SNAKE (a Stepbrother Romance) (7 page)

I
went
to work feeling more confused than ever. The conflicting feelings I harboured for Dev were messing with my head and infecting my every conscious thought. Dazed, worried, at a loss at what to do. I felt so torn.

I knew what we had done was wrong, and I was determined to prevent anything forbidden from happening again, but as soon as he came near me, all the strength I’d managed to build in my mind disappeared - vanished in a flash. All I wanted was to be kissed by him again, to be touched by him.

He would’ve done it, too, if I’d let him, I thought. The lust and anger that flared in his eyes that morning after Monique left was a powerful thing to witness. He would’ve ripped away my dressing gown and pressed me right up against wall… Or maybe that’s what I’d wanted him to do, and he just wanted to console me after being berated by Monique’s harsh words.

The day was long and the workload was heavy at the real estate office, but at least there was an exciting announcement, which caught my attention and kept me partially distracted.

“Have you heard?” my colleague Rebecca whispered during our lunchtime break.

“Heard what?” I asked tiredly, not really wanting to gossip but intrigued anyway. There was already too much drama in my home life – I couldn’t take any more at work. And to be truthful, I’d been looking forward to the end of the day, when I hoped to get some peace and quiet in my little apartment, with the door firmly locked and headphones on so I couldn’t be witness to another screaming match down in the main house. It was like they were performers, putting on a show every night and heart-breaking matinees twice on Sundays.

“There’s rumours of a new job opening, for us lowly secretaries, coming up soon,” Rebecca told me in hushed tones but getting my attention.

“Here?”

“Nah, everyone thinks it’s going to be in the fancy new offices. They haven’t said much else, but I wouldn’t mind moving to another state. I hope I get it... It’ll be an amazing bump in pay.”

My eyes grew wider as I listened to the new information, but in the end, I just shook my head and sighed. “Not for me,” I said with finality in my tone.

I had obligations.

Despite everything that had happened with my stepbrother, I was bound to my word. I had to deliver his and Monique’s baby, as ridiculous as it seemed in that moment. I couldn’t just cut ties now and run off when things got bad, I thought. No, I was a better person than that. Or at least thought I was…

The day continued to pass slowly, and my mind was still toying with the idea of the relocation package the company would offer to the winning applicant. More and more people had been gossiping about it in the office, and I contemplated that it could indeed be the answer to all my problems. Yes, I would be letting Monique and Devan down, but I had to look after myself, didn’t I, for a change? And it probably wasn’t the best idea to stick around while I was all confused about Dev and the way he made me feel.

I could go away, forget about the silly arrangement. I would have a bigger paycheck and could pay rent and not worry about every single dollar I spent. Maybe even get a cat.

I groaned. I had made a promise, and I had to go through with it. Heavy with decisions, my mind felt like it was ready to burst open. I needed to lie down.

On the way home I sneaked by the house quickly, hoping Monique and Dev were not in. I really wasn’t in the mood to deal with my sister-in-law’s mood swings again. Once in one day was quite enough, and as for Dev – one look at him, and I was a goner. Best to stay away.

I unlocked my apartment and heard noises coming from the inside. Furrowing my brow, I put my keys on the table by the door and followed the sound to its source, praying there wasn’t a burglar in the apartment. That would just put the cherry on my spoiled cake.

“Hello?” I asked hesitantly and tentatively rounded the corner. The noise was coming from the far end of the room, towards the partitioned-off section that normally could be accessed from the garage below and was being used a storage dump.

I stood looking at the chaos. A chunk of the wall was no longer there; a gaping big hole had been cut into the partition, wide enough for a normal-sized door, giving access to the space beyond. Dust coated everything, and I coughed as I walked over the threshold into the small, stale room.

A very sweaty, musky-smelling man with a wrench and no shirt was kneeling, facing away from me and fiddling with something under the floorboards.

Devan
.

Christ, did he always have to be topless?

“What are you doing here?” I asked abruptly, feeling angry that he had waltzed into my apartment, had invaded my privacy without even asking. Obviously, I was being irrational - it was his house, after all - but I had been looking forward to catching a break tonight. Seeing my half-naked, sweaty stepbrother, covered in vibrant tattoos, in action was definitely not going to work if I wanted to stick to the plan.

He turned around slowly, dropping the wrench on the particleboard flooring with a thud. I was exposed to the glorious view of his toned torso, the six-pack of his abs glistening with droplets of sweat. He smelled incredible, like a man should, spicy and strong. Enough to make me weak at the knees.

“I’m getting started on the bathroom,” Dev explained with a sigh, running a hand through his sweat-drenched hair. “That way you won’t have to come down to the main house every morning. Great, huh?” he said and smiled.

“Oh,” I replied quietly, my shoulders sagging as disappointment filled my chest. “Yeah, sure. Whatever.”

He frowned and reached for a rag tucked behind the waistband of his jeans, then wiped his face, leaving a smear of dirt on his cheek.

I wanted to wipe it off so badly it hurt, but I made myself stay in place, letting the sadness creep through me. It was silly to feel like that; installing a bathroom up here was purely for my own benefit, but it could also mean that he didn’t want to see me. Didn’t want the temptation, I supposed.

“I thought you’d be pleased?” he said as his face fell.

I shrugged and dropped my head, unable to stare into those gorgeous sad eyes any more. I couldn’t tell him the truth without digging myself in deeper than I already had.

My eyes landed on his abdomen as he tucked the rag back. Before I could stop myself, my gaze shifted downward, following his movements, towards the smattering of hairs that led down from his belly button to the most forbidden spot - definitely not one I should have been looking at.

I bit my bottom lip, and my eyes darted upwards. Dev was looking to the side, and I wasn’t sure whether I wanted him to catch me looking, or to pretend that it never happened.

The inner turmoil was becoming too much to handle, and then our eyes met. We were still a few steps away from one another - a safe distance. I swallowed.

My body demanded more, and I made a soft, involuntary sound in my throat, which caused Devan to look at me with surprise. Lust registered in his green, wide eyes, and I looked at him with yearning. I knew I had to stop, knew we were both being foolish.

But my body had plans of its own.

M
onique had been giving
me the cold shoulder all morning before she went to work, and after a couple of hours, I’d had enough of the silent treatment. It was as if an unwelcoming shadow had been cast throughout the entire house. It was just too much to handle; I had to get out, and I decided to be proactive instead of moping around.

I got in my truck and went to check in on my crew, making sure they were sorted for the day at the new construction site, but after the quick visit I was idle, and without a purpose. I didn’t want to go home, but I needed to stay active, keep my mind off Monique, Mila and the surrogacy.

No, what I really needed was to find a way to prevent a repeat of this morning, and I could only think of one sure-fire way to do just that.

Turning the truck, I headed to the hardware store and got the supplies I needed.

I planned to be done with the first section of the bathroom in a couple of hours and wanted to be gone by the time she got home from work. I went up to Mila’s apartment, toolbox in hand, ready to start work on the new bathroom.

Work had always had a calming effect on me. The act of physical labour always helped to make me feel better, zoning out to nothingness, concentrating only at the job at hand, blotting out all the crap that was going wrong in my life.

I ripped out a part of the flimsy wall and stripped the inside enclosure bare; I removed all of our stored junk and relocated it down into the garage. I traced and fitted the required plumbing, getting sweaty and tired as I hauled the new bathroom pieces up the stairs.

I was making good progress, and it seemed the work was helping to drain the problems straight out of my body when a knock at the apartment door interrupted the zone I was in.

It took me a moment to place the face in front of me as I swung the door open, but it didn’t take me long. But the man standing on Mila’s doorstep seemed to figure it out before me.

“Oh, fuck…”

“You’re Mark, aren’t you?”

“Yeah, man. I don’t want any trouble,” he said as he raised his hands, backing away towards the edge of the stairs.

Rage filled my belly as I thought of the reason why he was here… it could only be for one thing. And god help me, I wanted to throw him down the stairs for even thinking about touching her again.

I walked out onto the small stair landing. “If I ever see you here again, next time I won’t let go; I will break your fucking neck. Do you understand?”

“Yeah, whatever. She ain’t worth this much trouble,” Mark said as he retreated down the stairs.

“What the hell did you say?”

“Nothing! Nothing,” he shouted as he ran across the driveway.

T
he bathroom was coming
along nicely after I’d managed to calm down from Mark’s visit, but I’d completely forgotten to check the time. I was hard at work when a noise from behind interrupted me.

It was her, and as soon as I sensed her there, my body tensed up. I could feel her penetrating gaze upon me, scalding me. I got up slowly, trying my best to keep my eyes away from her. But I managed to catch a glimpse.

Fuck, she looked amazing in her work clothes - all prim and proper, polished and so grown up, but so different from Monique, who was so stern and untouchable in her business attire.

Mila was still the same loveable, mischievous woman, just dressed up. I could discern the soft curve of her hips through her pencil skirt, tendrils of hair escaping her tight bun. She was perfectly imperfect, and it was driving me crazy.

“I’ll be out of your hair soon enough,” I said after a stiff greeting, and I felt the tension in the air thicken.

Focusing my attention anywhere but on my stepsister, I started gathering my tools together and putting them into the toolbox. I could feel her behind me, unmoving, watching me, and it was driving me crazy. I had a sudden urge to just press her against the wall and take her right there and then.

But my wife’s face kept popping into my mind, and I felt the guilt seeping into my skin. I really was a snake, a goddamn cheat and a liar. I had to get a grip. I was not this type of man.

“I might be back tomorrow,” I found myself saying to Mila, trying to fill the awkward silence. “I have to do some more work here. Got to start on the tiling, which won’t take too long. At least you have running water in here now. But the toilet isn’t connected up yet.”

“Thank you,” she replied, her tone perfectly polite, but totally impersonal and neutral. It stung to hear her talk like that to me. All the lightness and intimacy that we’d had as stepsiblings had been devastated by one simple act of insanity.
If only we could talk about what had happened…

I looked around for the last tool for my box and spotted it lying close to Mila’s feet. “Could you pass me that?” I asked her, pointing to the wrench as I wiped the dusty sink clean.

After a moment, I heard the hollow sound of her heels on the unfinished floor as she approached, but even without that noise, I would have known she was near. My whole body stiffened, and my cock pulsed as the floral notes of her perfume hit my nostrils, taking me right back to when she was in my arms, so close, so wet. Back to the time when she wanted me.

I turned around slowly, facing her. I thought about the way our lips had fit together, kissing like there were no consequences, yet knowing I shouldn’t even be thinking of her like that. My teeth mashed together, my jaw tight.
Best to pretend it never happened.

But I was weak, powerless to deny the hold she had over me. I couldn’t help myself - I looked down into her brown eyes.

They were round and big; I saw a yearning in them that I was sure was mirrored in my gaze. I wanted her so fucking badly. I needed to feel something warm, a real woman, not a cold heartless bitch who didn’t even want to look at me, let alone touch me.

That’s your wife you’re talking about
, my mind reminded me, and I shook my head with a groan.

“Are you okay?” Mila asked softly, her hand about to reach out, but she hesitated and withdrew.

I took a step closer, knowing full well what a dangerous game I was playing.

Although we were barely a foot apart, I closed the distance between us, and her lips parted. “You can’t avoid talking to me forever,” I whispered, my hand moving up of its own accord to touch those plump lips.

I thought she would let me do it, I really did, but just before my fingers connected with her mouth, she took a step back, breaking eye contact.

Feeling like a bucket of cold water had been poured over my head, I looked away, too.
This was never going to work and I wanted to lash out.

“Your fuck buddy was here today, by the way,” I said.

“What?”

“Mark, the creep that had his hands all over you at the bar. The one I told you to stay the fuck away from!” I said my voice escalating to a roar.

“Well… I didn’t invite him, if that’s what you’re thinking!”

“Then why was he here?” I yelled, losing my patience my sanity.

“I think you should go,” Mila said in a shaky voice, and I nodded.

“That’s probably a good idea,” I mumbled incoherently, grabbed my toolbox and headed towards the door.

Mila moved away so there was no chance of us touching, and I was grateful and angry with her all at the same time. The confusing emotions wrought havoc on my mind, and I already felt a headache coming on.

“Have a nice evening,” I wished her stiffly, and she remained silent, trailing behind me at a safe distance to the exit. Without another word or look, she shut the door behind me. I stood at the top of the stairs on the welcome mat, feeling not very welcome at all, as the clink of the lock echoed behind me.

“What were you thinking? You idiot,” I mumbled under my breath, finally retreating back to the house.

It was half an hour later when I realised that goddamn wrench was still in Mila’s bathroom.