My Stepbrother Is My Ex

Evan’s POVThe ballroom glows under warm golden lights, bouncing off sequined gowns and sharply tailored tuxedos. Every hairpin, bracelet, and cufflink seems to catch fire, turning the room into a glittering galaxy. The DJ’s playlist flips from the newest hits to familiar throwbacks, sending a steady pulse through the air. My heart pounds in time with it, my toes tap before I even realize, and my nerves coil tighter with every bass beat. For most seniors at Brookview High, prom is a night to escape the pressures of college applications, grades, and expectations fading into the music. For me, Evan Brooks, tonight shrinks to a single focus: the boy holding me.Ryan Hale.His hands settle low on my back, steady, firm, yet warm. We move together in sync with the crowd, pressed close enough that I feel every subtle shift of his weight, every inhale and exhale. My palms rest on the broad planes of his shoulders, fingertips grazing the smooth fabric of his jacket. The warmth radiating from h

Evan POVI clutch the broken hotel card in my hand, pressing the pieces together as if I can somehow mend the night. My fingers shake, heart hammering against my ribs. I refuse to believe Mason lies. I refuse to let him ruin what Ryan and I promised. I swallow hard and take a shaky breath, staring down the dimly lit corridor, listening for any sign, any sound from him then I hear it.A sound that freezes my blood.A moan, soft at first, then sharper, more deliberate. “Ohhh… ohhh… Ryan, take it easy on me… Hmmm, that was so good babe.”My hands clutch the card so hard that it bends. My pulse spikes. What the hell?I sprint toward the room, fumbling with the keycard as panic drives me forward. My fingers shake as I insert it, twisting the handle and flinging the door open.And there he is, Mason Carter half-naked on the bed, lounging like he owns the world. My stomach flips, bile rising. My mind freezes.“What the hell?” I blurt, my voice trembling. “Where is Ryan?”Mason laughs, low an

Four years. That was how long it had been since I last saw Ryan Hale. Four years since prom night, since the kiss that tasted like forever, since the heartbreak that tasted like blood in my mouth. Now I am dragging my suitcase into a house that doesn’t feel like mine. New town, new walls, new life. And apparently, a new stepmother. I stop at the bottom of the staircase, watching a woman glide down like she owned the place. Perfectly styled hair, diamonds glinting at her neck, smile wide enough to hide secrets. “Who even is this woman?” I mutter under my breath before shooting a look at Dad. Dad smiles like I’d asked what time it was. “She’s kind, Evan. And… very rich. Rich, of course. That explains the marble tiles and gold-framed mirror in the hall. He steps forward, puffing his chest like a teenager. “We… we actually met before we moved four years ago.” My mind betrays me with a flashback. His lips pressed to mine in the shadow of the prom corridor, his hands steady as he s