Page 2 of Accidentally All Inclusive (Beartastic Summer of Love #5)

Jules

Get the money, or else.

Get the money, or else.

Get the money, or else.

The words ran through my mind over and over again like a record playing on repeat.

As if it wasn’t bad enough that I had lost my omega father when I was younger, but now my alpha father was gone too.

And in his wake, he had left an enormous debt that needed to be repaid.

Apparently, that debt fell onto me. Even though I hadn’t known anything about it until after his death.

Three months ago, I’d lost my only living parent suddenly to a heart attack.

Though he had been a shell of a man since losing his omega mate when I was five, he was still my dad.

Even if he hadn’t been the best at it. I missed him, and unfortunately, I’d learned a lot I didn’t know about him since his death.

The man had liked his ponies, and unfortunately, they did not like him.

His gambling debts were haunting my very existence.

In the months since he had been gone, I had been harassed and bullied by the loan shark that had given him the money, and now I was on the hook for the amount that he owed.

They’d given me the ultimatum of “get the money, or else.” It didn’t take a genius to figure out that the “or else” would not be anything good.

The man I’d met with indicated that I might ultimately pay with my life if I didn’t pay with cash.

How was I ever going to repay it? I did not know.

I had an idea, but based on the look on my friend’s face right now, I wasn’t sure if he was going to go along with it.

“You don’t know what you’re asking for, Jules.

” Isaac crossed his arms and leaned back in the chair.

We’d met at a diner because if I’d shown up at the resort he worked at, he would have been suspicious.

I needed to talk him into letting me do this rather than have him reject the idea outright. Desperate times and all that.

I had no wiggle room. Unless I won the lottery, this was my only option. The lottery was not going to happen. Gambling had gotten me into this mess.

“I do,” I said. “I know what I’m signing up for.”

He sighed. “Look, working at the resort is amazing. You know I love it.”

Isaac worked as a companion at the local all-inclusive resort.

Nest and Roam catered to singles, or couples, or whatever combination of people who wanted to go on vacation and purchase a companion for their stay—someone who would be at their beck and call and do anything that they requested.

Of course, the resort took care of the companions, making sure that they were not abused in any way, and they were paid well for their work.

Very well.

The paycheck was what I needed.

“I can do it, Isaac. I can.”

“Oh, sweetie, it’s not that I don’t trust that you can do it. It’s just… I know this isn’t something that you truly want.”

“I want the money.”

His face pinched like he was in pain, and I knew he was about to cave.

Of course I’d begun the conversation with the news of my dad’s debt, hoping that I could win him over with sympathy.

I didn’t tell him the exact amount, but he knew I was in a tight spot.

I needed this. “Yes, but I hate that this is what you have to resort to. I know that you’ve been saving yourself. ”

Isaac and I hadn’t known each other very long.

My father and I moved to the area a few years ago after traveling around a lot.

I hadn’t expected to stay long. If my father hadn’t died, we probably would have moved on to some other place by now.

But Isaac was the first friend I’d made in a long time and the only one I confided in.

Perhaps too much. Which was how he knew that I was still a virgin.

I rolled my eyes. “For what? Some alpha to come sweep me off my feet? That ship has sailed. Do you think you could recommend me to your boss?” I hadn’t been saving myself for my mate…

not intentionally, anyway. I just wanted sparks to fly before I fell into bed with someone.

Only the sparks never flew and thus I remained a virgin.

He sighed again. “Of course I will. They’ll hire you on the spot, especially if you’re willing to give up your virginity. Someone will pay handsomely for that.”

I fought back a wince. Speaking about my body like a commodity would take some getting used to. “What? Why wouldn’t they want someone experienced?”

Isaac shook his head. “Oh, my sweet summer child, you are so na?ve sometimes.”

I bristled at that. Yeah, I might have been sheltered and na?ve, even though life had thrown me plenty of curve balls.

I used to look at everything with rose-colored glasses.

In the past two months, those had been shattered.

The world was not a kind place, and I knew that now.

I needed to grow up and face reality. Starting with selling my virginity to the highest bidder so I could make some fast cash and pay off this stupid debt.

Only then would I be able to do what I wanted with my life for the first time ever. No father to tell me where we were going and when. Just me, making my own decisions.

Just how much was my virginity worth?

Isaac reached over and squeezed my hand. “That’s not a bad thing, sweetheart. I wish that you could stay the sweet, perfect innocent bear that you are. There is an alpha out there for you who will cherish and love you, just as you are.”

I shook my head. “That’s another ship that has sailed. There’s a lot of them leaving the harbor these days.”

He snorted, then his face turned down in a frown. “I’m sorry, Jules. About all of it. I had no idea your dad was—”

“I didn’t either. It is what it is.” I only wanted to move past it. To put his issues and his debt behind me. But first, I needed money.

“Still, I’m sorry.”

I was too, but there wasn’t much I could do to change the circumstances except for exactly what I was doing right now—figuring out how to dig myself out of this hole. “So… you’ll call your boss?”

He took a deep breath and finally nodded. “Yeah, I’ll call him. You’ll need to get tested and all those things. Honestly, they can have you on the schedule almost immediately. We’re always looking for virgins.”

“Great. I’m ready to start right away.” The sooner the better.

I had promised I’d have my first payment to them within the next thirty days.

Every moment that passed brought me closer to finding out what “or else” meant.

The apartment I lived in was rented by the month, so I could leave anytime.

I hardly owned anything except my clothes and an ereader I splurged on a few years ago.

How sad was it that my existence could fit in a duffle bag?

When this was all over, I’d do something different. I didn’t have a formal education, but I could get one. I didn’t belong to a den like most other bears, but I could find one. Things would be different.

“Are you sure I can’t just loan you the money?”

I shook my head. “You don’t have the amount to loan.”

He grimaced. “It’s that bad?”

“It’s that bad.”

The number I had heard that the virgins got paid would get me halfway toward the goal, so at least I would have that. Plus, if I were placed with some rich dude, I would get a tip… if I managed to go through with all of this. The jury was still out on whether or not I was capable.

It would take me a little longer to earn the rest of the money, but as long as I could get some money to them within the next few weeks, surely they would let me live. I hoped.

I would hate to go through with all this and have them kill me anyway.

At least I wouldn’t die a virgin?