Chapter 51

MelanieIf there was one thing louder than gunfire, it was Federico when he was angry. All day he stormed through the mansion like a bull with a grudge, barking orders, snapping at his men. He was practically foaming at the mouth about Dante.“I want him found,” he thundered, pacing the living room as though his shoes had personally offended him. “I don’t care if you have to drag him back by his hair. I must teach him a lesson he’ll never forget!”And there I was, sitting on the sofa, pretending to scroll through my phone, but I was actually watching everything play out just like Aria. My Mom, on the other hand, fluttered behind Federico trying to calm him down. But Federico wasn’t having it. He was bent on finding Dante.He whirled on my mother with fire in his eyes. “I love you, Maria. And I will protect you and Melanie even if I have to chain that boy in the basement forever. So please don’t stop me from doing this.”My mom of course stepped aside and Federico went back to shouti

Last Updated : 2025-09-13

Chapter 52

MelanieThe first thought in my head when I woke up wasn’t breakfast, wasn’t Federico’s endless shouting which had gotten louder at night, and certainly wasn’t Aria’s quinceañera which was today. It was the box.I couldn’t shake it if my mind. As I zipped up my dress. my eyes kept drifting to where I’d shoved the thing into the back of my closet. That ridiculous pink box, so deceptively innocent wasn’t so innocent after all.Inside it, the necklace still gleamed in my memory—silver chain with a pendant that was shaped like a tiny clock. At first, I’d wanted to laugh. What is this, Beauty and the Beast? Is Lumière about to waltz in here? But the longer I stared at it, the more the joke died in my throat as I noticed the D shaped letter scribbled at back of the pendant. No. It wasn’t whimsical. It was Dante. It was a message.A clock. A countdown. My time ticking away.I’d wanted to march into Federico’s office right then and slam the thing on his desk. But Aria’s big day was hours aw

Last Updated : 2025-09-14

Chapter 53

MelanieI crawled out of a toilet stall like a very confused, very dangerous spider and then proceeded to perform the most undignified escape in the history of dramatic exits. Picture me, one leg out the tiny bathroom window, the other tangled in a gown I dearly regretted wearing, my hands clawing at the ledge like I’d suddenly remembered I disliked gravity. When I finally dropped into the night, landing with all the grace of a sack of oranges, the world slowed for the briefest second. A shadow detached from the darkness like it had been waiting in the wings. The shadow belonged to Dante and he was standing there as if he hadn’t just watched me perform a bathroom acrobatic. His eyes found mine and for a heartbeat there was that familiar, infuriating jolt — like getting snagged on a power line.He held out a coat — a heavy, dark thing that smelled faintly of smoke and something sweet I never could place. He didn’t smile. He didn’t need to.“Follow me,” he said.Follow him? To where?

Last Updated : 2025-09-16

Chapter 54

MelanieDante's phone rang and I watched as he picked it up. His voice dropped into that low, husky register he used whenever he wanted people to listen — the kind of tone that carried authority even when he was speaking softly.“You can pick her up now,” he said after a pause. My stomach twisted. He wasn’t looking at me, but I felt every word like they were aimed straight into my chest. When he hung up, he slid the phone into his pocket and finally turned his gaze back to me.“Stick to the plan, guai,” he said, using that word again — trouble. His version of a pet name. “I promise things would get better if you do,”That should have comforted me, right? Promises of stability. But coming from Dante, it felt more like the terms of a very specific hostage exchange.I raised my brows. “What do you mean by things would get better?”I wanted him to answer this question and not leave unanswered like the last one but Instead of answering, he pulled a cigarette from his jacket, lighting

Last Updated : 2025-09-20

Chapter 55

DanteI parked and sat for a second, tasting the cold night through the cracked window. The hall looked hollow from out here: streamers drooping, chairs stacked wrong, people filing out with a grumble on their lips. Aria’s party had a spark to it in the beginning; now it looked similar to a town that got hit by hurricanes.Juan was the reason for this. He had stuck his nose in where it didn’t belong, tried to be a hero, and clipped my schedule. If he hadn’t opened his big mouth—if he hadn’t tried to parade his bleeding chest around like some saint—Melanie would’ve been killed quietly and Aria would have had the best quinceanera but he just had to ruin everything.I didn’t feel sad about the way things had turned , the only emotion I felt was anger. That emotion was a funny thing; it happened to steady my hands and make me stupidly patient at the same time. Anyone would think my reaction was crazy. Anger wasn’t supposed to make you calm or patient.I was meant to be losing my s

Last Updated : 2025-09-22

All Chapters of WANTING MY STEP—BROTHER : Chapter 51 - Chapter 55

Chapter 51

Chapter 52

Chapter 53

Chapter 54

Chapter 55