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Chapter 6
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2026-08-13 07:47:19Amelia's POV
My whole body went cold before I even opened my eyes.
I knew that voice.
I pulled my sunglasses off slowly, looked up, and there he was. Bryan. Standing over my lounge chair in clothes too polished for a stranger, that same smug, entitled smile I remembered from every terrible dinner Victoria had ever forced me to sit through with him.
"Bryan." My voice came out flatter than I wanted it to, though my heart was slamming against my ribs. "What are you doing here?"
"Heard there'd be some big names here today. Investors, that kind of thing." He shrugged, like it was the most natural thing in the world, like he had every right to be standing over me. "Didn't expect the entertainment to be you, though."
"You weren't invited," I said quietly, pulling the floppy jacket tighter around my shoulders.
"Does it matter?" His expression shifted, the easy smile curdling into something harder. "Funny running into you, actually. I've been wanting to have a word."
Before I could move, his hand shot out and closed around both of my wrists, gripping hard enough to make me wince.
"You scammed me," he hissed, low and furious, leaning in close. "You know that? Made me look like an idiot in front of everyone. All that money I spent on you, and it was never real, was it? Never once real."
"Let go of me." I tried to pull back, but his grip only tightened.
"Not until you admit it."
"It wasn't my fault," I said, my voice shaking now, half fear, half anger. "It was Victoria's idea from the start. She's the one who told me to do it, who took the money, who planned the whole thing. I didn't want any of it. I was never even given the choice."
"That's not what I remember"
"Let go of her."
The voice cut across the pool deck low, even, and absolutely final.
Leonardo was already moving, setting his glass down without breaking stride, closing the distance in a handful of unhurried steps that somehow felt like a warning, conversations around us died, even the music seemed to fade into the background.
He stopped beside us, his eyes dropping briefly to where Bryan's fingers were still locked around my wrists, and something in his expression went very still and very cold.
"I said," Leonardo repeated, quieter now, which somehow made it worse, "let go of her."
Bryan's grip loosened instantly, his hand falling away like he'd been burned. "I didn't realize she is…."
"My stepdaughter." Leonardo stepped fully between us, angling his body so I was half behind him. "Which means you don't touch her, you don't speak to her like that, not in my home, not anywhere."
Bryan's face flickered through several expressions at once surprise, then something closer to fear as he seemed to actually take in who he was standing in front of. Leonardo Moretti wasn't a man whose bad side anyone in this city could afford to be on, least of all a mid-level businessman hoping to network his way into new investors this afternoon.
"Of course," Bryan said quickly, holding both hands up, all his earlier bravado gone. "My mistake. I didn't mean any disrespect."
"You grabbed her." Leonardo's voice didn't rise, but it didn't need to. "That's more than disrespect."
"You're right. I'm sorry." Bryan's eyes darted toward the other guests, all of whom were watching now, and something like panic crossed his face. "It won't happen again. I promise you that. I'll leave her alone. I won't come near her, I won't speak to her, ever again."
"See that you do." Leonardo held his gaze a moment longer, long enough to make certain the message had landed fully, then tipped his head toward the gate. "Now."
Bryan didn't argue. He turned and walked quickly, he went outside, not looking back once, several guests stepping pointedly out of his way as he passed.
The silence that followed felt enormous. I stood frozen, rubbing at my wrist where his fingers had dug in, aware of every eye that had witnessed the entire thing, aware most of all of Leonardo standing right in front of me, still angled protectively between me and the rest of the party.
He turned, his eyes dropping to my wrist immediately. "Did he hurt you?"
"I'm fine," I said, though my voice wavered slightly.
Leonardo reached out and gently took my hand, turning it over to look at the faint red marks already forming on my skin. His jaw tightened. "You're not fine."
"It's nothing. I've had worse." The words slipped out before I could stop them, quiet, the kind of thing I'd said a thousand times without thinking.
Something shifted behind his eyes, dark and unreadable, like the words had landed somewhere deeper than I meant them to. He didn't let go of my hand.
"No one touches you like that again," he said quietly. "Not him. Not anyone."
I looked up at him, my throat felt tight, unsure of what to say to that. For a long moment neither of us moved, his fingers still curled loosely around mine, the party carrying on somewhere around us like none of it mattered.
Then he seemed to catch himself, released my hand, and stepped back, his expression smoothing back into practiced calm. "Enjoy the rest of the day," he said, before turning to rejoin his associates.
The moment he was out of earshot, Maya appeared at my side, gripping my arm. "Okay," she whispered. "That was not giving cold, unbothered billionaire energy. That was 'nobody touches what's mine' energy."
I pressed my lips together, trying and failing to hide the small, helpless smile pulling at my mouth. I looked down at my wrist, at the place his fingers had just been, and felt the warmth of it lingering long after he'd let go.
"Maybe," I said softly, watching him across the pool, "the plan is working better than we thought."
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Forbidden Touch: Taming my stepfather Chapter 6
Amelia's POVMy whole body went cold before I even opened my eyes.I knew that voice.I pulled my sunglasses off slowly, looked up, and there he was. Bryan. Standing over my lounge chair in clothes too polished for a stranger, that same smug, entitled smile I remembered from every terrible dinner Victoria had ever forced me to sit through with him."Bryan." My voice came out flatter than I wanted it to, though my heart was slamming against my ribs. "What are you doing here?""Heard there'd be some big names here today. Investors, that kind of thing." He shrugged, like it was the most natural thing in the world, like he had every right to be standing over me. "Didn't expect the entertainment to be you, though.""You weren't invited," I said quietly, pulling the floppy jacket tighter around my shoulders."Does it matter?" His expression shifted, the easy smile curdling into something harder. "Funny running into you, actua
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I grabbed Maya’s wrist before Leonardo was even out of earshot and pulled her down the hallway, into my room, shutting the door hard behind us.“Okay,” Maya said, dropping onto the edge of the bed. “Spill. All of it. Don’t skip anything.”I sat down beside her, hugging a pillow to my chest like it could shield me from how much this was about to embarrass me. “It felt real, Maya. Not like a normal dream. I could feel his hands. His mouth. I could feel the water still on his skin.” My face burned just saying it out loud. “I woke up and for a second I actually thought it happened.”Maya’s mouth curved into a slow, wicked grin. “And? What did dream-Leonardo do exactly?”“Maya.”“I need details. For research purposes.”I buried my face in the pillow and groaned. “He kissed my neck first. Then lower. I called him daddy.”Maya slapped a hand over her mouth, but her shoulders were already shaking with laughte
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Victoria’s POVI sat at my vanity long after dinner, staring at my own reflection without really seeing it. My hands were still clenched from the walk down the hallway, from the low, furious words I’d hissed at my daughter.Flirting with my husband. At my own table.I pressed my lips together and forced myself to breathe. Maybe I was overreacting. Amelia had always been a good girl, quiet, obedient, careful never to cause trouble. That was the Amelia I knew.No. I know what I saw.My jaw tightened. I had worked too hard, sacrificed too much, to let anything or anyone jeopardize this marriage. Three years. That was all I needed. Three years of playing the devoted wife, and then I would finally have the life I deserved.If Amelia became a problem, I would deal with her the way I dealt with every problem. Quietly, Efficiently. Without mercy, if it came to that.I was still telling myself it was nothing that I
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Dinner moved slowly, the low hum of conversation between Victoria and Leonardo fading into background noise as my mind wandered somewhere far from the table.The staff moved quietly around us, refilling glasses, clearing small plates. I sat with my fork resting untouched against my plate, nodding occasionally whenever Victoria’s voice rose in my direction, though I couldn’t have repeated a single word that had been said.One moment I was staring at my plate, and the next I felt Leonardo’s hands finding my waist, pulling me close, his voice low against my ear as he whispered something only I could hear.I answered him softly, breathlessly, the word slipping out before I could stop it. Yes, Daddy.My lips curved without my permission. My teeth caught my bottom lip. My fingers traced idle circles against my thigh beneath the table, lost entirely in the fantasy playing behind my eyes.The rest of the room had gone
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Leonardo’s POVI heard the soft click of heels against marble and turned from the balcony.She was younger than I’d pictured and far more striking. Amelia stood just inside the entryway, one hand still gripping the strap of her bag, dark hair loose around her shoulders, eyes wide with something that looked like nerves dressed up as politeness. There was an innocence to her, an unguarded quality I hadn’t expected to find in Victoria’s daughter. Victoria had mentioned her only in passing. My daughter, Amelia, she’ll be arriving today.Now, watching her hesitate in my own entryway, I found myself curious in a way I hadn’t anticipated.I crossed the room toward her, the city still bright behind me through the glass. Three years. That was the length of this arrangement three years of playing husband to a woman I barely knew, all because Marcus Whitfield, my newest investor, had made it clear that he didn’t tru
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Amelia's POVMy phone buzzed against the nightstand, breaking the silence of my small room. I already knew who it was before I looked. Victoria never called unless she wanted something."I'm sending you an address," Victoria said, without so much as a hello. Her voice carried that familiar sharpness, the tone she used when she expected obedience and nothing less. "You're coming to my new husband's house. Today. And Amelia, behave yourself. Don't embarrass me.""Yes, Mum," I said quietly, the words automatic, worn smooth from years of repetition. It didn't matter that they tasted sour in my mouth every time I said them. Victoria demanded it, and I had learned long ago that refusing cost more than it was worth."I mean it," Victoria pressed. "This one is important. Don't ruin this for me.""I understand, Mum."The line went dead.I set the phone down and stared at the ceiling for a long moment. A new husband
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