Page 15 of Possessive Stepbrother

I don’t even notice my father until he steps forward, holds both of her mother’s shoulders and lightly maneuvers her to go back to his car. He hands her a handkerchief, and she blows her nose on it.

He doesn’t even look at me so maybe he shares her sentiments. Don’t know. Don’t give a damn.

Raven stands with her fists clenched on her sides, but when our parents are out of view, she turns around and burrows her face in my chest, her small body wracked with sobs.

I’ve been in lots of fights when I was younger. Some of them with boys my size, others with men bigger than me. I’ve had my fair share of bloody knuckles, bruised ribs, cut lips, and whatever.

But watching Raven like this is a different kind of pain.

Like if someone comes from out of nowhere and asks me to gnaw on my limbs, I’ll do that as long as I never hear her cry like this ever again. It’s like a bolt of heat spearing through me, burning me from the inside.

No. She’ll be with me, and I’ll make damned sure she never hurts ever again. If she does, all cosmic hell will break loose.

6

RAVEN

Every night, I think,I love him so much.

Then, morning comes and I’m like,I love him more today than yesterday.

I don’t know if it’s possible to die from being so in love, but I’ll take my chances. After all, Rowan has made me happy and feel safer than anyone ever has.

The serial killer was convicted so quickly, mostly owing to the damning evidence against him courtesy of the “trophies” he hid in his car. It’s sickening and unsettling, and I can’t imagine a world where people like him roam freely.

At least, that’s one load off my mind. The other, however, is not so easy to get rid of.

After that confrontation with my mother, she sent me a long text detailing all the money she spent on me. I couldn’t believe my eyes. I stared at my phone for almost an hour. I would’ve continued staring if Rowan didn’t come home early.

She wrote my living expenses, like milk when I was a baby, diapers, food, groceries, clothes, my allowances, and the miscellaneous college expenses she paid because they weren’t part of my scholarship. Everything down to the last cent.

The total almost had my eyes bugging out.

Wow. Just when I thought she couldn’t get any lower. I thought for sure our relationship would change for the better after I spilled all my heartaches. I had no idea we’d get to this point.

But I guess it’s okay because I can’t have anyone who doesn’t care about me in my life. I can’t waste time on people who think I’m nothing but a nuisance. I learned that with Rowan.

Ah, Rowan.

He’s had more projects in the past three months, and he keeps calling me his lucky charm. I don’t believe that. I see how he works, how honest he is in his dealings, and how he doesn’t stand around while everyone else is doing backbreaking work.

No. He owns a construction company, but I almost always find him holding a hammer or chainsaw and doing the manual labor himself.

Besides, I enjoy working with him and for him.

He offered me a spot as his secretary. At first, I hesitated because I didn’t want his employees to think I landed the job by sleeping with him. But it didn’t take long before I realized why I still bothered with what others thought of us and our relationship.

And I like my job. It’s in line with my major, and I can totally see myself doing this in the next fifty years. Why not? Helping him grow his company can be my mission too.

But right now…we’re running late.

I sweep the eyeliner across my eyelids, fully aware of his presence in the doorway, watching me without saying a word. “One minute.”

He chuckles. “Take all the time you need, love, but to be honest, you can wear a dishrag and still outshine everyone.”

“Ugh. Stop. You’re only making me nervous.”

I press my lips together and inspect my outfit in the mirror. I’m wearing a floor-length off-shoulder dress in the shade of midnight blue. The neckline plunges just a little, and its pleats gather at the waist. The skirt then cascades from my waist in folds that trail behind me with every move.

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