Mr. Hotshot CEO by Jackie Lau is free

from our DIK review:

Julian Fong, CEO and President of Fong Investments works long hours every day and even when he’s got free time he ends up doing something productive like studying another language. As his father recently had a heart attack and retired, his family worries that the same thing will happen to Julian and gives him an ultimatum – he has to take two weeks of vacation or Po-Po (his grandmother) will start bringing possible brides to the office every day to distract him and get him married off. He acquiesces – to the vacation – and on his first day off ends up at a coffee shop eyeing the ‘latte lady’ whom he’s seen several times before. She always seems to be so delighted by a simple cup of coffee. Maybe she can show him how to enjoy his forced vacation.

Courtney Kwan is a research scientist who has clinical depression. Every five years she goes through an extended episode where just getting out of bed in the morning can be a chore. With experience, she’s learned coping skills and the important self-care that helps her get through it. As a result of her illness, when she’s not depressed she takes great joy in the little things in life, like a good meal or a hot cup of coffee, or the scent of flowers. Julian approaches her with a proposition – come live with him for two weeks and show him how to enjoy life the way she does. In return he’ll pay her $5000, a sum which will enable Courtney and her sister to take a planned trip to New York City that they’d had to cancel for financial reasons.

Had any other man come up with this offer, Courtney would have dismissed it as a bad come-on. But Julian’s reputation as a generous, smart man with a philanthropic family precedes him. She decides to take the opportunity for the money, and though sex isn’t part of the deal, there’s no denying the attraction between them and it soon becomes apparent they won’t be able to resist temptation.  Courtney can’t afford to fall for anyone because the devastation of a breakup, especially at this time in her life would make her depression that much worse. But when Julian wants more, will she be willing to take the chance that it could last?