murmured.Elijah stood beside her, silent.“Snuck away without security. Escaped. Just… walked.”“You look good escaping,” he said.She smiled without turning. “You always this smooth, or just with heiresses?”“I’m trying to keep up. You’re intimidating.”“You haven’t even seen me in negotiation mode.”“I hope I never do.”She laughed lightly, but he didn’t. Not quite. His gaze was focused on the river, on the reflection of light and shadow dancing across dark water.Then he said, “I used to walk this bridge every Sunday night.”She turned to him.“When I first got to the city,” he continued, “I didn’t have a place. Slept in a beat-up truck off 11th Avenue. Sunday nights were the worst. Quiet. Heavy. I’d come here and watch other people’s lives pass by like I was standing still.”Catherin

Last Updated : 2025-06-13

Closer Than We should Be.

The city was unusually quiet that evening. Catherine sat curled into the corner of Elijah’s battered couch, knees tucked up, a cup of hot chocolate warming her fingers. The garage had closed early — rain made the roof leak again, and he’d invited her upstairs to wait it out. “Cozy,” she said with a teasing smile, surveying his small apartment. “Very grease-chic.” He smirked. “Glad you approve. You can’t even see the ceiling stains in low light.” “I thought they were abstract art.” He leaned against the kitchen counter, sipping his coffee, watching her like he couldn’t decide whether she was real or a dream. “I can’t believe you drink hot chocolate,” he said. “I can’t believe you don’t.” She took another sip. “Also, marshmallows are non-negotiable.” She looked up to find him closer now. Closer than he had been a minute ago. Their banter quieted. The room pulsed with something heavier — warmer than the drink in her hand. She put the cup down slowly, watching him. “You keep

Last Updated : 2025-06-13

The Truth Dressed in a Tux.

The Blake GalaThe mansion loomed ahead like something out of a dream — or a nightmare dressed in diamonds.Catherine adjusted the neckline of her sleek black dress as her heels clicked across the marble steps. It wasn’t the most revealing dress in her closet, but the slit that kissed her thigh and the way the silk clung to her waist? Yeah. She wasn’t here to blend in.Not tonight.“Remind me,” James said beside her, adjusting his cufflinks, “why you agreed to this again?”Catherine forced a smile. “Maybe I’m finally giving the Upper Circle a shot.”“You mean, your parents pressured you again.”She didn’t answer.The Blake Gala was an annual event thrown by the city’s most powerful family — and invitation-only. It was a show of status, control, and perfectly curated scandal. Everyone who was anyone was here tonight.Including him.Her heart stuttered as she stepped into the ballroom — all chandelier light and secrets. Her eyes skimmed the crowd, barely registering the symphony or the

Last Updated : 2025-06-16

Whisky Promises.

The gala might have ended, but Catherine’s pulse hadn’t slowed since Elijah whispered her name like a sin. Back in her apartment, she kicked off her heels, her skin still buzzing from the ghost of his touch on her lower back. Her dress pooled at her feet like regret, and the mirror caught her—makeup smudged, lips slightly swollen from the almost-kiss. Almost. Always almost. She didn’t even realize she was dialing James until his voice answered. “Couldn’t sleep either?” he asked. She bit her lip. “I need a distraction.” “Come over. I’ll pour the whiskey.” Thirty minutes later, Catherine was curled into James’s leather couch, his penthouse too clean, too perfect—like the man himself. “I saw the way he looked at you,” James said, offering her a glass. She took it. “Which one?” He gave a dry laugh. “Don’t play coy. You know which one.” Catherine stared into the amber swirl in her glass. “It doesn’t matter.” “Yes, it does,” James said, voice lower now. “Because I look at you, t

Last Updated : 2025-06-16

The Silence Between the Storms.

Elijah sat on the edge of his bed, elbows on his knees, fingers locked together. The glow of the city bled through the blinds like a bruise across the room. Beside him, his phone lay facedown, buzzing once before going quiet again.“Then when?” she had asked.A simple message.One he hadn’t responded to.Not because he didn’t care.But because he didn’t know how.He had already read it three times. Typed out replies. Deleted every one.Too soon. Too late. Too raw. Too much.He ran a hand down his face, the scent of her perfume still clinging faintly to the collar of his shirt. The gala was supposed to be a performance — all tuxedos and titles. Instead, it had undone him. Catherine’s lips, her breath against his skin… She had kissed him like she already knew the truth, and kissed him anyway.And that was the part that wrecked him.Because if she knew everything… she might not do it again.He got up, paced. Then sat back down. Then stood again, as if motion could substitute for decision

Last Updated : 2025-06-16

The Sin in Champagne.

The night blurred at the edges.Catherine wasn’t sure how many glasses of champagne she’d had — enough to make her forget Elijah’s silence, enough to not care that James Carter was watching her like a man starved.Her laugh was louder than usual. Her smile, wider.Fake. But it worked.“You’re going to ruin me,” James whispered against her ear, sliding a hand to the small of her back as they danced, his touch feather-light but promising more.She didn’t pull away.Didn’t want to.Tonight wasn’t about regret.Tonight was about forgetting.And James? He was willing.“Come with me,” he said, his lips grazing her temple. “Just for a little quiet.”She followed.Upstairs, into a guest bedroom bathed in low amber light, the walls thick enough to muffle the music from downstairs.The moment the door clicked shut, his hands were on her — lips crashing into hers, urgent and hungry. She responded with equal desperation, tugging at his jacket, pulling his shirt from his slacks.He groaned into he

Last Updated : 2025-06-16

Shattered Glass and Unspoken vows.

Catherine woke with the weight of a mistake wrapped around her body.Her head pounded. Her limbs ached. Her soul? Barely breathing.The sheets tangled around her felt unfamiliar—crisp, not her own. The scent of James’s cologne lingered in the air, too sweet, too deliberate. Too wrong.Her stomach turned as her eyes landed on the bedside clock.8:02 a.m.She bolted upright, the night replaying in sharp, broken flashes: the wine, the laughter that wasn’t really laughter, her loneliness curling into something reckless. And then—Elijah.His voice, low and broken. His eyes, thunderstruck. His jaw clenched as if swallowing a scream.The way he stood frozen at the doorway, watching James move inside her like he was trying to erase Elijah’s name from her skin.It hadn’t worked.She blinked against the burn of tears. The pain in Elijah’s eyes haunted her more than her own guilt.She had wanted to forget him.Instead, she’d burned a hole in both of them.She climbed out of bed quietly. James s

Last Updated : 2025-06-16

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