Forbidden to Love My Stepbrother

Chapter 6

I wait until the party is long over, the guests gone, no more cars rolling out of the compound. I’ve already changed from my gown into my usual sleepwear, a simple blue nightshirt and matching shorts, before slipping out of my room to search for Grey.

Naturally, I try the door right across from mine, his old room. Empty. Dark. I don’t need to flick on the lights to see his clothes are missing. I shut the door quietly and drift toward the other wing. Murmurs of voices pull me up.

It's Dad.

I sigh. He’s still here? He doesn’t live here. Don’t tell me he’s planning to stay the night. He must be speaking with Grey. Just when I thought I could finally corner Grey and ask what he was on about earlier.

I hover by the railing and wait for their conversation to end. The door to study creaks open beneath the stairs, so I only see the wedge of light spilling out before Dad’s voice rises to me.

“Remember, you’re here to prove yourself. If I see even one sign you’re not worthy, you’re out.”

Grey stays silent. Then Dad emerges under the stairs. I should hide, avoid his scorn after what happened at the party, but whatever. I don’t care what he thinks. Haven’t for years and neither has he. His eyes find me and as usual, they give me that unimpressed look before he strides off without a word.

Sometimes I wonder if he’s really my father. Maybe I was adopted. Another reason why being with Grey isn’t wrong.

Grey begins climbing the stairs, his expression distant, until he sees me. He halts just before the landing, watching. I stare back.

“Why are you still up?” he asks as he comes closer, stopping at the top to face me fully. I like that he is not ignoring me, even if he’s still hiding behind that mask.

“I can’t sleep,” I admit, perching on the railing, my fingers curling around the wood. “I keep thinking about you.”

“Don’t.” he mutters, letting out a tired groan. I smile, strolling toward him, my hand gliding along the banister.

“What? Are you really that bothered by my little puppy love?” I tease. “Come on, Grey, you can drop the act now. No one’s here.”

His jaw tightens. His gaze flicks downward, toward the empty foyer below, then snaps back to me. “Freya–”

I cut him off with a petulant groan. “Call me Luna. Stop putting up this wall. It won’t work.” I grin at him. “I don’t buy your big brother act.”

“It isn’t an act,” he clipped.

“Of course it is.” I turn away, unwilling to hear more denial and fighting to keep my face smooth. His words keep landing like a punch to my chest, squeezing the air from me. I won’t feel that again.

“Freya.” He exhales hard. “I have work early tomorrow. I don’t have time for games.”

My face tightens into a frown. “Since when?” I step in his way, blocking his retreat. “Is that what Dad promised you? That he’d make you his heir if you dumped me?”

“Dumping you implies we were ever dating,” Grey throws back. “We weren’t. All we had was a childish crush that ended seven years ago.”

“You don’t mean that,” I choke, my throat tightening. This isn’t what I’d imagined while waiting for Grey, when I believed he’d come back to me and we’d finally claim what was denied us seven years ago.

Grey exhales and turns toward me. He lifts a hand to my head, patting gently. “Actually, I’m sorry, Freya. You were young, lonely, impressionable. I shouldn’t have led you on. I should have known how much it would confuse you when I took care of you the way I did.”

I snatch his hand from my head and grip hard, locking my eyes with his. “Did it do the same to you?” I demand. “Did you fall in love with me because you were lonely and impressionable?”

Grey’s smile isn’t cold, it’s worse. It’s the smile you give a silly child. He shakes my fingers from his hand. “That’s not love, Freya. The fact you think it is shows how little you’ve grown. Stop obsessing over love and focus on your studies. Johanna says you’re failing.”

“You’re listening to Johanna?” Fire bursts in my chest, at the mention of my mother, a bitterness mixed with rage burns through me. How could Grey bring her into this?

“I know you think you’re punishing your mom for what she did,” he says evenly, “but you’re only hurting your future. Get serious about your studies, Freya.” He turns to leave, and I can’t take it anymore.

“Who are you!” I shout, unable to hold it in. He’s acting like a twisted version of himself. At this point only his face resembles Grey, but everything else feels wrong. Did his body return while his spirit stayed behind?

He pauses, glances back. “That’s a silly question. Of course I’m your stepbrother. If you need help with your studies, ask. Otherwise, I’m too busy to entertain you.” With that, he walks off, his room deliberately on the other wing, as far from mine as possible.

My breath rips out of me. I slam my palm against the railing and hiss when pain shoots through my hand. What is wrong with Grey? What hold does Dad have over him, and can I ever break it? Because it can’t be that he really believes all we had was just a childish crush. It wasn’t. It was love, a love still burning hot in my chest. And I know Grey feels it too. He has to be lying.