The Playboy's Princess Read Online Free

own the house. If you budget properly, it will be more than enough.”
    “Why are you doing this?” Drew asked.
    “Your mother and I love you, Drew, and it makes us miserable to see you so down. And you’re right when you say that most people your age are looking after themselves. I would’ve liked it if you had gotten a job and worked to support yourself, but your mother agrees with you that starting a career isn’t a priority for you. We want to help you to learn how to budget and look after yourself so that when your trust fund is paid, you can be independent. The monthly allowance is all you will get. Don’t come and ask for anything else, because I’ll say no.”
    It made sense, even if it was uncharacteristic for him to see things from Drew’s point of view. Drew thought about it for another second, but there really wasn’t much else to consider. It was the only option he had if he wanted to get out of the house. All he’d have to do was find some volunteer work, and that shouldn’t be too hard. His mom had been doing it for years. He was sure she could help him pick something.
    “Deal!” Drew said, holding his hand out for his dad to shake.
    “Good,” Aaron said. He shook his son’s hand, and for the first time in a very long time, he looked proud.
    After breakfast, Drew raced up to his bedroom and started to pack his belongings. He couldn’t believe he was actually getting out to live on his own. Caroline would’ve happily done the packing for him, but he was so excited he wanted to do it himself.
    Drew got down on his knees and started pulling storage boxes out from under the bed when he saw a folded piece of paper on the floor. He opened it up and laughed when he realized it was the letter from the hater girl. It must have been dropped when he threw the rest out into the garbage. He put it in the trash pile and kept working.
    After he’d packed the majority of the things he wanted to move, he went to have a look at the house. Paul, the lawyer, had brought the keys two weeks ago, but Drew hadn’t been there yet as it was too depressing to know it was his and not be able to live there.
    He pulled his car into the drive and looked up at the house. It was imposing and looked vacant. Newspapers were piled up on the stoop, and several of the windows to the front room were smashed. The homey feeling he associated with it was gone.
    When he got inside, he coughed from all the dust lying around. It looked like Gran hadn’t used this place in a while before she died. He made his way around and got more and more disheartened the more he explored.
    The electricity was disconnected, and there was some kind of insect infestation that would need to be taken care of. The floor of the front room, which Gran had used as her studio, was coated in paint splatters, and one of the steps to the top floor was broken. When he walked into the formal lounge, there was shattered glass all over the floor and a rock on the rug. Someone had thrown it through the original stained glass windows. There must be thousands of dollars’ worth of repairs needed before he could move in.
    There was no way his father would give him that much money, and the allowance he was offering wouldn’t cover it. Drew was back to square one. He’d have to sit in his parents’ house for the next four years or find a way to get some money.
    He drove home feeling extremely depressed and went straight to his bedroom, avoiding his parents. Drew hated feeling bad, so he found the almost empty bottle of vodka in his desk drawer and drained it. Hopefully it would kick in soon and lift his mood. He lay down on the bed and rolled onto his side. He just had to find a way to get some money. It was so frustrating to have such a huge amount sitting and waiting for him and not be able to get his hands on it. If only there was a way to get…
    He glanced over and saw the hater’s letter sitting on top of the pile of trash he hadn’t taken out yet. He