Save Me, Book 1 | A CEO Romance (Excerpt)

Prologue

NOT REALLY BUT KIND OF A PROLOGUE

🎵 baby, you're a rich man! baby, you're a rich man! baby, you're a rich man, too! 🎵

As The Beatles song blasts from the speakers of my shitty car, I can't help but contemplate what life would be like if I suddenly struck it rich.

Would my worries decrease? Would I get more enjoyment out of life knowing that nothing is out of my reach? Or would I become bored after making all my dreams come true?

They say the love of money is the root of all evil, and I get it. But how can you not fall in love with something that takes all your stress away?

I briefly glance over at Christina, my baby sister, sitting in the passenger seat. An outdated iPhone rests on her lap, her head turned away from me and looking out of the window. There's nothing I wouldn't do for this girl. We're all that we got in this world. No parents. No other siblings. It's just us. Been that way for years, and the struggle has been fucking brutal.

I didn't ask to be brought into this hot mess of a world, and yet here I am—a twenty-one year old starving college student with a bum job and a child to look after.

So, hell yeah, I'd much rather be a rich man.

"I have some bad news," I announce after turning the radio down. "Hey. Are you listening to me?"

Christina sighs, turning to look at me. "Just because I'm not staring at you it doesn't mean I'm not paying attention."

Ugh. Teenagers.

I ignore her exasperated tone as I park behind a line of buses in front of her school.

"I know you hate riding the bus, but this week you'll have to take it in the afternoons," I explain. "I'm working the evening shift this week, not by choice, so I won't be able to pick you up."

"Whatever. I'll survive." She says nothing more while gathering her backpack from the backseat.

When we reach the drop off point, she exits the car without a goodbye.

"I love you, too!" I scream after her before driving off.

I wish things were different for us, and I know Christina feels the same even though she won't say it out loud for the sake of not hurting my feelings. I wish we had more. I wish we lived comfortably. I wish...

I wish I didn't have to do this all on my own.

My life is full of repetition and setbacks. I have very little 'me time' because I'm always on the go. Monday through Friday, it's the same story. I get up, I take Christina to school, I go to my classes for the day, and then I go to work. I'm lucky if I get the weekends off. And when I finally do make it home to my tiny apartment, I'm so exhausted that I immediately crash.

Then I wake up the next morning to do it all over again.

I don't like to throw pity parties for myself, and I hate it even more when others do it for me. Life undoubtedly sucks, but I understand it could always be worse. For the longest time, I never thought I'd get to experience what it was like to live carefree and be happy. Truly happy.

Then, one day, the unexpected happened. I met a man in my darkness who saw more in me than I ever could. A man who gave me unconditional love and support. A man who kept me from drowning in my sorrows.

I met and fell madly in love with Christian Baxter, and life for me and my sister hasn't been the same ever since.

The story goes like this...

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