Page 93 of The Renegade Billionaire
Grey’s phone pings, and Pops groans loudly.
“Shit,” Grey curses. His brow furrows as he speed-reads across the screen. Then he turns it toward me, and my tension headache returns.
The headline reads “Spoiled Montgomery Princess Throws Hissy Fit in Montana Kindergarten Classroom.” Below it is a picture of Anastasia looking more pissed off than I’ve ever seen her. But the interesting thing about the photo is how she appears to be attempting to shield the child she’s with from the photographers.
I’ve never known my sister to protect anyone but herself.
“Ah, Pops. We’re going to have to get lunch to go today. I’m sorry,” I say.
For all the trouble Pops causes, he’s always the first to have the backs of those he cares about. He proves it when he starts shoving on Grey’s arm.
“Get moving, kid. Sage and I can grab lunch for you two. Moose will drive us home.”
Grey looks between Sage and Pops. I know every thought running through his head, but he eventually slides out of the booth. At least on some level, he trusts Pops enough to leave our nephew with him.
“Lunch, and straight back to the Hideaway.”
Pops gives me the shooing motion he usually saves for Madison.
“I mean it, Pops. No stops today. Finish up here and come straight home. Nowhere else, no pit stops, no quick conversations, okay?”
Sage chuckles when Pops salutes me, but I know damn well that man had his fingers crossed behind his back.
“Sage,” I say with a parental tone I rarely use with him.
“Don’t worry. I’ll be the adult here.”
Pops crosses his arms, but at least I can trust one of them.
It’s almostmidnight before I hear Madison come home. At some point, she’d snuck in to put a casserole in the oven while we were on the third floor cleaning out furniture, but she was gone again before I saw her.
“Hey,” I say, when she reaches the top of the stairs.
“Holy crap, Braxton.” She clutches her hands to her heart and shakes her head. “You scared the bejeezus out of me. What are you doing lurking in the hallway?”
The bathroom door opens, and Sage jumps back a step. “Jesus, Uncle Brax. What the hell, you scared the shit out of me.”
“See?” Madison says, lightly pounding on her chest.
“Why are you both standing in the hallway?” Sage asks.
“I just got home and found Braxton hiding in the shadows.” Her face is partially covered in darkness, but not enough that I don’t see the corners of her lips curl up.
“I heard her come home, so I was just checking on her. What are you doing up?”
Sage shrugs and squeezes past me in the hallway. “I just finished a movie. I was brushing my teeth, if you must know. Stalking is still frowned upon.”
“Go to bed,” I grumble.
Madison and I are silent until he’s shut himself away in his room.
“You waiting up for me?” she finally asks while leaning casually against the wall. Is she teasing me?
Closing the distance between us, I answer truthfully. “Yes. Grey and I work long hours, but you’re making us look like slackers.”
She tucks a loose piece of hair behind her ear, breaking eye contact with me. “I had a lot to do, and Clover asked me to brainstorm a villain with her this afternoon. It kind of threw off my day.”
I lean against the same wall she’s resting her head on. “You couldn’t have done it another time?”
