Brother’s Billionaire Best Friend: A Second Chance Romance Series (Book 2) Read online

  Brother’s Billionaire Best Friend

  A Second Chance Romance Series (Book 2)

  Lauren Wood

  Copyright © 2019 by Lauren Wood

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Contents

  1. Dina

  2. John

  3. Dina

  4. John

  5. Dina

  6. John

  7. Dina

  8. John

  9. Dina

  10. John

  11. Dina

  12. John

  13. Dina

  14. John

  15. Dina

  16. John

  17. Jack

  18. Dina

  19. John

  20. Dina

  21. Lisa

  22. John

  Epilogue

  SINGLE DAD BAKER (Excerpt)

  Also by Lauren Wood

  About the Author

  1

  Dina

  This wasn’t the sort of affair that I was used to. My older brother Jack was getting married again, and this time, I hoped it went better. He’d been married before and it had not worked out so well. His wife had taken off and left him with a daughter to raise on his own. Now he had found ‘the one’ and they were getting married. I wasn’t sure how I felt about Bella, just that she made Jack happy. I guess that was all that mattered.

  What I wasn't prepared for, was all of Jack's old friends coming back to the small town where we lived. It was already bursting at the seams, and another twenty or so were supposed to arrive today. The wedding was tomorrow, and the house was packed with all of Jack’s friends. The hotel was packed as well, so we were running out of space to put them.

  The busier it all became, the more I realized that I was going to have to figure something out. I knew there were a lot of people and I should give up my room, but I didn’t want to. Finally, my mom came to ask me about it, but I just told her that I would stay somewhere else.

  “You can stay with me upstairs. Your father is on a business trip and won’t be back until right before the wedding. You know that Jack hasn’t seen John in a long time. He wants him close because he is the best man.”

  “Jack is coming? I thought they hadn’t seen each other in a long time?”

  “You know they have been friends forever, Dina. Of course he is coming.”

  I knew that I didn’t have a choice, and I wasn’t going to let it bother me all that much. He wasn’t going to be here too long. I remembered Jack’s friend John. I had one of the biggest crushes on him, but I had been way too young back then and none of my fantasies about him had ever come true. It would be weird, imagining him staying in my room, in my bed. Just the idea of it made me red in the face.

  “Sure, I will go stay with Tammy. I know that they are close and haven’t seen each other in a while. It would be good to get help with my hair in the morning. Everyone is going to be there.”

  “That’s would be nice of you. I know that you don’t want to get kicked out of your room, but it will be good for them to spend some time together. John is coming in from LA. It’s nice of him to fly out here for the wedding. He runs his dad’s companies now and from what I hear, he’s rather busy.”

  My mom was talking about him, like she wished that Jack had turned out the same way. Jack had taken some time, to get himself together after such a fall, but he’d gotten up and I was proud of him. John hadn’t dealt with all of the things that Jack had. Jack ran a business and took care of his daughter by himself. I don’t know why, but I was feeling rather defensive of my brother at the moment.

  “Jack is busy too. He takes care of his daughter alone and runs a business. He’s told me before that kids are harder.”

  She chuckled and waved me off. “I wasn’t saying anything bad. I swear the two of you, can’t hear anything bad about the other.”

  Mom was right. Even when I wasn’t old enough to really help Jack, I tried. I would be his alibi to anything, long before I knew what the word meant.

  “I am just saying, you don’t have to be so hard on him. You know that it doesn’t help.”

  “No, I guess it doesn’t. Well, thank you for giving up your room. Can you be out in a bit? I think he’s here, or will be soon.”

  I told her that I would, and she was satisfied with the answer. As much as I wanted to believe that everything was going how it was supposed to, I really wasn’t sure. I wanted to be sure. I wanted Jack to have a perfect wedding, even if I wasn’t convinced that Bella was the right one for him. I wouldn’t do anything to ruin it, but I was going to try and get to know her better. Maybe that is what I needed to do.

  Mom walked off, most likely to tell Jack that John could stay. I had to gather some things together from my room, so I wouldn’t have to come back later. As much as I had fantasized about John when I was younger, I knew that he wasn’t going to give me the time of day. He hadn’t back then, and I didn’t think anything had changed. It bummed me out, but I was always going to be Jack’s little sister in John’s eyes and there was nothing that I could do about it.

  I left with a bag, and I thought I had everything. But then I realized that I didn’t have my charger, and I had to go back. John was already there; I saw him talking to my brother outside. My plan was just to go upstairs and grab the charger. Then I wouldn’t have to really say anything to John. I’d said too much long ago, when I was home from a party, but I wasn’t going to make that same mistake again.

  I went upstairs and quickly realized that he had already been up there. His duffel bag was half-dumped out in the middle of the bed and I couldn’t believe how messy he was. There were also boxers on the edge and a part of me, a small sliver I swear, wanted to pick them up. They looked silky, and I wanted to rub my fingers in between the fabric. I don’t know what I was supposed to get out of it, but I certainly got something.

  “I really hope you come with the room. Are you one of Bella’s friends that I’ve heard so much about?”

  I jumped from the deep voice behind me and I was very thankful that I wasn’t touching his boxers, like I’d imagined. My fantasies were ripe in my head, and I knew that it was better if they stayed there. When it came out, bad things happened.

  “Hey, John. Glad to see that some things never change. Just grabbing my charger and getting out of your hair. I didn’t know you were here yet.”

  I turned around and tried to have a normal and calm look on my face. It was hard, when I came in contact with him. He was so much taller than I remembered, and I had to strain my neck a little bit to see him. He looked shocked that it was me, and I liked that I was able to throw him off the trail a little bit. I guess he finally noticed me.

  “Wow, growth spurt while you were gone, huh?”

  He smiled and those blue eyes twinkled at me. I had always had a thing for him, though I think it was pretty much any woman that met him. It was hard not to look at him and wonder what a large man like that would feel like when he climbed over a woman and made love. I could just see the muscles underneath his clothes, bunching up with each thrust.

  I stopped myself, because I was breathing hard and it was all because of the thoughts and images that were running through my head. As much as I wanted to believe that everything that happened was for a reason, I didn’t know the meaning for this one. It was like t
he universe was playing games with my head.

  “Are you okay?”

  He seemed to recover quickly, though I was having a hard enough time with that.

  “Of course, why wouldn't I be?”

  “I don't know, you just seem to have this look about you. It looks like you're about to pass out. Like you’ve seen a ghost.”

  If he knew how close he was to the truth, he might not have said it like he did. It was hard for me to breathe at the moment, and I knew it was because of John. He was just too close, and I wanted something from him that I was never going to get. This was something that I had known for quite some time, but being around him again it was hard to not be affected. He was my first and only crush, and seeing him now, it felt just as strong as before. Maybe a little more so this time, because he was finally looking at me the way I’d always wanted him to.

  Truth be told, John was even hotter than he was before. He had been tall when I last saw him, but I swear he must have gained several inches since then. I remembered when Jack had been so upset that John had to go to California with his dad. He had lost his best friend, but I had found myself in similar sadness. Instead of losing a friend, I had lost a what-if that I had held on to for quite some time.

  Now he was back, and he was standing there smirking at me, asking me if something was wrong. He of course, had no idea what was going through my mind and I was thankful for that. That would have been even more embarrassing.

  “I was just trying to remember where I stuck my charger. That's all. I will be out of your hair in no time.”

  “Take all the time you need. This is your room after all. I am sorry about the comment when I came in. I didn’t realize it was you.”

  I just sort of shot smiled in response because I did not trust the words coming out of my mouth. I had always felt so strange when I was around John, and this was no different. He had this way about him that I had always found impossible to ignore.

  He pointed towards the charger. It was still plugged into the wall. It happened to be right in front of me the whole time, but I had not been looking at it. I had been far more worried about the unexpected sighting of John. I had seen him downstairs with my brother, so I didn't think I would have to say anything to him. I grabbed the charger without saying a word and did a little wave before I left. Walking out of the room, I felt like an idiot.

  Yeah, this was just like old times.

  2

  John

  I don't know what was going through Dina's head, but it had been something. She obviously still had a bit of a crush on me. Things were different now though. Dina must be eighteen or nineteen now. I remember Jack said something about her looking into college, but I hadn’t expected such a transformation.

  When I left Coloma, she was more gangly than anything else. I knew she had the hots for me. Jack made it clear that I was supposed to be nice to her about it. She wasn't my type. I dated cheerleaders, and Dina was more of the mathlete type. She was too smart for her own good. Now things were different.

  I'm sure she was just as smart as before, but now she looked a whole lot different. Now she looked like a woman that any man would love to be with. Jack had said something about her not being the same, and now I could understand that. I wouldn’t have been able to imagine it, if I hadn’t seen her this way.

  Now she was gone and the smell of her still lingered in the air. It was the first thing that I noticed when I put my bags down and changed. There was a faint scent of vanilla in the air and in the fabrics of the room. It was because she had burning incense and some candles that smelled that way, as well as some perfume on the dresser.

  At first, I’d noticed all of the girly things that I would expect in Dina’s room. But what I didn’t expect was to find birth control on the dresser, next to the perfume. There were also a few condoms and at first, it had thrown me off. Last time I saw her, she was just barely a teenager. Now that I’d seen her again, I could see what had changed.

  Dina was beautiful. The tall body that was practically gangly before, void of any kind of curves, was now full of them, and I hadn’t been able to keep my eyes off of them. She had a large rack and slim waist. Dina had run track if I remembered right, which made the body of hers now, still toned as ever before, but now, she was filled out and rather striking.

  It took a few minutes for me to get myself into check. The short little run-in had messed with my head a little bit, and I was trying to figure out if that was a good thing or not. It didn’t feel like it was.

  “John, you coming?”

  Jack’s voice pulled me from my thoughts.

  “Yeah, where are we going?”

  “I got to find a suit.”

  “Yeah, isn’t the thing tomorrow?”

  “The thing? Yeah, I am getting married tomorrow. You’re so against it, you can’t even say the word? I thought you would have changed a bit.”

  I disagreed. “No, some men need to be tamed. I hope this go-round is better for you. I like Bella. She is really something.”

  That got a smile, though we both knew how I felt about marriage in general. It just didn’t seem like a good idea. For him, this was the second time, and when I heard about it, I wondered what was wrong with his head.

  “I don't need to be tamed, John. I am just in love. It's going to happen to you one day, and you won't know what to do with yourself. That's how I feel with Bella all the time. It is one of the best feelings in the world. I hope that for you too.”

  It did not sound all that pleasant to me. He couldn't form general sentences, so obviously it had hit his IQ. Jack had never been the smartest guy, but now it was even worse. This wasn't the first time I had seen him in love, but it was the first time I hoped it would turn out differently for him. Last time it really messed him up.

  “I hope this works out for you Jack. I really do. I think Bella is nice and all, I just want you to be happy. I don't want to see you go through the same crap as before.”

  He frowned at me a little bit and I knew it was because he didn't want to talk about it. Jack hated the fact that everybody knew his situation, but it was kind of hard not to. Coloma was a small town after all.

  “So, do you really need to go to get a tuxedo?”

  “Yeah. It is actually the only thing that Bella told me she wanted me to take care of. She took care of everything else. They hired somebody who is charging me an arm and a leg, so all I had to worry about was the suit. I of course didn't worry about it until now. I have just been working so much, trying to make sure that everything goes smoothly for when I'm gone. I have never left the bakery for that long.”

  I could see he was stressed out, and I tried to make him feel better. I knew he was worried about getting married again. As much as he loved Bella, it would be hard not to think about it, especially after the way things had worked out the first time. That had to play on his mind.

  “Well, we will go get the suit, but then it’s time to party. I’m supposed to keep you drunk enough Jack, that you don’t get that worried look on your face. It doesn’t look good on you.”

  He grinned at me, and I knew he was going to feel better soon. But first, we had to get him a suit.

  * * *

  “Come on, sis. You have to help me out. Where am I supposed to get a tux to rent?”

  “Why are you asking me now? You know your wedding is tomorrow, right?”

  Jack groaned and took his sister off speaker phone, but I could still hear her calling him a dumbass.

  “I just didn't have time, that's all.”

  “You better hope that you can find something brother, or your bride is going to freak out. The last thing she wants to hear is that you don't have any pants for the wedding tomorrow.”

  “We just won't tell her, Dina. Keep her a little busy today if you can. I really need to figure this out. I think I'm going to have to go into the city to find something. I thought I'd be able to find something at Mable’s, but I guess I was wrong.”

  There
was laughing on the other line and as much as I enjoyed watching him squirm a little bit, I could see it bothered Jack. He had really made a mess of things.

  He hung up the phone frustrated, and he had very few answers. His sister had given him a couple of addresses to check when he got to the city, but it still meant that both of us was going to have to make the long trek. This was not what I had expected when I got here. We were supposed to be having a bachelor party, to send him into his new life sentence the proper way. I did not expect to be chasing down a suit the day before the wedding, but it was more like Jack than anything else.

  Jack was always the type of guy that waited until the last minute. And then somehow everything worked out for him. I knew that even though the odds were against us this time, somehow, he would find exactly what he needed, and everything would turn out well. Jack had always had that sort of luck. At times, I’d been jealous of it, but now I was thankful it was that way for him.

  We made our way back to the car and grabbed a couple things at the local gas station before we took off. It was at least an hour to get to the city, and I knew that most of it was going to be talking about Bella. I wanted to ask a few questions myself, but I knew that he would not appreciate the topic. While it had never even been an issue before, I'm sure if I asked about his little sister Dina, Jack would not be too happy. Even though Dina wasn't little anymore, she was still his little sister and nothing was going to change that.

  “So, you're still letting your sister give you shit, huh?”