Employed by the Boss (Managing the Bosses 7)

“We’re very thankful for your support,” Mark said. “Thank you.”

“It’s all I can do these days,” the man said. “Throw money around.” He held out a hand. “I’m Michael Campbell.”

Mark didn’t know the name. He reached out and took the offered hand, shaking it warmly. “Nice to meet you, Mr. Campbell. I’m Mark Reid, as you may have guessed, and this is my brother, Alex.”

Alex reached past him to shake hands as well. “An honor to meet you, Mr. Campbell,” he said.

“Caught that name did you?” The older man asked, amused. “But you’re welcome to call me Michael. I’ve heard good things about you and your company, young man. Very good things.”

“All true,” Alex said without missing a beat, and Mr. Campbell laughed.

“I have no doubt about that. Come. Join our group why don’t you, and we can chat.”

“Mr. Reid,” a new voice said, and Mark turned to see one of the staff waiting behind him, looking a little out of breath. “We need you up at the main house if you have a minute.”

“Of course,” Mark said. “I’ll be right up.” He turned back to the group of men with an apologetic smile. “Looks like duty calls, but feel free to steal my brother away with you.”

“We’ll do just that,” Mr. Campbell said. “I’m sure we’ll meet again, Mr. Reid.”

“I’m sure we will,” Mark said, smiling again, and then he turned and headed back up toward the main house to see what had gone wrong this time.

***

The party was settling down. Dusk had fallen almost an hour ago, bringing the golfers back up to the main house as the light grew dim. Now they stood around, chatting over glasses of wine and plates of hors d’oeuvres, and Mark was finally allowing himself to relax. It had obviously been a success.

Mr. Campbell, who had won the tournament, was holding court at the edge of the patio with a small group of people that included Alex, who still hadn’t gone home. Mark was starting to wonder if he should kick his brother out. Jamie was still at home with the twins, and undoubtedly wanting her husband to come back and help. Mark had told her that she was more than welcome to come, too, and to bring the kids, but she’d declined. He was sure that she was still upset about Alex’s refusal to take the paternity test, and a few glasses of wine in, Mark had half a mind tell his brother just what a stubborn ass he was being.

In fact… He stepped over to the group and slid himself in next to his brother. Alex turned to look at him.

“Can I talk to you a minute?” he asked under his breath. He offered Campbell a smile. “And I know I’ve told you this once already, but congratulations on your win.”

“Thank you again,” Mr. Campbell said. “I presume that you’re here to steal your brother away from us?”

“Unfortunately,” Mark said, still smiling. “Just need to talk to him for a minute.”

He nodded to the men, and Alex, thankfully, followed him as he pulled away.

“Don’t you think you should be headed home about now?” he asked as soon as they were out of earshot. “Your wife must be wondering where you are so late.”

Alex sighed. “I told you, Jamie and I had that argument about the paternity test. I was giving her a little time to cool off.”

“Because ignoring her is going to help so much.” Mark crossed his arms over his chest and met his brother’s gaze. “You need to go home and talk to her. And you need to reconsider your stance on that test.”

Alex’s expression darkened. “What is it with you two and the test?”

“Well, I imagine Jamie’s issue is that your face is on magazine covers paired with headlines about what a terrible person you are. It’s a trending topic on the internet

. People are wondering when you’re going to get your multi-billionaire ass in gear and actually talk to this woman. Not doing it makes you look a.) Guilty. And b.) Rude. If you don’t do something about it, it’s going to start being as bad for business as it is for your wife’s day.”

His brother’s lips pressed into a flat line. “I’ve made my decision on it.”

“So you’re just going to let Jamie be unhappy? Really? She’s the mother of your actual children, Alex, and she cried this morning.”

For the first time, something he was saying seemed to get through to his brother. Alex blinked at him, all the fight sliding out of his stance. “She cried?”

“When I walked into the house she was washing her face at the sink,” Mark said. “And looking a little red around the eyes.”

“Fuck.” Alex ran a hand through his hair, already moving toward the lot and his car. “I’ve got to get home.”