Take a Chance on Me(93)

It was over.

The only thing left to do was go home.





Chapter Twenty-Six



Sitting alone in the depressing office, Mitch took another long drink of scotch. The burn in his chest matched the burn of the alcohol in his stomach. He stared into nothingness as he contemplated his wasteland of a life.

How could Maddie have done that? She’d betrayed him. Maybe not in the traditional way, but somehow this was worse. He’d told her things, things he’d never told anyone, and she’d told strangers. She’d involved his friends behind his back and hidden it.

The sound of her softly whispered “I love you” still rang in his ears, deafening him so that the rest of the world seemed muted.

Ironic. In that moment, when all trust had been broken, he’d known that he loved her too.

A real love. Deep and soul twisting, capable of bringing him to his knees.

She’d made him whole. Feel. Laugh. Burn.

With Maddie, things made sense. She made sense. Even now, he had to resist the urge to find her and hold her close.

She was his anchor in the ever-turbulent storm of his life.

A knock sounded on the door. He ignored it.

The last thing he wanted was company. He poured another two fingers of scotch. The liquor did its work, helping him return to the numb place he’d existed before Maddie had shown up in his life and turned the world upside down.

It would do for a while. It would have to.

Another knock, louder this time and more insistent. Before he could tell Sam to go away, the door opened and Maddie’s oldest brother walked in.

Mitch scowled. “This isn’t a good time.”

“No shit,” Shane said, sarcasm clear. Without waiting for an invitation, he sat down on the chair opposite Mitch’s desk. “What’d you do to my sister? She ran out of here without a word like a kicked puppy.”

Mitch took a slug of scotch, his stomach twisting. She was gone. Panic clawed at him with sharp nails.

He took a deep breath.

She’d be at home. His home.

Shane scrubbed the stubble lining his jaw. “Turns out that five minutes can do some damage after all.”

“How can I help you?” Mitch needed this guy out of his f*cking sight. Now.

Silence. Shane jutted his chin toward the bottle of scotch. “I’ll take a drink.”

Mitch picked up the bottle and placed it in front of him. The blond man studied it, shrugged, picked up the bottle, and took a long, deep swallow. With a satisfied hiss, he placed it on the desk and slid back into the chair as though he didn’t have a care in the world.

“Maddie is gone.” The words sliced through the thin veil of Mitch’s alcohol-induced haze, bringing unwelcomed pain with them. “We’ve got nothing to say.”

“I don’t like the way you look at my sister,” Shane said, as though Mitch hadn’t spoken. “And I sure as hell don’t like the sound of what was going on in here before I barged in.”

The sharp sudden image of her round, pink ass in the air while he drove his cock deep inside her filled his mind. The sound of her screams and the scent of her arousal making him dizzy.

Shit. He shook his head, running a hand through his hair.

Shane’s mouth twisted into a sardonic grin. “Yeah, I kind of thought it was like that.”

Mitch cocked a brow. “Do you really want to discuss this?”

“Fuck no, and I’m not sure I approve,” Shane said, with green eyes so familiar that Mitch wanted to look away. “But you know what? In all the years Maddie was with Steve, I’ve never seen him look at her like that. Hell, he’s a decent guy. He’s nice and orderly. But there’s no way he’d try to take me down, no matter what I said to her.”


“Sounds like a real prince.” The last thing Mitch wanted to discuss was Maddie’s ex-fiancé.

“In fact, he would have sided with me.” Shane assessed Mitch, sizing him up. “If Maddie hadn’t asked you to stop, you’d have tried to tear me apart. You wouldn’t have gotten far. Jimmy looks calm and harmless, but the guy’s lethal, and I’ve kicked my fair share of ass, although I’m a lot less pretty about it than he is.”

Mitch had no idea what the guy was going on about and didn’t give a shit. “Are you done?”

“No,” Shane said flatly. “You’re in love with my sister. And she’s in love with you. As much as I don’t like it, I’m going to be a nice guy here.”

“You’re being a nice guy?” Mitch laughed and took another drink.

He loved her, needed her, wanted her right this instant.

“I’m going to be stuck with you, aren’t I?”

“No.” The word tasted like dirt in his mouth.

“Yeah, I am.” Shane put a file folder that Mitch hadn’t even noticed onto the desk. “You’re pissed as hell, but you’ll get over it.”

“No,” Mitch said again.

Shane pushed the manila folder over to him. “Maddie did what she thought was right. That’s the way she is, even if she goes about it in a backassward way. Don’t f*ck up what’s obviously a good thing because she went behind your back.”

Mitch stared at the guy. “Less than an hour ago you were out for my blood, and now you’re playing matchmaker?”