My Best Friend's Brother Secret Baby

~~Claire~~ I was just passing when I heard a growl. A familiar voice, rough and muffled, coming from inside the room. "Claire... fuck." My heart gave a strange little kick. I knew that voice. Caleb Reed. Maddie's stepbrother. But why was he saying my name like he could barely hold himself together? I moved to the door and pushed the door open just a little but enough for me to see what was going on inside And I had to cover my mouth with my free hand to prevent the gasp from escaping. I pushed the door open slowly, and what I saw made my eyes widen. The man I'd been secretly in love with for seven years was staring at my picture while touching himself. The man every woman at Maddie's birthday party would have killed for a chance with, His dark hair was a mess, his breathing uneven, his shirt was nowhere to be seen and the sight of his thick length left me completely speechless. Holy Molly. I had no business being upstairs. It was Maddie's birthday party, and she'd thrown it in his penthouse. Caleb had specifically told Maddie that no one was allowed past the ground floor. But my heel had broken while Maddie was dragging me onto the dance floor. She'd sent me upstairs to her room to get another pair because she didn't want to leave the guy keeping her company. And now, look where that had landed me. In the most embarrassing situation of my life. Was this why Caleb had forbidden everyone from going upstairs? Had he wanted privacy for this? Before leaving for Paris seven years ago, he'd barely spoken to me. Now he was back, running his father's company as its CEO. Did that mean he'd had a secret crush on me, too? He seemed to sense my presence. His head turned toward the door, and the moment our eyes met, his eyes widened. Shit. I'd been caught red-handed. “What the f**k, Claire?” He quickly grabbed the sheet and pulled it over himself. "Oh, my God." I stumbled backward, my broken heel nearly sending me to the floor. "I'm sorry. I didn't know anyone was in here." I wanted the ground to swallow me whole. "Get out." he ordered, his face twisted with anger. I blinked, finally finding my voice again, though it came out in a pathetic stammer. "I'm... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to..." I couldn't finish. What was I supposed to say? Sorry for seeing something I could never unsee? "Sorry," I mumbled again before backing out and slamming the door shut. I hurried down the hallway, trying to see if I could unsee what I had seen. But no matter how fast I walked, the image of Caleb followed me. At the bottom of the stairs, I grabbed the railing and tried to collect myself. I couldn't let one embarrassing discovery send my imagination running wild. What if it was nothing more than lust? What if he liked the thought of having me but had no interest in actually being with me? Caleb had never been short of women, and the last thing I wanted was to discover that I'd been nothing more than another fantasy to him. Besides, I didn't want to betray Maddie. We made a rule before we became best friends. Never date each other's siblings. Although I didn’t have any, I knew she was only trying to protect me from her brother. He had been a notorious playboy back in high school, and I had no idea if he had outgrown that habit. We never spoke again after he left for Russia to continue his studies. Now, years later, he was back, and somehow, I had ended up seeing a side of him I was never supposed to see. I stopped beside a table crowded with bottles and glasses, rubbing my palms against my dress. "Okay," I whispered. "Let's think about this like a normal person." I grabbed a glass of alcohol and swallowed it in one go, wincing as it burned down my throat. At least it gave me something else to focus on. I picked up another glass and searched the room for Maddie. There was no way I could tell her what I'd just witnessed. That secret would be buried with me. I just needed to find her and get my mind off her brother. But instead of Maddie, I found her phone lying beside a half-empty glass. Typical Maddie. When she got drunk, she could forget her own head if it wasn't attached to her body. I sat on a stool, turning the phone over in my hand as I wondered where she'd disappeared to. Before I could figure it out, a message popped up on the screen. It was from Caleb. You need to wrap up this party. It's disturbing my work. My lips parted in disbelief. Disturbing his work? Was that what he called touching himself while staring at my picture? I almost laughed, but before I could put the phone down, another message appeared. Has Claire gone home yet? A small, ridiculous smile tugged at my lips before I quickly pressed them together. Asking about me didn't mean he wanted anything serious. I needed to remember that before my imagination got me into trouble. I stood up, deciding to find Maddie before I lost what little sense I had left. After asking around, one of her friends told me she'd seen Maddie heading toward the pool with Mitch, the guy she has been obsessed with lately. I went outside and found them standing so close that barely any space separated them. Mitch's hands rested on Maddie's waist as they kissed, seemingly oblivious to everything around them. I stopped a few feet away, watching them for a moment as the pool lights shimmered across the water. They looked so engrossed that I couldn't bring myself to interrupt. Besides, I didn't need to be the third wheel in someone else's romantic moment when my own love life was already turning into a complete f*****g mess. I turned away before they noticed me and headed back inside, hoping to leave without anyone asking why I looked like I'd just witnessed a crime. After searching for my bag, I gave up waiting for Maddie. My feet were already hurting from the broken heel, and I had no intention of spending another minute in that house. I slipped off my shoes and carried them as I walked outside. The cool night air did little to clear my head. With every step, the music faded behind me, but my thoughts kept circling back to Caleb's message and the look on his face when he'd caught me watching him. What the hell was I supposed to do with all that information? I couldn't exactly march back into the house and ask if he'd been fantasizing about me for years, could I? "f**k," I muttered, rubbing my forehead as I continued down the sidewalk. A low rumble of thunder sounded in the distance. Well, I'd just let myself get drenched in it if it began. I'd walked about two blocks when a sleek black car slowed beside me. Its headlights swept across the pavement before it pulled up near the curb. I frowned, wondering who would stop for me at this hour. Then the tinted window rolled down, and I wished I'd taken a different route home. Caleb sat behind the wheel, one hand resting on it as his gaze settled on me. For a moment, I could only stare, my fingers tightening around the shoes in my hand as every embarrassing moment of the night came rushing back. His eyes dropped to my bare feet before returning to the dashboard in front of him. "Get in," he ordered.