Page 31 of The Stepbrother 2: Noah

She should have been scared of mine.

Creed-

My momma gave me a nasty look before she left the living room as I entered, heading back upstairs granny room. She hadn't been fucking with me since Daddy was still gone. Whenever I entered a room, she'd leave after giving me a look like she wanted to beat my ass. She was acting like I wanted to be here when it was her keeping me trapped. She still hadn't given me my wallet or driver's license, and in Florida, you needed two forms of identification to get it replaced. She had my birth certificate, too. So, I was stuck between a rock and a hard place unless I just got fed up and called in a favor, which would cost me a lot.

When she buzzed in over the intercom and told me I had a visitor, I hadn’t expected it to be Devon. I hadn’t even heard from him since he’d left.

He was sitting in my daddy's favorite reclining chair, wearing a plain white T-shirt and basketball shorts. I frowned. He didn’t usually go anywhere public dressed this casually.

“What are you doing here?”

His fingers tapped an erratic rhythm on the armrest of the chair as he stared at me. “Were you going to do me like Maine and just not tell me until it was convenient for you?”

I blinked several times, confused as hell about what he was talking about. “What are you talking about?”

Suddenly, his hand slammed down on the coffee table with a loud thud. My heart skipped a beat, I recoiled..

“What in the hell is going on? Why are you tripping?” I’d never seen Devon really mad, not even with the whole Maine situation. The menacing scowl on his face didn’t even look right.

“I go back home, go to your place, and while I’m gathering my things, I come across receipts for fertility drugs. Then yesterday, I got a call from Maine. She’s crying hysterically, saying that you’re pregnant and that our child won’t replace DJ.”

I was going to beat Maine’s ass. She was doing way too much. She better thank God she had taken DJ to a birthday party, or I’d be on her ass. Yes, I had been taking fertility drugs. Nobody but my momma and daddy knew I suffered from PCOS, and I knew it was an issue without a doctor telling me. I’d spent the entire summer having unprotected sex with Noah and no babies, so I decided to take the next step to secure the family I wanted.

“You were snooping. Those papers are in a box in the back of my closet. I am pregnant, but it isn’t by you.”

“What the hell do you mean? We’ve been broken up less than a month. I demand a paternity test.”

“Lower your voice in my parents’ house. You can’t demand anything from me,” I hissed.

Devon scowled at me and stood, but he sat back down just as quickly. Footsteps on the marble floor made me aware of someone else joining us. Noah glided through the living room and past me, holding one of my momma’s fancy ceramic ramen noodle bowls, noodles hanging from the chopsticks he shoved in his mouth. His face was still battered and bruised from where he and my father had gotten into an actual, real-life fight. I still could not believe he had told Daddy I was pregnant with his child. When I tried to talk to Daddy, he told me to figure it outwithout causing any more trouble in the family, then hung up on me. I guess he was fed up with me, too.

Before taking a seat on the sofa, Noah lifted the band T-shirt he was wearing, revealing a holster. He casually took a shiny black gun out and placed it on the coffee table before sitting down. For a minute, he stared at me, some unspoken words passing between us. He was about to start trouble. I shook my head slightly, but he ignored me.

Nodding, he said, “I heard y’all from the kitchen and thought I needed to be part of this conversation.”

“When did you start carrying a gun?” I asked, trying to change the subject and distract Devon. Noah had already told my daddy, which caused a fight. What would happen when Devon found out?

“I’ve always had one, with my profession and all. I just usually leave it in the car.” He pointed to it and winked at me. “This one’s legal, though. Don’t worry, baby.” He chuckled, then shoved another chopstick full of noodles into his mouth.

“Why would you need to be here?” Devon asked, making my heart speed up because I wasn’t sure what new Noah was about to do. I kept glancing at the stairs, hoping my momma didn’t come down.

“Well, because I’m the father,” he let it out.

Devon’s head jerked back like he’d been slapped. “What kind of game are you playing here?”

“I’m not playing any games. It was all Creed with the games. When she found out about my nephew—your son—she thought me getting her pregnant so she could run away with my offspring would be some kind of punishment, one that I’d tolerate. I toldCreed a long time ago I was trying my hardest not to break her. Now I have no choice, because she has some very stupid ideas swimming in that pretty little head of hers.” Noah turned his gaze to me, his eyes locking onto mine. I hated how he was looking at me like he could see right through me. I hated even more that I couldn’t look away.

“It’s ironic that we’re here together. Did you know I fucked her on your first date?” Noah’s eyes never left mine, and mine never left his.

“What the hell is he talking about, Creed?”

“It’s complicated,” was the only answer I could think of.

“You being involved with your brother is more than complicated.”

That snapped me out of the haze Noah had me in.

“He isn’t my brother. And not too much on me. I was going to let your lie about you being with Maine while we were together slide. I actually believed you at first, but then, in trying to prove she wasn’t the liar you tried to make her out to be, she sent me screenshots of your texts to her. Even then, I let you off the hook. But if you insist on playing the victim, I can go fuck your brother.”

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