Fated: A BWWM Billionaire Romance (Excerpt Only)

Chapter 1 - NINA

The first time I ran into Brent Colton I was five years old.

I was rushing back to my kindergarten class, late from having wandered farther than usual over the course of the break, and I came across a tumble of action—obvious among the deserted grounds.

I realized three boys were beating the hell out of a smaller one crumpled on the ground, who was trying to fend off the blows with his tiny arms as he covered his head, his body curled in defense against the vicious attack.

The boys were older than me, and although I was a little chubby (a characteristic that stuck with me for a while), I was still much smaller than any of them, yet I charged toward that group like I had hidden judo skills and guardian angels, and yelled for them to leave him alone.

I knew nothing about the situation—whether their victim was guilty of anything or not—but what I saw didn't look right, and it sure as hell didn't look fair.

If it had been two guys fighting each other, I might not have intervened, but three against one?

I must've looked a sight, or maybe they didn't like having a witness; in any case, one boy got in one last kick before another tugged at his shirt and the three of them sped off.

I ran over and knelt by the crumpled boy.

"Are you okay?" I asked, despite the obvious.

I only got a grunt in return.

My eyes scanned him and the surrounding space.

His thick, dark hair was ruffled, his otherwise smooth, creamy face blotchy, his glasses askew, and the contents of his lunch box all over the place.

I started gathering them together while he slowly raised himself to a sitting position.

"Thanks," he said, looking sort of adorable with his glasses all slanted, leaving one blue eye free and the other trapped behind cracked glass.

He adjusted his spectacles as best as he could to sit properly on his face.

"I'm Brent," he said.

"I'm Nina," I said with a smile, trying to cheer him up. "Why were those guys beating on you?"

He shrugged. "Because they can," he said.

I helped him the rest of the way up.

Unsurprisingly, we became fast friends, and we stayed that way for two years—until my family moved from the area and I had to go to another school.

I later realized our move was due to my father losing his job and our lifestyle being downgraded.

I also learned later what a competitive private school I'd been enrolled in; my parents had tried to get me on the path to Ivy League and thought attending that special school would help, but I ended up in public school for the rest of elementary through high school, which brings me to the second time I ran into Brent.

The first week of freshman year of college I felt a little scared and a lot alone.

Brent and I hadn't stayed in touch, so I had no idea he'd be attending the same university as me until I saw him strolling toward me as I headed to the cafeteria.

We both sort of stared at each other for a while, slowing down our steps until we figured out about the same time that we knew each other.

"Nina?" he said wondrously, his beautiful blue eyes—sans glasses—widening a bit and a small smile beginning to spread on his face, almost dazzling me.