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After we finished dinner, Ashely disappeared upstairs and Mom brought us into the living room. “I am going to be in the area doing a little shopping for Friday tomorrow. Can I take you handsome boys to lunch?”
“That would be great, Mom. Come in any time since you’ll end up talking to the entire floor,” Brent teased her as I laughed. “Is Ash coming with you?”
“If she’s awake, I’ll try to drag her along,” she smiled as we looked at each other. We stayed up talking for a while, enjoying the quiet time with her and trying not to think about work. It would be here soon enough and it was nice to relax for a change and just stay up talking.
Looking back, we hadn’t done that enough with Mom before this. We were always busy. Now that Dad was gone, it made me appreciate these moments so much more. We finally went to bed, knowing that we’d be tired in the morning but happy to have time to talk to her.
CHAPTER 20
Brent
We dragged ourselves in the following morning and grabbed coffee at the small stand just outside the door. I had the idea to grab a cafe mocha for Jane, since girls seemed to like those kinds of drinks. I added it to the order, shrugging when Brent gave me a curious look. “It’s a nice thing to do,” I defended my action as he raised an eyebrow.
I told Brent not to entertain any ideas about Jane, but she was gorgeous in a much different way than Cecile and Veronica was. They were experienced and oozed sensuality, particularly Veronica. She was as free a woman as any that I’d ever met and that was saying a lot.
Jane was the sweet, country girl and I had half a mind to think she was still a virgin. I didn’t doubt that men hit on her all the time with those eyes and her curvy body, but Jane didn’t seem to be the one-night-stand kind of girl. That made her a great assistant for us but I didn’t like the fact that I was attracted to her, as well as my brother.
I carried the coffee into the elevator and smiled at her when she glanced up at me. “I brought you a coffee,” I offered as she smiled widely. “I hope you like mochas.”
“I do. They’re my favorite. Thank you.” A flush spread over her cheeks as I observed her and Brandon walked up behind me.
“You’re welcome to work in the office today if you’d like.” He offered with a grin as I glanced back at him.
“Sure. I can ask questions that way since I hit a few snags yesterday.” She grinned and we walked inside of the office as she gathered her stuff together. We took our seats and she came to sit at the smaller desk with her coffee in hand, filling the air with the scent of chocolate in addition to our strong brew.
“This was your father’s office?” Jane asked hesitantly as we worked and I glanced at Brandon.
“It was. Hence the family pictures that we left up. It makes me think about him.” I smiled as I glanced around.
“It’s a great space,” she offered as I nodded. “Did you come here as kids?”
“Here and there. Once we got older, other things distracted us,” Brandon told her with a smirk on his face. She looked at him and frowned for a moment as I watched the wheels turning in her head. It would be easy to google us and see our story, something I wouldn’t be surprised about at all. People did it all the time.
Jane returned to her work, entering order after order with a few pauses as she figured something out. She’d think deeply about what she needed to do and smile brightly when she figured it out. I sensed that she was an independent woman hidden in a sweet southern girl and it turned me on more. I was seeing a couple of girls when I could, but nobody special and I craved a girl with a heart and a mind.
Wait…what? Was the innocent assistant more appealing to me than the past two?
We worked through the morning, and she got us all some more coffee for the break before we got back into that. We asked her questions, and she spoke lovingly of her father and other family members that were gone now. She talked about Tennessee, admitting that she lived in a smaller town than she first said.
Just after twelve, there was a tap at the door and our mother walked into the room. We looked at her as she looked around the space with emotional eyes for a moment before they took in the three of us. “Oh, hello there.” She walked right over to Jane and offered her hand, introducing herself.
“It’s nice to meet you, Ma’am.” Jane smiled brightly as she shook her hand. “I’m Jane Drury and I just started as their assistant. It was kind of being in the right place at the right time.”
“They didn’t mention another assistant. It’s wonderful to meet you. Where are you from?” Mom asked her and I could see her tucking Jane under her wing and taking care of her already.
“I moved here from Tennessee about four years ago. I came with a company that sadly closed, and I was lucky enough to hear about this position.” She glanced at us with a flush on her face as Brandon leaned back.
“She’s coming to lunch with us,” he said under his breath as I nodded.
The four of us left about fifteen minutes later, with Mom leading Jane ahead of us as she walked towards her favorite Thai place. We watched them bond as they chatted and Brandon let his eyes roam over Jane’s body. “I don’t know if this is good or not, Brent. Mom is obviously crazy about her and she’s going to be at our house for Christmas with that beautiful smile.
”
“I know. I know,” I assured him as Mom turned towards the restaurant, at which point I stepped forward to open the door for them. Mom smiled at me as she and Jane ducked inside while Brandon slipped past me with his obnoxious laugh. I followed them to a table in the corner and sat beside Jane as Brandon sat by Mom. We ordered and sipped water as Mom brought up Christmas and asked if Jane had plans.
“My mama is in town. We were just going to have a small dinner at my apartment,” Jane replied as I watched Mom shake her head slowly.
“Oh, honey. We’re having a big feast at our house with lots of family, and you’re both welcome to come on over. It’s just the two of you?” She asked as Jane nodded.
