NOT ROYALE ENOUGH [18+]

01

❥ SARAH ❥

"You have to got to be fucking with me,"

I muttered in frustration, staring at the overwhelming pile of debt my so-called father had left behind. It had doubled in size, and I was left to deal with the consequences.

I shouldn't have to pay for his mess. He was the one who decided to sell his soul to gambling. So why am I the one stuck with this burden, you might ask?

Because he fucking disappeared.

There was no trace of him, no evidence of his existence. I tried calling him, but he was unreachable. I wasn't surprised.

I couldn't help but wonder what my mom saw in him. Sure, he had his charms, but as soon as Mom decided to visit the "Big Guy" up there, he drowned his sorrows with countless women he brought into our house. I still have nightmares about those days.

He was an addict, and everyone in the neighborhood knew about his problem. At least he wasn't into drugs, but he had an insatiable appetite for gambling. He used to say it opened his eyes to the value of money.

I called it greed.

"That bastard," I muttered, my respect for him evaporating completely. Since he left, James and I were left to suffer in this world. James was my younger brother, and unfortunately, he had been dealing with weak bones for years. It led me to do the most desperate job a woman could do.

I became a girlfriend for rent.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I would play the role of someone's girlfriend. I didn't care what the occasion was, as long as it didn't involve sexual activities in the bedroom. It sounded sad, I know, but what else could an undergraduate with a degree in Biochemistry do when there were no jobs available? People, for some messed-up reason, didn't want to hire fresh graduates like me.

Maybe it was just my luck.

"Hey, lady, what are you doing in there? Giving birth? I need to use the restroom," a woman's voice barked from outside the ladies' restroom, snapping me out of my thoughts.

I quickly got up from the toilet seat, flushed, and washed my hands. I had a meeting with a client here, and since he was rudely late, I decided to grab a bite to eat, which landed me in the restroom. He wanted me to pretend to be his girlfriend to make his ex-girlfriend jealous. It was one of the regular jobs I was hired for.

The idea came to me after I graduated from college. I needed to make quick cash to pay for my brother's medical expenses. I didn't want to become a stripper because the club that paid the most in my neighborhood was frequented by students from my college. There were rumors that even professors went there, which would be incredibly awkward.