Sinful Obsession: My Billionaire Stepbrother

Opening Wounds

~Isabel~

My life had basically become a survival game.

Between back-to-back lectures and a mountain of textbooks to study, I barely had time to breathe.

I hadn't even thought about my internship at Sterling Global. I’d been dodging the office for weeks, and every time I saw my blazer in the closet, I felt guilty and stressed.

I was drowning in schoolwork, but Chloe was my only bright spot. We were inseparable and bonded over snacks and how much we hated our Torts professor.

Her parents owned a massive bakery, and even though they were rich, Chloe was down-to-earth. She was grounded, unlike me. I was like a live wire about to snap.

One night, I was slumped over my desk with my head on a textbook when my door opened. My mom walked in, smelling like expensive perfume and wearing a pretty red lace dress from her latest trip. She sat on the edge of my bed.

"Isabel? You look beyond exhausted, honey," she said.

"I’m just studying, Mom," I mumbled into the pages.

"I’ve been talking to Arthur," she started, and I immediately stiffened.

“Isabel, I want you to drop the internship. Just focus on your classes. You don’t need to prove anything to anyone."

I sat up slowly, my eyes suddenly burning.

"No. I’m not quitting."

"Why are you doing this to yourself?" she asked, reaching out to brush hair from my face.

"Everything I did, every trip and sacrifice, was so you wouldn't have to live the life we had back in Brooklyn. I wanted you to be safe. Arthur is happy to provide for us. You don't have to work."

Hearing her say safe felt like a slap in the face.

Was William constantly bullying me supposed to be safe?

I stood up quickly, dragging my chair roughly in the process.

"Safe?" I whispered, my voice was shaking.

"You think I feel safe here? Mom, you spent years traveling and chasing this better life."

"Where were you when I was sixteen, working twenty hours a week at a grocery store just for lunch money? Where were you when I was mixing hair dye at Aunt Joey’s salon until my fingernails turned purple because we couldn't pay the heating bill?"

My mom flinched then turned pale.

"Isabel, I know your struggles. Do you think I didn't see you? You stayed back two more years after high school, working double shifts just to save for college while your mates already started their lives. You were so determined to get this degree, and it broke my heart to see you struggle. That is why when the opportunity to make our lives better came, I took it for you, Bel."

I shook my head as tears came to my eyes.

I looked around the room at the high ceilings and the designer furniture.

It all felt like borrowed stuff too fake.

"Don't mom,"

"You married Arthur for your own reasons, don't make it look like it was for me. You wanted to stop running, but don't put the weight of that choice on me."

"Isabel, that’s not fair!" she snapped, her guilt turning into anger. "I care about you not collapsing! you're doing too much!"

"It’s not about collapsing or doing too much!" I yelled. "The only things in this room that actually belong to me are my clothes, my brain, and my hard work. You chose the expensive clothes and shiny floors, Mom. But I refuse to be a parasite! If I let go of that internship, I let go of the only financial power I have. I'm not a charity case, and I'm not a Mayfield who gives up!"

We sat in silence.

I just wanted her to understand that I couldn't breathe in a life I didn't build myself.

I sank back into my chair and buried my face in my hands.

Part of me wanted to give in, sleep for a week, and let Arthur pay for everything. But a bigger part of me was terrified. If I let them take care of me, I’d lose the girl who survived Brooklyn. I’d just be a doll in a glass box, and William would finally be right about me being a gold digger.

Suddenly, a sharp knock at the door cut through the tension.

We both froze.

The door opened a crack and Mrs. Higgins peered in.

She looked awkward, like she’d definitely heard us shouting.

"I'm sorry to bother you," Mrs. Higgins said, keeping her voice low. "But Mr. William is in his private study. He's asking for Ms. Isabel to come down immediately. He didn't say why, but he seemed very insistent."

My heart dropped into my stomach.

My mom looked at the door, then back at me, her face still red.

"Now? It's nearly eleven pm! what is it about? Is it work? My daughter is already asleep."

"I don't know what it's about, ma'am," Mrs. Higgins said, looking at me with a bit of pity.

I wiped my face with my sleeve to hide that I’d been crying.

My stomach was in knots. How much had she heard? Had she been listening to us tear each other apart?

"I'm coming," I said. My voice sounded hollow.

I didn't look at my mom as I grabbed my tablet and headed for the door. I had to face him, even though my world was already crumbling...