Chapter 1 - His dirty secret

NOAH

I hated it here, the new life, the brand’s over-detailed perfume that made fresh air want to escape the room.

And now Mom was here, and I could feel her sharp intake of breath and the way her eyes sized me all over, and if those eyes could kill, I would be six feet beneath the ground.

Her unwanted daughter, the child that stole her life—that was what she called me, and after all those years, I felt she had found a place in her heart to forgive me, but I was wrong.

She hated me all the same, and none of that was going to change anytime soon.

“Mom, it's just the last one, and I am done with the registration,” I pleaded, slipping my hand from her grip.

She stomped her right foot heavily on the plush red carpet that lay in the hallway, her anger evident in her features.

“Be done with it; I need to introduce you to your stepfather,” she announced with a wicked grin on her porcelain face.

Was this what it was all about, why she had come to pick me up earlier than usual and play all nice?

All to introduce me to a scumbag she was going to suck dry and empty.

I smiled, covering up the hurt I felt over her remark: she never loved me. She was just trying to use me to gain favour in my stepfather's eyes as a caring mother.

“Fine, I will be done soon,” I confessed before running up the stairs while she went to wait in the car.

St Mary's High was bigger than my previous school and obviously better.

Each corridor led to another, and I knew I could get lost if I wasn't careful.

Taking out the manual I had been given at the front gate, I saw the exact route to get to Ms Keene's office, the math teacher whose signature I needed to complete the registration.

I had no problem peeking into her office to see if she was there before knocking because the door was slightly open.

But just as my eyes pivoted through the hole, shock overwhelmed me; I felt nauseous, my whole being trembling, and my disgust couldn't have been more evident.

I need to leave; I couldn't imagine how I would handle the disgust if I were at face value with the reason for my despair.

My back straightened, I swivelled backwards, and just as I was about to break into a run, one of my books fell to the ground with a thud.

The timing couldn't have been worse. If I left the book, which had my name boldly written over it, then I would be doomed.

They had heard the book fall because something was being arranged, and I heard footsteps heading towards the door.

Picking up my books in a flash, I ran, praying that I didn't trip on the long row of stairs.

That would be a deadly suicide attempt on my end.

A boy ran after me, calling me to a halt, but I didn't care; I wasn't going to be caught up in their disgusting little act.

He was faster than me because even though I gave him a head start, he still caught up with me, and that was when I saw him.

The most handsome male I ever met, I felt dizzy, and my legs felt wobbly, but he was able to catch me in time, pinning me to the wall with my hands over my head.

But I wasn't going to let his looks get to me even though deep down I felt different, like kissing those red lips of his. He didn't have to pin me down because his eyes alone were enough to bring me to a halt.

“What the hell do you think you are doing? I yelled at him, getting a grip on my drooling state.

“Same question I should be asking you,” he said, bringing his face closer to mine.

“I do not know what you are talking about,” I answered defiantly. I refused to believe that I had seen anything since that would make my time at school dreadful.

“Tell me you didn't see….” He could not finish and simply bent his head downward in humiliation.

“See what?” I asked, challenging him with my eyes.

“Whatever you think you saw ... is a misconception,” he tries explaining.

“Oh yeah,” I scoffed at his denial of the truth.

“Just keep your mouth shut, or I will make you,” he commanded, his voice reverberating in the hallway.

But I couldn't feel intimidated by a jerk like him; first he lies, and now he tries to intimidate me.

“Get lost, arsehole,” I yelled, pushing him away from me, but he wouldn't budge.

Rather, he leans in; his lips brush past mine down to my jaw as it trails to my neck. I love what he was doing, the little sparks of desire that imprinted themselves wherever he kissed. Given other circumstances, I would have loved to drown in his foreplay.

But not now; this was blackmail, plain and pure, and I wouldn't be dragged into it.

“ You know you still smell of her, right?” I quizzed. “ I’ll take a cold shower and take that off before anyone catches on,” I advised before stomping my foot on his and running towards the door.

His features hardened as I said the last words, but as I ran, his tight lips formed a smirk that I was sure didn't mean something good.

Mom had waited quite enough and was smoking to take off some steam; her eyes flared at me. It was always that look of disgust in her eyes that terrified me most.

The look that said I wasn't worthy to be her daughter.

“I shouldn't have expected your uncle to teach you any manners, and now he is dead, and I have to teach his useless slum of a niece how to tell time," She lunges at me, her tongue sharp and harsh.

I knew my shortcomings and had spent a lot of time with the registration, so I apologised anyway.

“I got lost at the new school, Mom. I am sorry; it won't happen again,” I lied, intent on acting better for her because no matter how much she hates me, she had shown up when Uncle Richard, the man who raised me, died, and that was all that mattered.

The drive to the Hawthorne mansion was silent and snappy, but in no time we got there.

Mom introduced me to him, and I couldn't help but feel indifferent.

He appeared to be a decent man; it is unfortunate that he ended up with Mother.

I felt pressed, so I excused myself to the bathroom.

Just as I was about to turn the doorknob, the door swung open, and green eyes met blue.

My body trembled, my lips quivered, and I felt my heartbeat stop at that instant.

Nothing made sense, especially not with my stepbrother half-naked before me and the fact that I knew his dirty little secret.

“Cold shower, just like you asked,” he brings his lips close to my ear and whispers.

There I stood, frozen, unable to make a step. Inwardly I knew I had just stepped into the lion’s den and there was no escape.