My step brothers Obsession

Chapter 3;The first real Kiss

ELENA

I changed outfits four times before midnight.

This was insane. Completely, utterly insane. I was sneaking through a mansion to meet my soon-to-be stepbrother in his bedroom after a kiss that should never have happened.

The smart thing would be to stay in my room. Lock the door. Pretend the message never came.

But at 11:57 PM, I was padding barefoot through the darkened hallways of the east wing, wearing yoga pants and an oversized Columbia sweatshirt because I'd convinced myself this was just a conversation. Nothing more.

The lie was almost convincing.

Kelvin's suite was at the end of a corridor lined with abstract art that probably cost more than most people's houses. His door was slightly ajar, soft light spilling into the hallway.

I knocked softly.

"Come in." His voice was quieter than usual, missing that sharp edge of contempt.

His suite made mine look like a closet. The sitting room alone was massive with leather furniture, a bar that could stock a nightclub, floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the grounds. Through an open doorway, I could see his bedroom, dominated by a bed that could sleep five people comfortably.

I forced myself to look away.

Kelvin was standing by the windows, still in his dress pants but wearing only a white t-shirt that clung to a body that clearly saw the inside of a gym regularly. His feet were bare. Somehow, that detail felt more intimate than the kiss.

"You came," he said, turning to face me.

"You asked me to."

"You could have said no."

"So could you. To all of this." I gestured between us. "But here we are."

He ran a hand through his hair, that gesture I was starting to recognize as his tell when he was frustrated. "We need to establish rules."

"Rules."

"Boundaries. This—" he waved vaguely, "—whatever happened in the hallway, it can't happen again."

Something in my chest twisted painfully. "I agree."

"Our parents are happy. Your mother needs my father's resources for her treatment. Breaking them up because we can't control ourselves would be selfish and cruel."

"I said I agree, Kelvin."

"Then why do you look like I just kicked your dog?"

I laughed bitterly. "Because you kissed me like I was the air you needed to breathe, and now you're standing there listing reasons why I'm inconvenient. Forgive me for being a little confused about the mixed signals."

His jaw clenched. "You think this is easy for me? I've spent the last week investigating you and your mother, looking for proof you're con artists, because that's easier than admitting the truth."

"Which is?"

"That I wanted you the second I saw you." The confession seemed ripped from him. "Before I knew your name. Before you slapped me. I walked into that drawing room and saw you standing there in that black dress that kept riding up your thighs, and I wanted to throw you over my shoulder and carry you upstairs like some kind of caveman."

Heat flooded through me. "Kelvin—"

"So I attacked you instead. Said horrible things. Made you hate me. Because that's safer than this." He crossed the room until we were inches apart. "Safer than wanting something I can't have."

"Your father and my mother aren't married yet," I heard myself say. "Technically, we're not related. Not really."

"Elena. Don't."

"Don't what? Don't acknowledge that you're looking at me right now like you want to devour me? Don't admit that I haven't been able to stop thinking about that kiss? Don't.."

He kissed me again.

This time it was different. Not angry or desperate, but deep and thorough. His hands slid into my hair, tilting my head to exactly the angle he wanted. I grabbed his shirt, pulling him closer, and he made a sound low in his throat that sent electricity down my spine.

We stumbled backward until my back hit the wall. His body pressed against mine, all hard muscle and heat, and I couldn't think, couldn't breathe, couldn't do anything but feel.

His mouth moved to my jaw, my neck, finding the pulse point that was hammering wildly.

"This is wrong," he murmured against my skin.

"I know." My hands were under his shirt now, exploring the ridges of his abs.

"We should stop."

"Definitely."

Neither of us moved.

His phone buzzed on the coffee table. Once. Twice. Three times.

Kelvin pulled back with a curse, resting his forehead against mine while we both caught our breath.

"I have to take this," he said, voice rough. "It's the Singapore office. They wouldn't call unless…"

"It's fine. Go."

He pressed one more kiss to my lips—soft, almost reverent before stepping away to grab his phone.

I took the opportunity to escape to his bathroom, closing the door and staring at my reflection. My lips were swollen, my hair a mess, my eyes bright with something dangerous.

Through the door, I could hear Kelvin's voice, sharp and authoritative. CEO mode. It should have been a turn-off. Instead, it just made him more attractive, which was deeply unfair.

I splashed cold water on my face, trying to get my heart rate under control.

That's when I noticed the photograph.

It was small, tucked into the frame of his bathroom mirror. A much younger Kelvin, maybe twelve or thirteen standing next to a beautiful blonde woman. His mother, presumably. They were at some kind of gala, both dressed formally, but the woman wasn't looking at the camera. She was checking her phone, her expression bored.

Even in the photo, the distance between them was obvious.

My heart ached for the boy in that picture.

When I walked out, Kelvin was pouring himself a scotch at the bar. His face was closed off again, the walls back up.

"Everything okay?" I asked.

"The merger is falling apart. I need to fly to Singapore tomorrow. I'll be gone for at least a week."

A week. Relief and disappointment warred in my chest.

"Probably for the best," I said, trying to sound casual. "Give us both some space to think clearly."

"Elena." He set down his glass, crossing to me one more time. "I saw you looking at the photo. My mother—"

"You don't have to explain."

"Yes, I do. Because you need to understand why I can't trust this. Any of this." His eyes were haunted now, vulnerable in a way that made my chest tight. "She said she loved my father. Played the devoted wife for years. Then the second the prenup expired, she emptied half the accounts and disappeared. I found the goodbye note. It was addressed to the lawyers, not to us."

I touched his face gently. "I'm not her."

"How do I know that? How do I know in five years, ten years, you won't?.."

"You don't. That's what trust is, Kelvin. A leap of faith." I dropped my hand. "But I'm not asking you to trust me. I'm not asking you for anything. This—us—it doesn't have to mean anything."

"Doesn't have to mean anything," he repeated slowly.

"Right. Just... physical. We're both adults. We can keep it separate from our parents' relationship. No one gets hurt."

It was the logical solution. The safe one.

So why did saying it out loud make me feel broken?

Kelvin studied me for a long moment. Then he stepped back, his CEO mask sliding into place.

"You should go. I have an early flight."

The dismissal stung more than it should have.

I made it to the door before his voice stopped me.

"Elena."

I turned.

"My mother's name was Vivienne. And for the record?" His smile was sharp, dangerous. "You're nothing like her. You're far more terrifying."

"Why?"

"Because I think I could actually fall for you. And that's the most dangerous thing of all."

The door to his suite clicked shut behind me, and I stood in the hallway, heart racing.

My phone buzzed.

Unknown number. But not Kelvin this time.

“I know what you did tonight. Meet me in the garden. 5 minutes. Come alone or I tell Richard everything. - V“

V? Who the hell was V?

But the threat was clear.

Someone had seen us.

And now everything was about to come crashing down.