Brother to the Boss (Managing the Bosses 8)

She looked up at him, finally, and this time the smile that she gave him was genuine. “That's really nice of you to say.”

“It's just the truth.”

They sat for another minute in silence, but Mark knew that if he didn't head outside soon Erica was going to come in looking for him, and he should probably get up. He let his arm slip from Christine's shoulders so that he could stand, and then held his hand out to her.

She took it, getting to her feet.

“You going to Jamie's for dinner tonight?” he asked her.

“I'm supposed to be.”

“Well, then, you shouldn't miss it.” Mark started up the stairs, motioning for Christine to follow him so that he could grab the car keys off the dresser. “You can ride with Erica and me if you want to. We'll drop you off at home on our way back, and you can take the day off tomorrow. We'll figure out a way to get your car back to you.”

“That's really sweet, but I think that I'd rather not take the day off if you don't mind. More time to think about it isn't really what I want.”

Mark picked up the keys that were exactly where he'd thought they would be, and turned to look at Christine. “You don't have to if you don't want to, of course. I understand the value of working through your frustrations. But please don't hesitate to come to me if you ever do need anything.” He moved toward the door again, pausing to smile at her over his shoulder. “You're family, Christine. I'm always going to be here for you.”

“I don't need a ride,” Christine said, “but I might take you up on that offer sometime. Thank you. And, you know, I consider you family, too, so if you need anything the offer goes the other way.”

“You got it,” Mark said, shooting her a grin. “I'll be sure to think of things that I can waste your time with.”

That got a laugh out of her, and Mark felt accomplished.

“I'll see you at Alex and Jamie's, right?” he asked as they parted at the bottom of the stairs.

Christine nodded, and smiled. “I'll see you there.”

Chapter 16

Jamie swung the door open at the first knock and smiled when she saw Erica and Mark standing on the other side. “Hi! Come in. My dad's already here, so feel free to j

ust join him in the living room with the twins if you want. Alex is finishing up a phone call, and then he'll be down.”

“Sounds good,” Mark said, already steering past her, Erica following.

She watched them go with a smile. Erica really was good for Mark. He looked happier with her. Brighter. And she looked like she enjoyed being around him. Jamie hadn't had much chance to actually talk to her, but she was going to make sure she got it soon. She wanted to know more about the woman that her brother-in-law was so obviously smitten with.

A moment later another knock announced the arrival of Christine, who looked a little worn, but smiled when Jamie ushered her in.

“You okay?” Jamie asked.

“Yeah,” Christine said. Jamie wasn’t entirely sure that she believed her, but Christine nodded. “I mean, I will be.”

There was a story there, and Jamie wanted to know it, but if her sister didn’t want to bring it up tonight she could let it go for a while. This was meant to be a happy occasion for all of them, celebrating the fact that Reid Enterprises was out of danger, and that Little Lake Country Club was going strong. And, more privately, it was a celebration of the fact that Alex was going to start giving more of his work over to Zander so that he could start spending more time at home with her and Lilli and Benton. It was a good night.

When Jamie and Christine walked into the living room, Mark was on the floor with the twins, making laser noises with, of all things, a toy dog. The twins were thoroughly delighted by his antics, and Jamie just shook her head, leaning against the door frame to watch while he flew the dog around them in circles. Erica, perched on the edge of the couch, had an expression on her face that Jamie was pretty sure meant she was thinking about how good a father Mark would be, and Jamie didn’t bother trying to hide her smile at the idea. They would have the cutest children.

Footsteps behind her alerted Jamie to the presence of Alex, who wrapped an arm around her waist and leaned his chin against the top of her head, watching his brother play with Lilli and Benton. She felt him smile.

“Guess he should be having some kids of his own soon, huh?” he whispered, just loud enough for Jamie to hear.

“He might be,” Jamie said, glancing again at Erica, who was still watching Mark with a love-struck kind of look on her face that Jamie was sure Alex had seen.

Christine, who looked a little happier than she had when she came in the door, decided to join Mark on the floor, then, and he handed her a block, which she promptly sent after his dog ship, both of them laughing. Benton and Lilli squealed and tried to reach for the toys. Jamie, laughing, looked up and found Erica’s expression had soured, her lips pressed tight and her jaw clenched.

“Or maybe not,” she said, “if he doesn’t let her know that there’s nothing going on between him and my sister.”

Alex chuckled. “He’d better get on that pretty soon, by the looks of it.