Sweet Mischief’s Rollercoaster Romance

Leo signed the lease, paid the rent, and suddenly his wallet felt a lot lighter.

Anya noticed the dwindling balance too. She thought about lending her boyfriend some cash, but she knew how stubborn he was-her Chad would never take her money.

For days, she worried, chewing over what to do. Then, out of nowhere, $30,000 landed in her bank account.

Anya blinked in disbelief and immediately called her boyfriend. "Chad, did you change your mind about that place?"

Leo answered from his car, phone pressed to his ear. "Nope, still renting it. I just took out a loan against our car."

Anya got it. She puffed her cheeks in frustration. "Chad, do you need more money?"

"I'm all set, babe. Don't stress. You've been worried the past few days, right? Thought we were running on empty?"

Anya bit her lip. "I even pulled my savings, just in case you needed it."

Leo let out a soft laugh, talked her down gently, and then hung up.

In the passenger seat, Chunky glanced over. "Leo, you're the son of a rich family. You used to cruise around in six-figure sports cars. Why not just go home and ask for help?"

Leo started the engine. "If I go back now, I'll never be able to look my uncle in the eye again."

"He wasn't good to you?"

"He was great. Better than anyone, honestly. He looked out for me more than my own parents did. And I let him down. I haven't made anything of myself. I'd be too ashamed to go back."

Traffic slowed to a crawl. Chunky, the ever-practical one, started counting on his fingers. "Leo, if you don't take side gigs, you won't keep this company alive. The car's already mortgaged. You don't want investors. It's not going to be easy."

Leo stayed quiet for a long stretch. "Chunky, let me drop you at the office. I need to meet someone after."

"Who? Listen, don't go for those sketchy payday loans, or mess with

loan sharks. That's a mess you can't

cleanup-Anya could get caught up in it too."

Leo smiled, shaking his head. "Relax. My uncle works in financial crime enforcement. We stay miles away from that stuff."

"Then who are you meeting?"

...noveldrama

An hour later, the passenger seat was occupied by someone new-a guy with long hair.

"Leo, I got the studio to give me a two-hour break," Tony said, smoothing down his hair extension. When Leo called, he'd dropped everything to come.

Leo didn't waste time. "Tony, do you have any spare cash? I just leased a studio, but I need to renovate and buy equipment. I'm short."

Tony looked at him. He'd always

figured Leo would try to make it on his own someday. "I just finished four gigs, made $75,000 total. I'm giving $5,000 to my parents, keeping $10,000 for myself, and I have to pay my assistant. That leaves $60,000. Is that enough?”

Leo hesitated. "Thirty grand is plenty. I'll pay you back with interest once the business is up and running next year."

"Don't be silly. After all you've done for me, money can't compare." Tony didn't have his bank card on him, so Leo texted him the account number to transfer the money later.

Leo scribbled out an IOU, but Tony refused to take it. After some back and forth in

the car, Leo managed to sneak it into Tony's bag anyway.

That afternoon, Anya saw another $30,000 in her account.

She frowned and called her boyfriend again. "Chad, did our car get a sudden upgrade or something?"

Leo laughed. By the end of the day, he'd patched together all the money he needed, and the weight on his shoulders felt a little lighter.

“Bored at home? Give it a couple days. Once I've got some breathing room, I'll drive over to see you."