ARC Review: Once Upon a Billionaire by Jessica Clare

Griffin Verdi has to attend his cousin’s royal wedding. He’s forced to go, but making matters worse, his assistant has come down with the chickenpox. Griffin needs help now. His friends suggest Maylee Meriweather. A girl from fresh from Arkansas who sends money home to her family, she’s anxious to make good. She’s also a burn talker. Having no choice, he agrees to hire her, sight unseen. Griffin is arrogant and snobbish. He’s dismissive of her, while lusting after her. He treats her as a servant, as opposed to an employee. She’s pleasant in the face of his insults. She needs the job and he’s paying double. She ties his bow ties and helps his cousin when she’s burned by a curling iron. She impresses everyone with her kindness and generosity. A few photos in the local paper show Maylee where she stands in her relationship. A royal fling before Griffin finds a wife. Will he be able to win her back?

I don’t believe Griffin loves Maylee. He uses her as a royal would use a peasant girl. He doesn’t stand up for her to his family or friends. Many of his remarks are cruel. He definitely feels he is her superior in all things, even correcting her speech in front of others. The sex between them is more like his lust fulfilled. She proves herself to be invaluable, organized, and crucial to his being able to bear being around his family. Even his brother makes crude comments and Griffin dismisses them. Griffin supports his family. He’s in the perfect position to make them bow to her, but he doesn’t do anything. Even at the end, his recovered assistant is rude to her. Everyone looks down their noses at Maylee. His friends suggest her as a joke. His arrogance is overbearing and never subsides. He proves he can’t function without help. He gets lost on the way to his mother’s house and never carries cash. All are here to do his bidding.

Maylee is a sweet soul and deserves a better man than Griffin. Money and titles pale in comparison to respect and love. She should stay in Arkansas and send Griffin on his prideful way.

**ARC provided by Publisher**

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