Ignite: a Billionaire Second Chance romance (3 page)

M
ax parked
the pick up and walked slowly back to the house. He would have to keep Brooke silent about the baby until they left for the airport in the morning. He wished he could have followed Cyn home and spent the night with her.

He opened the back door and steeled himself for an evening with his conniving
fiancee.
Jo glanced up as he walked in and handed him his cellphone.

“You had a call from New York while you were out. Brooke wanted your phone but I kept it.”

Rhys walked into the kitchen and took an apple from a bowl on the counter.

“What’s this about a call from New York?”

Jo glanced at the younger of the King brothers and smiled. She handed Max his phone and turned to Rhys.

“Nothing important. Come have a seat, Rhys, and let me get you something to eat. I imagine you and Max have some catching up to do.”

Max stared at his younger brother.

“I still can’t understand why you brought her here, Rhys.”

Jo busied herself setting out sandwich makings, her ears attuned to the conversation of the boys she’d helped raise.

“Come on Max, she was calling or at the office every other day wondering when you were coming back. She happened to be standing in front of my desk when I got your call about staying here a little longer.”

Max rubbed his temple. Rhys had never been able to say no to a pretty face and Brooke used him to get to Max whenever they’d been in an off again stage in their relationship and she wanted to come running back.

Rhys had the same dark good looks that marked him as a King. Max often wondered why Brooke hadn’t just taken up with his brother but he suspected they were too much alike, always looking out for number one. Rhys would be number one in New York soon, but Brooke wouldn’t know that. Yet. Because Rhys didn’t now it either.

Oh, he wanted it, that was clear. He seemed to be the only one in New York happy that Max had stayed away.

“So, who called from the office? Cause if it was Andrews, he’s only interested in moving up the food chain,” Rhys said as he accepted the plate Jo handed him.

Max laughed.

“Is he any different from anyone else who’d like to move into the top spot?”

Rhys shrugged his shoulders.

“We all know the only one who could come close to filling your shoes is me. You know I’d be happy to do it, Max. You can take as much time as you like here. Cyn would happy about that, I bet.”

Max sighed. He had known Rhys wouldn’t beat around the bush with him about a promotion and he’d be more than happy to hand over the keys to his brother, but with Brooke’s little announcement he’d have to go back to New York tomorrow anyway.

“On that note, let me return this call from the office and we’ll talk. I can see you at the helm in New York but there’s a lot to be done before that becomes a reality. And any talk of Cyn’s happiness needs to stop. At least for now.”

Rhys nodded and bit into his sandwich. He was certain he’d seen something between Cyn and his brother earlier when they were in the driveway. Seemed odd to him that his brother had lingered in Belleport until he saw that kiss in the driveway.

Max rose and left the house again. He called their pilot and told him to have the jet ready for a return trip tomorrow.

He hung up and checked his recent calls. Rhys had been correct. It was the private line of Jock Andrews. He was the only competition Rhys had for that promotion. Max smiled and returned the call.

“Jock, what’s happening? I’ve been busy here at home and missed your call.”

He could hear the other man’s satisfaction that he’d returned the call in his voice.

“Nothing too important, boss. Just wanted to check in and see if there’s anything I can do for you.”

Max nodded. He was definitely hoping to compete with Rhys for top dog.

“As a matter of fact, I’ll be back in New York tomorrow. I want to tie up some loose ends and figure out my next steps. I look forward to meeting with you in the coming days, get a feel for how things have been while I was away.”

Max caught the disappointment in Jock’s voice before he could hide it.

“Good news, good news. Is Rhys coming back with you?”

Max turned and stared at the house before he replied.

“Not sure, Jock. He might want to stay and visit mama for a little while longer.”

With that, Max hung up and breathed a sigh of relief. At least now he had an excuse to get Brooke back to New York. Not that he’d need much of one. Belleport wasn’t her cup of tea.

Rhys left his seat and stepped to the back door. He watched as Max walked back up the hill. He knew it had to be Jock Andrews calling to kiss ass.

He knew he shouldn’t worry. Max would turn over his position to him should he ever decide to step down and live the good life he had more than earned. But it never hurt to have an ace or two in his pocket. Hopefully Brooke would be that ace, or perhaps it would be Cyn? He smiled as he watched his brother open the back door.

One way or another, Rhys was certain of his future at the helm of the huge and successful King conglomerate. Max could marry Brooke or Cyn, he didn’t care which, and live happily ever after chasing their offspring and being a dutiful husband.

He would enjoy the bachelor life as a powerful and wealthy man. Not that he didn’t already, but being CEO of his father’s company would open far more doors, bedroom and boardroom, his favorite kinds.

B
rooke paced
Max’s room not knowing how to feel about his news that they would return to New York come morning.

She wouldn’t miss this small town, even though she’d only been in it for less than twenty four hours. The housekeeper was not impressed with her and Mrs. King was distant after Cyn left.

Rhys had warned her about Cyn as they passed in the hallway earlier but Brooke had assured him the woman was no match for her, not even in the same league.

She turned to Max now as he stood by the open door. She wondered why he hadn’t come over and given her a kiss or closed the door and tried to seduce her. His lust for her body had been insatiable only months before his father died.

Perhaps he was depressed at the man’s passing? She threw her hair back and smiled at him as she sat on his bed and removed her shoes.

“Come sit by me, Max. I won’t bite, unless you want me to,” her voice had gone husky with desire but Max held his ground.

“Not in my mother’s house, Brooke.”

Brooke rolled her eyes and drew the lapel of her dress aside and ran a long red fingernail along the creamy skin beneath.

“This house is enormous, Max. Your mother won’t hear a thing. I promise to bite my tongue and whisper. It’s been too long since you made love to me.”

Any other time, before today when his heart sang as Cyn whispered that she wanted him before he buried himself to the hilt inside her, Max would have been tempted by the woman before him. But now she appeared as a trap, a snare to squeeze as much money as she could from him. A thief ready to steal the life he wanted.

His heart, and his body, belonged to Cyn. He’d allowed himself the pleasure of Brooke’s company, the appearance of a relationship, a false version of love and now he knew better.

“Listen, Brooke. I’m grieving and I have business on my mind. I’m not in the mood for hot sex in my mother’s house. Besides, we’ll be back in New York tomorrow. Surely you can wait another day?”

Max had no intention of ever touching Brooke again but he wouldn’t say that now. The last thing he needed was for her to start in about the supposed baby she was carrying.

Brooke bit her lip and continued caressing her own body. She decided she could have him on the jet tomorrow and join the mile high club.

“I suppose you’re right,” she said as she placed both her hands on her abdomen. “With our own baby coming on top of the loss of your father, I hadn’t thought how stressed you might be. At least lie down and let me rub your back.”

Max dropped his head and sighed.

“I need to walk for a while Brooke, think things through. I want to keep the news of the baby between us. Mama doesn’t need to get her hopes up right now.”

He turned to leave but she hurried over and held him in her arms.

“It’s okay, Max, darling. You have a lot to think about now. I won’t make demands and I won’t say a word about our little one. But soon you’ll have to make me and our baby your top priority.”

Brooke pulled his head down and kissed him, but he stepped away. Rhys stood in the shadows of the hallway a moment longer before continuing down the hall.

So Brooke was going to have a baby. Funny Max didn’t mention that fact earlier. And that he refused to make love to her when any normal man would have hit it just on the general principle, grieving or not.

It had to be because of Cyn. Max had warned him against bringing Brooke here because he’d been seeking solace with his old high school sweetheart and had fallen in love. Happened to the best of them. How was Max going to handle Brooke, though? They were returning to New York tomorrow and Max hadn’t said a word to him. Or to their mother. No mention of a baby and the news of their engagement had been a surprise.

Something told him his brother was in over his head and damage control would distract him from the family business. Rhys smiled, knowing it wouldn’t be much longer until his dreams became reality.

C
yn soaked
in her tub until the water was tepid and the bubbles had lost their enthusiasm. She had lingered in the memory of Max’s hands and lips, the feel of the truck against her back making her recall those hot summer nights of her youth before he thrust himself deep inside her turning her world upside down in the space of a few seconds.

She wasn’t the least bit concerned with Brooke. She and Max had undeniable chemistry. Cyn knew Max had never made love to Brooke anywhere more exciting than a penthouse suite. She was just a little too precious for more than that.

She stretched her long, tan, muscled legs and laughed at the idea of her Max married to that princess from the Upper East Side. Max was the whole package, as at home in hiking unknown trails as he was making those high stakes deals and growing the King fortune four times over. The last thing he needed was a grasping woman.

His tender touches and the lust in the garage told her all she needed to know. Max would stay in Belleport and they could travel the world, always having roots when they decided to come back home.

She thought back to Brooke asking her to help with the wedding. The poor dear hadn’t realized her offer was merely a plea that Cyn understood quite well.

Stay away from my man
may as well have been written across her pretty little forehead.

Cyn dried herself slowly, imagining her hands were his strong, gentle ones. She closed her eyes and allowed her hand to linger where his fingers and lips had promised more than just memories of a love strengthened by time.

The kiss he had placed on her forehead. When he said someone inside might see they were in love. Cyn breathed deeply to calm her racing heart. Those words had been a surprise. To hear his husky voice admit what was between them.

She walked slowly across her bedroom and glanced out into the darkness wondering what tomorrow would bring. She didn’t want to go near the Kings for a few days but she did promise Amelia she would help plan the high school winter formal.

She sighed and shook her head. Ignoring the Kings was not an option. Did she want to fight another woman for Max? Cyn laughed aloud at that thought.

“If you didn’t want him why did you wrap your legs around him in the garage like a horny teenager?” she mused aloud as she pulled back her bed covers.

Her heart was light as her head hit the pillow. She wished Max was there beside her instead of at the King place. She wondered if his mind was on their forbidden tryst in the garage.

M
ax excused
himself and went to his father’s study that night, claiming he had work to get done before they left for New York.

Brooke pouted upstairs, knowing that Cyn was the reason he wouldn’t touch her while they were here. How fortunate he had been called back to New York. If she had waited one more day for him to return she wouldn’t have learned of this Cyn woman and she wouldn’t have come up the baby idea either.

All in all it wasn’t a complete loss. She drifted off to sleep, sure in her position and the chains she would place upon Max. If he decided to visit his mama from time to time, she would always be with him or send their child along to keep Cyn at bay.

Downstairs Max sipped his cognac and wondered how his life could turn upside down in just a few short weeks. He was Maxwell King, one of the richest and most powerful men in the country. He’d been around the world so many times in search of the good life.

This whole time, the woman who was meant for him had been right here. Her long curtain of black hair. The curves that had perfected her body. Her concern for his mother and family, staying close to them over the years.

She had her own business, never content to work for anyone. And her honesty, the way she’d told him to call her when he was free. He laughed at that memory. No woman on the planet would toss out such a line to him and drive away.

Certainly not Brooke. When he thought of her, he hoped and prayed she was not truly pregnant and if she was that he was not the father. Brooke wasn’t exactly head over heels in love with him, he knew. She wanted all that came with being Mrs. Maxwell King. And she wanted it badly enough to lie, follow him around like a lapdog, and enlist his younger brother’s help whenever she could.

Brooke was a material girl. And all he’d ever be to her would be a bank, even their child would be a commodity and he hated to think of it that way.

No, he’d see her to New York, do what had to be done for her and for the business and hurry back to Cyn a free man, if she’d have him.

His father’s death had changed something deep within. He wanted a life of adventure with the person he loved most. He wanted to see Cyn’s belly grow with their children. He wanted to give her a beautiful house and everything her heart desired. He had his own fortune now and his wild days were behind him. He’d found home in her arms. And it was a damned sight more exciting than any of the other things he’d tried in his playboy years.

No, a money hungry liar like Brooke would never understand and so he’d have to give her what she wanted to a point. There would be no wedding. He still held most of the cards and she’d have to work a deal with him or walk away hoping she could do better on her own.

Rhys knocked lightly on the door and Max welcomed him inside. It was good to see his brother come back home. He’d only spent the day of their father’s funeral before leaving again and their mama had needed them both.

Rhys sat lazily in a chair by the fireplace and accepted a drink from his brother.

“I imagine Brooke is happy to go back to New York.”

Max stared at his brother.

“How did you know?”

Rhys smiled coldly.

“I overheard your conversation earlier. Don’t you think mama would like to know about a baby, Max?”

Max stood and paced the room.

“There likely isn’t one. That’s why we’re going back tomorrow. Brooke can take me along to her doctor visits and I can know whether she is telling the truth, even then I’d want a paternity test since we weren’t exactly monogamous.”

Rhys sipped his drink.

“Throwing her over for Cyn might not be such a good move, Max. Cyn is nothing but this little town we grew up in. She owns a salon, that’s about it. At least Brooke comes from a more desirable background.”

Max knocked his brother’s drink from his hand.

“You keep your mouth shut about Cyn. You don’t know the first thing about her. And if you think Brooke’s so great, you can marry her.”

Rhys laughed then.

“Me, marry Brooke? I’d rather not put my dick where my brother’s has been, thank you.”

Max scowled and stalked away from Rhys before a real fight started.

“Once you step down and promote me, the world is my oyster, brother. And you will, you know. I have secrets about you. Ones that Cyn might like to know and ones that Brooke would pay to know. You see, I’ve had to fend off all the pretenders while you stayed here
grieving.
Done with that. Rhys King is next in line. It’s my turn.”

Max stared at his brother, disgusted by what he had become. There was never any doubt Rhys would be the next in line. Why did he think he needed secrets about his big brother to get what he wanted?

“I’m out of here before I hit you in the head, son. You better keep your mouth shut. Your name isn’t on that corner office just yet.”

Max left the room and walked out to the garage. He wondered if he could push the pick up far enough down the road so no one would hear it start. He knew where Cyn lived. A night with her would help him get through his time in New York breaking free from Brooke.