Romance: Assistant to the Billionaire by Jodi Cooper Read Free Book Online

don’t get your act together?”
    “Yes… you were right. I’ve known for a long time that they want me out but there is nothing that they can do. It’s not like I’m out publicly being an asshole. I’m just lazy and a drunk. I try to pull it together but then I just feel this void inside of me and liquor just fills it. If they take my Dad’s company, I don’t know what I’m going to do. I know my Mom will lose it. It’s just that I’m in too deep and I don’t feel as if I can come back out. The world is a dark place and the liquor just makes it seem a little tolerable. I’ve wanted to stop, but then I start to feel lonely again and I pick the bottle right back up.”
    “You can always come back out of the hole. It’s never too late to get yourself together. I know that the world is a tough place, but you just can’t sit around and let it get the best of you either. You have to fight back.”
    “It’s just that no one knows my pain. My Dad was my best friend. I could talk to him about any and everything and when he died of that stroke, it was as if I lost everything. I had no one. Everyone always claimed that they would be there for me but no one ever was. Not even Mom. She just picked up her life as if nothing ever happened and expected me to do the same but I couldn’t. I know that he would want better for me but it just seems like I can’t do better because he’s not here.”
    I sigh. “As an adult, I’ve lived a very lonely life myself so I know exactly how you feel whether you believe it or not.”
    Rhett looks at me with vulnerable eyes, “Go on…”
    “I was teased endlessly as a kid when everyone found out that my Dad went to jail for fraud and embezzlement. It was all over the news night and day for about two weeks. I never made any friends at all after we left. It was always just my Mom and me. She was the only person that I could talk to about anything while everyone had friends to confide in. I didn’t go to my prom, I didn’t go to any college parties, and well, I lived a pretty lonely existence. I actually think I’ve made one friend in all of this time and ironically she works for you too. Her name is Nina and she’s a real sweetheart. She’s been nice to me since I’ve had to deal with you.”
    He laughs. “Yeah I know who you’re talking about. She is nice. She used to ring me painkillers for my hangovers and lots of water.”
    “Other than Nina, the only person I’ve ever been able to talk to is my Mom. Your Dad made your life better but my father made my life miserable. He only ever thought of himself, which is why I found it hard to reach out to you when you were going through your situation with your Dad. I hold so much resentment towards mine and you, well, you loved your Dad.”
    “Do you remember when we were kids and we used to do the trust exercises with each other?” he asks.
    I laugh. “Yeah, we always did them wrong. I would let you fall because I thought you would crush me and you would let me fall because I let you fall. We were a mess!”
    “At least we could trust each other to know that we would let the other fall.”
    “Do you remember our tree house and how we used to hide from our parents up there?” I reminisce.
    “Yes, it’s still there. Mom said she wanted to keep something from our childhood around now that we’ve grown up.”
    “Really? Wow! I thought it would’ve rotted away by now.”
    “Nope, she keeps it up to date. It now has cable TV and a lot of other stuff. It’s basically a mini house. I think she’s hoping for grandkids.”
    “Wow! Had they put cable up there when we were younger, we definitely never would’ve come down.”
    He laughs. “I think they knew that, which is why they didn’t.”
    I smile. “We had some good times. Can’t believe so much has changed over the years. It’s crazy.”
    “I know. I used to wait for the day your family would move back next door but it never happened. It just wasn’t the same