Chapter 41
MAX
Radio silence.
That’s what my brothers are giving me right now as they stare at me from across my dining table in my apartment, waiting for me to explain why I gathered them here urgently.
If I thought Nathan was mad about me calling him just as he was about to leave for his honeymoon, or “babymoon” as Arianna called it… fucking babymoon… pft… he’s going to go nuclear the minute I tell him about me and Paige.
“Spit it out, you have ten minutes, Max,” Nathan snaps, resting his arms on the table and locking his fingers together.
I drag my hand down my face. “You know how I asked to be removed from the Youngs’ case last week?” I start.
He nods. “Yes.”
I clear my throat nervously. “It was because I discovered who the woman at The Velvet Rooms was.”
“It was Paige, you already told us that on Saturday, and you did the right thing removing yourself as soon as you found out last week,” Eli jumps in.
I shake my head. “That’s the thing. I didn’t find out last week.”
Nathan’s eyes widen with shock as he works out what I’m about to confess.
“I’ve known for months and we’ve been sleeping together for months.” My posture goes limp, my bones dissolving away at the shame and enormity of what we did.
They all shout at me at the same time. “Jesus Christ.” Cole. “What the fuck?” Eli. “What the hell were you thinking?” Nathan.
Cole fires another question at me. “Is that who you’ve been sneaking off with at lunch?”
It’s what he suspected weeks ago in our text conversations.
“I wondered where the hell you were going. And what about all the afternoons you’ve been off?” Eli asks.
Shit, he’s noticed too.
“I’ve been with Paige.” I come clean.
“Why the fuck have I not noticed?” Nathan asks, looking puzzled. He’s usually very observant.
“Because you’ve been organizing a wedding and have a baby on the way,” I state, feeling stupid for pointing it out.
He glares at me and I shrink in my seat.
“Is that why you are never off your phone now too? You’re always texting.” Eli reveals how closely he’s been watching.
I nod, unable to talk. I’m so ashamed, and the room goes silent.
Eventually, I say, “We just sort of happened.” That’s partly true.
I made the move, but she didn’t exactly turn me away.
She wanted it all, wanted me. In the same way I did.
The chemistry between us was undeniable, and there’s no way we could ignore it.
“Right, your dick just sort of slipped out of your pants? Yeah, I can see how that happens,” Cole scoffs sarcastically.
Eli injects himself into the conversation again.
“Are you out of your damn mind? Sleeping with the enemy while you were in the middle of a case is a line I never thought you’d cross, Max.
You’ve compromised everything Dad built.
Do you realize how bad this looks if anyone finds out?
” He slams his hands on the table, then pushes his chair back and paces the floor angrily.
“You’ve opened us up to a lawsuit if your client challenges the agreed divorce settlement. ”
I bite back. “Only if Stella Young claims she was unfairly treated and our relationship influenced her settlement.” She’ll never know if we don’t tell her.
My brothers will never allow that. They’ll be contacting her as soon as they’ve read over the court documents to make their assessment.
“Paige and I never once spoke about the case outside of work.” We were too busy exploring each other’s bodies.
“And how exactly do we prove that?” Cole asks, sounding pissed at me.
“You have my word.”
“That’s not enough, and you know it, Max.” Nathan shakes his finger at me. “You put all of us at risk.” He begins listing every rule I’ve broken. “Professional conduct, professional disgrace, malpractice, breach of ethical duties, loyalty, and confidentiality.”
“I know, I know.” I hold my hands up in mock surrender, feeling stupid as fuck, panic threatening to swallow me whole.
Cole asks, “If you knew, why did you do it?”
“I just… I… I don’t know.” I don’t have an excuse. The only thing I have is that I wanted her, and I wanted to find out if the connection I felt between us was real and true. It was. It is. But my brothers will never accept that.
Nathan arches his neck back and eyes the ceiling, as if he’s unable to look at me. Any minute he’s about to really lose it. “You don’t fucking know?” he asks slowly, a time gap between each word.
Of course I know what I did. I wanted her, and I went after her, even though it was reckless.
At first, it was all about the thrill and the sex, but then something changed between us.
Paige and Alfie ended up taking permanent residence in my mind and my heart.
It caught me off guard. I didn’t see it coming, and it surprised me, too.
“I’m sorry,” I say. Two simple words that I’m not sure they will believe from me right now.
Eli steps up to the table and places his hands on the tabletop. He leans forward, looking intimidating. “Sorry doesn’t cut it and we can’t let that slide. You’re suspended, effective immediately. You’re out until we decide if we can ever trust you again.”
I’m paying the price for choosing her over my brothers and their punishment is fair.
“There’s more,” I admit.
“More?” Cole asks, looking even more shocked.
“It involves Griffin Holmes, Paige, and Alfie,” I inform them.
“Who’s Alfie?” Nathan asks curiously, jumping in quickly. Clearly, Eli never told Nathan or Cole about Alfie, who I was holding when he stopped by Paige’s the day she took ill at court.
“Paige’s sister’s baby. Paige is adopting him.” Well, she was until I fucked it up. I have to fix this. Stat.
Nathan tilts his chin up, squinting. “What does that have to do with Griffin?”
“He’s Alfie’s dad,” I say, then pause. “That’s what Marin, Paige’s sister, claims. On Saturday night, I pulled Griffin aside for an off-the-record conversation.
This morning, Paige was fired from Moore she’s an addict, and she used to work at a strip club.
” Paige would never want anyone to know that, but my brothers are a wall of discretion; they would never share that information.
“Griffin went to the strip club for his entertainment. With Marin. And today, when Paige was fired, Dalton Moore warned Paige to stay away from Griffin Holmes. Dalton had fucking video footage from the hotels Paige and I had been meeting up in, and photos. In twenty-four hours, Griffin managed to get all of that information. He saw us at the wedding together and went out of his way to try and destroy Paige’s reputation.
” I don’t care about mine. All I care about is her.
“Dalton even made Paige sign an NDA to keep her mouth shut about us so as not to cause a scandal or trigger an audit.” This is a fucking disaster and bigger than both of us.
“What did Griffin say to you when you spoke to him, Max? I need all the details.” Eli joins us back around the table.
“He didn’t say much after I asked him if he could help.
He laughed, patted me on the shoulder, wished me well, and told me not to believe fantasist addicts who work in strip clubs, but he would see what he could do about Alfie’s adoption.
But the thing is, I didn’t tell him about Marin being an addict, nor did I tell him about what she did for a living.
He gave himself away.” He’d clearly had one too many whiskeys.
I don’t think he even realized what he said.
“Shit,” Nathan gasps, knowing he’s caught between friendship and family loyalty.
I can tell Nathan is struggling with this. Griffin has been a good friend of his for many years.
“How do we prove Griffin is Alfie’s dad?” Cole asks.
Eli’s sharp mind jumps into action. “DNA? From Alfie. Can you ask Paige for it? And which treehouse did Griffin stay in on Saturday night at the ranch? Ask Mom if the sheets have been washed yet. If not, I know someone in forensics who owes me a favor. I can ask him to sweep the treehouse at the ranch.”
Fuck, that’s a great plan, but it’s Monday. Mom’s team are nothing but efficient; the sheets will have been laundered for sure. “That’s not even legal,” I state.
“We’re not going to court with whatever we find, Max.” Nathan jerks his head back, his face turning thunderous. “We’re going to play him at his own game. No one fucks with my family.”
What does Nathan have planned?
“Call Mom. Now.” He points to Cole, then points to Eli. “And you, call your forensics contact, and you.” He turns to me next. “I need Marin’s address and then call Paige.”
“Paige broke up with me.” It was over before we got to experience how good we could have been together. Paige hating me hurts more than I ever thought possible. “I can’t ask her for Alfie’s DNA.” She loathes me.
“Didn’t you just stay there?” Deep in thought, he steeples his long fingers together.
“Yeah.”
He holds my gaze, and I can tell he wants to chop me up into tiny pieces. Instead, he’s helping me when what he really should be doing is firing my ass, removing me as a partner, and cutting me off. “And did you hold Alfie?”
“I took care of him when Paige was sick.” Nathan’s brows fly up to his hairline in surprise. I would tell him I could give him a run for his money but now is not the time to fuck around. “I haven’t unpacked my bag yet.”
“Find the clothes you wore when you were there. You’d better hope there’s a hair of his on your clothes, or this could mess up our plan. Also, I need the name of the strip club Paige’s sister worked at.”
“Caspers,” I confirm. “And I have Marin’s address. I know where she’s living because I’m paying her rent.”
My brothers all stare at me in shock. “I did it for Paige.”
“Do you love her?” Nathan asks.
I let out a heavy sigh and remain silent.
I do love her; she’s the only woman I’ve ever loved, but I can’t say it out loud, not when I’ve never even told her, and probably never will now.
“She said she never wants to see me again.” My chest tightens.
“Just… fix the adoption. That’s all I’m asking. Fix what I screwed up. Please.”
Nathan lifts his cell phone off the dining table. “You’ll step back, no work, and let us fix the mess you made.”
“Who are you calling?” I ask, my voice low and defeated sounding.
“Dalton. Then I need to call my wife to explain why we’re delaying the babymoon she was excited about. Don’t be surprised if she wants to tear your spine out through your mouth. And you’re damn lucky we have our own jet and I can easily change the flight schedule.”
I groan. There’s another name to add to the list of women who hate me.
“Arianna loves me.” I try to make myself feel better. After she helped me uncover the lies my journalist ex-girlfriend fed her to try to bring down my family, we became close. She’s perfect for my brother. I admire the way she handles his grumpy ass. She’s the only woman I know who could do that.
“Arianna might be the only person who loves you right now. I can’t fucking believe what you’ve done.”
“Neither can I.” I pulled the trigger on my own life, dragging Paige down with me into chaos.
Nathan swipes and taps on the screen of his cell phone before holding it to his ear.
“Go.” He points at me. “Alfie’s hair. That’s what we need.
” He holds up his hand, stopping me when I’m about to respond.
“Dalton, good to hear your voice. How long has it been?” Dalton replies, making Nathan fake a laugh as he scowls at me and points his thumb over his shoulder, instructing me to leave.
I remove myself from around my dining table, feeling like I’ve been dismissed from the principal’s office, like some naughty teenager who’s been caught smoking around the gym block.
I’ll never tell anyone how bad I feel or how much my heart hurts.
Admitting that would make my love for Paige real, and I’d rather tear out my own heart and bleed silently than do it.
The weight of it all bores down on my chest as I walk down the hallway toward my bedroom. I lost her. I ruined everything.
My hand presses against my chest as I struggle to breathe.
Clutching the fabric of my shirt between my fingers, I rip it open, making the buttons fly everywhere, angry at myself for thinking I was some sort of hero.
No excuses. I messed up, and I’ll own it.
While I might not be able to fight for Paige and Alfie, my brothers will. For me.
I lift my overnight bag off my bedroom floor, glad I didn’t have time to wash it over the weekend.
Unzipping it, I frantically pull everything out and examine each piece of clothing, trying to find one of Alfie’s blond hairs, searching each one methodically.
“Shit.” I throw a T-shirt on the floor when I come up short. It’s hopeless. We have nothing.
Defeat overwhelms me as I plop myself heavily on the edge of the bed and rest my elbows on my knees.
If Paige loses Alfie, I… I can’t even bring myself to imagine what that would do to her, and I would rather die than watch that unfold.
I swipe my bag off the bed angrily and throw it across the room. As it lands with a thud, a flash of something white bounces out of it, making my brows dip in confusion.
Tilting my head to the side, I lift my ass off the bed and march over to a white scrap of cotton I don’t recognize and snatch it off the floor.
As I unfold the fabric between shaky fingers, a devious smile spreads across my face. It’s Alfie’s filthy white bib. Clearly it got mixed in with my dirty laundry. It’s drenched in his drool from teething and it’s pure DNA gold.
Griffin Holmes. Watch out. My brothers are coming for you.
God knows why they are helping me, because I don’t think they’ll ever trust me again.