Page 61 of The Broker

Without thinking, Jared jumped over the balcony’s stone railing and landed with a thud on the grass several feet below. His ankle landed weird, but he didn’t have time to worry about his damn foot. He was more concerned about the guests who were freaking out, charging in every direction, while an angry, agitated tiger darted in and out of the dark.

What had Raj so riled up?

“This way!” Jared shouted at a few guests running scared near him. Most people had never encountered a live tiger before, let alone one while walking around in luxurious gardens at night. “Everyone, inside!”

Jared hobbled through two men and a dancer who were in various stages of undress. Matteo was going to be pissed when he saw one of his new hires “entertaining” in the gardens. Matteo had rules, and one of them involved being classy at all times. Fucking in the bushes was not on brand forLa Maison de M.

The little twink lowered his head as he ran past Jared as if that would make the idiot invisible to the naked eye.

Fucking moron.

“Raj!” Jared shouted as he ran toward Matteo’s favorite pet.

The beast glanced at Jared, hearing his familiar voice. He turned his attention back to the perfectly manicured bushes and let out a frustrated growl, letting Jared know that something was wrong.

“What is it, big guy?” Jared asked when he finally caught up with the beast.

He stroked Raj’s back as the cat continued to pace back and forth, sniffing the air around him before taking off once again toward the other side of the property.

“Raj!” Matteo shouted once he and Diesel finally caught up with Jared.

The beast stopped and looked at his master with concerned eyes. Its body was tense, and its fur stood on edge.

“What’s wrong, boy?” Matteo asked, rushing to his pet and dropping to his knee. He rubbed the fur around his face, trying to calm the beast.

Raj whined.

Matteo ran his hand along his best friend, checking to see if his baby was injured.

“Everything looks good, buddy,” Matteo noted. He looked up at Jared and shrugged his shoulders.

They had no clue as to what had their giant cat so worked up.

It was at that moment that Jared realized he was standing in the gardens in his underwear. Only in a place like this could standing in a garden with your dick practically hanging out be seen as normal.

“I don’t get it. What happened? How did he get out?” Jared asked, glancing over at Raj’s enclosure, where the door stood crooked and snapped off its hinges.

“Looks like he broke out,” Matteo mumbled, visibly concerned for his best friend.

That wasn’t like Raj. Usually, he was so calm and gentle. He only showed aggression when something was wrong or someone he loved was in danger. The rest of the time, he was a big ball of love.

“I think I may have found something,” Diesel called, crouched next to the property's stone wall.

The two jogged over to the wall while Raj continued to pace and growl.

“Looks like someone broke in,” Diesel announced, holding up a broken security camera that had previously been mounted on the wall.

“Fuckin’ kids,” Jared muttered under his breath.

Occasionally, bored teens in the surrounding neighborhoods would hop the wall and take a dip in the pool when no one was looking.

Most times, Raj just let out a low rumble, letting the party crashers know that he was around and could eat them if he so desired. But tonight. Tonight was different. Raj had lost his shit and broken out of his cage.

“I’ll get Stefan to check the security feed. Maybe we can get a visual on these kids, then send someone to scare them,” Matteo huffed, looking annoyed. “Let’s get this place cleaned up. I’ve got a lot of damage control to contend with. Nothing worse than a bunch of scared CEOs trying to act tough after you just witnessed them pissing themselves.” Matteo snapped his fingers at Raj, and the cat began following him back to his cage.

“Fuck. What a mess,” Levi noted, magically materializing beside Jared.

“Perfect timing. Matteo wants you to clean up this backyard while Jared and I do damage control inside,” Diesel explained.

---