Page 14 of Second Chances with my Billionaire Bosses

Her pupils dilated, leaving just a narrow ring of green showing as she nervously licked her lips. She saw the way my ways tracked the movement and flushed an even deeper pink.

“N-no.”

I lifted my hand and lightly grazed my knuckles over her jaw, watching the way she leaned into the motion.

“If we weren’t standing in your brothers’ kitchen I’d show you. You’re irresistible, sweetheart.”

She searched my face, looking for what, I didn’t know. The longer she watched me, though, the hotter her cheeks became and I thought maybe she was realizing just how serious I was. She looked down at her feet and let out a surprised gasp when I pinched her chin between my thumb and pointer finger to lift her face again. Her breath came faster as I slid my hand into her hair and held her there.

“I’m sorry.” The words surprised both of us. I hadn’t meant to say them at that moment, but they were on my mind. “For how we treated you when you were younger. We were wrong in how we handled that morning after. You deserved more. You still do. If you join us for dinner tonight, we can sit down and talk about it.”

She blinked a few times and I felt her shutting down on me, could see it in the way her eyes slid away and wouldn’t meet mine again.

“I make dinner here. I’m sorry.”

“Someone else can’t cook for one night?” I dipped my head to try to snag her gaze again.

Something about what I’d asked pushed a button for her, though. Tension filled her face and she slipped under my arm to get away from me.

“There’s no one else to do it. It’s dinner for more than ten people; it’s not so easy.”

I swore as I heard voices coming closer. Still, I couldn’t help myself. I pressed myself into her back and brushed my lips over her shoulder.

“After then.”

“They’re coming.” Her breath came faster and she nervously looked over her shoulder at me. The movement put our mouths close together and a wild amount of heat filled her eyes.

I hardened against her back at the heated expression. I got the feeling the added tension of being busted with me lit her fire and I let out a quiet groan.

“Say yes. Come over tonight.”

She licked her lips and opened her mouth to answer but it was too late. I had to pull away from her so it wasn’t obvious I’d been about to hump her leg like a teenager. She swallowed and turned back to the stove just as her brothers walked in with Arlo and Rhett.

“Get lost on your way to the bathroom?” West studied me with a raised eyebrow. I’d been closest to him back in the day, his laid back attitude matching my energy more than either of his brothers.

I let a slow smile shift my face into something nonthreatening, doing my best to appear like I wasn’t planning on defiling their little sister.

“Do you smell the smells coming out of this kitchen? I never even made it to the bathroom. My stomach took charge.”

“What are you making, Maxie?” Tate joined his sister at the stove and groaned. “Are you frying chicken? Dear god, you’re an angel. Your fried chicken is the best.”

Arlo leaned against the island and I watched as he struggled to keep his eyes away from Maxie’s ass.

“Who’s going to take over feeding you assholes when Maxie is working full time at the new ranch?”

Mills frowned. “If she can’t handle the ranch and cooking, we’ll figure it out.”

Maxie’s spine stiffened and her face was carefully blank when she looked back at her brother.

“I can handle it.”

“With the cakes, too? I ran into Ryan St. John and he said you’re making a cake for his kid’s birthday this weekend. He went on and on about how sweet you are for doing it for Josie for free.” Tate’s eyes were narrowed at Maxie, his arms crossing over his chest. “Are you into Ryan?”

I wanted to break something. Whoever Ryan was, he had a target on his back if he ever even looked twice at Maxie.

“What? No. Of course, not.” Maxie frowned and shook her head, the only sign she’d shown of anything other than quiet acceptance of what was happening around her.

“Then why are you doing cakes for free? You have to be tougher than that, Maxie. You can’t give away everything.” Tate ran his hands down his face, looking exasperated. “It’s a good thing you aren’t running a ranch by yourself, kid. You’d let people walk all over you.”

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