Page 3 of Trust Me
“Good. Mr. Andrews is a great boss and is really flexible when it comes to Brooklyn. He understands I’m a single mom and allows me to take time to tend to her whenever I need to.”
“He’s a cool old bird, so I didn’t think he’d give you any troubles where Bean is concerned,” Jake says.
I turn back around and reenter the conversation. “Jake mentioned you started a new job a few months back. What are you doing?” I ask, even though I already know, making eye contact with her for the first time since the whole conversation started.
“I’m working at the Andrews and Levine Law Office in town. I’m the administrative assistant to Mr. Andrews, making his coffee, answering the phones, managing his schedule, and plenty of typing. Unfortunately, since he’s so close toretirement and will be turning the entire business over to his son-in-law, he’s not taking any new clients, so the days tend to be long.”
“Sounds kinda boring,” I reply after taking the last swig from my beer bottle, hoping I don’t come across as a dick.
“Oh, it is,” she agrees with a laugh. “But he pays me really well and lets me leave if I need to take care of Brooklyn. Plus, he hired me with no experience whatsoever. He’s a sweet ol’ man.”
“I’m glad he’s taking care of you,” Jake chimes in. Jake’s always been the protective big brother. He goes apeshit if anyone hurts his baby sister, physically or emotionally. I smile a little as I recall the last douchebag who hurt her. Seeing Drake bleeding on the ground and gasping for air after the punch Jake landed to his stomach is one of my favorite memories.
Jake helped Avery get the job at the law firm a couple of months back. She had been working as a waitress in the diner on Main Street and was struggling with the schedule to take care of Brooklyn. All her brothers and parents pitched in, but her hours were sometimes unpredictable and made it difficult when she was called in last minute. Jake and I went to school with the oldest Andrews boy, so when he heard that Mr. Andrews’s secretary quit, he called him up. Avery was pissedfor weeks. Once she realized she had a fixed income and set hours though, she finally let her anger go a little. But, man, did she give Jake hell for interfering again.
Just then Mrs. Stevens comes into the family room with Brooklyn’s hand in hers and announces dinner is ready. As all of the other guys start filing out of the room and heading toward the dining room for dinner, I take the opportunity to excuse myself from Jake and Avery and head to the bathroom to wash my hands. Maybe a little cold water splashed on my face wouldn’t hurt either.
Chapter 3
Avery
There is something about those intoxicating chocolate-brown eyes. Every time I come face-to-face with Maddox Jackson I want to confess all my secrets. His eyes are his best feature. And that’s saying a lot, considering the rest of him is perfection. Maddox is almost as tall as Jake; I’d guess six foot two. His coal-black hair is just long enough on the top to run your fingers through. His shoulders are broad, his body is hard and chiseled, and his smile is panty-wetting sinful. As he walks away toward the restroom, I glance down at his perfect rear fit snugly into a pair of worn Levi’s. I almost audibly sigh until I remember I’m standing with Jake.
I glance at him and plaster on my best smile. He watches me with his eyebrow slightly raised, and I can tell his wheels are turning as if he’s on to me and my big secret. Not-so-subtly changing the subject and steering him toward the dining room, I ask, “How’s the job?”
“Good. We busted a meth lab on Friday. Stupid kids could have blown themselves and allthe neighbors sky high.”
Jake and Maddox are local officers and have been best friends for as long as I can remember. Following their high school graduation, both enlisted in the Marines for four years, excelling in shooting and becoming snipers. It was no surprise when they returned home after their tour of duty and entered the police academy. Jake and Maddox were teammates on the football field, brothers in the military, and now partners in the squad car.
We walk into the dining room as Mom is placing Brooklyn in her booster seat to the right of my chair. As my brothers start to sit, I realize the only seat left open is the chair to my left. Maddox walks into the dining room, looks around, and locks eyes with me as it dawns on him the only seat is smack-dab between the kid sister and Jake. But in true Maddox fashion, I can’t read his facial expressions, and his face remains neutral as he walks toward me.
“This one must be mine,” he says as he sits down between me and Jake.
I give a nod and serve a little mashed potatoes and gravy on Brooklyn’s plate. I add a bit of corn and a small slice of homemade meatloaf before handing her a small plastic toddler fork with aDisney princess on it. She’s independent as all get-out and has gotten to the age where she won’t allow anyone to help her eat anymore. More food will probably be on her face, in her lap, and smeared on her booster seat than in her little belly, but she’ll be happy and content, and honestly, that’s all that matters.
I load my plate with Mom’s meatloaf and all the trimmings and realize Maddox has yet to help himself to any food. “Aren’t you eating?” I ask.
“Ladies first,” he replies and hands me a homemade yeast roll.
I swoon inside at his manners and start handing him bowls. After he’s piled on the food, he starts politely talking to Jake and my dad at the end of the table. I take the opportunity to check out his features from the side. Strong jaw, nose with a slight bump left over from defending his little sister, Jessica, at his senior prom when her date got a little handsy, and that jet-black hair slightly curling around his ears as if to confirm he’s overdue for a haircut.
I realize I’m practically staring and glance away before I get caught. I look up across the table, straight into the questioning eyes of Nate.Busted.He raises his eyebrow, as if daring me to deny the fact I was just ogling my brother’s best friend behind his back. I quicklylook away and tend to Brooklyn, who is happily smearing mashed potatoes across her face in an attempt at shoveling them into her mouth. A smile creeps across my face as I watch her eat her dinner. Mom is at the end of the table on the other side of Brooklyn, so I strike up a conversation with her to keep my focus on that end of the table and away from Maddox.
The conversations around the table are light and happy, like most Sunday night dinners at my parents’ house. We’ve been getting together every Sunday since my brothers all graduated from school and started living on their own. When Mom started this, we were off to a rocky start to the tradition. They would constantly groan about Sunday night family dinners, but I know they secretly loved it because nothing beats Mom’s home-cooked food. Not to mention they always leave with leftovers, and for a bachelor, that’s a heck of a lot better than takeout or microwave meals every night. This is one of the rare times when all four of my brothers are here together. Being an officer means Jake works every other weekend, though even when he’s on duty, he sometimes manages to swing by and grab a plate of food to go.
As dinner winds down, everyone begins to head into the family room for moreSunday NightFootball.After I scrub the remains of her dinner off her face, Brooklyn moves into the family room on Nate’s back. Her absence gives me the chance to stay behind to help Mom with the cleanup and dishes. Lord knows my brothers aren’t going to do it unless forced.
“How are things going, honey?” she asks as she hands me another bowl to place in the dishwasher.
“Good,” I respond.
“Have you seen any of your old classmates or school friends lately?”
“Not really. Most of them are still off finishing college or starting their lives somewhere else.”
I can already tell where she’s going with this entire line of questioning. She’s beating around the bush about discussing the latest in what I like to call “The Drake Saga.” A few weeks back, during our Sunday dinner, she informed me she ran into Drake’s mother at the bakery. His mom was ordering cookies for a dinner party she was hosting later in the week to meet Drake’s latest girlfriend, Kelsey. Kelsey is a college junior and a fashion major to boot. It doesn’t surprise me Drake is dating a college girl. In fact, each time he cheated it was with someone younger. Drake is three years older than me, whichmakes him twenty-five now. I hope for Kelsey’s sake, she wises up before she finds herself pregnant and alone like I did.
My mom watches me as I finish stacking the plates in the dishwasher. “You know, Mom, I’m over him. It took a while, but I got there. It’s his loss he’ll never know how wonderful his daughter is, but that was his choice, not mine. And I’ve made peace with that. I don’t need him or his money in our lives. He made the choice to leave me and our unborn child four years ago, and it looks like he hasn’t lost any sleep over it.”
