Filed to story: That Campus Prince Is a Girl
Less than an hour later, dinner was ready.
It was a modest four-dish spread-a delicate meatball and vegetable soup, pan-seared white fish in lemon-garlic butter, charred green beans tossed with chili and crispy shallots, and a small plate of twice-cooked pork belly glazed in a pepper sauce.
The portions were small, perfectly sized for two.
Bradley took a seat at the dining table, eyes lighting up at the colorful spread. “This smells incredible. I bet it tastes just as good.”
Cameron handed him a fork. “Try it.”
Right then, her phone buzzed.
She glanced at the screen and instantly frowned.
‘What the hell?’
It was a text alert from her bank.
Sixty thousand dollars had just been deposited into her account.
Bradley took a bite of fish and nodded in approval. “This is really good. Whose recipe is this?”
Cameron turned her phone toward him. “Okay, this is weird. I just got sixty grand wired to me. Do you know anything about this?”
Bradley calmly speared another bite of pork and chewed before answering. “That’s the refund for the bike.”
Cameron stared at him, stunned.
Bradley smiled at her reaction. “I had the bike returned. The HOA took care of it while they were registering it. They were efficient, I’ll give them that.”
“But I had your initials engraved on it,” Cameron said, baffled. “They told me engraved items were final sale.
Bradley blinked and then smirked, “Looks like our HOA’s got some serious negotiation skills. Guess that annual hundred- grand fee’s paying off.”
Cameron was speechless.
Cameron stared at her phone, falling silent for moments. “Brad,” she finally sighed, looking up. “You don’t really like the gift I got you, do you?”
Bradley’s mind went blank. ‘Not like it? Are you kidding me? If I say I don’t, is she going to rack her brain trying to get me something else?’ he thought.
“Cameron,” Bradley said carefully, “I love the gift. I really do. But I can’t accept it.”
“Why not?” Cameron’s brows furrowed in confusion.
Bradley ran a hand through his hair. “Look, you’re still a student. And you just cut ties with the Wallace family. You literally have zero income right now. Dropping 60 grand on a bike is completely unnecessary.”
Cameron’s mouth opened, then closed, words failing her.
“And honestly,” Bradley continued, “I don’t think I’ve done anything that deserves this kind of thanks. The house you’re living in? I sold it to you. You still owe me money for it. I’m only waiving the interest because we’re roommates.”
He leaned forward, his eyes serious. “You don’t owe me anything, Cameron. Not a single thing.”
Cameron reached up and fidgeted with the obsidian earring in her ear. “What about this, then?”
Bradley was a little surprised. “That counts too?”
‘This tiny thing was important enough for her to keep track of?’ he thought.
Cameron just stared at him, completely at a loss for words.
“Listen, Cameron,” Bradley said firmly. “I appreciate you wanting to give me gifts, I really do. But I’m not going to accept them.”
The message was clear. Cameron didn’t need to give him anything at all.
Cameron’s face fell, and Bradley quickly picked up his utensils. “Come on, let’s eat before it gets cold. Food this good shouldn’t go to waste.”
Noticing her dejected expression, Bradley added with a small smile, “Tell you what. That little earring you’re wearing? Consider this meal payment for that.”
Cameron couldn’t believe what she was hearing. If one home-cooked dinner was worth 19, 999 dollars, she’d just made the most expensive meal in history.
Cameron silently picked up her fork. Even though Bradley insisted he hadn’t done much for her, Cameron knew better. He’d helped her in more ways than she could count.
But if Bradley wouldn’t accept her gesture of thanks, then Cameron couldn’t keep accepting his help either.
Cameron kept her thoughts to herself as she glanced up at Bradley, her expression giving nothing away. “How’s the food? Still to your liking?”
“This is restaurant quality,” Bradley said without hesitation, his appreciation evident in his voice.
Cameron smiled, “Thanks.”
After dinner, Cameron stood to clear the dishes, but Bradley quickly raised his hand to stop her. “I’ve got this,” he insisted.” You did all the cooking. Let me handle the dishes.”
Cameron shook her head with a smile. “Wasn’t this meal supposed to be my thank-you for the earrings? I should clean up.” Before he could protest further, she efficiently collected the plates from his hands.
Bradley watched her with a resigned look as she tackled the cleanup with practiced efficiency. Within ten minutes, she had washed everything and put the kitchen back in order. She dried her hands on a dish towel and turned to him.
“Brad, it’s getting late. I should head back, Cameron said.
“It’s only eight,” Bradley said, checking his watch.
“I’m pretty wiped out from the past few days, Cameron explained. “Just want to get some rest.”
Bradley stood up. “I’ll walk you home.”
Cameron didn’t object.
Outside, darkness had settled over the comple Successfully unlocked! lickered on. They walked side by side toward her place, neither breaking the comfortable silence that hung between them.
The complex was pretty quiet, with only a few residents passing through. The property management staff actually outnumbered the residents at this hour.
Bradley walked Cameron to the entrance of her building.
“Brad” Cameron said, stopping at the door, “I’ll pay you back as soon as I can.”
A smile danced in Bradley’s eyes behind his gold-rimmed glasses. “No rush.”
Cameron nodded briefly. “Alright then. I’m heading up now.” With that, she turned and walked toward the elevator bay.
Bradley waved and started back the way they’d come.
The elevator dinged its arrival, but Cameron didn’t step inside. She waited until she figured Bradley was out of sight, then doubled back outside. He’d been right. It was only eight o’clock. The night was still young.
Noble Vista was built along the riverfront. Maybe Cameron’d go enjoy the breeze and take in the night view. Bradley, meanwhile, hadn’t returned to his villa. He headed straight for the underground parking garage.
The Noble Vista parking garage was a showcase of luxury vehicles worth millions. Maybachs and Rolls-Royces lined the spaces in neat rows.
Between two of these automotive masterpieces sat a black mountain bike. It stood out like a sore thumb.
Bradley strolled over to the black mountain bike with a smirk.
There it was-Cameron’s gift, definitely not returned.
There was no way Bradley would return the first present Cameron’d ever given him. Instead, he’d arranged for the property management to visit the store and charge 60 grand to his card, refunding Cameron’s money directly to her account.
Bradley crouched down beside the bike, his eyes scanning the frame until he spotted the initials Cameron had mentioned- B.S. He pulled out his phone, snapped a photo, and posted it to Twitter: [Got a mountain bike from a friend. Love it.]
Cameron didn’t follow his Twitter, so she probably wouldn’t see it. But it didn’t take long for his family to start commenting underneath.
His oldest brother Osborne Saunders wrote: [You into mountain bikes now? Which brand? I’ll have my assistant get one.]
Reginald Saunders, his second brother, commented: [Your friend knows you well, Brad. Black suits you perfectly.]
Eric: [Looks great.]
Eddie: [What friend? Girlfriend? Did you finally start dating?]
His younger brother Damian Saunders: [Why didn’t your friend get you a car instead? Who even rides bikes anymore?]
Simon Saunders, the youngest: [Stay safe when you’re riding, Brad.]
Xander, who happened to scroll past Bradley’s post, couldn’t resist asking: [Who’s it from, Brad?]
Elijah saw it too, but he just liked the post without saying anything.
Austin texted: [Brad, are we still riding tomorrow?]
Bradley finished replying to his brothers before shooting Xander a quick “Guess?” Then he responded to Austin with a simple “No plans at the moment.”
Just as he was pushing his new mountain bike into the villa, Xander called, supposedly curious about who had given the gift.
