Page 30 of Boss with Benefits (Boss of Seduction #6)
Brady had just finished picking up toys in the living room when he heard glass break.
He started for the hallway, but the sound of Axl’s voice stopped him in his tracks.
His eleven-year-old son was trying to explain something to his little sister.
The sound of her softly crying pulled at Brady’s heartstrings.
“Go tell Daddy what you broke,” Axl said. “He won’t get mad if you tell him the truth. If you hide it or lie about doing it, then he’ll get mad.”
Brady’s heart swelled with pride. Who said kids never listened to their parents?
Axl was legally his son now. He was as much Brady’s son as Britney was his daughter. Jessica had allowed him to adopt Axl years ago, after he legally changed his name to Brady Bishop so they could share a last name.
For months after their airport reunion, she hadn’t said a word about the name change. Just when he figured she’d forgotten, she bolted upright in bed and yelled, “That’s it!”
His heart had nearly jumped out of his chest. “What? Where? Is something wrong?”
That was when she explained her epiphany to him. Why should a woman always take the man’s name? Why didn’t the man ever take the woman’s name? Since he liked the name Bishop, he agreed.
In the present, he heard Axl say, “Go tell Daddy what you did.”
Brady quickly sat on the leather couch and waited.
A mini-version of Jessica rounded the corner with tears rolling down her little face.
He just wanted to scoop her up and hug her until she stopped crying.
But he waited for her to confess, because it was a good learning experience. “What’s wrong, honey?” he asked.
Her lower lip quivered. “I broke this.” She held a picture frame in her hand. The glass had fallen out. “It was an axident.”
He took the broken frame from her tiny hands. “You shouldn’t have picked it up. You could have cut yourself on the glass, sweetie. Did you cut yourself?”
She shook her head. “I’m sorry, Daddy. Are you mad at me?”
“Never.” He pulled her onto his lap and kissed her on the top of her wavy blond mop. “Thank you for telling me. That was a big girl thing to do, and I’m proud of you.”
The tears stopped, and she tried to smile. “Will Mommy be mad?”
“No. I’ll tell her what happened, and she’ll just be glad you didn’t cut yourself. Next time you accidentally break something, don’t pick it up. That’s our job.”
Britney put her arms around his neck, and he melted. He owed Jessica his life and everything in it for not giving up on him. When he thought about how close he had come to leaving the country and never seeing her again, he couldn’t breathe. He’d come so close to not having a little Britney to hug.
Jessica had tried to tell him he could never be like his father; Deacon told him the same thing, but he hadn’t been able to hear them over the grief of his past. He hadn’t believed he was a good guy. If it wasn’t for Jessica, he would be some clueless idiot living a lonely life with no one to love.
He should buy her something mega-expensive. A fancy car? The biggest diamond he could find? She deserved all that and so much more. Without her, he would be nothing.
He would have nothing.
The door opened, and Jessica came in with several grocery bags hanging from her arms. She had the plastic handles of one between her teeth.
He quickly set Britney aside and raced over to relieve his wife of her burden.
It didn’t matter if she had twenty grocery bags in the car, she would try to carry them all in on one trip.
He had tried to convince her several times over the years to hire a housekeeper. It’s not like they couldn’t afford it. But Jessica wanted to take care of her family. Their family.
They carried the bags to the kitchen together. She glanced at their daughter on her way there and asked, “What’s up with Britney? Has she been crying?”
“She broke a picture frame,” Brady said. He helped her unpack the groceries and put them away while filling her in on the details. She seemed as proud of Axl as he felt. “Aw, that is so adorable. I wish I’d been here.”
He wrapped his arms around her and nibbled on her neck while she put the milk in the fridge. “We have the two greatest kids in the world.”
“Want to make it three?”
He froze. “Are you pregnant?”
“Not yet. No. I was just thinking that maybe we should consider adding to our family. Britney is four now, and Axl has been really helpful with her lately. A baby wouldn’t be too hard on us.”
He spun around and started kissing her with the passion he still couldn’t restrain. “Let’s go make baby number three right now. I’m ready.”
“We can’t.” She rolled her eyes. “We have two kids in the house that need parental supervision.”
He headed for the kitchen door.
“Where are you going?” she asked.
“I’m calling Bridget to take them to a movie.” He took his cell phone out of his pocket. “Get in the bedroom, woman, and put on something sexy.”
“You aren’t my boss, Brady.” He started to turn around, return to the kitchen, and straighten her out on that point.
Sometimes she was the boss, but when it came to bedroom activities, he was the master.
That was why they called it the master bedroom.
Before he could get back to the kitchen, she yelled, “Ask Bridge if she can take them out for pizza after the movie. Two hours isn’t long enough. ”
He smiled as he lifted the cell phone to his ear.
Did you enjoy Jessica and Brady’s story?
There are several books in the Boss of Seduction series. The Business Engagement; Mistress by Proxy; The Baby Contract; The Bargain Bride; Raw Deal.
Soon, you will be able to read Mrs. CEO . Kelly Evans never wanted to see Sebastian Drakos again. Then he drops in to ruin her date and make her a proposition she can’t refuse. His grandmother is dying. He needs to present her with a bride-to-be, and Kelly is the only one who can fool his family.