Page 47 of Billionaire Daddies Next Door

“He gets all awkward when I do.” Shrugging, Chase held up his hands. “I don’t need to know. It doesn’t change anything. I just hope he’s happy here. If I’m going to be putting down roots here, I’d like him to stick around, too.”

My eyes widened. “Putting down roots?”

He laughed. “Feeling panicked?”

Bear patted my thighs. “Who isn’t? Shit is scary at times. We’re not running, though, are we?”

The feeling of warm sunshine shining over me filled me from the inside out and I smiled down at Bear. “No. We’re not.”

We spent the next hour in an odd state of peace while we made and ate breakfast. I got dressed while they ran back over to Bear and Smith’s house to shower and change. I barely had time to finish my hair when they got back. Clean and looking handsome, they watched me slip on my shoes with so much focus I fumbled around with shaking hands.

“Are we making you nervous? Chase smiled, loving that they could affect me so.

I straightened and put my hands on my hips. “We need some ground rules.”

“Nah.” Smith laughed at my shocked expression. “What? I don’t think we do.”

“We do. I don’t act like this in town… I don’t cuddle and smile like an idiot and float around like a fucking fairy princess. I have a business to run and I don’t want people thinking I’ve lost my touch.” I blew out a big breath and crossed my arms under my chest. “So, while at the diner, you three keep your hands to yourself and don’t do sweet things for me. Okay?”

Chase rolled his eyes. “Heaven forbid someone saw you so happy.”

“Yeah. Heaven forbid. I’m not an open book like I was back in the city. If we’re doing something like this, I want it to be private. I don’t like my life being a topic of conversation anymore.” I looked down. “Maybe it won’t be like that always. Not that I’m suggesting there’s an always here. I just…”

Bear cupped my cheek and smiled. “We can play along. I want to be careful in how I bring this to the girls, too. They’ve already been demanding I make you their mother. I don’t know if putting gas on their fire would be safe for any of us.”

I swallowed. “They want me as their mother? Are they crazy? I call them creepy and openly fight with them. They could do so much better.”

Bear’s secretive smile and the way he looked away made me think he might have other ideas. “Whatever you say, Princess.”

CHAPTER 34

Chase

Sitting in a booth with Bear, I was supposed to be working on running numbers for one of my other businesses. Instead, I was watching Joanie run orders back and forth. The uniform showed off all her curves and made my breath catch every time she leaned over. I kept waiting to see a glimpse of her ass cheeks but I never did. I wasn’t sure if I was disappointed or glad.

“How did you not try with her earlier, Chase? You were alone with her for almost a year.” Bear looked down at his watch and sighed. “I need to go get the girls soon. They can only extend their sleepover for so long.”

Joanie looked over at us and her cheeks darkened before she looked away. I wondered if she was thinking about how we’d filled her the night before. I couldn’t stop thinking about it.

“I was an idiot.” I tore my gaze from her to look back at Bear. “And I was healing. The divorce would’ve been fine, even through the public embarrassment, if I hadn’t lost Mikey. He was only a couple of weeks old, but he felt like mine. Losing him knocked me on my ass for a while.”

Bear nodded with a dark frown shifting his face into something dangerous. “It was hard not to step in and do something to help. I wanted to punish her.”

“I know. It wouldn’t have helped anything. After everything hit, I just wanted to be out of there. I didn’t give a shit how much I lost or ended up with. I just wanted to be free to lick my wounds.” I found Joanie again and felt my brows draw together. “I’m lucky I didn’t lose everything. That’s why I’m still going to push Joanie to expand this place. She doesn’t have anything to fall back on.”

“I don’t know, man.” He glanced back at Joanie and rolled his neck from side to side. “I get it. I wish she’d let us take this place all the way, too, but how much can you push her before she snaps?”

The same sinking feeling I always got when I thought about the day I pushed Joanie too far, hit me deep in my gut. “I won’t let her snap.”

The bell over the door went off and I looked up to see Smith rushing towards us. He never rushed to do anything, even when he was running, so seeing the look on his face made me cringe. He was supposed to be out walking Mack but I didn’t see Mack anywhere when I looked out the window. What I did see sent a chill down my back and the sinking feeling in my gut tripled.

Smith planted his hands on the table and bent low so his harsh whisper only reached us. “There’s a fucking group of socialites headed this way. Tell me you didn’t do this, Chase.”

I shook my head. “No. Those are definitely the type of people Joanie used to run with, though.”

“Why are they here? They were loud as shit, talking about coming here to see the diner.” Chase glanced up as the door swung open. “This isn’t going to go well.”

My brain ran through all the feelers I’d sent out over the past few months but I knew I’d never sent anything to anyone Joanie had hung around with in the city. I wasn’t that stupid. “I didn’t do this. I was careful.”

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