Page 70 of Prized Possession

Before it’s open, I reach over and pull Chloe’s skirt down, making sure Miles doesn’t see more than he should.

“We’re here,” Miles shouts as he climbs out of the car to open Chloe’s door.

I watch as she shuffles to the edge of the seat, biting her lower lip as she tries not to make any noise, even though I’m sure the love egg is making her incredibly hot, given how close to the edge she was not too long ago.

I open my door and climb out, just as Chloe reaches my side with Miles trailing behind. Without thinking, I hold my hand out for hers. She looks down, her brow furrowing at what I’m sure is an unexpected gesture.

I’ll be honest, I’m not entirely sure why I did it, it just felt right. After just a couple of seconds of hesitation, she reaches out and grabs my arm, looping hers through mine, in a much less personal way than holding hands.

I hate the way my stomach drops, and I push it away, plastering a blank mask on my face, so she doesn’t see how affected I am. As we begin walking towards the front door, she leans in closer so that only I can hear.

“I want nothing more than to hold your hand, Marcus, even if I was a little shocked you offered. But, do you see that red car over there?” she asks, pointing to the obnoxiously bright flashy sports car that’s parked a couple of spots down from ours.

“Yes.”

“That is Scott’s car. I had no idea he would be here, but walking in with you will be bad enough, I don’t even want to imagine how much he’d kick off if we were holding hands,” she explains, grimacing when she says the name of her fiancé.

“Shit,” I mutter, wondering why the hell he’s here.

I want to tell her that I don’t give a shit about Scott, or what anyone else thinks. They know she belongs to me for the next few weeks, and that entails whatever I say it does. But that will be opening a can of worms I’m not prepared to deal with right now.

The door in front of us opens, silencing us both. Caleb Santoro is waiting on the other side, his face twisted into a scowl as he drags his gaze over the both of us, no doubt taking in our relaxed attire compared to the sharp suit he’s wearing.

As we reach the entrance, he plasters a fake smile on his face, and holds his arms open wide. “Chloe, darling, it’s so lovely to have you home again.”

Chloe freezes beside me, clearly not used to her father being so openly affectionate with her, letting me know this is all an act—what I’ve yet to figure out is why.

With a quick glance at me, she gives her father a tight smile before dropping my arm to allow him to embrace her. Even from here I can tell it’s an uncomfortable, forced gesture. “Hi, Dad. Nice to see you again.”

As soon as he drops his arms, Chloe takes a step back to my side, and Calebturns to me, his smile now a lot more forced. “Marcus, we’re so glad you could make it.”

The smirk that I’m wearing is definitely not fake. I have a feeling I’m going to enjoy this lunch more than I should. Particularly if Scott is here too. “I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.”

Caleb looks startled by my jovial tone, but remembers the manners a rich guy like him is supposed to have, and ever the gracious host, he opens the door wide and gestures for us to come in.

I step through, but before Miles can follow, Caleb holds out his arm. “I don’t think it’s necessary for you to have your security here, given this is supposed to be a family meal.”

Miles looks like he’s about to argue, but I cut him off. “Then consider him here as a family friend.”

“That’s not?—”

Caleb starts to protest, but to my amazement, Chloe interrupts him. “I invited him, Dad. He’s here as a friend, not security.”

Both myself and Miles turn to Chloe, no doubt wearing matching shocked expressions, but it’s nothing compared to the murderous glare Caleb is throwing at his daughter. He’s obviously just as surprised as we are to see Chloe talking back for the first time. I can’t help but think I’m rubbing off on her already.

I’d really fucking love to be rubbing off on her,I think, my mind taking a very dirty mind, until Caleb interrupts my inappropriate train of thought.

“Fine,” he grinds out. “Follow me.”

Without even looking at us, he walks away, leading us through the maze of hallways, towards their formal sitting room. Chloe wraps her arm around mine again, pulling me closer to her with a smile. She looks over her shoulder at Miles and motions for him to follow us.

“Thanks,” he mutters so only we can hear.

I’m not sure what we would have done, but I know my friend well enough to know that he would never have let me step foot in this house without at least one member of security.

While we have a peace treaty in place with the Santoros right now, it doesn’t change the fact we are rival families, and the agreement will always be fragile, particularly if they find out I’m defiling their only daughter after I promised I wouldn’t touch her.

“No problem. Just try not to kill anyone. Either of you,” she says to us both, but her fierce glare is fixed on me.

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