Page 13 of Forbidden Harvest

I might have moved out, but I’m not letting her slip from my grasp. Aria needs clipped wings before she flies too close to the sun. Or rather, too close to any other guy.

Still, it’s a boring Friday night, and I feel restless. My eyes drift downward, and I see Aria’s hand in her shorts, her gaze fixed on the pages of a book. Her chest rises and falls faster, and my mouth goes dry.

That book... I recognize it instantly. It’s one of those filthy romance novels she devours. The kind she started sneaking into the house when she was fifteen, hiding them beneath her mattress, unaware that I’d discovered her secret stash while she was at school and I was off sick.

Curious, I’d read a few pages, then a few more. I imagined Aria, my innocent stepsister, reading these explicit scenes, her cheeks flushed and her breathing shallow.

The most interesting was about a taboo relationship between a stepbrother and stepsister. Sure enough, it’s the exact one she’s reading now. I wonder if she’s imagining it’s us in the story.

A smirk plays on my lips as I watch her fingers move faster, her breaths turning to shallow pants.

God, she has no idea how filthy she is. No idea the effect she has on me, even from a distance. The thought of her reading those words, of her body responding, makes my mouth water.

I shift in my seat, uncomfortable. My eyes linger on her flushed face and tousled hair. I will teach you just how wicked your desires are, Aria.

She’s becoming a woman. My fingers twitch with the urge to reach out, touch, and possess. But I know I must bide my time.

Two years. That’s all I have to wait. Then she’ll be mine, body and soul. No more holding back, no more hiding this all-consuming desire. I’ll claim her, show her what love truly is.

My pulse races as I lean back, eyes closed, imagining having her. Her delicate form beneath mine, her lips parting in a gasp as I?—

A movement on the screen snaps me back. Aria’s heading upstairs, pensive. I lean forward, transfixed. What’s troubling her?

Narrowing my eyes, I zoom in on the feed, savoring every detail. The way her hips sway, the graceful curves of her body—it’s all I can do to restrain myself from rushing over there and taking her like some fucking madman.

Soon, little sister. Very soon, you’ll be mine.

9

ARIA

AGED 17

The music pulsates through the dimly lit house as I weave through the costumed partygoers. My skin-tight Catwoman costume shows off my curves, and I catch the eyes of a few jocks.

Lisa and Eva spot me and wave me over.

“Aria! You made it!” Lisa hugs me. “Happy birthday, girl!”

“Thanks,” I say. “I’m so glad you guys are here.”

Eva hands me a red Solo cup. “Drink up! It’s your big night.”

I take a tentative sip, the liquid burning my throat. But the warmth that spreads through me is comforting.

“Where’s Kevin?” I ask, glancing around the room.

“Over there,” Lisa says, pointing to a group of jocks in the corner. “He’s been asking about you.”

I follow her gaze and lock eyes with Kevin. He grins and makes his way over to me.

“Aria, you look amazing,” he says. “Happy birthday.”

“Thanks, Kevin,” I reply, self-conscious under his intense stare.

The three of us talk and laugh, sipping our drinks. I sneak glances at the jocks, their muscular frames and chiseled features captivating me.

The music thumps through the crowded house as the hottest jocks from my school start to converge around me. Nervous excitement floods me as Tyler, the star quarterback, saunters over, his muscular frame barely contained by his firefighter costume.

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