My Date, My Boss, My Step-brother!

I wasn’t going to waste my dress. I looked too damn good to cry alone in my crummy little apartment. So I took the unopened bottle of wine from the restaurant and found myself in a run-down bar, the kind of place where people drank to forget how life gave them the middle finger. And I needed to forget. The bartender eyed me like I had lost my mind when I set the bottle on the counter. “Can you open this for me?” I asked. He let out a short, unimpressed laugh. “Are you serious?” I nodded. He sighed, shaking his head. “Lady, this is a bar. We sell drinks here. You can’t just bring your own and expect service.” Embarrassment burned my skin. I hadn’t thought about that. “I—” “Put it on my tab.” The voice was smooth, deep, effortless. A quiet command that sent a shiver down my spine. I turned. Piercing gray eyes met mine, steady and unreadable. Damn! I was a sucker for coloured eyes. He smirked. I almost forgot I was meant to be heartbroken, I couldn't blame myse

The first few days were unbearable. I woke up each morning with an unbearable pain in my chest, I would instinctively reaching for my phone only to find nothing. No missed calls, no apologies, not even a half-hearted excuse from Alex or Lily. It was like I had ceased to exist. At first, I told myself they needed time. Maybe they felt guilty. Maybe they would realize what they had done and try to fix it. But as the hours stretched into days, the truth became painfully clear. They weren’t coming back. They had erased me as easily as deleting a message. And I was done waiting. On the fourth morning, I blocked them both. No hesitation. No dramatic farewell text. Just a simple tap of my finger, cutting them out like they should have never been there in the first place. It wasn’t instant relief, but it was a start. I threw myself into anything to keep my mind from going back to them. My late nights weren’t for crying anymore; they were for prepping interview answers, reading articles o

As I stepped out of the interview office, I spotted Lily approaching. Her eyes lit up with mischief and as if she was about to speak, but I didn’t slow down. I I had no patience for whatever she wanted to say. Without acknowledging her, I turned in the opposite direction, quickening my steps until I was outside. The moment I stepped out of the office, my phone rang again. Mom. I clenched my jaw, torn between ignoring it and knowing she wouldn’t stop until I picked up. With an exhausted sigh, I swiped to answer. After this call, I can finally have her out of my life… again, until she needs something and calls. “Finally,” her voice chirped, too sweet, too fake. “I was starting to think you would never pick up, sweetheart.” I rolled my eyes, already regretting my decision. “What do you want?” “Oh, Sophia, don’t be so cold. I have wonderful news! I’m getting married.” I stopped walking. Married? Again? I had lost count of how many times my mother had gotten married. Since my fath

Avoiding Ethan was impossible.I tried. I really did.He was always there, impossible to ignore, always throwing in some comments that got under my skin. But as much as he irritated me, my mother was worse she was practically draping herself over Robert. I knew they were getting married soon, but still.My mother had a toxic talent: luring in old, bored men with her hourglass figure. I had inherited the same shape, but unlike her, I preferred to cover it up rather than flaunt it.She played the part of the long-suffering woman who had raised her daughter alone, and that was exactly why she needed me here today. But I knew how this worked. She would get bored after six months, divorce him, and if she was lucky, walk away with half his money or at least the expensive gifts.That’s how we went from a trailer to a suburban house in three years. And now? Now she owns a mansion.One would think I am being too harsh on her, but stick around and see for yourself.I kept my focus on Rachel, pr

Ethan found his way to my side, his demeanor annoyingly relaxed. "You don't look pleased at all?" he murmured, his voice laced with amusement, of course I knew he didn't give two shits about me, this was all part of his sick game I forced a tight smile. "Just tired. It has been a very long day." He knew I was talking about the hell of an interview, so he smirked. I knew he was was still hellbent on turning me into the joke of the dinner. I hated how he looked so handsome. Then again, the devil was once the most beautiful angel. "Hope you're njoying yourself?" he asked, changing the topic with that fake innocence in his voice. “I guess so?” I shrugged, uninterested in entertaining him. “You guess so? You're at a Michelin-star restaurant Little Sophie.” I raised my eyebrow at that nickname, 'Little Sophie' but I don't know why I found myself liking it. I rolled my eyes before I could control it, but there wasn’t any reason to be rude to him, not yet anyways So I mustered a p