One Night Stand With My Husband’s Brother

“Heavens, Mackenzie! It hurts that you did not bother to inform us of your arrival at Greenville, or the fact that you now work for Chase here. He’s such a sweet soul, is he not?” As Eleanor laughed and brushed Chase’s chest, Chase turned to look at Mackenzie.

She was still on her feet, which was more than he had expected of her. He tilted his neck to find Jeffrey staring at Mackenzie, but not with the rage and anger he had expected.

There was something different about his half brother, something softer. He looked at Mackenzie with a deep sense of longing in his eyes.

Chase wasn’t comfortable, at all.

“This family loves you so much, Mackenzie. It’s so good to see you.”

Mackenzie watched Eleanor radiate with her elegant smile. If she didn’t know better, she would have thought Eleanor was genuinely happy to see her.

The person she did not understand was Jeffrey. She had thought he would have grabbed her and held her by her neck. Instead, he was walking towards her with a soft look in his eyes.

He was barely inches away from her when Chase sprang up in front of her, putting a bridge between her and Jeffrey. It was one she was grateful for. She wasn’t sure if she could keep herself standing if Jeffrey came close to her.

Jeffrey took one glance at Chase, before looking over his shoulder to Mackenzie.

“It’s good to see you again, Kenzie.”

Mackenzie’s jaw clenched. He was calling her by her nickname. What did that even mean?

“There is no time, father. We should get moving. The president would be there soon,”

He looked up at the evening sky.

“It’s already getting dark.” Chase continued, still standing between Jeffrey and Mackenzie. Hell would have to freeze over before he allowed Jeffrey get anywhere close to her.

“Yes, yes, of course.” Richard replied, smiling to his family.

“Let’s get going everyone. We will save the pleasantries for later.”

Jeffrey took a step backwards, but Eleanor moved to Mackenzie and pulled her in for a hug.

Mackenzie froze. Eleanor’s hug was tight, too tight to be genuine.

Chase saw Mackenzie stiffen, and wished he had been quick enough to protect that contact too.Property belongs to Nôvel(D)r/ama.Org.

His heart tugged at his chest. She was stronger than he had thought she would be.

Jeffery and Eleanor took Eleanor’s army green Range Rover, while Chase and Richard rode the black Tesla. Mackenzie, as a staff, was put in a different vehicle.

Chase settled into the car, but could not stop himself from glancing at the driver’s side mirror every ten seconds.

“She’s not going to disappear, you know? You don’t have to try to suck her in with your eyes.” Chase heard his father say.

He shrugged and looked away from the mirror, before he turned to his father.

“You’re one to talk, father. Did you really have to come with me? Or get the whole family? I would have done this on my own.”

Richard smiled at his son. He could understand Chase’s worry, but he knew that his son was also worried about something…no, someone else.

“You’re right, you’re right. But, we have to respect authorities. The president is coming with his family, wife and child, it is only polite that I come with mine. Sending you to address the president’s family alone when mine is present in this same city would be an insult. And the Axfords do not insult power, it’s what makes us so powerful.”

Richard reached for his son’s right shoulder and tapped it gently. Chase continued to watch his father smile. When Richard turned away from him, Chase tore his gaze from his father’s face and stared down at the phone in his hands.

*****

It was cold in the car, but not cold enough to quench the fire she could feel burning on her head and beneath her feet.

All of Mackenzie’s efforts to stay calm had proven futile. The two people she had fought hard to avoid were with her tonight, and she would have to get through one evening with them. They knew she was in Greenville now, how long would it be until they knew everything else?

Her fingers shook violently even as she pressed them against her thighs.

When her phone chimed on her lap, Mackenzie reached for it with a speed that shocked her. She glanced at the screen and found a message from Chase.

“I’m here, Mackenzie. And I’m proud of you.”

A smile stole across her cheeks. For some reason, knowing he was by her side gave he the boldness to fight. She raised her head and looked ahead. Her smile broadened when she caught sight of his car.

She knew he was in there, and he was thinking about her.

******

Meanwhile, Jeffrey remained quiet for most of the journey. He could not get Mackenzie’s beautiful image out of his head, no matter how hard he tried.

Eleanor turned to her son and found him staring absentmindedly at his shoes. She should have been annoyed – perhaps she was – but she was more amused.

She threw her head back in laughter, and Jeffrey turned to look at her, his right brow corked in a silent query.

“You know, I had thought you would raise hell to earth after seeing Mackenzie stand beside that bulldozer of a brother you have. I had never imagined that you would melt like ice in a desert, looking at her like a lost puppy drenched in rain. Absolutely ridiculous.” She waved her right hand at the absurdity of it all while she laughed.

Jeffrey still did not speak. He ignored his mother’s teasing and turned to the window.

Eleanor was not impressed by her son’s silence, not in the slightest bit.

Her laughter died in a matter of seconds.

“Look, Jeffrey. You have to be clear on something so I can know what I am doing. Do you want the kids or Mackenzie? For heaven’s sake, son, do you even know what you want?!”

“I want both, mother!”

Eleanor gasped and fell backwards on reflex. She had not expected the sudden outburst, especially as he had been very silent.

“I want both my kids and Mackenzie. I am so mad, mother. I am so angry that she kept my children away from me for so long, but how can I blame her?” He buried his head in both his palms.

Eleanor watched her son’s shoulders fall.

“It’s all my fault. I was terrible to her, and it’s all because of you, mother.” He raised his head and glared at his mother.

“You were the one who made me do all those things mother. I should have treated her better.”

Eleanor rolled her eyes and folded her arms underneath her chest.

“Can you be a man for once in your life, Jeffrey? You were supposed to be the one by your father’s side in this meeting, and not Chase! But you never ever take advantage of the opportunities that I create for you!”

Eleanor found it very annoying. She was doing everything she could to give him a place in the family, yet he was worried about a peasant and her bastard children.

Jeffrey’s hard eyes softened immediately. He reached for his mother’s hands and held them firmly. Eleanor glared at him, her eyes searched his and she found him pleading, begging.

“I’ll be a better son to you, mother. I swear I’ll do whatever you want me to do. But you need to help me get Mackenzie and my kids back, you need to.”

It seemed as though he was hell bent on making her furious. Eleanor pulled her hands away from his, a deep scowl on her face.

“Can you even hear yourself, Jeffrey Axford? You want to get Mackenzie back? How do you think that would happen with your brother hovering above her like a mother eagle, huh?”

She paused to catch her breath, and because she needed to calm herself. There was nothing she hated more than having to yell.

“Chase is interested in Mackenzie, son. I can see the flame that burns in his eyes when he looks at her. Why do you think you have a chance?”

“I know Mackenzie, mother. She is too prude to get in a relationship with her ex-husband’s brother. I was her first, remember?”

Eleanor hissed and looked away from him. The faith he had in Mackenzie made her sick to her stomach.

“Chase can chase her around for years to come, but she would never heed. I know Mackenzie, she’s too good for that. And I…”

“It’s enough!” Eleanor cried out.

She had heard enough. One more mention of Mackenzie from Jeffrey, and she was certain her ears would begin to bleed.

She sucked in a deep breath before she continued.

“I’ve heard enough. Let’s just start from the kids first, okay? Perhaps Richard would give you the ten percent he promised when we get them.”

“I don’t care about that, mother. I just want my kids back.”

“Have you lost your mind, boy?” Eleanor peered at him.

Jeffrey stubbornly pouted.

“I don’t know. I don’t know anything anymore, besides the fact that I want…I need Mackenzie.”

Eleanor ignored his last statement and continued speaking.

“I will call my P. I team.” She reached into her bag for her phone.

“I need to conduct a DNA test on both the kids. Before you start a fight, you need to know who you’re fighting and what you’re fighting for, my boy.”

She started to type on her phone and Jeffrey watched her in silence.

“When we have proof that the kids are yours, we can come to an agreement with Mackenzie. If she refuses, then we can imply force.”

Jeffrey, on the other hand, believed they could try to talk it out with Mackenzie. He made it clear to his mother that he had plans to get closer to Mackenzie through the kids, but Eleanor paid him no mind.

She called her team and laid out instructions. She wanted a DNA test ran on the twins with Jeffrey’s DNA, and she wanted the result in two days.

When that was settled, she ended the call and turned to look at her son. He squinted his brows at her.

“You knew about the kids already?”

“Of course, I did. I just thought they were her bastards.”

Jeffrey’s fists and jaw clenched.

“Now you know better, mother. So do not address them as bastards. The kids are mine, and Mackenzie is mine.” He thought back to Chase, and his frown deepened.

“All mine.”

Eleanor scoffed and shook her head.

“Why can’t you be like your mother for once? You’re getting more like your father everyday, and I’ll be lying if I don’t say it’s getting me pissed, boy, real pissed.”

Jeffrey did not bother to speak. He turned to his window and stayed silent, while Eleanor heaved a sigh and sank into her seat.