Page 5 of His Secret Obsession

“…. might need to hire someone else at the shop.”

I can only make out the tail end of Jax’s sentence as I walk up behind them. Jax stands in the doorway, arms crossed, staring at Luke. Luke scowls before plopping down on the white comforter of a queen-sized bed next to our suitcases.

“I’m not working with you.” Luke’s eyebrows pinch together as he scoffs, apparently finding the idea ridiculous. A low simmer of irritation makes itself known in my belly as Jax scoots over, giving me space to walk into the room. Other than that, he makes no acknowledgment of my presence, and that irritates me, too.

“Why not? It’s a job.” Jax’s voice takes on that firm, no nonsense tone. I bite my tongue, wanting to agree but not wanting to openly take Jax’s side over Luke’s.

“I might have something lined up soon,” Luke admits. He rubs the back of his neck. “But it would be seasonal.”

“What sort of job?” Jax asks.

At the same time, I blurt out, “You didn’t tell me about this.”

Luke gives me an apologetic wince, while Jax shoots me a look that can only be irritation. I give him one right back and, for just a second, I think I see the tiniest twitch of a smile. I ignore the butterflies taking victory laps inside my stomach and turn back to Luke.

“Uh, well…I haven’t decided if I want to take it yet.” His voice is tentative, his eyes not meeting mine. There’s a sort of sheepish look on his face, and it makes me want to growl in frustration.

“Luke, I can understand not wanting to work with your brother,” I begin, only to be interrupted by said brother’s scoff. I narrow my eyes and shoot him an unimpressed look. There’s that damn lip twitch again. “But we really can’t afford to be picky right now. Whatever it is, just take it until you find something better.”

“Easy for you to say.” He finally looks at me, a frown marring his expression.

My eyebrows furrow. “What does that mean? I’m not exactly working my dream job out here either.”

But I gave up a very prestigious internship for you.

“You have a degree,” Luke points out with a petulant shrug. “You can get something in your field. Something you actually like. It’s not that easy for me.”

“If you wanted to be picky, then you shouldn’t have dropped out of college,” Jax snaps.

“College isn’t for everyone,” I argue. A hot well of frustration bubbles up inside me, this room suddenly feeling a little too crowded. I address Luke again. “I took a job as a cashier at a home décor store that’s a forty-minute drive from here. It’s not exactly going to be a cake walk for me either.”

“Thought you had a degree,” Jax interrupts again, turning towards me this time.Why is he still here?He doesn’t need to be present for this argument.“And an internship,” he adds. I canfeelhis quizzical stare boring into the side of my face.

“Why are you asking so many questions right now?” I snap, sending him a glare. The bastard has the audacity to smirk.

“Answer the question,” he orders.

“Look, bro—” Luke begins, standing up.

Me and Jax face each other, arms crossed and ignoring him.

“Since you are just dying to know about my personal life,” I seethe, “I have a bachelor’s in interior design, and I had an internship in the city that I quit because it wasn’t bringing in any money. But I’m starting at Zamora’s Home Décor on Monday. It’ll pay the bills until I can find something better in my field. So, if you’re worried about me being a freeloader, don’t be.”

I expect Jax to relax now that I’ve assuaged some of his worries. As if I would ever ask him for money. It was hard enough to accept his invitation to live here. But if anything, nowhe just looks furious. For some reason, his eyes narrow and he shoots a scathing look towards Luke. He points at him.

“Either you take the job offer or you work for me starting next Monday. You choose.” His voice is quieter than before, his body tense. It’s the kind of tone that brokers no arguments. And without another word, he shakes his head and stalks out of the bedroom. I shut the door behind him, leaning against it and letting my head thump against the wood.

“Living with him is going to be a nightmare,” I mumble, rubbing my tired eyes. “Has he always been like this?”

Luke chuckles before patting his hand on the empty spot next to him. I move toward it, intending to sit next to him but thinking better of it at the last second. Instead, I drape myself over his lap.

His hands come up to rest on my lower back as he sighs. “Ever since our parents died, yeah. It’s like he forgets that he’s my brother and not my father.”

We’re silent for a moment as I digest his words and press my forehead against his. “I think he means well,” I finally admit.

Luke nods. “Yeah, but I wish he would act like my brother. I’m old enough to take care of myself now.”

Giving him a sympathetic smile, I squeeze his shoulders reassuringly and decide to change the subject. “So, what’s the job?”

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