His Hired Girlfriend Read Online Free

for a
heart to be available?
    His condition was getting
worse. He needed a new heart and fast, as Peter, the cardiologist
and long-time family friend, had told her. Finding a donor,
however, was very difficult. There was the option of going to a
private hospital. Alex knew there was no way they could afford
that. There were the costs of flights to Auckland, the
accommodation, the surgery, and of course the heart itself, but
they were desperate, and her mother, Maly Stewart, had been willing
to apply for a personal bank loan just so Dad could get his surgery
done more quickly. Unfortunately, as Alex had found out only half
an hour ago, the bank had rejected the application. The risk of
non-payment set against her modest income as a lab scientist and
the mortgage on the family home had been too much. On top of that
she had her student loan and the family living costs. Then there
was Timothy and Emma, her younger siblings. Tim was just about to
finish his high school and a university place was on the horizon.
Emma still had a couple of years to go, but...well, the expense
just kept on climbing.
    She ground her teeth. It was
one thing after another. The company Dad had worked for had closed
the Dunedin factory and moved it overseas, chasing cheap labour in
their quest to worship the almighty dollar. They had told Jacob
that his services were no longer required. What a bitter day that
had been! And Dad had gone into overdrive trying to find another
job, any job that would let him provide for his family. It was the
stress that had led to his sudden massive heart failure six months
ago, and it was a miracle that he had survived. Alex had hoped that
he had taken health insurance, but a frantic search of his papers
as the ambulance sped him to the hospital had revealed nothing. Too
late now, she thought, but her mind wasn’t in the mood for staying
on one subject today. She remembered the text message she had
received from Peter. She took out her cell phone and read the
message again.
     
    Happy Bday, Alex. Bck frm Qtwn.
Catch up? Coffee?
    I hve a frnd u shuld meet. He
can hlp u & yr dad. C ya soon :P
     
    A grin crept across her face.
Peter always remembered her birthday, and his gifts were usually
thoughtful, but lately he had been trying to find her a guy, which
was really annoying. It had started innocently enough with some
simple suggestions, until last year, when he had arranged a blind
date for her. The guy, Andrew something or other, had seemed
pleasant enough to begin with, although the evening had been
awkward. Then, as the hour grew late he had made a quite
inappropriate move on her and she had slapped his face and left.
When she told Peter about the incident he had ended his own short
friendship with the man.
    She knew Peter meant well, but
she simply didn’t have the time for a boyfriend. She had far more
important things to think about right now, and what exactly had he
meant about a friend who could help with her dad? Help with the
cost of the surgery perhaps? She felt hope rise in her at the mere
thought of it.
    The light
trill of a woman’s laughter drew her attention. Mary was giggling
away loudly and enthusiastically, leaning ever closer to Mr. Hot-Choc , and Alex
couldn’t help but admire the way he was handling the situation.
Mary was an outrageous flirt, confident that the men around her
would be enchanted, but he seemed not to be affected at all. In
fact it looked as if he were playing the game and playing it well,
in full control of the situation.
    Suddenly he glanced her way and
caught her. She looked away, her heart pounding and her cheeks hot
and flushed with guilt. She pretended to be interested in her phone
but she felt his amusement from across the room. The urge to be
somewhere else, anywhere else, was strong, but not as strong as her
curiosity about this extraordinarily handsome man. Then a thought
struck her and she started texting.
     
    Hey, Pete, sorry didn’t join u
cos u hve frnds.
    Coffee