With the Lights On (Insatiable #2)

1. Chapter 1

Led

H er legs go up to her fucking neck. She’s got the whole development team cheering her on as she dances on the goddamn table.

I’m guessing that none of the staff care, since my brother Jagger dropped a pretty penny to this place for holding not only a veritable conference-style celebration, but a bloody impromptu wedding.

.. his . As far as anyone here is concerned, Jinny can do a fucking strip tease, and nobody would call the cops.

Fuck, Jagger and I could do a few lines of coke, and they wouldn’t bat an eyelash at this rate.

Not that I would do any of that shit. But you get the point.

Jinny’s always had that look about her. The look that says that she’s got it all.

That she’s not afraid of a goddamn thing.

The look that always captivated me since the day we met back in high school.

Of course, back then, with my braces and acne, I never did a goddamn thing about it.

And now, now that I’m working under the same roof as her, it makes things even more complicated.

I basically sign her paychecks, since I’m the CFO of my brother’s company.

She’s the HR manager and could fire my ass, for all intents and purposes, but I digress.

I know that she’s giving me those eyes for a reason.

And I don’t know if I can follow through if I reciprocate that look.

There’s something about getting involved with people that you work with that I just don’t have the stomach for.

It didn’t work out for Jagger, that’s for sure.

The last girl he fucked that was on the payroll, got the boot a few weeks ago.

..by Jinny herself. Now, wouldn’t that be interesting. ..

Jagger’s friend and wannabe business partner, Axl, is trying to get all over her, and it’s making my skin crawl.

The guy may be a billionaire race car driver slash race car engine genius, but he’s also a drunk.

Which doesn’t sit well with Jinny, seeing as she’s a recovered alcoholic.

But he gets an A for effort, as he climbs up on the table with her, making the thing start to shake.

“Alright, that’s enough!” I shout at him, coaxing him down, but I see the camera flash before I can stop it, and before the table collapses.

I’m too busy making sure that Jinny is okay, so I can’t nab the asshole that took the photograph.

Turns out it was more than just the one guy that managed to capture the moment, anyway, so any effort would be for naught.

“What’s your problem?” Axl slurs, and I feel my fist ball up. The snarl can’t be avoided, but that’s when my brother Halen steps in.

“Take it easy, man.” Halen chuckles, pulling me from Axl.

“No fights at Jagger’s wedding, okay? Don’t do anything stupid with mom and dad, and bloody Wesley Hopkins watching over there.

” Wesley Hopkins is the owner of Drummond Motors, the company that just awarded us the biggest European car deal basically in recorded history.

Anything that pisses off Wesley risks this deal that is so fresh the ink isn’t even dry on the agreement yet.

That’s half the reason for this big to-do that Jagger planned.

The other half, of course, is Bowie. Bowie used to be co-owner of our closest competitor, until the owner and her longtime lover, Boston, fucked her over.

She’s since joined forces and consequently married my brother. But that’s another story...

From a distance, I can see Jagger watching. He approaches and I’m immediately on guard. “The fucker took a shot of Axl and Jinny, man. I was trying to diffuse that shit. It’s the last thing that we need.”

Jagger grimaces. “Knowing Axl, he probably invited the goddamn shutterfly here himself. You know that dude can’t stay away from the media to save his life.”

Halen interjects. “Don’t sweat it. At least he wasn’t giving some chick head or snorting lines or punching someone out. Where’s Wesley?” He asks, looking around.

“Fortunately, my new wife still has him captivated, as much as that’s to my chagrin.” Jagger admits, gesturing with his eyes to Wesley Hopkins over hobnobbing with Bowie, by the bar. “I don’t think he saw a goddamn thing except my wife’s eyes.”

I place an arm over his shoulders. “Don’t worry, my brother. He’s a married man, and now, she’s a married woman. You’ve got nothing to worry about.”

He lifts a brow. “Don’t I?” The look on his face says that we’re no longer talking about the ill-conceived notion that Wesley Hopkins is going to steal the one and only woman that he’s ever loved, since he was a teenager.

No, this is about something else. Something that I thought he’d never find out about.

“No...you don’t.” I lie. “But you’re welcome for trying to keep the peace at your wedding.” I mutter, walking away from him.

Jinny follows Axl out the front door of this room and my eyes follow them both.

She’s a fool if she goes after him, and I hate it that I care so much if she does.

Axl Lennon is not for her. I’m not sure if he’s for anyone.

Nobody that earns more than five figures, anyway, or anyone in the public eye, with a reputation to uphold.

Axl eats the lens but it’s unfortunately through all the wrong lenses.

And I hate it that I care so much about that, too.

He’s been drooling all over this company, and particularly my brother, because he’s itching to make engines with us.

I don’t blame Jagger for turning him away.

But I also can’t help but admire Axl for his integrity.

The man never gives up. He and Jagger are best friends and despite the fact that Jagger won’t go into business with him officially, he still loves him.

He still tries. And that, my friend, is why in a weird sort of way, I protect them both.

“Walk with me.” Rush, my other brother, says.

“What the fuck do you want.” I grumble under my breath, heading for the front entrance.

I don’t drink or smoke, or do drugs, and every woman in this place is somehow tied to either Lawson Enterprises, Drummond Motors, or is family, so aside from the party, which I’m not into, there is nothing keeping me inside these doors, and frankly, I’ve got work to do.

“You seem tense.” He says facetiously, but his eyes are dancing. Rush and I are the closest of all my siblings. He owns a hugely successful consulting firm, which Jagger can thank for much of his success.

“Fuckoff.” I bite back, but he knows that my bark is worse than my bite. “I’m outta here.”

“Uh...no, you’re not.” He chuckles mirthlessly. “Look, Axl’s under control. He’ll get his face pasted on the tabloids tomorrow, and he knows that now. He’ll back off.”

“I’m not into entertaining the media whore or anyone in there.”

“And nobody’s asking you to. But if you leave right now, you’re going to sully what you and Jagger have worked hard to keep peacefully.”

“He’s not going to notice.”

“Stevie will. And you know how good she is at keeping her mouth shut.” Stevie, our sister, is the owner of a PR firm and responsible for putting this shindig together.

“Look, Led.” Rush levels with me. “There is nobody at the office. Everyone is here. You walk out that door when you could have stayed for the last hour, and that’s going to be more damaging to you than going home or going to the office.”

“Why.” I state more than ask. “Why does it matter. All that’s left to witness is—”

He cuts me off. “The garter toss, the cutting of the cake.”

“Dude, none of that shit’s going to happen. This is a surprise fucking wedding. There is no cake, and twenty bucks says that the only thing up Bowie’s dress is her fucking nylons. Jagger’s already given me the evil eye just now, so I don’t see the fucking difference.”

“Are you telling me that you’re so much of a pussy that you can’t even stick around for another hour? What, so Jinny’s leaving with Axl...boo fucking hoo.” He tests. “You were never going to go after her, anyway, because if you were, you would have done so by now and you know it.”

“Fuck you.”

He ignores me. “You’re too goddamn worried about drawing outside the lines or thinking outside the box, getting out of your safety zone, and that’s the whole problem with you, Led. And that’s why I've been telling you for years to do what you want to do.”

“Don’t even fucking go there, Rush. It’s not the time.” I warn.

“I tell you what.” He reasons. “You stay another hour, and I won’t be at your door first thing in the morning, berating you.”

“You’re going to do it anyway, man.”

“Scout’s honor.” He places a flattened hand to his temple, eyes closed. He looks ridiculous. My expression softens and he opens one eye, looking at me playfully.

“Now look who’s the fucking pussy.” I chuckle.

He smiles, lowering his hand. “Come on. It won’t be so bad. I saw that chick from Drummond Motors checking you out, and don’t tell me that you’re not into British chicks, because I know you too well.”

“You do anything to embarrass me and I’m kicking your ass.”

Rush walks me over to this girl who probably has more hair than brains and introduces us. How the hell he already knows her name is beyond me. Rush is a fucking weirdo like that. But then, I know that she’s not his type.

“Reya. What a beautiful name.” Rush says, looking at me like I’m a Kindergartener.

If looks could kill...

“Nice to meet you, Led.” Reya says, offering me her hand to shake. “Is that ‘lead’, like the mineral, or ‘Led’ as in ‘Zeppelin’?”

The eye roll is on the inside. Fortunately, my geeky brother decides to answer for me, further making me feel like I’m stuck in an episode of Romper Room. “Thanks, man.” I say facetiously.

Then she catches on. “Oh, brilliant. Because you’re Led, he’s Rush, and then there’s Jagger.”

“And my sister is Stevie, as in ‘Nicks’, the seventies rock artist.” Rush adds.