Semua Bab Forbidden Romance With My Stepbrother : Bab 21 - Bab 30

Malia I had spread my books out across the dining table like I was determined to build a fortress of paper and ink. My highlighters were scattered to one side and my notes stacked in uneven piles, I clenched my pen too tightly between my fingers as I looked around the environment that truly did not reflect me at all. It wasn’t that I was truly absorbed in the work, I was. In fact half the time I was just staring at the same sentence over and over, underlining words I didn’t even need to but it felt like something I had to do. Staring at my book I thought that if I could convince myself I was serious, maybe the noise in my head would quiet down. The scrape of a chair pulled me out of it. Maverick had drifted in from the kitchen with a mug in hand, the faint curl of steam rising in front of his face and the scent of coffee filled the air. He moved with that infuriating slowness, like he hadn’t locked me against the bathroom sink with fierce speed just nights ago, he has b

The apartment felt heavy that evening, even before Ethan showed up. I’d barely dropped my bag in my room before I heard the lazy thump of Maverick’s footsteps and his voice floating down the hall. When I walked back out, he was already sprawled across the couch like it was his throne, one arm flung over the backrest, phone balanced in his other hand. The TV hummed in the background, on the screen was some sports highlights he clearly wasn’t paying attention to. I didn’t need to ask why he was out here and not in his room. I knew. A soft knock followed not long after, and when I opened the door, Ethan was there, smiling and looking steady, polite, a little reserved. He stepped inside with his laptop under one arm and a stack of notes under the other. “I hope I’m not too late,” he said, glancing past me into the apartment. His eyes caught on Maverick stretched across the couch, and something in his expression tightened, almost imperceptibly. It’s been this way with them all w

Maverick I couldn’t fucking sleep. Not after that kiss. The taste of her mouth was still smeared across mine, still stuck on my tongue like something I’d never get rid of. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw the way her lips trembled, the way her body fought and then gave in like she hated herself for it. One kiss, and it rewired me. I couldn’t sit still. I kept pacing, stretching, running my tongue over my teeth just to keep from walking straight to her room and demanding more. By the time the house went quiet, I couldn’t resist the desire anymore. I heard her door shut, and that was it. I wasn’t about to let her curl up under her sheets and convince herself it never happened. She didn’t get to escape like that, not after melting against me, not after the way her chest pressed against mine like she wanted to crawl inside me. I waited long enough to give her the illusion of peace, then I pushed her door open. She was perched on her bed with a book in hand, still in her s

Malia Friday night came and met me curled up in bed, a book propped against my knees, trying to pretend I cared about the words on the page. I didn’t. Every line blurred, letters tangling into shapes that might as well have been nonsense. The quiet should’ve been comforting after the week I’d had, but instead it felt too sharp, like silence that was waiting for something to break it. All these were weird, because I loved reading, more than anything else. The knock on my door wasn’t even loud enough to pass for a knock, just two short taps before it swung open anyway. Only one person moved like that in my life, the kind who didn’t ask permission because he already assumed he’d get a yes. Maverick leaned against the frame, casual as ever, his black shirt hugging his shoulders and chain glinting against his throat. His smile curled lazy. “Really?” he drawled, eyes flicking to my book. “It’s Friday night, and you’re reading?” “I like reading,” I shot defensively. “

Malia By the time lunch rolled around, I felt like the walls of the school had ears and mine were the biggest. I could hear the whispers and the laughters, all aimed seemed to be aimed at me. I knew the disgusting rumor that Nesa had started about me wasn’t true, but knowing didn’t make it sting any less. I was wound so tight my shoulders ached from keeping myself small, from keeping my head down as though that could make the noise stop. By the time I arrived the cafeteria for lunch, Ethan was already waiting for me outside the doors with a tray in hand like always, both of our foods in it. He gave me a small smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “There you are. I thought you’d bailed.” “I wouldn’t bail,” I said quickly, tugging at the strap of my bag. My voice sounded off even to me but I pushed past him and grabbed my own tray. “The hallway was just choked up.” We found a table tucked toward the corner, away from the loudest groups. Usually I liked it this way bec