Chapter three

ANTHONY

I opened my phone with a sigh, the image of the guy I had met earlier still lingering in my mind. Something about him felt strangely familiar, but maybe it was only because Lisa had been yapping about him nonstop.

I rubbed my jaw and leaned back against the seat. My father had been pressuring me to get married, and my mother had joined him, but I had never found anyone intriguing enough to make me consider settling down.

So why was I suddenly interested in a man? I glanced at my phone again, reminding myself that Brian was simply the guy my sister couldn't stop talking about.

I could still call myself straight, couldn't I? The way my eyes had followed him after he left made me question that for the first time.

I pulled out my phone and sent him an anonymous message. I was only doing this to see for myself what exactly my sister found so interesting about him.

When I saw him approaching the party, I stepped away from the crowd and waited. “Brian.”

He froze and looked around, searching for whoever had called his name. I watched him turn before finally facing me.

“I was the one who sent the text asking you to come here,” I said. His brows drew together as he stared at me.

“Did you perhaps think it was Lisa?” I asked. He remained silent for a moment before his eyes swept over the surroundings.

“How did you get my contact?” he asked, his expression guarded. He looked completely out of place among the expensive cars, designer clothes, and loud music surrounding us.

“I wanted to see for myself why my sister is drawn to you,” I replied. My gaze traveled over him, and the cheap masculine perfume clinging to his clothes nearly made me wrinkle my nose.

“Why are you wearing such a choking perfume?” I asked. He immediately looked straight at me.

“Are you here to mock me the same way you did earlier?” His voice hardened. “If you're worried about your sister getting involved with someone like me, you don't have to worry anymore.”

He took a step back, his eyes never leaving mine. “I'm not interested in your sister, and I never will be.”

I studied him, surprised by how easily he spoke to me. His gaze dropped briefly, and I noticed the way his eyes widened when he spotted the gun tucked against my side.

“For a pauper like you, I have to admit you have some audacity.” I stepped closer, watching his face carefully. “And you're not even scared.”

He shook his head. “I'm not scared of you.”

“Stay very far away from my sister,” I warned. “I don't want to see you anywhere near her again.”

“It's okay,” he replied, keeping his voice steady. “Can I take my leave now?”

“You can.”

He turned and started walking away, but my fingers curled around the gun at my side. The people nearby noticed it, and the conversations around us died almost instantly.

“That's the mafia heir,” someone whispered.

The crowd rushed toward me, especially the girls who had suddenly forgotten whatever they had been doing before. I had come here quietly because I didn't want anyone drawing attention to me, but apparently that plan had failed.

I needed to waste some time anyway; there were pressing matters waiting for me at the villa. A girl stepped forward, smiling as she looked me over.

“Anthony,” she purred. “I can make you happy tonight.”

She turned around, showing off her figure. “No, not my type,” I said with a sigh.

Brian was already walking away when something about him stopped me. Before I could think twice, I rushed after him and grabbed his arm.

“What the hell are you doing?” he gasped as I pulled him closer. I lowered my face toward his sleeve and inhaled, trying to identify the strange familiarity bothering me.

“Checking something,” I muttered, studying him from head to toe.

“Is the mafia heir perhaps gay?” someone whispered behind us.

“I think Brian likes men too,” another voice added. “Lisa has been chasing him forever, but now he's obviously hitting on her brother.”

Brian's jaw tightened as the whispers grew louder. “Please don't make this difficult for me,” he said, turning toward me.

“Do you think I care what the crowd says?” I muttered. “I can do whatever I want.”

I looked into his eyes, and the words came without thought. “Little pet.”

His eyes widened. “Little pet?”

“Yes.” A strange smile tugged at my lips. “You are my little pet, and I find you interesting.”

Something shifted inside my mind.

Years ago, my parents had employed a private chef who had a beautiful daughter. I was twenty, and she was fifteen, but I remembered how cute she had been whenever she ran around the villa while her mother worked.

I had always called her my little pet. I had even sworn to myself that I would wait until she was eighteen before asking her out, but one day her mother stopped coming.

When I asked my father about them, his answer was simple. The chef had died.

“Don't call me that,” Brian protested, pulling his arm away.

“I'll refer to you however I want,” I replied. “You don't get to tell me what to do.”

“What the hell?”

A familiar voice echoed from the party. I turned and found Lisa standing several feet away, her eyes fixed on me and Brian.

Her face twisted in disbelief. “How gross! Why are you entangled with my boyfriend, Anthony?”

“He isn't good for you, Lisa,” I said.

“What?” Her eyes darted between us before settling on Brian. “You're acting gayish, and Brian, why is my brother's mouth brushing against your neck?”

Brian's face went pale.

Lisa suddenly burst into tears, and I stared at her in disbelief. My sister could be unbelievably dramatic.

“Lisa,” I called, moving toward her. “Wait!”

“Don't come close to me!” she screamed, backing away. “I'm definitely telling Father you're gay!”

“It's not what it looked like,” I said, but she was already running away.

I stood there watching her disappear into the crowd. Yet despite everything that had just happened, my mind kept returning to Brian.

I clenched my jaw and cursed myself for it.