All or nothing (Love in chaos #1) - Missy Johnson Page 0,4

seven days to find a wife, or I lose the thing I've worked myself to the bone to build, the thing my grandfather trusted me to handle after he died, my company.

Damn it.

I call Jax and Mason and beg them to come over, so I can grill them for any and all useful information they might have. They’re not much help. Mason was as drunk as I was, and Jax can’t tell me anything he hadn’t already told me earlier.

“What the hell am I going to do?” I groan.

“Did you call Simon?” Jax asks.

I nod. “I’m not fighting it. Everyone in the whole fucking country would know about it if I did. And it would drag through the system for years.”

“You could settle,” Mason suggests, running a hand through his thick reddish blonde curls.

“And give Jake the satisfaction of owning part of my company? No way. Why didn't you guys stop me from signing it?” I add, feeling the need to blame someone.

“That's not fair. We did try and stop you. It was your idea in the first place,” Mason retorts, echoing what Jax had told me earlier. “And you know what Jake’s like. All he needed was a sniff that you were serious, and it was on. What is it with you and Jake anyway?”

I sigh. I wish I knew. It hadn’t always been like this. The four of us were best friends right through elementary and high school, but Jake and I were especially close. With our moms being best friends, it was kind of inevitable. When we hit college, something changed. Though he never confronted me about it, I’m pretty sure it had something to do with his sister, Liv.

Liv was fifteen then. To me, she was my friend's kid sister—nothing more, nothing less. I had no idea that rumors were even circulating about Liv and me until Mom sat me down and told me I needed to end all contact with her. I didn't know what she was talking about. Then she told me that Pam had caught me leaving Liv's bedroom. I was stunned, even more so when she said Liv had confessed it was me.

By that point, Liv had already left to live with her dad in Australia, so I let people think what they wanted to think. I could've told Jake the truth, but doing that would've meant telling him that Liv and I were never in any kind of relationship. Liv was a good kid. She never got in trouble, so I knew she must have had a good reason to use me as a decoy. The last thing I wanted to do was land her in more trouble.

“If you're not going to fight it, then I think it's pretty obvious what you need to do.” Jax speaks from the other side of the room, where he's stretched out in an armchair. When I shoot him a glare, he puts his hands up defensively. “Hey, I'm just giving you some tough love because the sooner you stop looking for a loophole and get your ass into gear…”

“Okay, fine.” A new sense of determination washes over me. “Where do I start?”

I hate to admit it, but I’ve got no idea how to approach this. I’ve never had an issue attracting women. In fact, they throw themselves at me, but there’s a big difference between securing a one-night stand and convincing a girl to marry me. How many women will I have to go through to find the one that will agree? Can it even be done in a week?

Mason shrugs, “My mom’s always on the prowl.”

Both Jax and I gape at him. Is he suggesting what I think he is?

“You want to start calling him Dad now, or wait ‘till after the wedding?” Jax guffaws, laughing at his own joke. Then he clicks his tongue thoughtfully. “Actually, I’d give your mom a little love. She’s not half bad looking.”

“I didn’t mean that, you fuckwit.” Mason’s cheeks tinge as red as his hair as he glowers at Jax. “I meant she’s always on those dating sites aimed at older, single women,” he explains. “You should start there.”

He leans forward and grabs my laptop off the coffee table and flips it open. He taps on a few keys, then turns it toward me. I get up and walk over, scooping it up.

“I’m sure there's a lot of older ladies who are looking for a little bit of love, and I promise my mom isn’t on