Page 26 of The Maxwell Brothers
My heart was hammering in my chest. I nodded, carefully getting up from my seat and walking ahead of him. I felt his gaze on me every step of the way.
We rounded the corner to the TV area so we were out of sight.
“Sorry about Paisley. She’s not too clear on boundaries. Neither is Reese, apparently.”
I shook my head, fiddling with my thumbs. “Should I go? I don’t want to overstay my welcome.”
He stepped right in front of me, eyes hard and unrelenting. “You’re not overstaying. But I meant what I said. The weekendis your free time. I don’t expect you to stay. But I’d love it if you did.”
“Really? Well, I can’t say no to Paisley anyway. I can’t resist her.”
“But you can resist me?” he asked in a flirty tone.
“I think I’m doing a better job of that, yes,” I replied in an equally flirty tone.
“I see.”
“Daaaaaad, are you scaring Lexi off?” Paisley called from the kitchen.
I chuckled as Tate said loudly, “No, I’m not.”
“So she’s staying?”
He looked at me intently. I squirmed in my spot, nodding.
“Yes, she is,” he announced loudly before adding in a whisper, “And you and I will find a quiet moment alone to talk about last night.”
CHAPTER 8
LEXI
"So,what exactly is the family gathering about today? Something special going on?" I asked.
"It's a cookout," Paisley replied.
"Everyone brings something, and we throw it all on the grill," Tate explained.
It sounded so normal. They were one of the most influential families in Chicago, but they spent their weekends having a cookout.
"Gran is coming too," Reese said.
"Your parents too?" I asked, looking at Tate.
"No, they're traveling. But trust me, there's going to be plenty of people to confuse you."
“I’ll do the introductions,” Reese offered. “Three of his brothers are coming. Travis and Sam will be the ones missing. And my sister is in Paris, so she won’t be here either. But like Tate says, there’s gonna be plenty of people. Between all of us, you should get a good picture of Tate here so you don’t have any surprises down the road.”
She wiggled her eyebrows at Tate, who shook his head. “Keep it up and I’m revoking your breakfast invitation.”
Reese pouted. “You can’t do that. You love me too much. And besides, I’m in a bad place: heart crushed, shitty ex-fiancé, and all that.”
Reese spoke with ease, like it was all a big joke, but there was no mistaking the emotion in her eyes.
Tate pointed at her. “Stop it. That’s where Paisley is learning all her emotional blackmail techniques.”
“I’m an excellent teacher,” Reese replied with a grin.
Tate shook his head, snorting. “Not everyone’s like Reese, I promise.”
