Chapter 9 #2
Resisting the temptation to get into a verbal sparring match with Jill that she would lose because, hello, lawyer, Maggie went into the kitchen, where Brayden had been given a beer.
The men seemed to have immediately accepted him into their tight-knit tribe, which gave Maggie an odd feeling that she couldn’t quite describe.
“Do you want to meet Kate and Poppy?” she asked him.
“I’d love to.”
Filled with misgivings—what in the hell had she been thinking when she invited him here?
—Maggie led him into the great room, where the others waited eagerly to meet the man whom Maggie had stammered over.
Ugh. She hadn’t been thinking. After Ethan’s text earlier, her brain had been scrambled, leading her to confide in her new employee and invite him to a family event.
She really had no business trying to be anyone’s boss. Clearly, she sucked at it.
“Brayden, meet my sisters, Kate and Jill, as well as Taylor and her daughter, Georgia. And, of course, the star of the day, Miss Poppy Harrington Matthews.”
“Great to meet you all.” To Kate, he added, “Congratulations.”
“Thanks,” Kate said. “Great to meet you, too. We’ve heard wonderful things about your work.”
“That’s nice to hear.” Maggie could see him making an effort not to be starstruck while meeting two of the biggest names in the music business.
Of course, Kate and Taylor were used to people being bowled over by them. Maggie had been flummoxed the first time she met Buddy and Taylor, but by now, she was used to being around them.
He glanced at Poppy, still out cold in Georgia’s arms. “She’s gorgeous.”
“Thank you,” Kate said. “We’re madly in love.”
“I can see why.”
“How’re you feeling, Kate?” Maggie asked.
“Tired, sore, elated, relieved that it’s over and it all went well.”
“Ready to do it again?” Jill asked.
Kate groaned. “Shut your filthy mouth.”
“What?” Jill asked, laughing. “You said you were having two in two years because Reid is getting old.”
“I don’t want to talk about that tonight.”
“On that note, I think I’ll rejoin the guys in the kitchen,” Brayden said. “So nice to meet you all, and congratulations again.”
“Thank you, Brayden,” Kate said. “Nice to meet you, too. Happy to have you on the Matthews House team.”
“I’m very happy to be there. Thanks for the opportunity.”
“All thanks go to Maggie. Your program is all hers.”
“That’s what I heard.” Brayden gifted Maggie with a warm smile and returned to the kitchen.
For long moments after he walked away, the others were quiet, each of them giving Maggie inquisitive looks.
“So, um, that’s Brayden, the horse guy.”
“Uh-huh,” Kate said.
Another long silence.
“Isn’t anyone going to say it?” Georgia asked. “That guy is hot AF.”
“I’m almost afraid to ask what AF stands for,” Taylor said.
Georgia grinned. “Hot as—”
Taylor’s eyes went wide. “Stop! Not in front of Poppy.”
Georgia rolled her eyes at her mother. “Puhleeze. She’s not even a day old. We can still swear in front of her.”
“No, we can’t. I blame the older ones for ruining her.”
“Back to Brayden,” Georgia said. “Hot AF to the one millionth power.”
Maggie felt her face get very warm and probably very red, too, and wanted to swear in frustration. Rather than swear in front of the baby, though, she shrugged. “I hadn’t noticed.”
The other women dissolved into hysterics, even Georgia, that traitor.
“Like hell you didn’t notice,” Jill said between gasping laughs.
“Shut up,” Maggie hissed. “He’ll hear you.”
“Oh, relax,” Kate said. “He won’t know why we’re laughing.”
“Sure, he won’t. He leaves the room, and you lose it laughing. Why would he think that has anything to do with him?”
They made a pathetic attempt to pull themselves together.
“So, Mags,” Kate said. “That’s Brayden the horse whisperer.”
“I believe we’ve covered that already.”
“What we haven’t yet covered,” Jill said, slipping into lawyer mode, “is why he’s here with you.”
“I asked him if he wanted to come meet you guys. That’s all there is to it.”
“Huh,” Jill said. “Interesting.”
Maggie stood up. She’d hoped for a chance to hold Poppy, but she wasn’t sticking around for an inquisition. “Gotta run.”
“You just got here,” Kate said.
“Big day tomorrow. Lots going on.” Maggie ran her fingers over Poppy’s soft cheek, careful not to disturb her. “She really is perfect.”
“Thanks, Mags. You don’t have to go. We won’t bust your chops. Too much.”
Maggie was torn between wanting to get out of there and wanting to hold the baby.
Taylor helped to make the decision for her when she told Georgia to turn Poppy over to Maggie because they needed to get going.
Maggie held out her arms, and Georgia reluctantly transferred the baby to her.
She snuggled the baby into her chest while gazing down at the perfect little face, remembering other babies who’d come into her life—her baby twin cousins, Owen and Olivia, now twelve, and her identical twin brothers, John and Rob, who were turning eleven this year.
They’d grown up fast, and this little one would, too.
Gazing down at the baby’s perfect little face, Maggie was thankful she’d be close by for Poppy’s childhood, even if Poppy’s mother and aunt were a pain in Maggie’s ass.