The Maxwell Series Boxed Set - Books 4-6

by Alexander, S. B.

  “You’re kidding me,” Kade said.

  “And”—I wasn’t sure if Kelton had told Kade about Donovan or not—“does Mack Donovan ring a bell to you?”

  His hand froze midway as he was bringing the bottle down to his lap. His features tightened as he glared at me. “I remember the fucker. Please don’t tell me Donovan is Jessie’s brother.”

  I chugged some beer. “Friend of the family.”

  “How do you feel about that?” he asked as though he were my psychiatrist. Then again, Kade took after our dad in so many ways, including his ability to counsel and listen. He’d always been there for Kross, Kelton, and me as we were growing up. He’d kept us in line when our dad had been gone on military missions overseas. He’d listened to us and consoled us after Karen had died, and even after Mandy died.

  “Honestly, I want to fuck him up.” Donovan and I had some unfinished business to take care of. I was also certain that he wasn’t giving up on Jessie, and those two things might have been the reasons keeping me from getting serious with the tiger-striped-haired goddess.

  “Bro,” Kade said, “you’re not going to do something stupid or fall into a depression again, are you? Every time Sullivan or one of his thugs comes back into our lives, you freak out. I get it. But we do have to move on.”

  “I can’t promise you that.”

  Kade straightened. “Then don’t get serious with the woman.”

  Tell that to my heart.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Jessie

  Lowell and I were approaching the Maxwell estate. I was driving, while Lowell was in his wheelchair, locked into the passenger spot of the van. He could’ve driven if he’d wanted to since the van had been outfitted with all the controls on the steering wheel for him. But I was more comfortable at the helm, and he didn’t mind at all.

  A sliver of the lake in the distance came into view before we saw the beautiful grounds of the Maxwell estate with its perfectly manicured lawn and landscaping.

  “Holy shit,” Lowell said.

  “I had the same reaction when I was here the other day.”

  Lowell flipped his curly hair from his eyes. “Why were you here?” he asked, sounding eager to know.

  “When I went for a ride on my bike the other day, I stopped by to apologize for not showing up at their cookout last Sunday. And—”

  “Sis, are you dating Kody?”

  I pumped the brakes, and the van slowed to ten miles per hour. “Who’s asking, you or Mack?”

  “I am. I don’t do Mack’s dirty work, especially when it comes to my sister. Look, if you are, I’m cool with that. I don’t know Kody, so I can’t say if he’s a good guy or not. As long as he treats you right, I don’t have a problem.”

  “Even if Mack and Kody are enemies?” My brother had never been one to take sides, but we did consider Mack family.

  He reached out and touched my hand. “Jess, you come first.”

  I thought that would be his answer, but I’d gotten the impression that he didn’t like the idea of me dating Kody. “Wait. The other day when Roxanne and I were headed out to The Cave, you said, ‘it’s not like you’re dating Maxwell,’ with a tone that seemed like you didn’t approve.”

  He played with the control knob on his wheelchair. “I’m sorry about that. I shouldn’t have brought up Maxwell, but Mack had asked me earlier that day if you were dating Kody. I told him no. I guess that was my way of finding out.”

  I turned the wheel. “I don’t know if Kody and I are dating. We were supposed to go out the night you and Mack were at the Red Sox game, but I wasn’t feeling well. From here on out, I’ll deal with Mack when it comes to my love life. You shouldn’t be in the middle.” I didn’t know how many more times I had to tell Mack that I wasn’t interested in a relationship with him.

  Lowell bobbed his head.

  I eased down the long driveway, the mansion in front of us. “Does Mack know what you’re doing today?” I hadn’t seen Mack since last night when he and Lowell had been closing the shop, and I wasn’t about to bring up that Lowell and I were having dinner with the Maxwells.

  “I told him, and he was a little pissed.”

  I wouldn’t doubt that Mack was furious. I’d told Lowell he could stay home if he wanted to, but I was glad he’d decided to tag along.

  “Thanks for coming,” I said.

  “It’s a little awkward, considering Mack is a friend.”

  I shifted into Park next to Kody’s truck. “Why did you say yes to coming with me, then?”

  “For many reasons. You and I haven’t done anything together as a family since last year when we went to opening day for the Red Sox. Plus, I’m feeling a little melancholy with the anniversary of Mom’s death next month. Plus, you said Mr. Maxwell helped Mom. I want to thank him.”

  “You’ll like Mr. Maxwell.” I hopped out in a little better mood than when Lowell and I had left our house.

  I’d been feeling drab since I’d agreed to cut the demo of Kody’s song. Every time I sang those lyrics, I broke down. I should have been shouting to the heavens above that Mr. Robinson, a big-time record producer, was in awe of my voice, or that Kody kept telling me how beautiful I was, or that I adored how Kody treated me with tenderness, or that he hadn’t pried when he’d shown up last Friday to take me on a date that had never happened because I was a basket case. All of it had been too much, especially when I thought about Kody, my mutated gene, my brother, and how broke we were.

  I slid open the side door to the van then hit the button to lower the ramp.

  Lowell took hold of the joystick on his wheelchair and expertly powered down the ramp at a slow speed. “Um… sis? Any idea how the hell I’m going to get into the house?”

  I scanned the stairs to the back deck. “I’m sorry. I didn’t even think that far. I thought we would be down by the lake, anyway.”

  He pointed to the sky. “Not with the rain coming.” He wheeled into the garage through one of the six open doors. “Check this out. They have a boxing ring.” My brother’s voice hitched. “I have a confession to make.”

  I walked in behind him, and the cloudy day faded as I began to picture how great the garage would have been for working on motorcycles, cars, or whatever I could tinker with. The workbench near the boxing ring made me jealous.

  “Sis, did you hear me?”

  The snap of Lowell’s fingers brought me back to the present. “Sorry.”

  “I also wanted to come with you because you know that boxer I like that they call the Snake? Well, he’s Kody’s brother.” He stabbed his finger at the large poster of a big guy who was the spitting image of Kody except that his hair was in a military cut. “That’s Kross.”

  I pried my attention away from the poster to look at my brother, when a familiar voice made me tingle and turn around.

  “Hey there,” Kody said, swaggering in.

  The mouthwatering man, with a crop of pitch-black hair that I knew was soft and thick, had a coat of stubble painting his sharp jaw.

  Yum.

  His grin was full of want and need and so much more. Fire sparked through me, igniting every nerve ending, until he pressed a kiss to my lips. Then that fire turned into an inferno.

  “Hey.” His voice was gravelly, sliding along my skin, comforting me as though he were wrapping me up in a warm blanket.

  Lowell’s eyebrows disappeared under his curly bangs. “I guess you have your answer. You are dating him.”

  “Are we dating, Jess?” Kody asked.

  I did owe him a date.

  “Bro?” a male voice called before a tall dude who looked like Mr. Maxwell walked in. “Ah. You must be Jessie. I’m Kade.”

  Lowell waved. “I’m Lowell, her big brother.”

  Kade nodded as his dimples emerged. “Good to have you guys. We’ll need to find a way to get you in the house.”

  “We can lift the chair,” Kody said.

  “Nah,” Kade said. “Let’s have Lowell drive that bad boy up t
o the front door. Less stairs and easy to lift him over the small lip of the threshold.”

  With Kody’s and Kade’s large builds, they didn’t seem as though they would have a hard time lifting my brother and his wheelchair.

  Relief shone in Lowell’s eyes. “Thanks, man. There’s nothing as embarrassing as having two big dudes carry me.”

  My glum mood waned. My brother was getting along with both of them.

  “Jessie,” Kade said. “I hope you’re ready for a hurricane with black pigtails. Raven is dying to see you.”

  Kade waved at Lowell. “Come on, I’ll show you the easy path.”

  I started to follow, when Kody caught my arm. “Are you feeling better?”

  No. Yes. No. It was official. I was one big mess. I didn’t know which way was up or down. “Yes, thank you.”

  He smoothed the pad of his thumb over my lips, slow and sensual. “Liar.” Then he leaned into my ear, his breath warm. “Maybe another round in bed will pull you out of your mood.”

  I giggled, blushed, melted, and sighed. I would have loved that. But I knew another intimate round with him would make me fall hard and fast. Of that, I had no doubt. I jutted out my chin. “Maybe we can have that dinner date. How about after the recording session on Wednesday? We’re still on to meet at Mr. Robinson’s house?”

  He edged back, grabbing my hand, seemingly frustrated. “We are. Let’s go before we take a detour to my place.”

  As soon as my skin touched his, something in me calmed. Safe. Protective. Mine.

  We trudged up the back deck and into a massive gourmet kitchen. I didn’t get a chance to savor the Italian aroma before Raven barreled into my arms.

  “You made it,” Raven cooed. “Mama, Mama,” she shouted. “Come meet my new friend, Jessie.”

  Mrs. Maxwell was inserting a pan of bread into the oven, looking as elegant as she had when she’d been in the hospital. Her hair was styled up on her head. Her cheeks were rosy, and her smile was as warm as when I’d met her before. “Jessie, so nice of you to join us.” Her gaze lingered on Kody and me, seemingly pleased to see us together.

  Raven wrapped her small arms around my neck. “Nana, she came.”

  Kody, Mrs. Maxwell, and I couldn’t help but laugh at Raven’s infectious attitude.

  A petite, auburn-haired woman with the prettiest blue-green eyes I’d ever seen waltzed in through the arched doorway on the opposite side of the kitchen. “What’s all the fuss about, Raven?” The woman beamed before she regarded me. “Oh, you must be the famous Jessie. My daughter hasn’t stopped talking about you for over a week.”

  Raven laid her head on my shoulder. “She’s not sad today, Mama.”

  My heart burst into flames at the notion that I had disappointed her when all she’d done was console me. I should’ve locked myself in the bathroom instead of crying in the cafeteria that day I’d met Raven. If I had, though, then I wouldn’t have met her or Kody.

  Kody rested his hand on Raven’s back. “Remember what we talked about? Manners.”

  “It’s okay,” I said. “Raven, I’m sorry I didn’t show up last week. I had a tummy ache.” Or more like a hangover.

  She planted her hands on my cheeks. “I get those sometimes from eating too much candy.”

  “Hi, Jessie. I’m Ruby, Raven’s mom.”

  I didn’t see the resemblance at all. The Maxwell genes were super dominant, that was for sure.

  Ruby collected Raven from me and set her down. “Give Jessie some room to breathe, darling.” She grabbed Raven’s hand. “Tell you what? Let’s go see Daddy, and you can tell him all about Jessie.”

  “Fine. But I want to show Jessie the new doll Daddy bought me.”

  Ruby mouthed, “Sorry.”

  I didn’t mind at all. I loved kids. I wanted at least two someday. I tensed. I couldn’t entertain any thoughts of kids, getting pregnant, the future, or a man because they all led to one thing—my mutated BRCA1 gene. I hoped if I ever had a girl or girls, I wouldn’t pass on that gene.

  Luckily, I didn’t have to work hard to forget when Kody placed his hand on my lower back. “Lowell should be here somewhere,” he said.

  “Mrs. Maxwell, can I help with something?” I asked.

  She stirred what looked to be a big pot of spaghetti sauce. “Not at all. Kody, introduce Jessie to the rest of the family. Dinner will be ready in about ten minutes.”

  As we wound our way through the kitchen, a somewhat tall lady came in. Her long brownish-black hair flowed down over her breasts, mascaraed lashes framed her grayish-blue eyes, and her berry lips split into a smile. “I’m Lizzie, Kelton’s girlfriend.”

  My eyes popped out of my head. If she hadn’t told me that last part, I would’ve sworn she was related to the Maxwells.

  “Jessie,” I said.

  She tittered. “I know. We all know. Right, Kody?”

  He muttered something under his breath that I couldn’t make out.

  I giggled, more out of nerves than anything. For a guy to tell his family about a girl had to mean he was somewhat serious, although I would have guessed that Raven was the one who was responsible for the whole family knowing who I was.

  “Mrs. M,” Lizzie said. “Tell me what I can do to help.”

  Mrs. Maxwell started barking out orders as Ruby came in. Suddenly, I felt as though I should have been helping.

  “You’re our guest. Keep moving,” Kody said, sensing my struggle.

  A small pain cinched my chest. I wouldn’t have minded being more than a guest.

  We found the rest of the family in the enormous dining room. When I entered, all the men rose, with the exception of my brother, who was sitting in his wheelchair next to Kross. At least, I assumed it was Kross since he was holding Raven.

  She wiggled out of the man’s arms, and he set her down.

  Roxanne would be extremely disappointed when she found out that Kody was the only brother that didn’t have a girlfriend or a wife.

  Raven bounded around chairs with her doll in her hand. “This is Candy.”

  “She’s pretty,” I said. “Just like you.”

  Raven blushed for a second before she pointed a tiny finger to a booster seat across from my brother. “Come sit next to me.”

  Lowell chuckled.

  “Bumblebee,” the Kody look-alike said. “Give Jessie some space to breathe.” He looked at me. “I’m Kross, Raven’s dad.”

  “It’s entirely all right,” I said to Kross. Then I regarded the other triplet next to my brother. “You must be Kelton, then.”

  Kross stood out with his muscular arms, but Kelton and Kody were not as easy to discern except for the scar I spotted on Kelton’s chin.

  Kelton winked. “The best out of all the brothers.”

  Kade, who was next to Kelton, slapped him in the head. “In your dreams.”

  Again, my brother laughed.

  I silently thanked God that my brother was having a good time.

  Mr. Maxwell sat at the head of the enormous table. “Nice of you to join us.”

  I felt as though we needed a bullhorn to communicate. Nevertheless, the room was elegantly designed with the massive dining table that accommodated at least fifteen people. A crystal chandelier hung from the ten-foot ceiling. A vase of fresh-cut flowers sat on a hutch behind my brother, providing a sweet aroma beneath the delicious scent of spaghetti sauce and bread that was floating in the house.

  My stomach grumbled.

  I allowed Raven to guide me to the empty spot next to her. Kody was on my heels for nothing more than to pull out the chair for me. Yeah, I could get used to this family and being treated like a queen.

  Once I was seated, Kody helped Raven into her booster seat. Then all the men folded themselves into their seats. Before Kody had a chance to get comfortable next to me, Ruby, Lizzie, and Mrs. Maxwell came in with platters of food. Kade popped up and took the large bowl from his mother. She beamed with motherly pride.

  Voices buzzed as we filled our plat
es with food.

  Kody slid his hand over to my lap and squeezed my leg. “I’m glad you came.”

  I tangled my hand in Kody’s. “I am too.”

  When everyone had food on their plates, Mr. Maxwell asked, “Who would like to say grace?”

  “I will,” I piped up. “If you don’t mind, that is.”

  Lowell’s mouth dropped open.

  Mine might have too, but I felt connected to all of the Maxwells, and I had Raven to thank for barreling up to my table in the cafeteria that day to ask me why I was crying.

  “Very well,” Mr. Maxwell said with a proud grin.

  I took in a deep breath as everyone bowed their heads. I did the same, clasping my hands in prayer with no idea what words would come out of my mouth. Kody rubbed my leg, and as though he was transmitting magical powers, I knew what I wanted to say.

  “It’s not often that you find people who you connect with so quickly and easily. It’s not often that you see a family so rooted in the very meaning of what a family should be. I want to thank God and Raven for introducing me to all of you,” I said.

  “Mama, she said my name,” Raven whispered.

  “I’m grateful that my brother is here and doing well. I’m thankful that everyone, including Mrs. Maxwell, is healthy, and I pray that the road ahead is paved clearly. Amen.” When I lifted my head, my brother still had his mouth open.

  I snuck a peek at Mr. Maxwell, who nodded his head slightly. He was the only one at the table who knew my struggle.

  “You thanked me,” Raven said.

  Everyone chuckled as forks clanged and we dug into our food.

  “Lowell,” Mrs. Maxwell said. “Are you feeling better?”

  Lowell swallowed his mouthful of bread. “Yes, ma’am. Thank you for inviting us. The food is delicious.” Since Lowell had been home from the hospital, I’d been making sure he ate all of his food when I fixed dinner. I didn’t have to force him, though. I believed he’d gotten a wake-up call, and the fact that Mack was working for free helped to dispel some of Lowell’s financial concerns for the moment.

  Over the next hour, we ate and talked and laughed. As I helped clear the table, the men decided that a friendly game of basketball was in order.