Page 123 of My Brother’s Best Friends Entanglement

A laugh escapes me. “Are you saying you hitting on me was an unprovoked act of war?”

“I mean, if the UN Security Council were sitting right here, I don't love my odds.” He knocks back the last of his drink. “Worth a shot, though. Sanctions can't be worse than rejection.”

I laugh again despite myself. I'm not attracted to him but I gotta give him credit for being a good sport.

Or so I thought, until I hear Zachary's voice from the other end of the bar. “Mate. Leave her alone. She's trying to work.”

I feel more than see Zachary's whole demeanour change from almost ten metres away. It's genuinely alarming how fast it happens — the easy, dry warmth gone in an instant, replaced by something dangerously territorial that has the bloke actually leaning back a few inches on his stool.

The guy raises an eyebrow, clearly aware of exactly what tone he's hearing in Zachary's voice. He leans closer to me, as if sharing a secret. “Didn't realise studying was a team sport. Is he the coach or water boy?”

“Well, individual sports can get a little lonely,” I say, leaning away from him, giving Zachary a wave. He doesn't return it, just continues eyeing the guy. “And he's more like my offensive guard.”

“Well, consider myself blocked. Have a good night, it was nice talking to you.” The guy holds his hands up in Zachary's direction but still gives me a very obvious wink.

Ugh. Zachary's still standing there with his jaw set and both hands flat on the bar like he's stopping himself from leaping over it and chasing the guy down.

“Hey,” I say, sliding down the bar to stand in front of him. “I had it handled.”

“Yeah?” He doesn't relax, not fully. “It's just that he looked like he was ready to handle you...”

“He didn't. And anyway, he could've wanted whatever he wanted, I didn't. You've got nothing to worry about. Believe me, I already have more than enough on my hands.” I nod pointedly at him, then in the vague direction of home.

That gets the ghost of a smile out of him, and he leans over to give me a possessive kiss, right before a group of a dozen very loud twenty-somethings pour through the door and he has to peel himself away to deal with them, tossing me an apologetic look over his shoulder.

The sudden rush helps me get another hour of reading done before one of his servers leans over the bar, apologetic. “Sorry, Alexia, we're totally slammed — would you mind grabbing a box of napkins from the storeroom? We're completely out and I can't leave the floor.”

“No problem, I needed to stretch my legs anyway,” I say, sliding off the stool, closing my laptop, and tucking it behind the bar.

The storeroom slash Zachary's office is past the restrooms, down a dim corridor. I'm always surprised by how clean Zachary keeps it, expecting it to smell of spilled beer and paper goods, but there's something very Zachary about it, and I love it. I have my hand on the storeroom door handle, when a hand closes round my arm from behind.

I scream just before something covers my eyes and everything goes dark.

THIRTY-THREE

Alexia

A hand clamps over my mouth before the scream gets more than half out, and a voice drops right against my ear, low and dark and infuriatingly familiar.

“You can scream now,” Zachary whispers hot into my ear. “Or you can wait until I've actually given you a reason to.”

My heart's still slamming against my ribs when the door kicks shut behind us, and that's when I see them, Marcus and Rhys, both standing against the far wall of the cramped but tidy room, arms crossed, faces storming with something dark and dangerous.

Zachary lets my mouth go and stands back, and I'm suddenly feeling like a caged animal.

“What's going on?” I say, my voice small, shaky.

“Zachary let us know,” Rhys says, eyes latching onto mine, “that apparently three guys aren't enough for you tonight.”

I snort. “I'm fairly sure I said the exact opposite of that.”

Marcus pushes off the wall and crosses to me, yanking me against his chest, his mouth dropping to my ear from the other side. “Yeah? Because I got the distinct feeling you were wondering if you could handle all three of us. At once.”

Oh.

Oh.

Understanding strikes somewhere low in my stomach, hot and sudden, and I don't get long to process it before Rhys takes two strides in those long legs of his to stand at my back and his hand closes round my jaw and turns my face back to his, and he kisses me, deep, plundering, no gentleness in it at all, and when he finally pulls back he says one word, rough, commanding.