One Night Stand With My Husband’s Brother

She stiffened beneath his touch, and it was more than enough indication to let Chase know she wasn’t okay.

Mackenzie raised her head and turned sharply to look at him. She found him there, his blue suit jacket was off, and his white sleeves were rolled all the way up to his elbows, she caught sight of the cast on his right hand. His lips glittered with oil, and she could tell he had eaten more than enough.

Who would have thought a man with a broken hand could eat to his full?

She tried to smile at the thought, but it didn’t happen, not with the burden in her heart.

Chase saw the tears in her eyes before her brave attempt to wipe it away like it was nothing. He squinted his brows at her and looked over her.

“What’s going on, Mackenzie?” He reached for her right cheek and brushed it gently. Mackenzie stood stiff once more. It was the same place Eleanor had touched her before threatening her life.

Mackenzie’s eyes darted from the floor, up to his face.Property of Nô)(velDr(a)ma.Org.

Chase Axford.

His piercing sapphire blue eyes peered at her. She could see the sincerity of his worry in them. He looked a lot like Cameron when he was this worried about her. It would have been so easy to crumble into his arms and tell him everything. He would shield her, he would protect her. But she was done being dependent.

Her dependence on Jeffrey only left her in disarray.

Yes. Chase was different, he cared about her. But what if he suddenly stopped? What would she do then?

With that thought, she straightened her stance and cleaned her eyes. She fetched a smile from the sides of her face and displayed it in front of him.

“Oh, it’s nothing, Chase. I just,” She wiped her palms against her pants.

“I just have to return home, that’s all.”

She tried to move past him, but he blocked her way. Even with his one hand, he was still very strong and fast.

“What’s going on, Mackenzie? Tell me.” His eyes danced around her face as he pressed on.

Why wouldn’t she open up to him?

“It’s nothing Chase, I told you. I am just, uhh, having cramps.”

Chase dropped his left arm by his side and tilted his neck to the side.

“Cramps?”

Mackenzie nodded.

“Yeah.”

He was confused.

He looked down at her feet and asked.

“Leg cramps?”

Mackenzie shook her head as a sign for no. He could see her genuine smile slowly light her eyes up again. Chase’s heart warmed up in his chest. It was just how he liked her, smiling.

“Knee cramps?”

“No!”

“Your head?”

“No, Chase.” She laughed softly this time, and his heart was filled with a sensation he couldn’t explain.

“Then which is it?”

“Monthly cramps, okay?”

Oh. Shit.

He scratched the back of his head, clueless of the next question to ask her. He hadn’t ever had to discuss the female cycle with anyone before.

“Uhh, does it hurt that much? I mean, to make you cry?” He started moving closer to her, but Mackenzie stepped backwards.

“How bad is it? You’re not crying because of Jeffrey and his mother anymore, are you?”

Mackenzie had found his shy stature funny, especially with the kind of man he was perceived to be. However, the mention of Jeffrey and his mother slapped her smile off her face.

“No, no. My tummy just hurt a lot, that’s all. It’s worse than this sometimes, but it’s nothing you should worry about. I’ll just go home, take my bath and I’ll be fine.”

“Let me take you home.”

Mackenzie glared at him.

“What? No, no you cannot take me home, Chase. The president of the country is out there to see you in your own hotel and you just want to leave?” Mackenzie stretched her right hand, gesturing at the door.

Chase rolled his eyes.

“My father is there, the rest of my family is there. He has seen me enough, okay? Say what you want, but there is no way I am letting you go home alone.”

Chase didn’t give her another chance to speak before he grabbed her right hand with his left and led her out of the bathroom. Mackenzie returned to Nora to take her bag, and found twelve missed calls from uncle Maverick.

After a ten seconds panic attack, she decided to return one of his calls. She found Chase waiting for her at the hotel’s corridor, and uncle Maverick picked up on the first ring.

“Hey, uncle!”

The glee in her eyes and voice caused Chase to turn to her.

Who was she speaking to that made her so happy?

“Kenzie, I just returned to town and heard you are now working for the Axfords. Charlotte and Felicity told me all about it.”

Mackenzie sighed.

“Uncle…”

“We would talk about this when we get home. Where are you? Axford Hotel right?”

“Yes, I…”

“Good, I’m outside, and I’m waiting for you.”

Mackenzie was shocked to know uncle Maverick wasn’t bluffing. He stood outside, beside his black car.

She smiled and shook her head when she saw him.

Chase, on the other hand, did not seem to share her sentiment. He frowned at the man, and his grip on Mackenzie’s hand tightened.

He recognized him, and he didn’t like him at all.

Maverick found Mackenzie and Chase standing together and stomped to them. He wasted no time in grabbing Mackenzie’s hand and pulling her away from Chase’s grip.

Chase’s glare was powerful enough to put three bullets in his skull, only if eyes could kill.

“It’s you again.” Chase spoke, his tone low and defiant. He placed his hand on Mackenzie’s shoulder and softly pulled her back to him.

Maverick was going to reach for Mackenzie again, but she was tired of being tossed between them.

“Uncle Maverick, you’re back!”

“Yes, Mackenzie. I am. So let’s go home. We need to go home and talk.”

Home.

Chase’s frown deepened. He hated the fact that the man was rubbing it in his face. He could not ask Mackenzie to come home. He wondered if he would ever get the opportunity to say those words to her.

“Mackenzie is still working, and I’m her boss. So she can’t go anywhere, not now.”

It was Maverick’s turn to glare at Chase. He had tried to ignore him before, but the Axford was stepping on all of his toes. It was only a matter of time before he would be forced to drive his fist into the man’s face.

“Mackenzie is no longer working here. From today, she would seize to be a member of your staff.” He threw his hands into air and laughed bitterly.

“I can’t believe this! After everything this family did to you. You turn around and you work for them?! How dare you even place your hands on her?!” His second question was directed at Chase who sneered at him.

Mackenzie’s eyes widened.

“Uncle Maverick, please be calm. I’ll be coming home, okay?”

“No, Kenzie. Let’s leave now. None of these people deserve you. You have so much to protect, Mackenzie. So much.”

Chase’s heart sunk in his chest. To know that not only Mackenzie, but this man viewed his feelings and intentions for her in the same light as that of his brother. It was like a stench he would never get rid of.

Still, he wasn’t going to let this man take Mackenzie away.

“She would be going home alright, but not with you. If she’s going to leave here tonight, it’ll be with me. You can follow us behind.” Chase spat out.

Maverick was seething, reeling in his anger. Mackenzie’s eyes pleaded with him, the only things strong enough to keep him calm.

“Please uncle, I’ll be fine. Just go home, alright? We’ll meet at home.”

Uncle Maverick finally agreed to leave first, but not without eyeing Chase with fury in his eyes. Chase and Mackenzie watched him walk away from them.

He ushered Mackenzie to the car, which Maxwell, his oldest and most trusted security detail, was to drive.

“Take us to miss Torsney’s house.”

Once they were settled into the car, Chase turned to Mackenzie.

“How bad is it? The cramps?”

Mackenzie stared at him for a while, she had forgotten all about it.

“Oh, uh, I just want to get home fast and change.”

Chase nodded and looked away from her, he turned to the driver and met his eyes in the rearview mirror.

“Stop us at the next convenience store.”

Mackenzie turned to look at him.

What could be on his mind now?

He couldn’t help but notice Mackenzie looking pale. He sat beside her and reached for her right hand.

Did cramps always make women this sad?

“If you need a massage, you could always come to my place. It’s open for you, you know the password.”

“Sounds no nice, I’m tempted already.” Mackenzie threw over her shoulder, with a beautiful smile.

Chase pressed on.

“I mean it, Mackenzie. I could give you the massage myself.”

Mackenzie smiled and returned her eyes to her phone.

When they got to the store, Chase got down from the car and headed into it. He had no clue what he was going there to do, but he knew he would come out successful.

He found the sanitary section of the store, and sighted a long line of sanitary pads on one shelf. So many different brands and colours. Red, green, yellow, blue, indigo. Which was he to pick?

He started to take one of each, until he had picked every colour and brand on the shelf. The girls behind him giggled and blushed as they watched him. Every woman’s eyes seemed to be on him. Even the cashier was surprised to see him pull out a black card for a trolley filled with pads.

Chase paid for some painkillers as prescribed by the pharmacist in the drug section, and held the bag in his hands as he walked out of the store.

He handed the bag over to her, and Mackenzie stared at him wide-eyed.

“What are these?” She asked, searching the bag. Chase’s cheeks turned a dark shade of red.

“You can use them when you get home.”

The colorful display in the bag caused her to smile. She wanted to laugh, but she didn’t know how to. Shaking her head, she looked up at him and rested her head against the window.

The cramps and everything else that happened that night had worn her out.

He had been nothing but nice to her, perhaps it was time to let him know the truth. She could bring the kids to see him the next day, since they would both be free.

“What are you doing tomorrow?”

Chase thought about it. Tomorrow was supposed to be his father’s surgery, but it couldn’t be anymore. The man needed time to rest.

He told Mackenzie this, and she nodded absentmindedly.

“I am supposed to be alone on the 12th, but it’ll be my father’s surgery, so I’ll have to be with him.”

“And the day after that?”

Mackenzie’s eyes brightened as she watched him.

“I’ll be free but still around the hospital, why?” Chase eyed her suspiciously.

Mackenzie heaved a sigh of relief and sunk into her seat. There would be no need for much explanation, he might never forgive her but she hoped he would understand why she tried so hard to keep them away this long.

She would bring the kids to him and let him see the truth for himself.