Page 2 of Chasing After You (Twisted Desires #3)

A sharp pang of loneliness struck my heart.

I took a big breath, blowing out slowly. “They’ve given me a home, and you, Dorian. I can’t ask for more than that. You’ll understand when you’re older.”

“I’m thirteen, I’m plenty old enough to understand.”

I softly chuckled, “Last time I checked, thirteen was pretty far from adulthood.”

Dorian didn’t laugh. He stayed curled against me, silent for a long moment. His fingers twisted in the fabric of my shirt like he was holding on to something more than just cloth.

“I wish I were older than you,” he whispered.

My brow furrowed. “Why?”

“‘Cause I’d be able to protect you.”

His words sat heavy on my chest, much heavier than the comforting weight of his body pressed to my side. I didn’t know how to respond, not really. There were so many things I wanted to say—things I wasn’t sure I should.

“Dori, you don’t need to protect me. I’m fine. Plus, that’s my job. I’m the big brother.”

“I just wish they were different.”

I reached down and held him tighter.

“I know,” I murmured. “I know it’s hard. But we’re going to be okay, alright? As long as we’ve got each other, we’ll be okay.”

He didn’t say anything for a while. I thought maybe he’d fallen asleep, but then I felt his breath shift.

“Promise?” he asked, so quietly I almost missed it.

I swallowed hard. “Yeah. I promise.”

The promise tasted like ash in my mouth because deep down, I wasn’t sure I could keep it. The closer I got to eighteen, the more afraid I was becoming. Mom and Dad hadn’t said anything about it, but I felt in my gut that they’d make me leave.

Make me leave Dorian behind.

“Come on, get some sleep now, buddy.” I planted a light kiss on his forehead.

* * *

It started small, the way most rebellions do.

Dorian stopped wearing the clothes Victoria laid out for him.

At first, she thought he’d just forgotten, and she’d send one of the house staff to remind him.

But he’d smile that tight, almost-too-sweet smile and say, “I didn’t like the color,” or, “It didn’t feel like me.

” When pressed, he’d shrug nonchalantly and offer nothing more.

She couldn’t punish him outright, not without risking a scene, but her lips thinned every time he walked into a room dressed in one of my sweatshirts and a petty smile.

Then he began missing his lessons. “I forgot,” he’d say with a blank face when Daniel confronted him.

“I guess I was tired.” He stopped taking notes during French tutoring, stopped trying in piano, and began giving one-word answers to his etiquette instructor, who eventually quit, claiming Dorian had an “uncooperative attitude.”

I was immeasurably grateful that the man had kept the details of Dorian’s attitude to himself.

I imagined he was worried about our parents ruining his reputation and career if they’d known about their darling boy setting the poor guy’s bag on fire, throwing his cellphone out of a window, or locking him in the bathroom for the entirety of their lesson time.

Still, I didn’t expect the outburst at the fundraiser.

It was their annual charity gala, an event hosted solely to boost Daniel’s standing in the social circles they fraternized with. Dorian and I were both expected to attend, groomed and dressed up to be our parents’ accessories.

Victoria had rented the most expensive and ostentatious ballroom available in the city, hired the best caterers, and booked a string quartet for the entertainment.

At first, he stood beside me quietly, sipping the sparkling water they’d poured into his champagne flute to make him look the part.

But when one of Daniel’s friends came up to us and started gushing about how lucky I was to have been adopted by such generous and upstanding individuals, Dorian cracked.

“More like they just wanted free labor,” Dorian said flatly. My heart practically dropped into my stomach, eyes widening in disbelief that he’d just said that.

I stammered, “I-I’m so sorry. He’s just joking. I’m very fortunate, sir.”

The man chuckled and smiled awkwardly at me, clearly uncomfortable, but Dorian wasn’t done. He stepped forward, voice rising with every word. “They didn’t want to raise me, so they got him to do it. I guess actually taking care of their kid was too much for them.”

The room went still. Victoria’s hand froze mid-toast. Daniel’s eye twitched.

“ Dorian ,” I said under my breath, grabbing his wrist.

But he pulled away. “Honestly, I wish they’d both eat a massive bag of dicks.”

Stunned silence was only interrupted by a few scandalized gasps. I risked a glance at Daniel, finding him staring at me with open hatred. My hands trembled at my sides; my throat closed up from panic.

Victoria cleared her throat, using a little silver spoon to draw attention towards her by tapping on her glass.

“I’m deeply sorry for our youngest’s outburst. We weren’t planning on sharing this, as we believe it’s a family matter, but he’s been struggling with some behavioral issues.

Please, don’t think of him poorly. He’s really such an intelligent, wonderful boy.

I’m not even sure where he learned that profanity.

We love both of our sons dearly. It’s true, we weren’t as attentive to Dorian when he was younger as we should’ve been, but we went through so much with our fertility issues and the adoption. ”

Her voice was sweet and sad. She even summoned a few tears to add to the performance. I heard murmurs from the crowd of, “Oh, the poor woman,” and “Bless their hearts.”

“When we heard about Josh, we just knew he was the one. The missing piece in our family. Our hearts just ached at how much pain he’d been through at such a young age, with losing his parents and all.

And when we brought him home, the boys instantly clicked.

Daniel and I,” she threaded her fingers through her husband’s, “we admit we started relying too much on Josh. But he’s such a natural caregiver, really.

They both just adore one another. And we truly love both of our boys equally. ”

Like a queen holding court, Victoria’s guests were enraptured with her speech. They clung to each and every word, nodding along.

Daniel spoke up from beside his wife. “I am so blessed to share my life with such an amazing woman. Please, everyone—enjoy yourselves, eat, drink. We’ll be taking our leave now to attend to this in private as a family unit.”

The crowd applauded briefly before returning to the party at hand. Dorian rolled his eyes, turning to stand shoulder to shoulder with me.

“So fucking fake,” he muttered.

When I didn’t respond or share in his sentiment, he took hold of my hand and looked at me closely, quickly clocking the panic in my eyes.

“Hey,” he whispered, a small frown pulling at his lips. I shook my head minutely, physically unable to speak. “What’s wrong? Why do you look like that?”

I couldn’t blame him for not understanding the gravity of the situation. After all, he was only thirteen.

A throat cleared, drawing my attention. Daniel and Victoria stood directly in front of us.

“Come on, sons —time to go home,” Daniel said, his voice devoid of the anger I knew was inside.

They didn’t say a word on the drive home.

Dorian sat beside me in the back seat, silent, his hands balled in his lap, eyes flickering over to me constantly. Victoria stared out the window, her lips pinched so tight they were almost white.

The moment we stepped through the front door, it began.

“Upstairs. Now,” Daniel barked at Dorian without looking at him.

Dorian hesitated. His fingers brushed mine briefly before he obeyed. He whispered, “I’m sorry.” As he climbed the spiral staircase and disappeared down a hall, I itched to go after him to tell him whatever was about to happen wasn’t his fault.

Victoria’s voice was sharp and low, like the edge of a knife. “What did you do?”

I blinked. “What?”

“Don’t play dumb, Joshua,” Daniel snapped. “This kind of behavior doesn’t come from nowhere. Our son doesn’t speak like that. You must be putting ideas in his head.”

I could’ve laughed if I hadn’t felt so nauseous from the anxiety. “You think I taught him to hate you?”

“He doesn’t hate us,” Victoria said carefully, voice trembling with restraint. “He used to be such a good boy before all this.” She motioned her hand towards me, a sneer twisting her beautiful lips into an ugly expression. “Obviously, he’s been influenced to act this way. To embarrass us.”

By me. They didn’t have to say it.

“You’ve become too attached,” Daniel continued. “We took you in to give you a home, not to let you poison the one we already had. We gave you everything, and this is how you repay us? By fucking up our son?”

No, you gave me a full-time job and a role to play in public, I wanted to say. But I didn’t.

“This ends now,” Victoria said coolly, flipping her hair over her shoulder. “You will keep your distance from Dorian. He needs stability, not… codependency.”

The word hung in the air like a threat.

I stepped forward, barely trusting myself to speak. “You can’t separate us. Please. He’s my little brother, and he needs me.”

“You will never be his brother,” Daniel said, his voice flat.

“Do you really think he sees you as much more than a nanny? A part of the staff? While you’re not smart by any means, I know you’re not that stupid, Joshua.

You know why we brought you here. And yet, you still managed to fuck everything up, didn’t you?

Let me make this clear: No matter what you do, you will never be a real part of this family. ”

He muttered under his breath as he walked away, “Should’ve just fucking died with his parents. Useless.”

Victoria announced, “The minute you turn eighteen, you are out of this home. For now, your punishment begins tomorrow. Get some rest.” Her heels clicked against the floor as she followed her husband, leaving me alone in the echoing foyer.

* * *

The next morning, my bedroom door was locked from the outside.