Mr. Mitchell Billionaires' Club Book 2 - Raylin Marks Page 0,69
a different person with her. At least I was in England.”
“Okay,” Jake said. “She has a kid, dick brain.” His tone was sharper, and I got it. Jake went through hell and back to keep Ash after the press went wild, and a psychotic ex tried to ruin him. Ash was seven months pregnant with their first child now, and Jake—the biggest player of all of us—had changed significantly because of their relationship. He was the one who grew out of this lifestyle of using women for sex and not committing. He knew the drill.
“I know,” I answered him with as much annoyance as I felt that he would question me being that big of an asshole.
“You know?” Jake said, taking a bite of his salmon. “So, you know what comes along with that, right? You hurt her, you hurt the kid. That’s major.”
Oddly, instead of fighting my brother’s accurate words, I smiled. “That’s the thing,” I responded. “It’s also the reason I’ll be eating a big mac tomorrow night instead of taking the two to an ocean-view restaurant or whatever bullshit you all mentioned earlier.” I took another bite of steak, and while I chewed, Alex spoke up.
“She threatened to kick your ass herself if you fucked with that adorable child.” Alex laughed.
“Just like she did the woman that we fired today,” I answered.
Collin laughed. “She threatened someone—and you fired the person she threatened instead of her?”
“It’s not like it sounds,” Alex defended me. “Trust me. We had a long-ass day, dealing with the old crone bringing in her lawyers and human resources. It’s also the reason we’re learning about Casanova getting his big mac date too.”
“Exactly,” I said, “and after asking her for another chance, we are both of the understanding that Addison comes first. If I am to try and make this work with Avery, I have to know it’s not just Avery—it’s Addison too.”
“And Addison is already best buddies with your brother.” Alex elbowed Jake, who sat to his left. “She calls him Mitch.”
“You better know what you’re doing, man,” Jake said, ignoring everyone but me. “A kid is involved now. That is a road none of us have been down.” Then he smiled. “I do trust you to know what you’re doing, though. A single mom would’ve normally sent you running the other way; instead, you must have really found something in her—your dumbass only needed to get over your insecurities to acknowledge it.”
“And who knows better than me that when you lose them, that’s when you find out exactly how stupid you were to doubt yourself in the first place.” I tipped my glass to my brother. “Thank God she’s giving me another chance. I only hope she’ll keep me around.”
“Well, let us all know how your McDonald’s date goes,” Alex said. “You’d better pretend to love every last bite, or Addison will toss you aside.”
“I should probably have her order for me,” I smiled, imagining I was sitting with them at McDonald’s and not here, getting my ass lectured.
“Good idea. Better dunk those chicken nuggets in the right sauce too,” Collin added.
“Hopefully, Addison picks ketchup.” Jake started laughing, dabbing the corners of his mouth with his napkin. “That would be ideal.”
“Disgusting,” I answered.
“The one condiment you hate,” Jake said.
“Can we move off the McDonald’s food menu, please?”
“So long as we get a detailed report from you,” Alex chimed in.
The rest of the evening went off-topic from my personal life and back to business as usual. We mainly discussed Jake’s video and Collin’s interview, but my mind could hardly stay focused as I thought about Avery and Addison. I knew the guys meant well by bringing up the fact that fucking with a single mom was no joke, and I whole-heartedly agreed with them.
If I couldn’t go all-in with Avery and her daughter, then I shouldn’t do it at all. I had no idea what Avery’s ex had put both of them through, but I understood well enough that if my bullshit got in the way, I could hurt them both. And hell if I’d do that to either one of them.
Chapter Nineteen
Avery
This day seemed to last forever. I hadn’t been able to get Jim out of my mind since being in his office yesterday. Aside from the fact that he was gorgeous and stole my heart from the moment he first interacted with Addison, he wanted another chance with me.
I didn’t even know what to do with that. I would have naturally turned