Page 71 of Baby For The Billionaire Silver Fox

“What’s wrong?” I asked, taking off my shoes first, then my coat.

“Did you see the online Cooperstown newspaper today? Thanks to that asshole, Cyrus Walker?”

“Yes,” I said slowly.

“I’ve been getting calls and texts all day. People praising me, thanking me, wanting me to marry their daughters or give me their kidney.”

“Okaaaay. I’m guessing that bothers you?”

“Hell yes, it bothers me,” he ground out.

I slid down to the floor next to him.

“Why? At the risk of you biting my head off, I have to acknowledge you did do a good thing.”

“I didn’t do anything special. Nothing that anyone else in that situation wouldn’t have done. You have a brother hurt, you help him. Simple as that. Nothing heroic about it. I did what anyone would have done.”

“When you put it that way, I kinda see your point.”

His head lowered, and he scrubbed his hands over his face. “And I don’t want to celebrate that day in any way. Nine of my brothers died on that road. They deserve all the respect. Not me. I just happened to be driving a vehicle at the end of the unit that wasn’t hit.”

I put my hand on his arm and gave it a slight squeeze.

“I was lucky that day. Pure and simple. They didn’t deserve to die any more than I deserved to live.”

“Survivors guilt,” I acknowledged softly. “That’s a bitch.”

“Before you ask, yes, I’ve had therapy. A lot of therapy. I will never forget the soldiers who died, but that’s a part of the past. My life goes on whether I believe it should or not. I work very hard to live in the present, even though the past has helped define me.”

“I didn’t even know you’d been in the military. Did anyone here know?” I asked.

“Just Bennett. It’s not like I was trying to hide it. I just didn’t think it needed to be brought up. As I’ve said, I’m a private person.”

“You don’t seem like a soldier. I mean, I’ve seen your bed, and it’s not made with military precision.”

“I put all that behind me when I got out.”

“And you went from that to marrying Mandy and becoming a financial genius?”

“Something like that,” he admitted reluctantly. “But like I’ve said, the success came at the cost of my marriage.”

“So now you’re in Cooperstown, not Chicago. Why?”

“I learned some lessons. The therapist thought I was trying to prove something with the job, that I needed to know my life was worth being spared, and that’s why I was so bent on being a success. She was probably right. But regardless, too much work is too much work, and a relationship can’t survive if you don’t work at that. I’ve learned that, at the end of the day, it’s about people and connections, not status or money. I wasn’t going to stay on at the company, not when the guy my wife was sleeping with also worked there. Besides, I didn’t want to do that kind of work anymore. My heart wasn’t in it.”

I reached out to scratch Buddy, letting Dan talk.

“So I knew Bennett lived here, and I came to check it out. A trial run, sort of like you’re doing. I liked the town and the people and decided to stay and make it my home.”

“And take a part-time job at the supermarket? How does that fit?”

“I don’t need the money, but I do need the connection with people. What better place to talk with others than a grocery store? Everyone’s got to buy food. It’s a physical job at times, and I’m not stuck behind a desk, so I enjoy it.”

“Makes sense.”

“I have a lot of free time now, and I try to be mindful every day. I owe that to the brothers who died—I try to live every day with intention and try not to take things for granted. I’m still a work in progress. I have interests I take the time for now—the gym, outdoor activities, social committees, and poker with the guys. I’m thinking about writing a book.”

“Really?”

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