All Chapters of Darling and Her Ex's Stepbrothers: Chapter 71 - Chapter 80

~~Niccolo Amoretti~~There are very few things I’ve done in this world that could be called reckless. Emotional. I can count them on one fucking hand.I don’t usually let my emotions get the better of me. Mostly because I rarely feel anything strongly enough for it to matter. Anger, joy, frustration—they usually pass through me like a breeze through an open window. Brief. Forgettable.But this time… this time was different.This time I was enraged to the point of seeing red.The moment Darling slammed the door hard enough to rattle the walls, something inside me snapped.For a few minutes I just sat there, staring at the mess on the floor. The shattered ceramic plates. The grilled cheese sandwiches scattered across the tile. Butter and crumbs smeared everywhere like some pathetic battlefield casualty.Dinner. The meal she’d made for us.The meal I’d been halfway through eating when the argument started.When I told Romeo he was being a fucking prick. That maybe, just maybe, he shouldn

~~Romeo Amoretti~~The walk of shame.That was the only way I could describe what I was doing right now.My sandals pressed into the cool sand as I moved along the beach, each step heavier than the last. The tide rolled in quietly beside me, the waves brushing against the shore in a steady rhythm that would be calming to anyone else except me.My mind was far too loud for anything to calm me.For weeks I’d convinced myself that I wasn’t the problem.I had believed, truly believed, that my brothers were the ones being dramatic. That they were getting carried away over a girl who happened to be attractive, compatible, and entertaining.That was what I told myself. But Nero opened my eyes to the truth I'd been avoiding.The truth is that I was exactly like them. Maybe worse.Because while they had been honest about their interest in her, I had been pretending I didn’t have one. No, I was so convinced that I didn't have one.Ever since the moment she walked into my classroom, she had been

~~Abigail Darlington~~I didn’t bother trying to deny it. I’d never exactly been subtle before, so I didn’t know why I felt even a flicker of surprise that he had noticed. Anyone with functioning eyes could probably tell. Romeo just happened to be the first one blunt enough to say it out loud.“You caught on, huh?” I said, forcing a lightness into my tone.I tried to sound teasing, casual, like it was all some harmless joke. Truthfully, I didn’t mind that he was grumpy. That seemed to be his natural state most days. And like he said, it made me want to fuck him… that's just a part of me I can't begin to explain. What bothered me was the way he acted like my presence alone was some kind of curse placed upon his life.Still, his apology earlier meant more to me than he would probably ever realize.“It’s not hard to miss,” he replied after a moment. “You don’t exactly go out of your way to hide it. If anything, you seem pretty proud of your attraction to my body.”His voice wasn’t mocki

~~Nero Amoretti~~Romeo and Niccolo locked eyes, the silence stretching for what felt like an eternity. Neither of them moved, and the tension in the room was almost tangible. My stomach did a little flip, this was one of those rare moments when both of my brothers looked vulnerable, human even, and it made me strangely nervous. Finally, Romeo exhaled sharply, breaking the quiet.“I’m sorry for the way I acted,” he said, his voice low but firm. “It was rude. I didn’t mean to upset you… or to make you question whether my protective instincts were in good faith.” He paused, running a hand through his messy hair, his jaw tight. “They weren’t. I was… jealous.”Hearing him admit it out loud was almost surreal. Saying it to me had been one thing, but confessing it to Niccolo and Darling? That was another level. It made me look at him in a new light; vulnerable, honest, and just a little human. Who knew Romeo even had it in him to openly admit his feelings?Darling and I both turned toward

~~Abigail Darlington~~Nero returned barely a minute later, arms loaded with a chaotic stack of boxes and decks that nearly toppled over as he dropped them onto the coffee table. The sudden clatter filled the room. Before I could even react, he grabbed my wrist and practically yanked me off Romeo’s lap.“Choose a game, pretty girl,” he said, already pushing the pile toward me.Romeo’s hands lingered on my waist for a second longer before letting go, his fingers sliding away reluctantly.“You could have picked one yourself,” I muttered, raising an eyebrow at Nero.He only smirked. “Where’s the fun in that?”Then he disappeared into the kitchen again, announcing over his shoulder that he was going to make “something special.”I knelt on the floor beside the table and began digging through the games. There were way more than I expected, classic board games, stacks of card games, and a few that looked suspiciously like party games meant for chaos rather than actual competition.My fingers