Second Chance Baby
Page 24
While all that was going on, our youngest brother, Darren, shocked the family by falling in love with a woman who already held his heart. Kelly, a brilliant mechanic, showed up from Canada looking for a new life… and the father of her toddler daughter, Willa. She found both at the complex and now had another Freeman wedding in her near future.
But it was Vince that really surprised us all. His head was always buried in work. As the CEO of Freeman Racing in addition to owning several businesses throughout Charlotte, there was plenty of it for him to do all the time. But Lindsey needing help made him come up for air and he never turned back. The girl he always thought of as his kid brother’s friend suddenly looked different to him, and the rest was, very recent, history.
It left me. The only brother not to stick with the family and work at the complex, and now the only brother not to be linked up with a woman. My parents actually handled me wanting to find my own path in my career and go into investments well. They understood I needed to do what was right for me and find what would make me happy. Just like my father did when he built Freeman Racing.
Mom most certainly took it better than she had been taking me staying single. Up to her eyeballs in babies, weddings, and new daughters, she was in her element and gleefully happy. All she needed was the full grand slam. And she wasn’t being subtle about it. She’d been making plenty of noises about me following my brothers’ examples. According to her, it was time for me to settle down.
I didn’t understand the push. In my mind, she should be happy. Three out of four was a good record, especially for such a short time. She should be enjoying the outcome. Even if she wasn’t happy about it, she should find a way to accept it and stop prodding me about it. I wasn’t ready for the whole family thing. There was plenty of time ahead of me. If, and it was a big if, I ever decided to jump into domesticity, I would do it when it was right for me.
But I couldn’t really avoid everybody until then. Puffing out a breath, I picked my phone up and read Lindsey’s messages again. I sighed and answered.
I’ll be there after work. But I’m not going to be able to stay for long.
Yay! The answer came seconds later. That’s fine. You don’t have to. We’ll just be happy to see you.
Ugh. There it was. “We.” There was no longer a distinction between Lindsey and Vince, apparently.
It was both convenient and inconvenient for them that I played dual roles in their lives. As Lindsey’s best friend and Vince’s brother, I was a built-in third wheel. Remy made that easier, rounding everything out and turning visits into family gatherings rather than just a couple and an extra. But when he was spending time with his father rather than with Lindsey, I was on the third wheel. They could both have one of their closest people with them by extending just one invitation.
But her best friend and his brother being only one person did have a certain drawback to them. They couldn’t hook me up with myself. She couldn’t tell her best friend that her boyfriend had a single brother, and he couldn’t tell his lingering single brother his girlfriend’s best friend was single. I came all in one package.
Setting my phone aside, I noticed a headache beginning behind my eyes. I reached for my coffee mug, but it was empty, so I got up for a refill before diving back into my work for the afternoon. It included a couple of meetings and a nearly endless stream of emails, calls, and paperwork.
Nothing but glamor was coming from over here.
I was headed for the promise of fresh coffee when my office door opened. I paused and watched a woman step in. She was beautiful but looked sad and worried.
“I’m sorry to just come in,” she said.
Shaking my head, I set my mug down and crossed the room to shake her hand. “It’s alright. Nick Freeman. What can I do for you?”
Her expression twisted, her eyes darted to the side, and she let out a short exhale as she seemed to wrestle with some sort of internal debate. She wriggled her shoulders and stood up a bit straighter before meeting my eyes again with a determined look.
“I need you to help me find a way to undo what my ex did and get my money back,” she said.
It was firm, straightforward, and unflinching. But it told me just about nothing. I had so many questions and thoughts of what I was going to do after getting the nagging need for coffee out of my mind.
“Come on in,” I said. “Can I get you a cup of coffee?”
She nodded and closed the door behind her before stepping further into the office. “That sounds good. Thank you.”
I went back to the coffee bar and pulled open the cabinet lined with bags of coffee. “Do you have a favorite flavor?”
She looked at it and lifted her eyebrows. “Wow. That’s some serious commitment.”
There were few things in my life that word could apply to, but apparently coffee was one of them.
“Everybody is entitled to a vice.”
“What are you having?” she asked.
“A limited-edition grind from my favorite roaster. S’mores flavored.”
She shrugged, the sad expression on her face not changing. “What the heck. I was a Girl Scout. Lay it on me.”
I scooped the fragrant grounds into the machine and dispensed two cups. Augmenting hers with her requested cream and sugar, I carried the mugs over to the desk, handed her one, and invited her to sit down.
“So, tell me your story.”
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A Note from the Author
Thank for you taking the time to read my latest release.
I hope you loved reading my story, as much as I enjoyed writing it.
It would mean the world to me if you could take some time to leave a quick review for this book. Reviews allow me to understand how my readers truly feel, and they keep me improving to be better.
I appreciate you supporting me, thank you so much.
- Natasha L. Black
Books by Natasha L. Black
Freeman Brother Series
Millionaire Boss
Millionaire Daddy
Millionaire Crush
Millionaire Hero
Forbidden Lovers Series:
Billionaire Boss
Date Your Brother’s Best Friend
Falling for my Enemy
Forbidden Crush
Damaged
Complete box set below:
Forbidden Lovers: A Contemporary Romance Collection
Secret Daddies Series
His Secret Baby
CEO’s Secret Baby
Boss's Secret Baby for Christmas
Daddy’s Secret Baby
My Ex’s Secret Baby
Bad Boy’s Secret Baby
Complete box set below:
Secret Daddies: A Contemporary Romance Box Set
Alpha Male Collection:
Forbidden Daddy
Redemption
Protecting Her
Saving Sky
Protecting Sasha
Complete box set here: Men in Charge
Reverse Harem/Ménage Collection:
Double Dirty
The Cabin
Double Trouble
Training the Rookie
Cuffed to my Roomies
Complete box set here: One Lucky Girl
Fake Marriage Collection:
Pretend You’re Mine
Pretend I’m Yours
Let’s Pretend
Faking It
Complete box set here: Playing Pretend
Other stories you may enjoy:
Back To You
Brother’s Best Friend
Forbidden Protector
Sweet Tooth
Connect with Natasha L. Black
Natasha L. Black is an Amazon Top 100 bestselling author. Dreaming and fantasizing ever since she was a young teenager, her love of writing flourished from a very early age. After working for 15 years as a veterinarian, she now follows her passion in writing for a living. She currently resides in a lovely country home i
n a rural area of Dallas, writing steamy novels to fulfill her readers' desires.
Want to contact me? Please e-mail me at: contact@natashablackpublishing.com
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