My Toxic Stepbrother

The First Kiss.

** Kai Voss **

The house felt like an empty tomb. My father and Elena had left for their anniversary getaway two hours ago, their laughter echoing in the foyer before the front door finally clicked shut. Now, the silence was heavy. It was the kind of quiet that made every floorboard creak like a warning. I stood in the living room, staring out the floor-to-ceiling windows at the dark line of trees bordering the property.

I checked my watch. Eleven p.m. Riley was upstairs. I knew that because I’d been tracking the sound of her footsteps for the last hour. She was pacing. She did that when she was agitated, her movements quick and sharp, just like her tongue.

I walked over to the bar and poured myself a finger of bourbon. The amber liquid burned going down, but it didn't dull the edge in my chest. Ever since she moved in, the air in this house had changed. It was charged with a static that made my skin crawl. Every time I saw her, every time I caught her staring when she thought I wasn't looking, the pressure built a little more.

I heard her coming down the stairs. I didn't turn around. I listened to the soft patter of her bare feet on the hardwood. She stopped at the entrance to the living room. I could feel her gaze on my back, hot and defiant.

"I thought you went out with Ty," she said. Her voice was flat, but I caught the slight tremor in it.

"Change of plans," I said, finally turning. I leaned against the bar, swirling the ice in my glass. "Decided I’d rather stay here and keep an eye on you."

Riley crossed her arms over her chest. She was wearing an oversized t-shirt that barely hit mid-thigh. It was a calculated move, even if she wouldn't admit it. She wanted to provoke me, to see how far she could push before I snapped.

"I don't need a babysitter, Kai," she snapped, her eyes flashing. "Especially not one who thinks he owns the place just because his name is on the deed."

I let out a low laugh and set my glass down. I started walking toward her, slow and deliberate. "Is that what you think this is? Me playing house?"

She didn't back down. She never did. That was the problem. She stood her ground as I closed the distance, her chin tilted up. "I think you're a control freak who can't handle the fact that I don't jump when you say so."

I stopped inches from her. I could smell the vanilla scent of her shampoo and the faint, sweet smell of the tea she'd been drinking. The tension between us was a physical thing now, a cord stretched so tight it was vibrating.

"You're right about one thing," I whispered, leaning in until our noses almost touched. "I don't like things I can't control. And right now, Riley, you're the most uncontrollable thing in my life.".

"Then maybe you should stay away from me," she challenged. Her breathing was shallow. I could see the pulse jumping in the hollow of her throat.

"Is that what you want?" I reached out, my fingers brushing a stray lock of hair away from her face. Her skin was warm, and she shivered at the touch. "You spend half your time looking for me in the hallways. You leave your door cracked just enough so you can hear me walk by. Don't lie to me.".

"I don't—"

"Liar," I cut her off. My hand dropped to her waist, my thumb digging into the soft fabric of her shirt. I pulled her a fraction closer. "You're just as obsessed with this as I am. You hate that you want the 'arrogant, tattooed bastard' your mom married into.".

Her face flushed a deep red. "I hate you. I hate everything about you, Kai Voss.".

"Good," I said, my voice dropping an octave. "Hate is honest. It's clean."

I saw the moment her resolve broke. Her eyes darted down to my lips and back up, full of a desperate, panicked hunger. She wanted to fight me, but her body was already betraying her.

"You're toxic," she whispered, her hands coming up to rest on my chest. She wasn't pushing me away. She was holding on.

"I know," I muttered.

I didn't give her another chance to speak. I grabbed her by the waist and shoved her back until her shoulders hit the wall. The sound of the impact echoed in the empty room. Before she could gasp, I crashed my mouth against hers.

The kiss was a collision. It wasn't soft or romantic. It was a war. I tasted the bitterness of her anger and the sudden, explosive heat of her surrender. I groaned into her mouth, my hands moving to her hair, gripping it as I tilted her head back to deepen the contact.

Riley made a low sound in the back of her throat—half-sob, half-moan—and her arms wound around my neck. She kissed me back with a ferocity that matched my own, her teeth catching my bottom lip, her nails digging into the back of my head.

I was drowning in her. Every boundary I’d tried to maintain, every rule my father had set, vanished. There was only the feel of her small body pinned against the wall and the frantic beat of our hearts meeting through our clothes. It was addictive, a dark rush that made my head spin.

I pulled back just enough to catch my breath, my forehead resting against hers. Her lips were swollen, her eyes glazed with a mixture of shock and desire.

"Tell me to stop," I rasped, my hands sliding down to her hips, pulling her flush against me so she could feel exactly what she was doing to me. "Tell me you don't want this, and I'll walk away.".

Riley stared at me, her chest heaving. For a second, I thought she might actually do it. I saw the logic fighting the instinct in her eyes. Then, she reached up and fisted her hands in my shirt, pulling me back down.

"Don't you dare," she whispered.

I let out a jagged breath and claimed her again. This time, it was slower, more possessive. I moved my kisses to her jawline, then down to the sensitive skin of her neck. I felt her pulse racing under my lips, a frantic rhythm that told me I had her. She was mine.

I bit down gently on the junction of her neck and shoulder, and she arched her back, her fingers tangling in my hair. "Kai..."

"I told you," I murmured against her skin, my voice thick with a dark satisfaction. "I told you you wanted it.".

The realization seemed to hit her all at once. Riley suddenly stiffened. She planted her palms against my chest and gave a hard shove. I wasn't expecting it, and I stumbled back a step, my breath coming in short, sharp bursts.

She stood there, leaning against the wall for support, her hand flying to her mouth. She looked like she’d just seen a ghost. Or a monster.

"This... this can never happen again," she whispered. Her voice was shaking so hard the words were barely audible.

I straightened my shirt, a slow, cruel smirk spreading across my face as I watched her. I could see the conflict tearing her apart, and I loved every second of it.

"Whatever you say, little sis," I said, my tone mocking once more. "But we both know that's a lie.".

Riley didn't answer. She turned and bolted for the stairs, the sound of her footsteps retreating until I heard her bedroom door slam shut.

I stood in the center of the living room, the taste of her still on my tongue. My hands were steady now, the adrenaline replaced by a cold, sharp focus. She could run to her room. She could lock the door. It didn't matter.

The first boundary had been shattered. And I was never letting her build it back up.