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“Yeah, Red?”
“Thanks for listening last night.” Her pale skin pinks as she closes the door.
“Thanks for letting me,” I whisper, then walk out of the room with a lazy bulldog at my heels.
* * *
Istop by Hudson’s later that day to talk to him about the new investment firm, but his eyes glaze over before we finish page one of the presentation packet. “Seriously, brother. If you think it’s a good business, then I’m in. I just need to run it by Maddie.”
“No, you don’t.” My very pregnant sister-in-law waddles into the room and pours herself a glass of chocolate milk. “I could hear you guys from the other room. It sounds like a great idea.” She picks up the folder and flips through it. “Is everyone else on board?”
“Max, Becks, Scarlet, and Lenny have signed on. I still need to talk to Ashlyn, Amelia, and Jace. I want to keep this within the family. Not under King Corp. I want us to have complete control.” I run over a few key points and answer a few more questions before Maddie closes the folder.
“It’s your money, Hud. If you want to invest, invest.” She kisses his cheek and puts her glass in the dishwasher.
He grabs her by her waist... Or what I thinkusedto be her waist. I’m not sure. But he pulls her down on his lap and pushes his hand against her bump. And damn, I’m more jealous of my brother, and what he has, than I’ve ever been in my life.
“It’sourmoney, Mads. If you like it, then we’ll do it.” She winces and sucks in a breath.
“Contraction?” he asks as his entire body goes rigid.
Maddie blows out a breath, and I let go of the one I didn’t realize I’d been holding. “No. Not a real one. Just another Braxton-Hicks contraction. Speaking of...” She turns her face my way. “What’s going on with you and the good doctor, Sawyer?”
“What?” I ask, not sure what she’s talking about until I look at Hudson. “You’ve got a big fucking mouth, man.”
“Yeah, he does,” she agrees. “But I was there when she did the walk of shame from your bedroom a few weeks ago, remember? Not to mention, she’s my new ob-gyn. So I’ve had a few appointments with her now. I like her, Sawyer. She’s smart and funny, and I bet she doesn’t take any of your crap, does she?” Maddie grows more animated with each new thought, and I groan.
“When did you start acting like Lenny?” I ask, finding it hard to miss the comparison between the two.
“You mean overly involved?” Hudson chuckles, and Maddie elbows him.
“I blame all of you for this. I very happily minded my own business before I married into your family.” She moves off Hudson’s lap into the chair opposite him, making Hud laugh harder.
“Madison Kingston,” he gasps in an overdramatic, very Hudson fashion. “You little liar. Don’t act like you and your girls haven’t always been nosey little busybodies, constantly involved in each other’s lives. You didn’t get that frommyfamily. You got that fromyourfriends, long before you ever met me.”
“Whatever.” She refuses to look at him and focuses on me instead. “So... are you two dating?”
Are we?
“I’m not completely sure what we’re doing yet.” It may not be the clearest answer, but it’s the truth. “We’ve spent a lot of time antagonizing each other over the years. There’s been some shit communication. I think it might take Wren a little longer to get over that than me.”
Maddie inches forward until her belly bumps the table. A cute frown tugs at her lips as she adjusts the way she’s sitting until she’s comfortable. “Oh? Do you have a plan?”
I look from her to Hudson, then back.
Why not?
“No,” I admit, and she groans immediately, then cracks her knuckles.
“Okay, that’s the first thing we’ve got to work on.”
“Baby, I know you’re bored to death without work, but do you really think trying to fix my brother up with your obstetrician is a good idea? What if he pisses her off and she refuses to deliver the baby?”Fucking douchebag.
“Just because you’re not getting laid, Hudson Kingston, doesn’t mean I can’t help your brother with his love life.” She turns back to me with a wicked gleam in her eye. “Now, what’s her favorite flower?”
“Mads,” Hudson whines. “What do you mean,I’m not getting laid?”
Maddie ignores him and snaps her fingers in front of my face when I don’t answer fast enough. “Favorite flower, Kingston. What is it? You’ve known this girl forever. You have to have a clue.”
