Page 64 of Dirty Billionaire

Now I have exactly ten minutes to get to my workplace. The good news is I live in an apartment building about seven blocks from the StoryCraft offices. The bad news is my hair is still a little damp and I haven’t had any coffee yet.

I tug on my black blazer and yank my shoulder bag over my head. Then grab my tinted lip gloss off the dressing table and race out of my bedroom.

The first thing I did when I woke was push the button on my De'Longhi coffee machine, so the delicious aroma has filled my apartment. One day I’ll own a Keurig, but not until after I’ve paid my student loan.

So approximately seventy-five lifetimes.

Or so it feels.

It could be worse, I remind myself. Much worse, and it still could be. If I lose this job, my father will make me pay back half of my marketing degree (he paid the other half) and the first year of law school.

Yale Law School - I’ll let you do the math.

That was the deal.

A renegotiated deal.

I changed degrees, and he was highly disappointed in me. Let me backtrack a little. Both my parents are lawyers and we all thought I would be too. Now Dad is a judge and when I told him I didn’t want to continue, I think it broke his heart a little.

But my father is not a soft man, so his reaction was a surprise. Oh, I knew he’d be unhappy, which was why I spent months keeping my thoughts to myself and then when I finally decided and told my then boyfriend, Asher; I was extremely nervous.

More on him later.

When I confessed, they were shocked and asked a lot of questions. Including what I wanted to do next. When I said marketing, Dad didn’t look impressed.

“Hey, I could have said I wanted to be a stripper,” I said with a cheesy smile.

“Well, at least you don’t want to be a comedian,” Dad deadpanned.

“Are you sure about this?” Mom asked.

I nodded.

“I’ve been miserable all year,” I told them. “My grades are suffering, and I can’t see myself being a lawyer.”

“There are a lot of things you can do with a law degree,” my father tried.

“Dad. I... It’s not who I am. A marketing degree is a great foundation if I want to work for a good company or start my own business one day.”

“And do what?”

I threw up my hands. “I don’t know. I’m twenty!” I cried. “Just because you knew what you wanted to do. Most people don’t.”

“She’s right, Jerry,” Mom said in support.

His frowning face watched me for a long time before the ultimatum arrived.

“Fine. But here are my terms,” he said.

Did I mention my father was a judge? He wasn’t about to agree and let me walk away lightly. I had known this, but I was still surprised by what came next.

“Do your Bachelor of Marketing, but you must remain at Yale. Your mother and I will pay for it, but if you don’t complete it, you will pay back the entire amountandthe first year of law school.”

My mouth fell open.

I’d always believed my parents were paying for college. They told me they would, and I worked hard to get into Yale.

“Plus,” Dad said. “When you graduate, I want to see you stay in a job for two years. You need to stick to something.”

---