Page 6 of Prized Possession

Miles simply shakes his head. Although Miles is one of my best friends, his role as my security takes precedence over our friendship. If he were joining us as a friend, he’d make sure to have someone else take over as our security. But if there’s no other security, he’d never abandon his role—no matter how much Jake might try.

“I’m here to work tonight. I’ll make that clear to him, if he asks, but we both know he won’t.”

“If you wanna call another member of security in and take the night off with us, you can,” I reply, cursing myself a little for not offering sooner.

I gloss over his comment about Jake not asking him to join us. I gave up trying to work out what is going on between them a long time ago.

We all used to be friends in school, then our final year of high school, something changed between them, and now they’re cordial around me, and ignore each other when I’m not there.

Miles shakes his head to decline. “No, the meeting tomorrow is a big one, and you have your poker night too. I can’t deal with all that if I have a hangover.”

Miles is repeating everything I said to Jake, about how I want to be firing on all cylinders for the big day we have planned tomorrow. It’s nice that Miles understands, as I know Jake will give me shit for saying things like that the minute he arrives. He enjoys shirking his responsibilities.

“That’s exactly why I need you to make sure Jake doesn’t try to lead me astray,” I grumble, knowing the effect Jacob can have on me.

We’re both competitive, and he knows that all he needs to do is make something into a game and I’m all in. But I can’t be led down that path tonight.

“I can keep a leash on you well enough, but I’ve never been able to tame Jacob,” he replies, a gleam in his eye that hints at something more than he’s saying.

Jacob seems to go out of his way to wind Miles up, and sometimes, Miles’ determination to not be rattled annoys Jake even more than when they argue. Though, when they fight, it gets heated quickly, and I’ve had to break them up on more than one occasion.

“I don’t pay you enough to tame Jake. Though I do need to come up with a plan to get him to stop fucking around,” I grumble, admitting to my friend that I’m no closer to finalising a plan than I was before.

We spend the next hour hashing out some ideas for how I might be able to get Jake to grow up. Admittedly, Miles’ suggestion of kidnapping him until he detoxes might not be the worst plan we’ve come up with—which says a lot about the rest of our shit ideas.

I’m on my second Jack Daniels and Coke—and my last—when I notice Miles’ face slip into a grimace, muttering a curse under his breath. I turn in my chair and follow the direction of his gaze, trying to find what it is that has him looking so uncomfortable.

He’s looking at the entrance to the club, where Jacob has just walked in with his usual cheeky smile and assured swagger. But I know that’s not what caughtMiles’ eye. He’s looking at the girl who is standing a couple of paces behind Jacob.

Dressed in the shortest, tightest black dress that shows off her shapely arse and tits, and the most sultry red lips, is Chloe Santoro. My dick twitches at the sight of her, and it only takes me a few seconds to realise why Miles is so on edge.

Chloe already looks drunk, swaying on her ridiculous high heels, and she’s catching the attention of every man in the room.

My anger rises at the same time my cock does. Miles knows as well as I do, I’m going to end up getting into a fight tonight.

Whenever Chloe lets loose, I always end up having to stop her from doing something stupid.

She can hate me for it all she wants, but she’ll thank me tomorrow when she doesn’t have to make the walk of shame from some twat’s house, while her father lectures her about responsibility.

I tell myself—and Miles—that the only reason I look out for her is because of the peace treaty, and the fact that Jacob is my best friend. He’s too off his face to look out for her, so I do it for him.

Regardless of how many times I repeat that to myself, and to anyone who asks, it always sounds like a lie.

No matter how much I want to hate her, or how off-limits she is, there’s something about Chloe that pulls me to her. It’s a part of me I push down as far as I can, choosing to opt for the easy, obvious explanation instead.

Why is it we always crave something when we know it’s forbidden?

Iclimb the couple of steps into Caged, tilting slightly on my too-high heels. They would probably be fine if it weren’t for the few shots of vodka I did before leaving the house.

There’s a pleasant buzz flooding through my system, warming me up to the point I barely notice the chilly bite in the air outside of the club.

Once we’re inside, and the pounding of the bass hits me, along with the warmth of all the bodies swaying together in the packed nightclub, I can finally breathe.

The alcohol and the noise have done their job, quieting the incessant voices inside my head to the point I can ignore them entirely. I’m able to be present in the here and now, instead of getting lost in the darkness of the past.

I feel a hand press against my back and freeze, whipping my head around to see who is touching me. My brother, Jacob, is giving me his usual smile, but his piercing brown eyes are looking at me with a little more scrutiny now.

He leans in slightly, bending until his lips are near my ear, and I try my best not to look as stiff as I feel. “You okay?”

---