The Stepbully She Craves

Chapter 3

Breathing out in resignation, I pulled my shirt over my head, upset about the fact that I wasn’t wearing a bra. I kept looking at him to make sure he wasn’t peeking. Slipping the yoga pants off my hips, I kicked them off my feet and stepped into the dress to shimmy it up my body. Pulling the straps into place over my shoulders, I looked up at him to tell him I was ready, and I locked eyes with him in my full-length mirror.

He’d been watching me the entire time.

“Josh! You pervert.”

Without turning to look at me, he smiled at me in the reflection.

“I don’t know why you hide that body behind loose t-shirts and sweats all the time. Damn, Bailey, you are a knockout.”

“I can’t believe you just watched me in the mirror! I’m your sister.”

Finally turning to face me, he took several steps in my direction, not invading my personal space, but still getting close enough that the breath caught in my lungs.

“ Stepbrother. When we were younger, I made that into a big deal to get you to stop liking me. But, it wasn’t that I didn’t like you back. It was just that you were way too young for me at the time. You were thirteen and I was seventeen. But now? Age doesn’t matter as much anymore and I’m claiming something I’ve been interested in for a very long time.”

“What?” My jaw dropped.

Reaching out to take my hand, he said, “Come downstairs with me, Bailey, and I’ll show you.”

I took his hand, completely in shock and not able to think clearly. Josh didn’t make me put on shoes, so I padded barefoot behind him down the long hall and staircase. Turning to enter the dining room, I gasped when I saw candles lit, roses in floating vases and mom’s best China laid out for dinner for two.

“Thank you for accepting my date.”

Still in shock, I muttered, “I didn’t accept your date. I was forced into it.” “Close enough,” he whispered into my ear, forcing tremors through my body. Pulling away, he ran a finger down the goose bumps on my arm and said, “Take a seat. I’ll bring out the food.”

Sitting in the chair, I laughed when he brought out spaghetti and a salad – my favorite food. “Did you do that on purpose?”

“Yep,” he smiled, obviously proud of himself. “I made it special, just for

”

you.

Waiting for him to dish out the food, I picked at my salad, too confused to be hungry. “What is this, Josh?”

He looked up, placing his fork on his plate and sitting back to eye me with dangerous blue eyes. “This is the moment when we move forward with something we’ve both always wanted. Like I said, you were too young back when our parents got married, but I knew you liked me. I didn’t look at you like that then, you were just a kid. But I kept track of you by reading your diary. As you got older, I became attracted to you, and as I got to know you through what you wrote, I started to like you – a lot. So when dad told me they’dbe out of town this weekend, I decided to do something about it.”

“That’s why you’ve been sneaking into my room all this time? To keep tabs on me?”

“Yes,” he admitted. “And I like that fact that I never read about a boyfriend in those diaries of yours. I would have done something about it to protect what’s mine.”

“Josh …”

“Don’t,” he interrupted. “Don’t try to tell me you don’t want this. I know

you do. You’ve wanted a man to touch you for years now and it never happened. Luckily, I was able to take care of that. I made it very clear in your school and in the neighborhood that if any guy tried to date you, I’dbreak his legs.” Another proud grin pulled at his lips and I gaped at him.

“You were the reason I was completely ignored by all the guys at my school?”