All Chapters of ACHING MY STEP BROTHER : Chapter 51 - Chapter 60

RACHELTEN MINUTES EARLIERI’ve never been more scared in my life. Looking at Mum that way, without having any idea what was going through her mind, felt more terrifying than those other times when I knew I’d done something wrong and she’d be mad about it.Even though it was just five minutes ago, my body still felt like it was vibrating from the shock.To be honest, my mum would never even think about something that messed up, and Thane still managed to sound natural while talking to her. Thanks to him, I’d probably end up stammering every time I tried to talk now.I walked out of the bathroom and collapsed onto the bed, wondering how on earth I was supposed to talk Jay into convincing his dad about the whole writing thing.Sure, I’m very much into it, but I don’t really have a solid reason why I didn't want to. Just… a feeling I can’t fully explain.If I’m being honest, I don’t like Mayor Han. He looks like the kind of person who’d lead you to success, but make you bow and lick his

THANEI had no damn idea where the car was taking me. All I knew was I slammed my foot on the gas and sped down the road, that same heat still burning in my chest. I didn’t bother wiping the sweat trickling from my forehead down the side of my face. My grip tightened around the wheel harder.Why was I this mad… and this hurt?It felt like one of them was killing me more than the other, but I couldn’t even tell which. Was it the anger that none of this made sense, or the fact that the pieces were starting to fit together in my head? I was with her that night. Ciara died in my fucking arms. And Pops was out of town when it happened. The only thing that never made sense was how that man wrapped up the whole investigation without even trying to find the bastard who killed his own daughter.Simon Adams never backed down from a case. But this one? He shut it down without blinking and his damn excuse was because of the scandal.That morning he said it… it’s still fresh in my head. Just like

RACHEL“This is…” I stuttered, meeting Thane’s eyes, confusion hitting me so hard I couldn’t even piece my thoughts together. “This is us.” Like saying it out loud would somehow make it less real. “Wasn’t this the night at Galaxy? How is that even possible?”Thane looked just as shocked, but he didn’t say anything. He kept scrolling, like he was searching for something else that wasn’t there.“Thane, please say something,” I snapped, my voice cracking under the weight. “How did this happen?”“Shit… I really don’t know,” he muttered, like he was talking to himself.That only made it worse. I yanked the phone from him. “What do you mean you don’t know? We’re on the damn news. What if your dad, or worse, my mum has already seen this?” A bitter laugh broke out of me.“Fuck, Rachel. I don’t know!” he shot back, his eyes darkening with anger plus fear mixed in there too.I went quiet for a second, just watching him bury himself in his screen as I swallowed down hard. I bit my lower lip and

THANEIf this wasn’t actually serious, at least serious to Rachel, I would’ve laughed my lungs out, but I didn’t dare. She was genuinely worried I’d thrown the word out carelessly.Usually, I loved teasing her. Seeing her get worked up over little things was funny as hell to me. But right now? I hated the fact that she looked like she actually thought I’d say something like that without meaning it.She blinked, sniffing softly again.I wanted to say something, but how the hell was I supposed to explain just how much I loved her already? Or how badly she’d gotten into my head without even realizing it?Before she could lower her face again, my fingers caught her chin gently. The second her eyes met mine, I realized she’d really fallen hard for me. She truly wasn't lying about going all in… And honestly? That scared the shit out of me a little.What if I ruin this too? Because deep down, I already knew I’d gotten selfish enough to want her beside me all the time. And the thought of some

THANENancy was sniffing louder now, like she’d tried so hard to keep the tears in and they were finally slipping out anyway. By then, I was already behind her. The second she turned, there was nowhere left to hide those swollen eyes.“I’m friends with your dad remember,” she stated, quickly pulling out face wipes from her bag to dab under her eyes. “So naturally, I’m concerned about you, alright?”“Fuck that.” I cornered her before she could walk off again. “That’s got nothing to do with what I asked.” My hand dragged through my hair in frustration. “Did you seriously expect me to believe whatever this is, is just because you care?” A sharp laugh left me. “Shit, it sounds ridiculous even saying it out loud so how about you stop doing this and tell me what the fuck’s really going on?”I didn’t even know what I was expecting her to admit to anymore, and honestly, that scared me more because a part of me already had an idea. Slowly, I held her gaze. “Wait…” My chest tightened. “Is this