Page 17 of Prized Possession

I narrow my gaze at him, balling my hands into fists. “I don’t have fucking feelings for her. I’ve been telling you to stop saying that shit for years. Even if I found her attractive, she couldn’t be any more off-limits if she tried, especially now she’s engaged.”

“So what were you doing in the alley with her? When you came back inside, it didn’t look like you’d just been talking. She had a very distinct ‘just fucked’ vibe about her,” he replies smugly, and I have to resist the urge to pick up my gun.

“Don’t talk about her like that,” I grind out, the anger fizzling under the surface makes me snap much easier than I normally would. “We were just talking. Jacob didn’t see us, did he?”

Suddenly, the logical part of my brain takes over and I’m worried. There are a lot of reasons why I’ve been pushing Chloe away for years, pretending not to see the way she looks at me.

The biggest reason is the peace treaty between our families. Although it’s in place now, we are—and will always be—rivals, and it won’t take much for the peace to shatter, bringing back the war our fathers have tried to hold at bay for almost thirty years.

“No, he didn’t see you. He was too busy trying to convince anyone with tits to sleep with him. Well, that and drinking your bar dry. Man, can that guy down a shot!” he grumbles with a humourless laugh.

We both know how reckless Jacob can be, and I’m sure the assignment I gave my friend was not an easy one.

“Thank you for keeping an eye on him for me.”

Miles’ glare narrows and he pulls back his shoulders slightly, looking more professional than a moment ago. “Don’t ever ask me to do that again. You are the person I’m supposed to be protecting. When I’m on duty, I’m not your friend. Last night, I let you tell me what to do, as though you were speaking to a friend. As a result, I didn’t have eyes on you for over half an hour, and barely kept track of you for the rest of the night.

“I know we have the best security staff at Caged, but anything could have happened to you. I wouldn’t have been there to do my job because you asked me to be somewhere else. If anything happened, it would have been completely my fault. I may have followed your orders yesterday, but I shouldn’t have. It was unprofessional of me, and I’m asking you not to put me in that position again.”

No matter how much I glare at my friend, he doesn’t back down. He holds his head high, his back ramrod straight, and I know he’s serious. I pushed him too far this time, and a sinking feeling sits in my gut.

I drag my hand over my face before running my fingers through my hair in frustration. “I’m sorry. It won’t happen again,” I grumble uncomfortably.

Miles nods his head once, and then relaxes back into the chair. He knows how much I fucking hate apologising, and like the fucking great friend that he is, he doesn’t drag it out for me.

“Good. Are you gonna tell me what happened with Chloe?” He wags his eyebrows dramatically, like I’m keeping good gossip from him.

I groan, resisting the urge to throw myself back into the comfort of my bed. Instead, I get up and head towards the en-suite to get ready for the meeting I’d almost forgotten about.

“Would you believe me if I said nothing?”

Miles lets out a laugh that sounds suspiciously more like a snort. “Fuck, no.”

“Will you drop it if I tell you?”

He pauses for a second, contemplating his options. “Okay.”

“I made a deal with her. I will help her delay her wedding for a few weeks, in exchange for her help with getting Jacob back on the wagon,” I explain,shouting through the door of the bathroom, so he can still hear me while I’m getting ready.

“You’re telling me that you had the girl you’ve had a crush on for as long as I can remember in a dark alleyway, while she was looking hot as Hell, and all you did is talk? I call bullshit,” he yells through the door, and I roll my eyes as I finish brushing my teeth.

“I have not had a crush on her?—”

Before I can even get the lie out of my mouth, Miles cuts me off. “BULLSHIT!”

“Fine, we fooled around a bit, but it can’t happen again.” I don’t know if I say that more for his benefit or mine.

I can hear Miles chuckle from the next room. “There’s no way you can keep away from her. She’s been drawing you in slowly like a moth to a flame for years. I’m actually impressed you’ve not cracked before now.”

“Look, you asked and I told you. We’re working together to help Jacob. That’s all.”

“And the fact you offered to help her delay her wedding played no part at all? How the fuck are you going to pull that one off, by the way?”

I wince, wondering the same fucking thing. “I don’t know, but if I can do it, I will.”

“Of course, you will. You don’t want her to marry him,” he says slowly, like I’m not keeping up with the conversation.

“She doesn’t want to marry him,” I grind out.

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