20 SHADE OF FORBIDDEN TABOO

Episode 15

My

Stepbrother

is

a

Beast

in

Bed.

My name is Leslie. I’m a sophomore at New York University, and I’ve been living in the hostel for a while now. I absolutely love the city life here. I barely ever go back home, even during holidays. Between the energy of the city and the fact that there’s really nothing waiting for me back in Ohio, it just makes sense. My dad is out of the picture. ….he separated from my mom years ago and barely keeps in touch. Then recently my mom got remarried, and honestly, her new husband gives me bad vibes. But she seems happy, so I stay out of it and keep living my own life in the big city, far away from my small hometown.

I had no idea that one phone call would drag me right back there and change everything.

It was early December. I was still half-asleep in my dorm when my phone rang. The guy on the other end told me my mom wasn’t feeling well and that I needed to come home as soon as possible. I didn’t even think twice. I threw some clothes into a bag and caught the first train I could. When I finally got to the house and knocked on the door, a guy I’d never seen before opened it.

He looked a few years older than me, tall, burly, with these striking green eyes. I was staring without meaning to. He smiled a little and introduced himself: “Hey, I’m Robb. Your stepbrother.”

Wait… stepbrother? I didn’t even know my stepdad had a son. A weird rush of jealousy hit me. This guy had been living here with my mom while I was off in New York. She probably cared about him a lot. The thought made my stomach twist.

I stepped into the house, still dragging my bag behind me, and immediately asked how Mom was doing. Before Robb could even answer, I heard footsteps on the stairs. I looked up and there she was. My mom, coming down hand-in-hand with my step-dad, smiling like nothing had happened. I just stood there, completely shocked.

She looked totally fine. Turned out she’d had a minor stroke earlier that day and panicked, which is why they called me. I felt this huge wave of relief wash over me… but I was also pissed. I really didn’t want to come home for Christmas, and now it looked like I was stuck here until after New Year’s. Great.

I tried to keep things polite with the whole step-family situation. That same evening, Mom told me she and my step-dad were heading out of town for a day or two. Just the two of them. Which meant I’d be left alone in the house with Robb. He was apparently in charge of “keeping an eye on me,” babysitting, a college sophomore. Awesome. This vacation was off to a wonderful start.

The next morning, I woke up early and decided to walk around the house. It had been almost four years since I’d been back, and a lot had changed. I wandered from room to room, noticing small differences here and there. Eventually, I pushed open the door to a room that clearly belonged to a guy. The computer was still on, clothes were tossed everywhere, and the bed was unmade. This had to be Robb’s space.

I knew I shouldn’t, but I was curious. I stepped closer to the computer and glanced at the screen. My eyes went wide. He had been looking at mature nude women full-on explicit stuff. I felt my face heat up instantly. Part shock, part something I didn’t want to admit.

I turned to leave quickly, but when I spun around, Robb was standing right there in the doorway. He looked just as surprised as I was. For a second, we just stared at each other.