FORBIDDEN

Chapter 1 Jasmine’s POV I was supposed to be packing my bags right now. Instead, Sebastian was dragging me into the guest room like I’d committed some crime. “Sebastian, stop! You’re hurting me!” I gasped, trying to pull my arm free. His fingers only tightened. He slammed the door shut behind us and finally let go, but he didn’t move away. He just stood there, staring at me like I’d betrayed him in the worst possible way. At twenty-six, my stepbrother was the kind of man people didn’t dare cross. Tall, broad-shouldered, always in expensive suits. The new CEO of Peak Corporation. And right now, he looked furious. “You applied to a university abroad?” His voice was low and rough. “Behind my back? Behind Mom and Dad’s back?” I rubbed my sore arm and took a shaky breath. “Yes. And I got in.” There was a pregnant pause between us. For a second, he just looked at me like I’d slapped him. Then something darker crept into his eyes. It wasn’t always like this between us. After my dad died when I was six, everything felt cold and scary. Then, three years later, Mom married Richard Blackwood, and suddenly I had a new house, a new dad, and a new big brother. Sebastian was fifteen when I first met him — cold and distant. He barely spoke to me for the first week. But then he started protecting me. Really protecting me. No one at school could bully me. He bought me gifts, helped with homework, and stayed up with me when I had nightmares. For years, I thought I had the best big brother in the world. My friends used to tease me about how lucky I was. Until I turned sixteen. That’s when his protection became… too much. He started controlling who I talked to, where I went, and what I wore. No boys. Barely any friends. He wanted to know everything — every secret, every plan. It got worse every year. Now I’m twenty, and I still feel like I’m living in a cage. So I did something I never dared before. I applied to universities abroad in secret. When the acceptance letter from Canada came, I cried happy tears in my bathroom for twenty minutes straight. Finally. Freedom. Until Sebastian found out. “You really thought you could just leave?” He stepped closer, forcing me back until my back hit the wall. “Without telling me?” “I’m twenty years old, Sebastian,” I said, my voice cracking. “I want a normal life. I want friends. I want to go on dates. I want to breathe without you watching my every move!” He placed one hand on the wall beside my head, leaning in. His familiar cologne filled my nose — the same one he’d worn for years. It used to comfort me. Now it made my stomach twist. “You belong here, Jasmine. With your family. With me.” The way he said “me” sent a strange shiver down my spine. “I already told Mom and Dad,” I whispered. “They were surprised, but… they’re okay with it. I’m going, Sebastian. You can’t stop me this time.” His jaw tightened. For a moment, I saw something flash in his eyes — pain? Anger? Something else I couldn’t quite name. He leaned down until his lips were close to my ear. “Try it, little sister,” he whispered, his breath warm against my skin. “Try to leave me. I promise… you’ll regret it.” My heart slammed against my ribs. This wasn’t the Sebastian who used to carry me on his back when I was little. This was someone else. Someone darker. Someone who scared me. And for the first time, I realized I might not be able to escape him so easily.