THE BILLIONAIRE'S DANCE(Billionaire Bachelors #2)(27)

“Now the war’s on,” Alex stated before a massive water fight erupted. When the brothers all got together, it was like they were teenagers once again. They had a bond stronger than most siblings and all three of them would take a bullet for one another. They knew they were so close due to being raised by phenomenal parents.

“Ok, ok, I call a truce,” Lucas finally said, while dragging himself out of the water. Mark and Alex followed. The three of them settled down on the soft grass and enjoyed the sounds of nature all around them.

“So how are things with your wife and amazing son going?” Lucas asked Alex.

“Things are great. Jacob is growing like a weed. I can’t believe how important he is to me. I can even imagine having about ten more of him running around,” Alex said with true fondness for his son.

“And what about Jessica?” Mark asked.

Alex hesitated for a moment. He didn’t really know how to describe his relationship with his wife. He knew if he told his brothers it was none of their business they’d back off and leave him alone but it would feel good to talk about his conflicted emotions.

“Honestly, it’s really complicated. We married because basically I didn’t give her any choice. She had my son, which she kept from me,” he said with an edge to his voice. He was still unhappy she hadn’t told him about the pregnancy. “Somewhere along the line though, in the last few months I’ve found I’m excited to see her. I look forward to coming home, knowing she’ll be there.” He didn’t add anything else. He didn’t want to even mention the Love word.

Neither brother spoke for a few moments. They seemed to understand he was trying to figure things out in his own head.

“You know things didn’t start out so well for Amy and me either, little brother,” Lucas finally said. “I fought hard against my attraction to her. I, in no way wanted to be in a relationship. On the other hand I’d never wanted a woman like I wanted her. She would walk into the room and I was on instant alert.

I tried to tell myself it was just some weird hormonal imbalance but even though I was fighting it I knew it was a losing battle,” he finished.

“Everyone can see you and Amy were meant to be together. Things may have started out rocky for you but you’re disgustingly in love now. There isn’t a woman out there who could love you like she does.

It’s the only reason she puts up with your ugly hide,” Alex finished and punched Lucas in the arm.

“Yeah, it sounds to me as if the both of you are just love sick. Thank the Lord it will never happen to me,” Mark added with a cocky smile.

Lucas and Alex looked at each other and smiled. They knew their brother would go down kicking and screaming but they knew he would go down. It would be immensely pleasurable for them both to watch.

“I may not be in love like Lucas but it’s nice to have something to come home too,” Alex said. He felt a twinge of pain as he said the words. He figured he was lying to himself, saying he wasn’t in love but it was better than the alternative of being vulnerable.

“Yeah, I think you’re fooling yourself little bro. I’ve seen the way you look at Jessica. It’s more than just lust. You look at her the way I look at Amy. The sooner you accept that fact and enjoy being married, the sooner you can stop hurting all the time. Man, when I finally just let myself open up, my whole world changed. Seriously, if something were to ever happen to Amy, I couldn’t survive it,” Lucas finished.

He then pulled his phone out for the millionth and one time to see if he’d missed a call from his very pregnant wife.

“Give it a break bro; your wife will call you if she goes into labor. Your phone will not miraculously miss a call and if one or either of these things did happen, someone would come running to find you and rush you into the hospital,” Mark said.

“I know, I know but wait until you’re the one in my position. There’s nothing greater than your wife giving birth. It’s amazing and beautiful and at the same time terrifying. I’d gladly take her every pain if I could. It kills me to just stand by, only holding her hand. But then there’s this beautiful child resting in her arms and she’s smiling at you with this radiant joy showing on her face. There’s nothing like it in the world,” Lucas finished.

Alex sat there quietly, listening to Lucas talk. He was jealous of his brother, which was very unusual.

He wished so much he could’ve been there for the birth of his son. He was still angry Jessica had taken that from him. He should’ve been there for his son’s first cry. He should’ve been there to be able to protect them both.

“That sounds like heartache I don’t want to deal with,” Mark laughed. The joke brought Alex back to the present. He laughed but it was forced. Thankfully his brothers let it go.

“Well, we better get back to work. Everyone should be here in a couple of hours. We don’t want them to realize we play out here more than we work,” Lucas said. He got up and headed over to get back on his horse.

They all finished up with the cows and headed into the barn to brush down their horses.

“It’s about time you boys quit playing around and got back here,” came the booming voice of their father, Joseph.

“Hey Dad,” all three boys said in unison and then went up and gave their father a big hug.

“You have a house full of people all waiting on you three,” he said good naturedly.