"Wow." I whispered as I looked out the limo window.

We were at the Dynasty hotel and it was packed.

We crawled behind a number of limos and other fancy and expensive looking cars.

The night was young and many people dressed in their finest clothing walked around heading towards the entrance of the beautiful hotel.
It's then that I realised that the hotel was underrated. People who had seen it had called it majestic, beautiful, marvelous but it was so much more.

It was every architects dream creation.
I had always believed that the most beautiful buildings were found in Rome. But no, it was right here in Manhattan.

The structure looked like a sort of modern themed castle and I could picture a king with great power dwelling in here. Beautiful Fountains were strategically placed all around and though I didn't get to see all of them, being in the limo and all, even getting a glimpse of one spurting out water in an orderly pattern was good enough.

The Phoenix hotel was beautiful and amazing sure but it was built more for entertainment. This place looked like it was built for the most luxurious and royal accommodation you could think of with its black and silver theme.

"Whoever designed this should get like an Oscar or a Grammy for architecture... do those even exist?" I asked. I didn't even turn around to look at Jason who must have been rolling his eyes.

We continued moving at a snails pace. I kept taking in the marvelous building through the tinted windows of the limo craning my neck to see more.

I also noticed that there were a lot of men dressed similarly to Joey and Greg, who were currently sitting opposite us, around.

I could only imagine how many guards must have been present today.
With all the important people Isabella told me were coming and judging by the size of the hotel, I wouldn't be surprised if they were much more than a hundred.

The limo stopped in front of the entrance.
That's when the flashing lights started.
Security could barely contain the paparazzi and onlookers as they tried to get a peek at who was coming out of the limo.
And the red velvet rope they stood behind did little to nothing to restrain them.

My stomach clenched at the thought of having to go out there.
What if I tripped?
I couldn't remember the last time I even wore heels.
I was supposed to be a model and I didn't remember the last time I wore heels!

"Ready for the fun part?" Jason asked sarcastically as he sat up.

"No." I replied nervously.

"Too bad." He shrugged. "It's show time."

Before I could say any more, he nodded at Joey who opened the door to the limo.
The shouting became louder.
Joey and Greg stepped out first.
Jason held out his hand to me.
I shakily took it.
He narrowed his eyes at me.

"You're nervous." He stated.

"No kidding." I muttered trying my best to be sarcastic with how nervous I felt.

"You don't have to worry." Jason assured me.

"Oh yeah? And why is that?"

He shrugged. "Because you're with me."

With that he turned around and stepped out of the limo.

If it was possible there was even more commotion outside.

He then pulled me out of the limo.

The flashing lights blinded me for a minute before my eyes adjusted to them.

Jason held on to my hand as he led me up the carpeted entrance stairs. Joey was in front of us keeping people away from us while Greg flanked us from behind.

We walked past the screaming paparazzi.
I wasn't really paying attention to what they were saying but that's until they yelled my name... or at least my fake name.

'Katelyn! Katelyn!'
'Miss King!'
'Jason! Give Miss King a kiss!'

I thought I froze in my spot but then I realised it was Jason who had stopped right in the middle of the steps.

He turned around and put his arm around my waist pulling me closer. He beamed at the paparazzi and gave them a little wave.
I just looked up at him realising how absolutely flawless he looked. He looked like he was born to be in the spotlight, which he kind of was.
He then leaned over and whispered in my ear.

"Smile for goodness sake."

I immediately complied to his order offering my best smile.

I mustered up the courage to look at the flashing cameras.

I smiled at them but didn't dare try to wave.
I put one arm around Jason and felt him tense a little.

Should I not have done that?

Jason leaned over again and placed a long soft kiss on my cheek that made my heart beat faster than it already was.

The crowd went wild.

I don't know if it was the fact that I was nervous or the adrenaline of the fact that I was standing in front of the paparazzi with Jason Callahan's arm wrapped around me.
But I felt this weird giddy feeling the minute Jason's lips met my cheek.

"Aww.... is she blushing?" Someone yelled.

And surely that only made more blood rush to my cheek.

To my surprise, a deep sound came from Jason. One I could only describe as a chuckle.
He gave one last wave before turning me around to head into the hotel.

The minute we walked through the doors I let out a breath I didn't know I had been keeping in.

I looked up at Jason to find an amused look on his face.

"You actually weren't bad." He spoke.

I couldn't stop shaking from the adrenaline rush I just had.

"Gee, thanks." I muttered.m

He took my hand in his again.
It was warm and that actually made me feel better.

"Brace yourself. That was just the beginning." He spoke.

Before I could voice my shock, a man in a black suit came rushing to us ignoring everyone else around him. He wore a name tag on his suit that read 'Chadwick'. He looked to be in his mid thirties but there was this worried look on his face that made him appear even older.

"Mr Callahan." He spoke hurriedly.

"Jason." Jason corrected him.

"Of course." He replied quickly. He turned to look at me and offered me a quick smile. "I can only assume that this lovely lady is your date for the evening."

"Chadwick, this is my girlfriend, Kate"

I could have sworn the Chadwick guy grimaced at the word 'girlfriend'.

But it left as soon as it came. He looked at Jason with that same respect all his employees had but also a determined look.

"Your father has been asking about you, sir."

"He's here already?" Jason asked in shock.

Chadwick nodded. "Yes sir, he arrived earlier with Mrs Callahan, Max and your Uncle Benjamin."

"Dammit." Jason muttered as he rubbed his temple. "Where is he now?"

"He's in a meeting with Senator Humphrey. He told me to find you and bring you to him as soon as you got here."

"Are Anthony and Harry here already?" Jason asked. He looked agitated.

Chadwick nodded. "They're waiting for you. You have to come with me me now, sir." The Chadwick guy spoke as he gestured for us to follow him.

Jason grabbed my hand and muttered something unintelligible as we quickly followed Chadwick.

It was no surprise that we were late. Jason had insisted on stopping by some apartment building on the other side of town and very vaguely insisted that he needed to do something before we came here.

He went in alone and spent thirty minutes there before coming back without bothering to give any of us any explanation. Well I think Joey and Greg were already used to it.

Chadwick led us down a hall straight to a glass elevator. I didn't have time to take in much because of how fast we were moving but I got the main theme. Beautiful eggshell white walls with neat patterns sprawled all over.

Little specks of glass shimmered on the ceiling and the floors were pure black marbel.

There was silence in the elevator but I could sense the impatience radiating off Jason.
It's weird, the same thing happened with Isabella and Alex. They never really talked about their feelings but with a little time, I learnt to read their body language.

Jason tapped his foot and I felt him drum his fingers on my skin as he squeezed my hand. I don't think he even realised that he was doing it.

The elevator doors swung open and a spherically shaped hallway came into view in a similar beautiful design to the lobby but in here, the patterns on the wall looked like they had been skillfully hand painted in an alternation of black and a shiny silver paint.
There were diamond shaped chandeliers on the ceiling that reminded me of stars.

Again, I didn't really have the time to marvel at it all because Jason practically dragged me along with him. He's lucky I didn't trip in my heels.

There were two beautifully designed, large, black double doors that took up almost the whole expanse of the wall.

I could hear classical music coming from there.
Chadwick swung the door open to reveal the most beautiful ballroom I had ever seen.

He walked in and stopped to bark orders at some waiters.

I felt like I had just walked into a party from the Great Gatsby.

Everyone looked extravagant in their expensive looking clothing and jewellery. And here I was thinking Isabella had overdressed me.

Now I felt underdressed.

I saw a group of women whisper and glance our way.

I realised that it wasn't only them, everyone who had been next to the door had noticed us.

A lady in a royal blue gown with diamonds serving as her jewelry eyed me from top to bottom before whispering something to her friend.

I felt insecure and subconsciously moved closer to Jason.
He felt my shoulder graze his and turned his attention away from Chadwick and furrowed his brows at me.

"What's wrong?"

"Um, nothing." I spoke, not really wanting to tell him of all people about how uncomfortable I felt.

Unfortunately, he seemed to pick up on what was worrying me quickly. He took loosened his hand from mine and repositioned his arm around my waist, pulling me closer to him.
I let out a quiet gasp as I came face to face with him.

I hesitantly wrapped an arm around his shoulder so that the gesture wouldn't look too weird.

He used his free hand to place his hand under my chin and tip it back so that he had a better view of my face.

I felt like a deer caught in headlights with this compromising position. I knew that if we hadn't gotten people's attention before, we definitely had it now.

"You're the most beautiful girl in this room." He spoke. It didn't sound like a compliment. It sounded like a plain old fact. "And you're in the arms of a Callahan, that practically makes you royalty. That means other women will be jealous and envious of you. Don't let it get to you. Own it." He ordered.

With the way he looked longingly into my eyes and held me, anyone would have thought he was being romantic.

I gulped. "Got it." I whispered.

Then for a minute, he looked like he actually was lost in my eyes. He started leaning forward tryjng to close the space between us.

I acted fast and placed a quick kiss on his cheek. I couldn't let him kiss me, he had already stolen too many kisses from me. These lips were meant to kiss only one person.

Jason stiffened and for a minute I thought I was in trouble for doing that.

"Jason." I heard a deeper voice speak.

Jason pulled away from me, immediately responding to the voice.

He turned to face a really tall man. He looked like he towered everyone in this room.
He wore a tuxedo that must have been tailored precisely for him.
He was and I'm not exaggerating, huge.
Not in the overweight kind of way. Even through his tux, I could tell that he was made of pure muscle. He wore an emotionless expression on his face, a scar rested on his right cheek right underneath his eye. His eye were sharp, they were focused on us but it seemed like he could detect danger from all corners. That only added to the permanent threatening look that he had on his face. He looked to be in his mid forties.

"Uncle Benjamin, sorry I'm late." Jason's tone was the same business like tone but there was some respect in it to this man.

"You're always late." The man had a deep voice that matched his body. He didn't crack a smile or anything but Jason still found it fitting to crack a smile.

"New York traffic can be a nuisance, uncle."

The man rolled his eyes. "There really is no hope for you, Jason." There was still no humor in his tone.

Jason shrugged. "Apparently not."

The man's eyes suddenly landed on me.

"So what I'm hearing is true?" He asked.
His eyes scanned my body, not in any sexual way but in a cautious and calculating way.

"Uncle Benjamin, meet my girlfriend, Kate. Kate, this is my Uncle Benjamin."

When Jason had told Chadwick this, he had said it for his information. But when he told his uncle this, he sounded almost... timid, like he wanted his approval.

"Nice to meet you, sir." I spoke as I outstretched my hand. The man kept his hands behind his back and just looked down at it before turning his attention to Jason.

"I thought it was strange that Isabella didn't arrive with you. I assume you haven't settled your problems."

I saw Jason tap his fingers on his pants.

"We're working on it." He spoke tensely.

The man looked obviously unimpressed by Jason's response but before he could say anything else, Chadwick returned.

He didn't seem to notice 'Uncle Benjamin' immediately which I found shocking but when he did, he looked like he was ready to drop to the ground and bow.

"Mr Sapphire. I was just about to-"

"Quiet." The man's deep voice spoke. It carried so much authority. "Mr Callahan sent you to do one thing and it took you hours to respond, I'll take Jason myself."

"Sorry, sir-I-I-"

"Go back to work." The man ordered.

Poor Chadwick looked like he would pass out right there. He lowered his head as he quickly excused himself.

"Lets not keep your father waiting, Jason." The man spoke as he walked away.

As he left, something I hadn't really paid attention to hit me.

Mr Sapphire.

"Is that Isabella's father?" I whispered to Jason.

He nodded. I see where Isabella gets her height from and her hair and those startling green eyes.

"Listen, I have to be there when the boss makes his toast. It will only take a few minutes. Stay here and mingle. But not too much. Do not draw too much attention to yourself, just enough so that everyone knows who you are."

"That doesn't make any sense." I told him.

"Just don't talk to-"

"Jason." Mr Sapphire growled impatiently when he noticed that Jason hadn't been following him.

"Just remember what I told you, don't be intimidated by any of them." He spoke hurriedly. He placed a quick peck on my cheek before turning to leave.

My hand subconsciously moved to my cheek.

That felt oddly... familiar.

Jason left and I suddenly felt exposed in this sea of unfamiliar people surrounding me.

I walked around, trying not to look lost. But that only made it worse. People still stared some wondering who I was, some looking like they already had their suspicions and others recognising me immediately.

A man approached me with a tray full of glasses of clear liquids.

"Champagne? Miss?" He asked.

"Oh, um..." I saw two ladies give me a scrutinising look. "Sure." I replied quickly as I picked up the glass. I took a sip and was surprised to find that the alcoholic beverage actually tasted like soda.

Still a little bitter for my taste but it was still something I could bare with.

I was barely halfway through the glass when three familiar faces approached me.
The same three  girls I had met when I went shopping with Isabella.

"Hey, you're Katelyn, right?" The Asian spoke, Chanel. She wore a pearly gown that went all the way up to her neck. I knew that it was probably expensive and fashionable but it simply looked uncomfortable to me.

I nodded. "And you're Chanel if I recall correctly." I took Jason's advice and tried not to be intimidated by her preying eyes. She had given me the same look the first time we met. The only difference now was that she actually saw me as a threat.

"Hello, Lila and Britney, right? It's nice to see you again." I greeted the two girls. They were giving me nasty looks and had been surprised by the fact that I acknowledged them.

They quickly put on fake smiles.

"Right, you too." Lila, the red head spoke. She wore a flowy green dress. I didn't want to be mean but the colour looked kind of overwhelming on her.

"You look gorgeous, by the way." Britney spoke, she wore a silver dress with really huge shoulder pads.

I really wasn't impressed with what passed as 'fashion' around here.

"So, Kate..." Chanel spoke obviously not happy with having the attention off of her. "Can I call you Kate?"

"Sure." I spoke though I could hear Anthony chastising me about the name hitting too close to home.

Chanel gave me what I think she thought was a friendly smile. "So you and Jason? Who would have guessed?" There was this bitterness to her tone.

I remembered how she had flirted with Jason at the boutique. Well all of them had flirted with him but with her it seemed a bit more personal.

"It's still unbelievable even to me." I hoped I sounded in love instead of stoic.

"But don't you think it's kind of catty that you practically stole him from Isabella?" Britney blurted out.

Wow, how subtle.

"Isabella is actually the one who introduced us." I told them. I felt an unnatural wave of satisfaction at the way their faces dropped. "We ran into him at a coffee shop and we kind of just hit it off." I recounted the story I had practiced with Isabella.

"It didn't seem that way at the Boutique." Chanel spoke not even bothering to hide her snarkiness this time.

I remembered Isabella's teachings clearly and did as she had said.
I let out a laugh and waved her off.

"Oh, right. Well Jason and I were still keeping things on the down low then. You know how he is." I spoke with a teasing edge to my voice.

Of course they wouldn't know. According to Isa, none of them had really gotten the 'privilege' of getting with Jason.

In fact, Chanel had been making her move until I came into the picture and ruined it.

There was so much hatred in their eyes.
I could understand how Isabella dealt with this, she had a fiery attitude and not to mention, she had been raised to deal with such people.
Me on the other hand, my parents might have been relatively comfortable but they still made sure that my brother and I were down to earth and that we understood the value of hard work.

Britney threw back her blonde hair.
"Totally."

Lila leaned forward as if trying to tell me a secret.
"But doesn't it feel weird, you know? Dating your friend's ex fiance?"

Act like you don't care. I heard Isa's voice in my head.

I put on my best blank look. "Not really." Was all I said with a small shrug before sipping on my champagne.

But I did care, I did care a lot. Isa is my best friend and I know Jason means a lot to her. Holding him, hugging him... It almost felt as bad as betraying Alex.

"I hear she actually cheated on Jason with Harry and that's the real reason they broke up." Lila spoke up.

Chanel rolled her eyes. "Oh it's obviously true, I mean who disappears with another guy after breaking off an engagement?"

Britney snorted out a laugh. "So true, I heard they actually disappeared because Isabella got pregnant and they like had to get away so that no one would find out. And after she like gave birth, she needed the extra year to lose the weight."

"Well, obviously she needed more than a year, have you seen how horribly that dress fits her?" Chanel spoke with a laugh. The three girls all burst out laughing.

They looked at me expectantly.

I couldn't hide my anger. I know that I had been told to not let anything get to me but how dare they?
Isabella looked way better in her designer ivory dress than any of them looked in their costumes of outfits.

They were supposed to be Isabella's friends but yet they were spreading these awful stories about her.
I couldn't help it, I finally burst.

"Isabella looks amazing and for any of you to-"

"Hello ladies."
I was interrupted by a deep voice.
It was the guy from the Phoenix hotel, Dean Archbald.

He appeared beside Chanel.

"Dean, what are you doing here?" Chanel asked in irritation.

Dean didn't seem offended by the fact that she didn't want him here.

"I was invited, love." He spoke.

Chanel rolled her eyes. "You know what I mean." She spoke through gritted teeth.

Dean smirked at me."Well you are hogging the new girl."

"She doesn't want to talk to the likes of you?" Chanel spat.

Dean smirked at me. "Don't you think that's for her to decide?"

All four of them looked at me expectantly.
I was still mad from what the girls had been saying and the last thing I wanted to do was spend another second with them.

"Shall we?" I asked Dean.

He offered me his arm and I took it, letting him lead me away.

Chanel's jaw practically dropped.

When we were out of earshot, Dean chuckled.
"And here I was thinking you wouldn't last a minute out here."

"What?" I asked in confusion.

I let go of his arm and he turned around to face me.

He shrugged. "Don't take it personally, it's just that I know you're new to all this and you've practically started from the top. I mean bagging Jason Callahan? That takes some serious skill. You must be really good in bed." He spoke with a wink.

I looked at him in disgust. I tried to turn and leave but he grabbed my arm and pulled me back.

"Sorry, sweetheart. Trust me I'm not trying to offend you. In fact, I'm trying to help you."

"Help me how?" I asked as I pulled my arm out of his grip.

He put his hands on my shoulders and spun me around.

"Look at who Britney is talking to right now."

Britney had separated from her friends and was talking to a woman with short red hair.
I didn't get the point of this at first, but then I recognised the woman. It was Tammy, one half of the cohosts from the famous gossip show, Whispers.

"Tammy Blair." I told him.

"And that's Britney Blair, her daughter. Everything you told her is being reported to her mother as we speak." Dean explained to me.

In spite of myself, I gasped. What would have happened if I had snapped at her and really told her what I thought about her?

I spun to face Dean and rose a brow at him in suspicion. "Why would you help me?" I folded my arms across my chest.

He shrugged. "Because I like you."

I let out a scoff. "Try again. Maybe next time, I'll actually believe you."

He raised his hands in defence. "Honestly! I don't know what kind of villain Callahan has set me up to be in your mind but I am not all that bad."

He had this innocent look on his face and I really wanted to believe him but there was something that just didn't seem genuine about it.

"Oh and I thought it would be fun to see my ex get embarrassed in front of her little minions."

"Chanel?" It wouldn't take a rocket scientist to figure out who was the leader in that little group of mean girls.

He nodded.

"You went out with her?" I asked. I couldn't imagine Chanel and Dean together. She seemed so vain and controlling and he seemed  equally vain and overly cocky... On second thought, maybe they made a better couple than I thought.

"It didn't end well." He spoke, hanging his head low in shame.

He genuinely looked heartbroken.

"What happened?" I asked suddenly feeling sympathetic.

A smirk grew on his face. "I cheated on her... like a lot."

I wanted to slap myself for actually falling for that performance.

I made a move to walk away but he only pulled me back once again.

"I really do like you, Miss King. I find you... intriguing." He spoke.

"Well I find you appalling." I retaliated. I didn't get to let my anger out on those girls, I didn't see the harm in letting it slip onto this jerk.

The smug look on his face didn't waver. "A pretty little thing with a sharp tongue. I bet that tongue is skilled in doing a whole lot of other things."

I scoffed in disgust resisting the urge to throw my drink in his face.

He shook his head. "Sorry, sorry." He apologised. "Flirting is in my system. So is alcohol." He took out a copper flask from his tuxedo jacket.

He took a swig and held it out to me.

I showed him my half full glass of champagne.

He rolled his eyes. "This is a real drink if you really want to make it through tonight."

"I'm good." I told him dryly.

I don't know what sounded worse; drinking from the same bottle as him or getting drunk with him.

"See, this is why I like you. You're so naive and innocent."

"Naive?"

"Mmmhmm..." he continued not seeming to pick up on the offense in my tone. "You are not part of all this." He spoke as he gestured to the people around him not caring if they saw him or not.

"I'm guessing that's a good thing." I spoke dryly.

At this point I didn't know if he was just rambling because he was drunk or because he was just naturally mad.

"It really is." He spoke suddenly getting serious. He looked at me. "I'm serious. This world will screw you so hard, you won't ever be the same."

"Interesting choice of words." I commented.

He smirked. "Now look who the dirty one is." He looked back to the front. "Trust me, Ms King. You're going to need friends in high places and I just happen to be the perfect candidate."

"And why should I trust you?" I asked

"Well I did just save you." He spoke.

"That doesn't prove anything" I told him. "For all I know, you're setting me up too."

"You're suspicious, I like that. Give me your phone." He ordered.

I don't know why I complied. I was suddenly grateful that Isabella had made me get a new phone with fake information on my new life.
Dean punched in something before handing it back.

"When Callahan gets tired of keeping you around, which he will, call me."

Highly unlikely. I thought to myself. I still strongly suspected that all Dean wanted to do was get in my pants.

I heard the music stop and the sound of someone tapping a champagne glass filled the room.

"Ah! Finally, the birthday boy is ready." Dean spoke.

People had started moving to the front of the room.
Dean put his hand on my back and led me through the crowd, people easily parted ways for him. We sood at the very front of the crowd and that's when I caught a clear view of what all the commotion was about.

The Callahan family had emrgered from a small room truly looking like royalty.

At the far end stood a beautiful dark haired lady, she was tall and curvy and the black sequined gown she wore fit her perfectly. I also noted that she had the Callahan family hazel eyes. I recognised her as Miranda McCann. Mr Callahan's younger sister and also Alex's mother. Sure enough, Alex stood right next to her, towering her by an inch. I could definitely see the resemblance between them.

Next to them stood Anthony with that classic 'the devil may care' attitude, he stood next to a beautiful blonde woman who had her hair pulled back in a tight bun. She wore a strappy light green A-line dress that reached her knees. The colour really brought out her clear green eyes. Farah, I presume.

Then came little Max looking dashing in his little white tuxedo, he sat next to his mother who seemed to look younger each time I saw her. She wore a pure white sleeveless dress which hugged her body and went down to her knees. She had a royal blue shear wrap around her body and her blonde hair was up in an elegant bun.

The man of the hour wore a black tuxedo not quite similar to Anthony's. He held a serious look on his face and stood up straight.
So this was 'the boss'.

I had seen that face many times on TV and in the newspapers but seeing it so close now was so surreal, like looking at a god.
A man with so much power and influence. And according to Alex; a man who had the authorities in the palm of his hands.

And right next to him stood a man I also recognised from various platforms of the media; Senator John Humphrey and his wife Mary Humphrey.

Next was a man who looked just as threatening as Mr Callahan; Benjamin Sapphire. Isabella's father, Isabella actually stood right next to him with her head held high looking like the confident exotic beauty she was. At the end of the table is where Jason stood. And I could only wonder if Isabella and him had been put next to each other on purpose.

Chadwick rushed forward and handed Mr Callahan a micro phone.

"Welcome ladies and gentlemen." Mr Callahan's voice boomed through the speakers.
"I am so glad you could join my family and I in celebrating my fiftieth birthday."

Everyone clapped.

Even I had to admit that he looked pretty damn good for a fifty year old.

He put his hand on his chest. "Thank you, thank you."

He held up his hand and the crowd as if on cue immediately silenced.

"Now feel free to eat as much as you want, except you Senator. I think we can all agree that you have already eaten enough."

Everyone laughed at his joke including the Senator himself.

"Anyway, eat, drink and enjoy yourselves. Thank you." Mr Callahan spoke.

Everyone clapped and cheered as the McCann family went back into the room they had emerged from.

Dean leaned incredibly close to me and whispered in my ear.

"All hail the king." He teased.

I caught sight of Alex glaring our way.

He whispered something to his mother before excusing himself from the group and walking towards us.

Oh this couldn't be good.

"Archbald, what are you doing with my brother's girlfriend?" He asked in what I think was supposed to be a teasing tone although I could see how tense he was.

"Harry! Nice to have you back. Last I heard you were getting really cosy with the aforementioned brother's ex fiancée so who are you to judge?" Dean replied in that 'teasing' tone.

I saw Alex clench his fist.

"You can't believe everything you hear." He muttered.

He stood dangerously close to me. My fingers twitched to be around his.

"Why do you care if I talk to your brother's girlfriend anyway? Isn't that supposed to be his job?"

Jason had long since disappeared into the room with his family.

Alex narrowed his eyes at him and for a minute I thought he was going to lose it, the way he always did when guys hit on me.

But instead he just shrugged. "The things I do for my brother."

"Oh trust me, I know the kind of things you do for your brother." Dean spoke.

This seemed to break Alex's apparently cool demeanor. He took a step closer to Dean. "If you know what's good for you, you'll keep your mouth shut and you'll stay away from her."

Dean didn't seem to appreciate the threat. The tension between them was obvious now and I could sense a fight brewing.

"Oh! I love this song!" I exclaimed hardly even recognising the melody the piano player was playing. "Let's dance!" I didn't wait for an answer as I pulled Alex away from Dean.
I didn't stop until we were on the slightly elevated platform that was the dance floor.

It was at that moment that I realised that the various couples were actually doing a ball room style dance. I temporarily felt completely lost until I felt Alex take my hands and place them on his shoulder before he placed his own on my waist.

He started swaying to the music and I followed suit.

"You're a terrible dancer." He spoke with a small smile. "So I really don't know why the first place you would think of to escape a situation would be a dance floor."

"I panicked, okay? I thought for sure that you were getting ready to hit Dean."

Alex flinched at the name. "Trust me, I should have. Why were you even talking to him?" He asked in anger.

I tried to discreetly rub his shoulders to try and relax him without raising any brows.

"Relax, his just been bugging me since we met at the Phoenix hotel because he thinks I'm with Jason. I think it's to feed his ego or whatever."

Alex clenched his jaw. "Just stay away from him, okay?"

I nodded, I knew he wouldn't let it go if I didn't.

We continued dancing and I couldn't help but enjoy this. Having his arms on me in public.
I hated to bring up what I was about to bring up but I just couldn't stop myself.

"So about earlier... what happened? Are you okay?"

Alex refused to look me in the eyes like at the house.
"Not now." He spoke.

I furrowed my brows at him. What was bothering him?

I didn't think it would be wise to pester him about it and I didn't get the chance to anyway because at that moment I saw Jason appear behind Alex and tap his shoulder.

Alex took his hands off me and I wanted so bad to pull him back.

Jason's eyes were on me.

"Time for you to meet the boss."