The Contract Said No Strings Attached (Charlotte) novel Chapter 301

Noah closed his laptop and said, “Well, since Dad already stood up for Mom, I guess we don’t have to teach that mean lady a lesson—for now.”

Ethan huffed. “But that awful woman still needs to be put in her place. What if she tries to bully Mom again?”

Evan stroked his chin thoughtfully. “I actually think this is a good chance to see what Dad’s made of.”

Noah considered this, then nodded. “Exactly. Let’s wait and see. If she tries anything else, we’ll let Dad handle it first. If he can’t, then we’ll step in.”

The boys exchanged glances and, in perfect agreement, nodded their little heads.

...

That evening, Dylan Austin and Thomas Brown were having dinner together. Thomas grinned at him and teased, “You know, you’ve got a family at home, yet you’re always eating with a lonely guy like me. What do you say—should we just shack up together and call it a day?”

Dylan ignored the jab, unfazed.

Undeterred, Thomas dug into his meal, savoring the food. “Seriously, Dylan, you’ve been awfully quiet lately. Something on your mind? Spill it—maybe I could give you some advice.”

Dylan was silent for a moment before finally speaking. “It’s nothing. Just some trouble at work.”

The moment he realized it was another work issue, Thomas lost interest and shook his head, focusing on his plate.

A few minutes later, Thomas scrolled through his phone, then suddenly perked up, a mischievous sparkle in his eyes. “Hey, check this out. Now this is interesting.”

Dylan barely glanced his way, clearly uninterested.

“I’m not,” Dylan replied, his tone icy.

With Dylan unmoved, Thomas let the teasing drop and studied the photo more closely, a note of doubt creeping into his voice. “Still… Fitch always has a thing for the ladies. Heaven knows how many women he’s charmed over the years. You don’t think he actually got involved with Raina and ended up with this kid, do you?”

“I don’t know… For Fitch to publicly claim this boy as his son, something feels off…”

Dylan narrowed his eyes. “Fitch may be reckless, but he’s not stupid. He knows when to draw the line.”

Thomas shrugged. “You never know. People do crazy things when they’re caught up in the moment. And the way Fitch looks at that kid… doesn’t seem like some casual connection.”

If Dylan was being honest, he’d sooner believe Fitch was making it up than accept the boy was really his. Not wanting to discuss it any further, Dylan said, “Enough. You’re just speculating, and you have nothing to back it up.”