Jay Arataka had never had an easy life. Her home life, for starters, had never been consistent - she was hopping from foster home to foster home, only to wind up in dusty small towns time and time again. She had been pushed around by those who were stronger than her. She never went out of her way to make friends, thinking that she wasn't worth pursuing. Naturally, she was isolated. And she didn't know why. All she really had were a viola case, her backpack, and herself.
Then, one day, she bumped into someone.
It was someone who, unbeknownst to her, would change her. He willed her to step out of her comfort zone, and assured her that it was safe to do so. He bonded with her in a way that no one else did with her before, and in turn, she did the same to him. She learned to trust, to love, and to believe in herself. She learned to accept herself even when no one was watching. She learned more about herself in those few months than she ever did during the first 17 years of her life. And, for the first time, she fell in love with the one who deserved it most.
Although he's gone now, she knows that what she felt was real.
This is her story.
Grief-stricken over the death of the boss who was like a father to her, Olivia Bailey is left to deal with the aftermath--the arrival of his dashing but estranged son, Pierce Alexander. But she can't stand him and he doesn't trust her. Will working for the new CEO remain to be an impossible task?
***
Olivia Bailey might be plain and boring, but she's content with her current lifestyle, working for the kind but lonely old man who owns Alexander Corporation. But his untimely death flips her simple life upside down. Now, she must deal with his estranged son, the heir to his business empire, together with the growing feelings building up between them. Will Olive manage to bear the pressure and issues cropping up along the way--or is this too much to ask?
Disclaimer: This story won The Wattys 2014 People's Choice Award.
Cover Design by Ashley Marie Bandy