Page 64 of Taken Off Camera
“What the hell is all this screeching about?” The redhead continues down, each step deliberate. His hair catches the light from the massive chandelier, turning it into living flame. “Some of us were trying to nap.”
“Sorry, Milo,” Gabriel calls up, not sounding sorry at all. “We have visitors.”
Milo reaches the bottom step, crossing his arms over his slender chest. Freckles dust his skin like cinnamon, concentrated across his nose and bare shoulders.
He circles me, studying me with unabashed curiosity. “This is Sebastian’s cam boy?”
My spine stiffens. “I have a name.”
“I bet you do.” Milo completes his circuit, stopping beside Gabriel. “Several, probably. That’s how your business works, right?”
Before I can respond, another set of footsteps approaches, these ones tentative. A smaller man appears in a doorway to our right, hovering at the threshold as if he might bolt at any moment. His olive skin contrasts with inky black hair that falls over his forehead. Unlike Milo’s confident stance, this man clutches a blanket around his shoulders, his fingers worrying its edge.
“Phoenix,” Gabriel sighs. “Go back upstairs. This doesn’t concern you.”
Phoenix ignores him as he trots over to Milo, whispering something I can’t quite catch.
Milo snorts.
“What?” Gabriel asks.
“Phoenix says this is Sebastian’sboyfriend.” Milo’s lips curve into a smirk. “The one he’s been hiding from everyone.”
Phoenix whispers again, and Milo’s nostrils flare. “HeMarkedyou?”
“And then ran,” Saint supplies angrily.
“Consensually?” Milo demands, no longer amused.
“Debatable,” Saint snaps.
I turn back to the pile of cameras, unable to bear the pity creeping into Phoenix’s expression, and the toe of my shoe brushes a small, round device no bigger than a button. I pick it up, turning the tiny camera over in my palm.
Rage boils fresh in my veins.
“You know what we found after we took down all the visible cameras?” I hold the device up. “Even more of them. Hidden ones.”
I dig deeper into the scattered pile and pull out a tiny camera no bigger than my thumbnail, its lens nearly invisible to the naked eye. I wave it in the air, my hand shaking with fury.
“We agreed no bathroom camera!” The words tear from my throat. “We had boundaries. Rules. And you put these everywhere!”
Milo’s eyebrows rise toward his hairline. “Kinky.”
“It’s not kinky, it’s violating.” I stomp forward, the camera pinched between my fingers. “After we removed all the cameras we could see, Saint suggested we scan for bugs. Guess what we found? Dozens more.”
My laugh comes out harsh. “The great security expert made such a big deal about transparency, about how I could trust him to watch over me. But he hid cameras in places he swore would stay private.”
The tiny camera crunches under my boot as I smash it on the marble floor, the sound satisfying in the tense silence.
Phoenix shrinks back, the blanket pulled tight around him. Milo’s face hardens into an expression I can’t read. Gabriel remains silent, his posture tense as he watches my meltdown.
“I trusted him,” I continue, my voice cracking. “I let him into my home, my business. I wore a blindfold for him. I let him monitor my life. And what did I get in return?” I sweep a hand out to encompass the electronic devices. “This!”
Gabriel steps forward. “In Sebastian’s defense?—”
“Don’t.” Saint cuts him off. “There is no defense.”
Gabriel’s lips snap shut before they curl into a wicked smile. “Actually, I was going to say that, in Sebastian’s defense, I had no idea he was into voyeurism. Wait until I tell our cousins what kind of kinks he gets up to.”
