Sweet Billionaire Stepbrother(16)

Did he just say ‘mine’? Fuck me. He definitely had plans. Plans I’m not going to approve of.

I tried to suppress a growl. I wanted to rip his f*cking head off and the way Layla’s eyes shone back at him made my stomach drop to my shoes.

His hand snaked around her waist and he pulled her to his chest. And then he kissed her. He f*cking kissed her in front of everyone. Again. Christ. My mind was about to blow.

A round of applause and cooing from my stepmother and my sister—damn traitors—made me feel sick to the stomach.

“Oh, what a beautiful couple you make!” Alice exclaimed, hardly able to contain her joy.

“It’s your daughter that’s the star tonight, Mrs. Forbes.” Matthews said with a sly grin. Bastard was buttering the women up. Jesus, even Taylor was grinning like a fool. Wasn’t she supposed to be on my side?

Layla batted her lashes at him, the deep pink blush on her cheeks made her look more adorable. Fuck, they’re all loving this shit. Even Dad had a huge grin on his face.

“Our Layla has always been pretty, but tonight she’s stunning. You’re a lucky young man, Seth.” Dad said as he patted him on the back.

Couldn’t they see through this f*cking jerk? See that he was tripping over his own f*cking dick to get into Layla’s pants?

“I know, Mr. Forbes. I’m going to make sure Layla has a good time tonight. You can trust her with me.”

Is that right? Cocky little shit.

I grinned as I stared him down. It was a stroke of pure genius that I’d offered to go with Sloane. I could keep an eye on Matthews and his dick.

And man, was I going to watch him. I already knew his type. Fuck if I was going to let my stepsister become prey to this little f*cker. No way in hell was I going to let that happen. No way.





12: Layla


Why was Grayson glaring at Seth as if he wanted to rip his head off? People always said that women were difficult to understand, but I swear men were just as much of a mystery. Grayson knew that I was level headed, rational and intelligent, so why couldn’t he just trust me to enjoy myself?

I was already aware that Seth was a player, he was perfect for my needs. I didn’t want a damn boyfriend or to fall in love, not at this time in my life anyway, but my virginity had to go. I was tired of waiting for the perfect man to come along.

I didn’t believe in unicorns or that the perfect man existed; one that would be interested in me and tick all my boxes.

I’d had one botched attempt at having sex a few years ago and that had scared me off for a long time, but I was finally ready to get it over and done with. I knew exactly what I was doing, even though I was nervous as hell. My heart was beating like crazy and my cheeks felt as if they were on fire.

I didn’t need Grayson to be the overprotective big brother. I wanted Seth to be the guy who helped me get over my fear of intimacy. I’d been on the pill for two months in preparation for this, just as a backup of course. No way would I have unprotected sex with Seth. I was being both logical and practical about this.

Did I expect fireworks my first time? Hell no . . . I didn’t even expect an orgasm. But I knew after that I’d be broken in and maybe I’d get to experience everything the other girls talked about.

“Ready, babe?” Seth asked, taking my hand and pulling it through his arm. I swear I heard Grayson growl again. The first time I thought it was my imagination, but he was standing closer to me this time and it was a growl.

I tucked into Seth’s arm with a wide grin. Nobody was wrecking my plans for tonight. I loved that Grayson cared enough to want to protect me, but I was going to be just fine.

I got this.

“I’m ready.” Annoyed by my stepbrother’s behavior, I smiled up at Seth then glanced sideways at Grayson and stuck my chin out in defiance. “Sloane is probably waiting.”

“Oh God, Grayson, you should’ve been at Sloane’s place already. Fine gentleman you are keeping her waiting.” Taylor was loving that she got to reprimand her brother. It didn’t happen often and if her shit-eating grin was anything to go by, she was enjoying every moment.

“As a matter of fact I was just on my way when Layla came down the stairs.” He held out his arm indicating for us to walk ahead of him. “After you, Princess Layla,” he said with a smile in his voice.

As soon as we stepped out of the front door, Grayson laid a hand on Seth’s shoulder, forcing him to stop. My head jerked toward Grayson.

“Be a gentleman tonight, Matthews. I’m watching you.” The threat was clear and even though he was smiling, it didn’t reach his eyes.

Seth’s back stiffened but he didn’t reply. Instead he slid his hand down my back until it rested on my ass.

In. Full. View. Of. Everyone.

My cheeks burned. Jesus. Was he purposely trying to start shit with Grayson?

Not wanting to deal with testosterone driven feuds, I grabbed the offending hand away from my ass and pulled my date down the stairs quickly before this escalated into something unpleasant. From under my lashes, I chanced a sneak peek at Grayson. His teeth were clenched together and his eyes were an inferno of anger. Holy hell. An angry Grayson was something I rarely witnessed. I’d heard all about his ongoing competitiveness with Seth’s brother, but surely that couldn’t be what was pissing him off?

“Princess Layla,” Seth drawled as he opened the car door and helped me in. It didn’t sound quite the same from his mouth as what it did when Grayson said it. It actually irritated me that he had the gall to mock something that was between me and my stepbrother, but I decided to let it go. Instead I blew a loose strand of hair out of my face and waited for Seth to drive us to prom.