Stepbrother: Moving In/Moving Out (2 page)

BOOK: Stepbrother: Moving In/Moving Out
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I just have to make it through this week.

“I’ll keep on my toes around him from now on,” I say as I set the freshly cleaned dish in the drying rack.

“And don’t touch his stuff.”

“I won’t touch his stuff,” I repeat.

“That’s my girl.” His lips find my neck again and I smile with delight.

 

***

 

I can hear the music through the walls before I even make it off the elevator. My feet ache from a long day of classes and an even longer shift at work. I feel dirty. Everything hurts. I just want to take a long, hot shower and curl up in front of the television with a fun movie. But I hear the music. I hope for a moment that it’s the neighbors, but as I make it closer to the apartment door, I know it’s coming from inside.

Seth is throwing a party.

I spin my keys in the lock and open the door. It immediately slams into the shoulder of whomever is leaned against it. The man moves out of the way to let me in, but his drunken arm shakes too much and he spills the contents of his blue plastic cup down my shirt.

“Whoa — sorry, lady!”

I can barely hear his half-assed apology over the rumbling bass. I slam the door shut and push my way through the crowd. “Excuse me!” I shout, but no one seems to hear me. I’m not sure how he managed to stuff so many people in here but I’m too pissed off to be impressed.

I open the door to mine and Carter’s room to find some random couple mounting each other in the darkness. They scurry about like a bunch of cockroaches on the bed as soon as I turn the light on.

“Get out,” I say. I toss my purse to the floor and kick off my shoes.

Without a word, the two of them run out in the hallway and I close the door behind them. Just as I’m pulling my beer-drenched shirt over my head, the door pushes open.

“Hey—” I shout and plant my foot in front of it to keep it from opening any further.

Seth pokes his head in. “Oh,” he mumbles. “It’s you…”

“Yes, it’s me,” I say, rolling my shirt back down to cover my bra. “What the hell are you doing?”

“I invited some people over,” he says.

I step back slightly to escape his alcohol-laced breath. “Who said you could throw a party?” I ask.

“I did,” he says. “And Carter said it was cool.”

“Well, I
didn’t
,” I say.

“I don’t care,” he says. “You don’t live here.”

I heave a heavy, annoyed, sigh. “Get out.” I push on the door. “And keep your weird friends out of here.”

“Oh, I’m sorry—” he mutters with sarcasm. “Guess you’ll have to clean the whole place all over again. Carter
did
say you’d be good for it.”

“Get out!”

“Okay, okay.”

His head disappears from the doorway and I push it closed. Anger stirs in my gut, heaving in and out. I struggle to breathe. Heat pours out of my skin. And I smell like a fucking bar rag.

I peel the wet shirt off and throw it in the hamper. My night of peace and quiet was all just a fantasy. I reach into the closet and find a thick flannel shirt to throw on, one that will block the smell of cheap beer on my skin.

Guess you’ll have to clean the whole place all over again
. What the hell did he mean by that? Is Seth doing this on purpose? Did he invite every drunken loser he knows over just to piss me off? Am I just a maid to him? I tap my foot on the floor with crossed arms, my mind of fire. I’m sure he’s right outside now with his ear to the door, expecting to here me muttering to myself or calling Carter to whine, bitch, and moan about him. But I refuse. If he really is doing this to rustle my jimmies, then there’s only one solution to the problem.

That age-old phrase. If you can’t beat them…

Join them.

I lean over the mirror in the corner and run a brush through my hair. My make-up is far from perfect. I throw on some darker eyeshadow and brighten my lips with a deep shade of red. No, make it pink. Something light and fun. I replace my ironed black slacks with a short and tight miniskirt. I keep the thick flannel shirt, but I open the top few buttons. This coupled with my finest push-up bra and I’m ready for a night to remember.

I open the door and feel a sense of disappointment as I enter the empty hallway. Seth wasn’t there listening in for my cries of torment, but that doesn’t change anything. I throw on a smile and make my way into the living room and beeline for the corner where the keg is set up.

“What are you doing?”

I look over my shoulders as I bring the blue party cup to my lips. Seth towers above me and I smile at him. “I’m having a drink,” I say.

“You weren’t invited,” he says through his teeth.

“Oh, well…” I take another sip from my cup. “Carter said it was cool.”

I can practically see the steam rising off his head as I repeat his words back at him. He opens his mouth to speak, but I brush passed him instead of listening. I recognize a few of Carter’s friends from campus. As I approach their group, they raise their arms up and greet me as one of their own.

“Hey, Mina!” I hear them shout my name and I can’t stop smiling.

I give them high-fives and shake my hips to the music. Over my shoulder, I see Seth staring at me with a deep frown. He lingers there, so I shoot a wink in his direction.

Chapter 3

 

The morning sun burns in through the windows above the bed. I pull my arm up to block the rays from my eyes and try to drift back to sleep. It’s my day off, so I was hoping to sleep-in until at least lunch. However, the throbbing headache breaking my skull apart is doing everything in its power to make sure that doesn’t happen. I feel Carter stir behind me. His arm spoons across my hips and he rests his fingers against my belly.

My mind is still in dreamland and I find it difficult to piece together the events of the previous evening. I don’t remember when I came back to the room, nor do I remember Carter coming home and joining me. Everything in my body feels off. The blankets feel strange against my skin and the pillow isn’t as thick as I remember.

My eyes peel open, temporarily blinded by the sunlight above me. My breath catches in my throat and I suddenly realize why everything about Carter’s bed feels strange.

Because it’s not Carter’s bed.

I’m in a different room.

This is Seth’s room.

Why am I in Seth’s room?

I look over my shoulder and see Seth’s sleeping face.

Why am I in Seth’s bed??

I lift the bedsheets to see my naked body. I hesitate before glancing over at Seth’s. His flaccid cock rests against his thigh with a used condom still stuck to it.

“Oh, fuck…” I whisper. My hand flies to my head and I immediately regret the decision as headache pain shoots down my neck. A quick reflex makes me grab his resting hand and toss it back at him. It flops onto the bed between us and I try to roll off, but the blankets are so tightly wound around us, I can’t move.

Seth’s eyes open softly and he sees my panicked face. “Hey…” he says.

“Hey?
Hey?
That’s all you have to say at me, you creep?!” I speak with a hushed whisper.

“What are you talking about?” He shifts in the sheets.

I sigh. “Wake the fuck up.” I reach out and slap his face.

“Ow!” he shouts.

“Shh!” I bring my finger to my lips.

“Calm down,” he says.

“What am I doing here?!” I ask.

He sits up on his elbow. “You don’t remember?”

“No,” I say.

“Man, you’re a lightweight. You barely drank anything.”

“Then you obviously slipped me something!” I accuse.

“Knock it off,” he says. “Relax. I didn’t drug you. This was consensual.”

“Well, I highly doubt that!” I say.

“Remember the party?” he asks.

“Yes.”

“And the beer?”

“Yes.”

“And spin the bottle?”

I pause. My memory begins to take form in my mind. “… Yes.”

“Okay,” he says with a yawn. “And after that?”

I search my memory. “I spun the bottle on you like four times.”

“Yep.”

“Oh, my god!” I cover my face. “We kissed in front of
everybody.
” I remember the feeling of his lips pressed against mine and the rush of warmth blending with my senses, running down my body, and igniting the fire in my womb. I can still hear the cackling of laughter and voices around us.

“You bent over and whispered in my ear that you’d wanted this for so long,” Seth says.

“I did?” I ask. I remember the act itself. I leaned over against his body. My lips grazed his ear. “No, I didn’t.” My instinct has always been to deny this piece of me.

“Yes, you did.”

“Did anyone else hear it?” I ask.

He chuckles. “No, no one else heard it.”

“I don’t understand…” I say. “You were okay with this?”

He nods.

“But you hate me.”

“I don’t hate you,” he says. “I never have.”

My memory breathes new life. I remember the whole night and every single thing that happened. Once all the guests had cleared out, Seth walked up to me, held my face, and kissed me again.

“I’ve always had a thing for you, Mina,” he says. “I just… wasn’t allowed to do anything about it.”

“Holy shit…” I whisper.

“I pushed you away in every way possible—”

“Oh, my god…”

“And, according to what you said last night, the feeling is mutual.”

I nod my head as I listen to his words. “Okay…”

“It’s still mutual, right?” he asks.

I take a deep breath. After all these years of forcing myself to feel differently about him, I’m finally about to face my feelings head on. My chest burns. My fingers tremble. My throat feels dry like I’m swallowing dust.

“Mina?” he asks.

“Yes,” I say. “Yes, it’s mutual.”

The door opens quickly — far too quickly to react.

“Hey, Seth, have you seen Mina—”

My hands grip the blanket and twitch, as if I’m about to pull it over to conceal my face, but it’s too late. Carter’s eyes look into mine and a gaze of pure confusion settles on his face.

“Whoa — what the fuck?”

Seth sits up next to me. He raises a hand. “Carter — I’m sorry — but this is
exactly
what it looks like.”

“Seth?!” I cry. I hold the blanket against my body like a shield and stare at Carter. “Carter, I’m sorry. The party last night got kind of crazy.”

“You don’t have to make up excuses, Mina,” Seth says to me. “We’re adults.”

Carter steps in closer and sits down slowly on the edge of the bed. I can’t decipher the look on his face. It sits somewhere between extreme depression and stunned anger. His eyes linger on the floor. “This is just…”

“Did you just come home?” I ask him.

“No, I got in hours ago,” he says with a soft voice. “You weren’t in bed, so I figured you went to a friend’s or something because of the party.”

I nod my head, feeling very awkward about the whole situation. I want nothing more than to run to my room and find some clothes.

“I thought you two hated each other.” I can barely hear his voice through his mumbling lips.

“So did I,” I say, my eyes flicking up at Seth’s face.

“Listen, Carter,” Seth begins. “Some truths came out last night and…” He pauses for a moment, moving over a little to try and see Carter’s face. “Mina and I are in love.”

“Whoa — wait — hold on,” I break him off and throw up my hands. Two pairs of eyes shoot at me and I feel very, very exposed. “I’m gonna need some time to process this whole… thing…” I whip around and throw my feet to the floor.

“What’s going on, Mina?” Carter asks.

“But it’s true—” Seth says. His fingers latch onto my arm, holding me in place on the bed. “You can tell him the truth.”

“But that’s not—” I stutter off as I gently yank my arm back. I keep an iron grip on the sheet and hold it against me as I roll off the bed. Carter stands up to allow the sheet to go with me and I struggle to right myself in my new cotton cocoon.

“This wasn’t just a one time thing, Mina,” Seth says.

“Yes, yes, it was,” I say.

“Will somebody
please
explain to me how my girlfriend ended up in bed with her brother?” Carter asks.


Stepbrother,
” Seth and I correct him at the same time.

“Okay, whatever.
Stepbrother.
Doesn’t stop it from being weird.”

“We know,” Seth says. “But things change.”

BOOK: Stepbrother: Moving In/Moving Out
11.65Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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