Chapter 2
Ryan and Wendy stormed off, clearly pissed.
That left Luke and me just staring at each other, not knowing what to say, while the waiter stood there, looking totally confused.
"Sir, should I still bring out the food?" the waiter asked.
I tilted my head back, squinting to make out the words floating above the waiter's head: [Grinding with Four Jobs a Day].
Luke shook his head.
"No need, thanks," he said.
Then, looking a bit nervous, he gently reached for my hand and softly said my name, testing the waters.
"Claire, should we go home?" he asked.
I met his gaze, searching his face.
Luke and I had been classmates since high school, and we even went to the same college.
Back in high school, he was the school heartthrob.
With that cold, aloof look, he was every girl's dream guy.
But at that moment, the words floating above his head were way more interesting than his good looks.
[Lost Heir of the Richest Family].
Wait, did this mean what I thought it meant?
As a die-hard StoryStream fan, I was totally familiar with all those crazy plot twists.
Could these words be some kind of superpower I've got?
Maybe I could see everyone's true identity.
I stuck my chin out, eyes bulging with excitement as I looked around the room, totally hyped.
[Trust Fund Baby on the Brink of Bankruptcy].
[Desperate Housewife Hooked on Cheating].
[Creeper with a Thing for Up-Skirt Shots].
[$50,000 Bounty on His Head].
Hold up, what?
$50,000? Holy crap.
My face was a whirlwind of nerves, excitement, doubt, and shock, enough to seriously freak Luke out.
He scrambled to his feet, stammering as he tried to explain himself.
"Claire, I know this is really embarrassing," he said, his voice shaky.
"But that $5,000 could cover your mom's meds for two whole years. I just can't bring myself to spend it on dinner.
"Pride doesn't pay the bills. What really matters is making sure we get by," he added.
"Please don't be mad at me, okay?" he pleaded.
I barely caught anything Luke was saying. My attention was locked on the guy with the bounty.
He was tucked away in the corner, picking at his steak, big black glasses covering half his face, and a hat pulled down so low we could barely see him.
When he heard us, he gave me a quick, cold look and then turned away as if nothing happened.
"I'm gonna hit the restroom," I said to Luke.
Back straight, face calm, I strode off toward the restroom, acting like nothing was up.
Once I got inside, I didn't even hesitate. I called the cops right away.
There was a police station just 2 miles from the restaurant.
Stone-faced, I left the restaurant and immediately ducked behind the corner, watching the entrance like a hawk.
Luke stuck close behind me, worry and confusion written all over his face.
"Claire, what are you doing?" he asked.
"Can we just go home? I'll make you some noodles," he suggested.
"Shh, don't say a word," I hissed.
I clapped a hand over Luke's mouth, and my eyes were glued to the glass door.
Luke looked totally lost, but he didn't say another word, just stood quietly beside me, keeping me company.
The cops showed up way faster than I expected.
Five minutes later, the restaurant entrance was crawling with police cars.
As the cops escorted the fugitive out, I saw the label above his head switch to: [Fugitive Nabbed].
This whole night felt like I was living in a dream.
Luke stuck with me at the police station while I gave my statement and signed the bounty claim form.
The lady cop who took my statement was really nice.
She said, "Thanks to you calling so fast, we caught him just in time. He had a knife on him and was planning to have one last good meal, then take out a few rich folks before ending his own life.
"You didn't just do a good deed. You saved a bunch of lives. The bounty will be wired to your account in about a week."
Just like that, I was $50,000 richer.
Luke was so pumped that his face was bright red, and he could barely walk straight as we left the police station.
"Claire, you're a total genius," he blurted out.
"How did you even spot that guy was a wanted criminal?" he stared at me, totally stunned.
I smiled and took his hand.
"I'm so broke. I do crazy stuff like browsing the most wanted list whenever I'm bored, just to see if I might spot a fugitive or something," I joked.
"And guess what? I actually ran into one." I laughed.
After all that excitement, Luke finally calmed down.
He gently cupped my face, his eyes aching with concern.
"Claire, you don't have to go through all this trouble," he said softly.
"I'll work my ass off to give you the life you deserve.
"This was way too risky. What if those guys had caught on?" he added, his voice full of worry.
I glanced at the glowing words above his head. Damn, this guy was seriously hot.
On the way home, Luke wouldn't stop going on about how dangerous it all was.
He kept coming up with a hundred different worst-case scenarios, and honestly, I was so bored I could barely keep my eyes open.
With everything that went down today, I totally spaced on Wendy.
Luke was out cold, but I was glued to my phone, scrolling way into the night.
I kept searching for info on the richest guy, Joseph Harrison, around, and the deeper I dug, the stranger it all seemed.
The guy's name was Joseph Harrison. He started out as a contractor, hustled his way up, and made his first fortune in real estate.
But he's only got one super low-key daughter; I've never heard anything about a son.
And to be honest, Luke didn't look anything like Joseph. They didn't even seem related.
The next morning, I was jolted awake by someone pounding on my door like they were about to break it down.
I checked my phone. It was almost noon, and Luke was already at work.
To make a little extra cash, he picked up a weekend gig, always hustling like a spinning top, never getting a break.
On the dining table, there was breakfast he'd made for me.
The knocking just kept going, like the guy was trying to punch a hole through my door.
I rushed over and yanked the door open, only to be greeted by Wendy, so angry she looked like she was about to breathe fire.
"Claire, why are you only just getting up?" she snapped.
Floating above her head were two golden words: [Hopeless Romantic].
Honestly, that was pretty spot on.
Wendy was always falling in love, and she had way more dating experience than anyone I knew.
Back in high school, she was totally into her private tutor.
During college, she fell head over heels for her professor.
After graduation, she got a crush on an older colleague at her internship.
Even at the gym, she'd somehow end up flirting with her personal trainer.
She started dating Ryan just because he was their company's top client.
Her boss gave her a new project to handle at the ad agency where she worked.
The project hadn't even started yet, and she and Ryan were already an item.