Page 63 of Second Chances with my Billionaire Bosses

Samantha Drury from the Baptist women’s group was standing a few feet away from us, her eyes narrowed.

“Sir, this is a respectful town and we don’t make out in the—Maxie?”

I could feel her judgment raining down on me heavily. The woman who normally didn’t look twice at me, not for longer than it took to tell me what she wanted, gaped at me. Her upper lip curled higher and her nose wrinkled as she scowled.

“What in the world happened to you?” She looked down at my dress and clutched her imaginary pearls. “Maxie, is something going on with you? I think you need to get away from that man. You look like—”

Rhett put his hands on his hips and stepped closer to me.

“I’d be careful how I finished that sentence if I were you.”

I waited to see if I was going to be crushed by her thoughts of me but instead, I just felt annoyed that the woman who used me for free baked goods for years was daring to look down on me.

“Your family would be horrified to see you right now, Maxie. I’m sorry, but I knew your mother and I can’t sit back and not say anything.” Samantha scowled. “I can’t have you involved with the women’s group if this is how you’re going to carry yourself.”

I put my hand on Rhett’s arm as he growled.

“It’s fine, guys. If Samantha doesn’t want me to do all the free baking for her church group because she doesn’t like the way I’m dressing, then I can’t help that. I’ll just have to be understanding of her choices and respect that she doesn’t want me to donate hours of my time every week to keeping her group stocked with treats.”

Shep laughed out loud.

“Come on, baby. Let’s have dinner and then I can tell you just how hot I find this new sassy side to you.”

Samantha stammered and flushed.

“I wasn’t trying to be mean, Maxie… I—”

“No, it’s okay, Samantha. I understand. You have your morals and I respect that you’re sticking to them, no matter the cost to your snack budget.” I smiled sweetly and reached out to gently pat her arm. “You’re a good woman and I’m sure the other women in your group will understand. Now I have a date to get to. My first ever, if you can believe it. Have a good night.”

“No, wait, Maxie—”

“Oh, by the way!” I cut her off and smiled even wider. “After thinking about your petition to change the name of Devil’s Den, I have to sit it out. I imagine all of the Hellstones will, since it was our ancestor who named the town. Good luck.”

Arlo wrapped his arm around my waist and led me into the diner.

“God, that was fucking hot. You’re amazing, Maxine.”

I let out a shaky laugh and felt embarrassed I couldn’t hide that confronting Samantha had affected me. I wanted to be theperson who could stand up for herself without her voice shaking but I wasn’t there yet.

“It really clears up my time…”

Marlie James welcomed us into the diner, her eyes bright and happy as she motioned around her at the candlelit room.

“Welcome, y’all. We have a special table for you in the back.”

Arlo kissed the side of my head.

“Lead the way, baby.”

CHAPTER 44

Maxie

I pushed my plate away and sighed happily.

“That was the best chocolate cake I’ve ever had.”

What I didn’t say was that it was the best dinner I’d ever had, though it had nothing to do with the food. Being on a date with Shep, Rhett, and Arlo was something so different from what I might’ve expected. They were always attentive to me and they never missed a chance to take care of me but being on a date with them showed me what our future could be. The way they watched me, anticipating every need I had before I even knew I had it, the way they touched me as much as possible, like they couldn’t get enough. Even the way they talked to me so openly about their pasts, it was enthralling.

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