Page 133 of Prized Possession

The meal passes by relatively quickly, with Marcus and Miles doing a great job of distracting my mother and Scott whenever they try to talk about the wedding. Ewan and Dad are deep in conversation, so are none the wiser.

We try to leave as soon as the meal is over, but my parents wouldn’t allow it this time. They insist on us joining them for a drink in the parlour room, and Marcus is just as annoyed by this as I am.

It quickly becomes clear this was their plan all along, as Dad tries to distract Marcus while Mother pulls out a wedding planning book. She’s already filled in most of the pages, no doubt after ignoring all of the suggestions Miles made while he was pretending to be me.

I listen patiently as she goes through the book with me and Scott, but it’s hard to ignore the way he keeps shuffling closer to me, pressing himself against my side.

When I shoot him a glare, he claims he can’t see the book my mother is holding on the other side of me, but I know that’s bollocks, especially when he puts his hand on my thigh—which is exactly why I wore jeans. At least I don’t have to feel him on my bare flesh.

I grit my teeth and ignore the way he’s rubbing circles into my leg. I don’t need to look at Marcus to know he’s staring at me, I can feel his eyes on me.

“When do you think you’ll be free?” Mother asks, and I quickly realise I’ve missed most of what she’s been saying.

In an attempt to block out Scott, and ignore her, I appear to have missed something important.

“Sorry, what?”

Mother glares at me before rolling her eyes, looking at me with disgust.

“Really, Chloe. Were you listening to me at all?”

“I was,” I lie. “I just missed the question.”

She grinds her teeth, clearly not believing me.

“I said, we’re already cutting it fine as it is… You need to choose a wedding dress. I’m already going to have to pay a ridiculous rush fee, but if we leave it much later, you’ll end up wearing something off the rack, and there’s no way I could bear the humiliation of that.”

Both Marcus and Miles, who must have been listening to our conversation, begin to chuckle, quickly hiding behind their hands as they make it look like they were talking to each other. I can’t help but smile at them. My mother is being dramatic.

Had they not made me laugh, I would most likely be dissolving into a panic attack right now. The idea of picking out a wedding dress makes the whole thing seem so real, and I can’t think about that.

“I’m sure we’ll find something. You don’t need to worry,” I tell her, which only makes her glower at me more.

Scott chips in, supporting my mother. “Your dress is very important, Chloe. You need to look your best, as it’s a reflection on both me and your family.

“Besides, I’m sure you’ll love going dress shopping with your mother. You can even invite my mother and sister, they’re very fashion forward, and would make sure you looked your best for me. Since you don’t have any friends of your own, they’d be happy to step in.”

Even though his words sound friendly and caring, the subtext is more than clear. Each insult hits me deeper than the last.

There’s no way I’d enjoy dress shopping, especially if I’m with my mother. Adding his family in, who I’ve never met, would be even worse.

Then to point out my lack of friends… He may as well have cut me open and smiled as he watched me bleed.

I used to have friends, but I was made to stop seeing them, to concentrate on my role in this family. I hadn’t realised how much it bothers me until this moment.

Feeling an overwhelming urge to burst into tears, I spring to my feet. “Will you excuse me, I need to use the bathroom.”

I hear muttering around me, but I try to drown it out. Though when I hear a phone ring, I turn around to make sure it’s not mine. Marcus pulls his phone from his jacket pocket and checks the screen.

Since it’s not mine, I continue walking swiftly out of the room. I hear Marcus tell everyone he has to take the call, and I wonder for a moment what would be important enough for him to leave my family. Then another wave ofemotions hit me, and the tears I’ve been trying to hold back break free, trickling down my face.

I keep moving down the hallway, but just before I reach the bathroom, someone grabs my arm and pulls me down one of the side corridors, until we reach the room at the end.

After my initial shock and yelp at being manhandled, I relax when I see it’s Marcus who grabbed me. He closes the door behind us and walks me across the room, pushing me against another door on the opposite wall. He crowds over me, trapping me between his hard body and the wooden door.

“Do you know what’s on the other side of this door?” he asks, his voice low and gravelly.

I blink away the tears before taking a look around the room, and after a few seconds, realisation hits.

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