Semua Bab Claimed By My Ex’s Stepbrother: Bab 61 - Bab 70

The couch cushions still held the shape of Tessa’s body when Nandini padded in wearing her morning robe, her hair in its long plait.She stopped, surprised to see Tessa curled into herself, her eyes fluttering, face half-hidden in the pillow.Nandini whispered. “Tessa wake up.”Tessa groaned as her body protested against the leather. “I’m awake. I’m awake.” She muttered.“Why are you sleeping here?” Nandini asked.Tessa didn’t answer. Just stared at the ceiling, blinking.Nandini tilted her head. “Where’s your husband?”Tessa’s voice was flat and hoarse. “In the room. Doing whatever.”Nandini took in a deep breath and sat gently on the edge of the couch, studying the exhaustion etched into Tessa’s face.“You fought.” She said quietly.“Something like that,” Tessa muttered.Nandini exhaled through her nose and settled beside her.“I heard some of it last night. The walls are thin.”She paused. “I don’t know what kind of marriage you and Roman have, but sometimes… You don’t know him as

Tessa slipped through the front door, the silence of the mansion pressing against her like a held breath. No staff in sight. No Salima. No Nandini. Just the low hum of the air conditioning and the faint scent of sandalwood.She kicked off her flats at the entrance, coat over her arm, and took the stairs two at a time, her heart beating faster than it should.She just needed to shower, change, and act normal. She could decide later how much to tell Roman. She reached their bedroom door and pushed it open slowly.“Roman?” she whispered, barely audible.But there was nothing.She let out a long, shaky breath and stepped inside. The bed was made. His side was untouched.He wasn’t home.Good, she thought to herself. She could pretend she had been home earlier and had been waiting for him to come back.She tossed her coat over the couch, kicked the door shut behind her, and started unbuttoning her blouse as she walked to the mirror.She pulled off her earrings. Let her hair down and caugh

“Roman. Tessa.” Salima’s voice floated up the grand staircase, laced with exhaustion. “The cars are waiting. Let’s go.”She stood in the foyer, smoothing invisible creases from her deep-burgundy sari, the gold edges catching the chandelier light.“I swear, I have no idea what those two spend their time doing that they never hear when you call them.”Nandini, adjusting a diamond choker at the console mirror, laughed softly.“If I remember correctly, that’s exactly how you were with Bernard Thorne the first time you met him.”“The difference, Didi,” Salima shot back, “is that Bernard and I weren’t married and we were living on borrowed time. Those two have all the time in the world.”“We’re here, Mom.” Roman’s voice echoed from the landing.He appeared at the top of the stairs first, and for a moment the entire foyer went still.Black suit pressed to lethal perfection, white pocket square crisp, hair slicked back just enough to look dangerous rather than tamed.The smile he gave them wa

Roman’s jaw tightened the moment Eleanor announced the “sleepover.”He didn’t flinch, but Tessa felt the shift in him — like a blade turning in its sheath.Roman stood by the blocked front doors, hand still on the handle, jaw clenched so tight it looked painful.“I’m not staying in this house tonight,” Roman said to Salima, quiet but firm. “Storm or not, we’re leaving.”Salima touched his arm. “Roman, look outside.”Lightning split the sky so violently that it lit the entire foyer in white. The wind moved through the trees, rain slamming the windows hard enough to rattle the frames.His grandmother’s small, frail hand settled on his arm.“Roman, the roads are flooded. You’ll kill yourselves out there. Just stay the night. For me.”Roman closed his eyes, exhaled through his nose, and nodded once.Liam came jogging from the back hallway.“Power’s flickering. If you try to drive in this, you’ll either get stuck or die. Pick one.” Roman clicked his tongue, annoyed — but not reckless.“Fi

The car rolled to a stop in front of Blackwood Mansion, and before the driver even cut the engine, Tessa was out. She didn’t walk—she bolted.Her heels smacked against the marble, one nearly slipping off as she ran up the staircase. Her breath came in sharp, panicked bursts as she fumbled with her bedroom door and shoved it open with a force that shook the hinges.She didn’t bother turning on the light.The dress came off first—yanked down her hips, ripped at the zipper, and thrown somewhere across the room.Her necklace tangled in her fingers before she tore it off. Her shoes hit opposite walls. Everything smelled like him. Everything felt like him. She crashed into the bathroom, turned on the shower, and stepped under the freezing water before it even warmed.The shock didn’t matter. She scrubbed her arms hard, then her neck, then her chest—everywhere his mouth had been.“Get off of me.” Tessa sniffed. Her fingers moving with brutal force against herself. Her skin reddened, but she