My Stepfather, My Ruin

13

Roxy

“I’m back,” I said, walking into the grand foyer.

Every corner of the mansion was silent, quiet as a graveyard.

“Young Miss,” David called out, stepping into view. “You forgot this in the car.”

“Thank you, David.” I took the library book from his hands. He didn’t mention the drive home, and neither did I.

Anxiety had kept me from sleeping, a thick knot that never fully loosened no matter which way I turned. I’d lain there, going over the same moments again and again.

His eyes on me across the dinner table, the staircase, and the way he’d said my name like it belonged to him more than it did to me.

This morning, I’d bolted out of bed, thrown on some clothes, and slipped out of the estate before breakfast was served, telling myself it was about avoiding Evander. Somewhere inside, I knew it wasn’t only that.

If Anna hadn’t dragged me to the cafeteria later, I probably would have starved just to avoid running into either of them.

I hurried up the grand staircase, desperate to disappear into my room for the rest of the night. The second I was inside, I locked the door, stripped down, and sank into a hot bath to wash the day off me.

Afterward, I lay in bed in my oversized sweater, trying to lose myself in a book. A sharp knock broke the quiet.

“Who is it?”

“It is I, young miss.”

I swung my legs over the mattress. “Mary?”

“Yes.”

I unlocked the door and peered out. “Is something wrong?”

“Master called for you downstairs.”

Something dropped in my chest. Dorian. This was the first time he’d ever personally summoned me since we moved in.

“D-did something happen?”

“I can’t answer that, young miss. He’s waiting in the formal dining hall.”

“Okay. I’ll be right down. I just need to change.”

Mary bowed and stepped back. My mind raced through every possibility. Had Evander told him about us? Had he figured out why I’d been avoiding the family? Had something else gone wrong?

“Young Miss,” Mary called again through the door.

“Y-yes? What’s wrong?”

“Master instructed me to wait and escort you down.”

I’m never going to escape this house.

I pulled on a simple dress, unlocked the door, and followed Mary down the sweeping staircase.

On the lower floor, my fingers dug into my palms. Dorian sat alone at the far end of the hall. My eyes swept over him against my will. He was dressed perfectly, carrying a quiet, dangerous look that felt too much for the dim room.

“Do you like what you see?” His voice cut through the silence.

“Yes.”

The word left me before I could stop it.

“What...” My hand flew to my mouth, my face burning. “I mean, Dad...”

Dorian rose and walked toward me, his footsteps slow and deliberate against the marble. I stepped back until the wall stopped me. My eyes darted around, looking for anyone, a guard, a butler, even Mary.

There was no one. The staff had vanished.

“W-what do you want?” I stammered, shrinking back.

“Relax.” He stopped inches away, his body blocking my view of the room behind him. “What do you suppose I want from my own daughter?”

His daughter.

Would he still use that word if he knew I’d spent nights in his son’s bed two years ago?

His eyes stayed on mine, heavy and unblinking, like he could see straight through me to whatever I was hiding. I dropped my gaze to his chest instead.

He exhaled slowly and stepped back. “I called you down for a reason,” he said, turning toward the table. “Why did you run off this morning without eating?”

“I... I was late for class.”

“Late.”

Something flickered at the corner of his mouth and disappeared before I could be sure I’d seen it.

“A little liar has to be punished, Roxy.”

Roxy?

My name in his mouth sent something cold and wrong down my spine.

“I’m not lying, Dad.”

“Is that so?”

Did he know my schedule? Was that even possible? The thought was absurd enough that I almost laughed. He was a CEO who barely had reason to know I existed, let alone what time my classes started.

“I was just in a hurry,” I said, my voice trembling slightly.

“We both know that isn’t true.” He leaned his hands on the head of the table. “And bad girls deserve to be disciplined.”

“I’m sorry.” I kept my eyes on the floor. “I don’t want to be punished, Dad.”

“I’m only teasing you, child.” His tone softened into something that frightened me more than the threat had. “I was worried. You left early and skipped your meal again tonight.”

Worried?

I scanned the room again. No cameras. No staff. Just the two of us.

I didn’t hear him cross the floor until his hand closed around my forearm.

“Sir!” I flinched, pulling back hard.

“Is my touch really that repulsive to you?”

I raised both hands. “No. I was just startled.”

“I understand.” His voice dropped. “I know it isn’t easy, accepting me as your father overnight. But I want you to know something, Roxy. I will never treat you badly.”

This was the same man who’d caught me spying on him. The same man who knew exactly what I’d seen through that c***k in the door. And here he was, acting like a protective father as if none of it had ever happened.

“Come eat.”

He pulled out a chair for me. Everything about it felt staged. We’d barely exchanged ten words before today, and now he was personally serving me dinner.

The food sat waiting, fresh and untouched. Dorian took the head of the table, his elbows resting on the wood as he watched every movement of my fork.

“Aren’t you eating, Dad?”

“Already have.” His eyes didn’t leave me.

I don’t know how I managed to swallow anything under that kind of pressure, but I forced myself to finish the plate just to end this faster.

I pushed my chair back. “I’ll head up now, Dad.”

“Not yet.” His tone left no room for argument. “You need to sit for a while before lying down.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Lying flat right after a heavy meal is bad for digestion.” He stepped around the table. “It’ll upset your stomach.”

“But...”

“No buts.”

His hand closed around my wrist. It wasn’t rough, but it was firm, and he guided me toward the leather sofa in the adjoining room. He sat me down, then took the armchair across from me.

The silence that followed was thick enough to choke on. He said nothing, but I could feel his eyes moving over me like a weight, studying me in a way I couldn’t understand and didn’t want to.

I gripped my dress in both hands, my pulse hammering, praying for any way out of this room before whatever was building in that silence found somewhere to land.

And then, one presented itself.