All Chapters of My Ex-Fiancé’s Stepbrother Wants Me: Chapter 11 - Chapter 20

**Zoya's POV**With all my past experience from the jobs I held before meeting Benito, I thought finding new employment would be a piece of cake. But it has been the complete opposite.Everywhere I’ve gone, the response is always the same: “We’ll get back to you later.” Yet not a single one has ever called.Pushing the disappointment aside, I waved Emilia goodbye as she climbed into the car with Benito. Our graduation ceremony was starting in just a few hours, and all of a sudden, Benito had insisted on having Emilia with him today.I couldn’t tell him no. He had threatened to sue me for custody again.He said if I wanted Emilia to join me at my graduation, I would have to join them, hang out with them. That was the only way.I knew exactly what he was doing. He was using our daughter to worm his way back into my life, hoping to get what he wanted. But that would happen over my dead body.He could have Emilia for today. When she came back, she would be all mine again.“What are you d

unedited chapter.The harsh smell of antiseptics and bleach made me nauseous, my world feels like it's spinning in circles.One hundred and ninety-five thousand dollars. The number echoed in my skull like a judge’s gavel.I pressed my palms against the cold bench, trying to anchor myself, but the room kept tilting. Dad’s face flashed behind my eyelids, his tired smile when he came home smelling of diesel and cheap coffee.The things he's done for me, the life he's provided for me, the sacrifices.And now I am about to fail him, I am a worthless daughter, I am useless.My dad can't die, not like this, not because I couldn’t scrape together money that might as well be two hundred thousand dollars.Vittoria crouched in front of me, her hands still on my shoulders. “Zoya, breathe. We’ll figure this out. Maybe we can start a GoFundMe tonight, or, or I can ask my cousin who works at the bank—”“It won’t be enough,” I whispered, my voice raw. “Not in time.”The doctor had already disappear

**Zoya's POV**After calling Benito to inform him about my dad’s accident and asking him to keep Emilia until I could sort things out, I dialed Vittoria next. I needed her to take me to meet her boss.I knew asking Benito to drive me to his brother would have been the easiest option, but I’d rather kiss the dirty ground in the park than ask him for help right now.Vittoria arrived shortly after, her motorcycle rumbling to a stop beside me. She handed me a helmet, her face set in a grim expression. “Are you sure about this? You’re going to meet the shock of your life when we get there.”“What exactly am I going to see?” I shot back, strapping on the helmet. “A man with two horns growing out of his head? Or snakes wrapped around his neck like some kind of monster?” I didn’t understand why she was acting like the man I was about to meet wasn’t even human.I got it, Vito Castellano was ruthless, a total devil, the worst of his kind. But he was still just a man.“It’s cool. Let’s go,” Vit

**Zoya's POV**I heard Vittoria’s footsteps, heavy and urgent, echoing behind me down the corridor. “Zoya, wait! Please!” she called, her voice cracking with desperation.But I didn’t stop. I didn’t even slow down. My heart hammered in my chest as I reached the elevator and frantically jabbed the buttons, the cool metal cold against my trembling fingertips.Just as the doors began to slide shut with a soft mechanical hum, Vittoria’s hand shot through the gap. The doors jerked open again, and she stepped inside, breathless.“Listen to me, Zoya,” she said, her voice low and urgent. “I know you’re angry, and I get it. You have every right to be. But please don’t think I thought you were a fool. That’s not true.”“You had every opportunity to tell me who that man was, Vittoria, but you didn’t,” I snapped, my voice breaking. “You knew. I talked to you about him.” The tears I had been fighting finally spilled over, hot and salty, tracing burning paths down my cheeks.“That’s not it, Zoya..

I lifted the glass to my lips, the sharp scent of whiskey hitting my nose before the burn touched my tongue. It was expensive, smooth, and far too strong for someone who rarely drank. I took only a small sip, then set it down quickly, my fingers tightening around the glass.Vito took a slow sip of his own, his eyes never leaving my face. “You’re nervous Zoya, relax.”“I’m not,” I lied, even as my heart thudded against my ribs. My dad was under the knife right now, and here I was, sitting across from a man who had just bought my body like it was a commodity. The worst part? A tiny, traitorous part of me had felt something when he’d said “Come here.” and it wasn't fear, it was the same thing I felt that night when I followed him into the men's bathroom, I shoved it down hard.He smiled, faint and knowing, like he could see straight through the lie. “Good. Then come closer.”My stomach flipped. I stayed rooted in place. “The contract says I have to do everything you say, but it doesn