Sinful Obsession: My Billionaire Stepbrother

Must be a dream

~Isabel ~

The morning light felt like a physical assault as it poured through the sheer curtains of my room.

I groaned, burying my face in the silk pillow, but as I shifted, a strange sensation washed over me.

My body felt... different. Sensitive.

There was a lingering hum in my veins that I couldn't quite place until the memories of the night started to rush back in a blurry, golden wave.

William. Here. In my room. His hands—

I bolted upright, my heart beating a frantically

I looked at the nightstand. There sat a glass of milk and a plate of cookies, untouched and cold.

My breath hitched. Was it a dream? It had to be.

The way he had touched me, the warmth of his skin, and the way I had practically begged for him—it was too vivid, too real to be anything but a high-definition fantasy cooked up by my own starved subconscious self.

I slid my hands over my face, heat blooming across my cheeks.

"Get a grip, Isabel," I whispered to the empty room.

I shouldn't be having dreams like that.

Not about him. Not about my stepbrother.

I had never felt this kind of pull toward anyone before.

Back in high school, I’d dated Jeremy, but that was... nothing. Our one attempt at s*x had been rushed, awkward, and left me wondering what the big deal was.

But this? Even the dream version of William had set my entire soul on fire.

I climbed out of bed, pacing the room as I tried to rationalize it. It was clearly a lack of a social life. I was twenty, living in a new country now.

Prior to now, I had spent every waking hour either studying or working part-time jobs just to be here to afford my tuition and maintenance.

My libido was just staging a protest that must be it. I was lonely, frustrated, and my brain had picked the most convenient, most dangerous target to fixate on. William

I couldn't let a lustful attraction to William make me lose sight of why I was in England. I was here for the Sterling Global internship. I was here to graduate with a law degree that would change my life.

I couldn't let some messed-up obsession with a guy who probably still looked at me as a charity case ruin my future. No!

I splashed cold water on my face, staring at my reflection.

"Ignore it," I told the girl in the mirror.

"He’s just a guy with broad shoulders and a mean streak. Find someone else. A normal guy. Someone at the university." That should do it! Case closed!!

~~~~

By the time I met Chloe on campus later that afternoon, I thought I had it under control. We were sitting on a stone bench near the fountain, our textbooks open, but I wasn't reading a single word.

I was zoning out, staring at a pigeon, wondering if William had actually been in my room or if I was officially losing my mind.

"Earth to Izy!" Chloe said, nudging my shoulder.

"You've been staring at that bird for five minutes like it’s about to explain the Law Ethics to you."

I snapped out of it, feeling the tell-tale heat of a blush creeping up my neck. "Sorry. Just... didn't sleep well."

Chloe narrowed her eyes, a mischievous glint appearing.

"You’re blushing. Is it a guy? Did you meet someone? Please tell me it’s not that icy stepbrother of yours."

"No!" I said, a little too quickly. "Of course not. I was actually just thinking... Maybe I should start dating. You know, find a nice guy here."

Chloe didn't push, though I could tell she didn't entirely buy my poor sleep excuse. She just shrugged and leaned back.

"Good! Because honestly, the gene pool at this school is top-tier. Speaking of top-tier... remember the superhero I crashed into the other day? The one with the messy hair and the lopsided grin?"

I smiled, glad for the change of subject.

"The engineer? How could I forget? You almost turned into a puddle on the pavement."

"Well, I've been doing some 'research,' and his name is—"

"Hey, watch out!"

A frisbee sailed over our heads, followed by the sound of running footsteps. I looked up and my jaw nearly dropped.

It was him. The guy from the Engineering quad.

He was jogging toward us

He slowed down as he reached our bench, his eyes landed on Chloe. That same slow, charming grin spread across his face, and he reached up to rub the back of his neck.

"Hey," he said, his voice deep and friendly.

"You're the girl from the hallway. You haven't walked into any more walls today, have you?"

Chloe looked like she had forgotten how to breathe. I bit my lip to keep from laughing, realizing that maybe my plan to find a distraction was about to get a lot easier—at least for one of us...