Chapter Two

THE MORNING AFTER 

Sunlight slipped through the curtains and hit my face too directly, too bright. I groaned, turning my head, but it didn't help much. My head still ached from the wine, and my body-

I froze.

That ache... lower, deeper. Not painful. Just... there. Real.

Last night wasn't a dream.

An arm tightened around my waist before I could move too much, pulling me back against a warm, solid chest. His breath brushed the back of my neck, slow and steady, like he hadn't a single worry in the world.

I didn't even know his name.

That thought should've bothered me more than it did.

"Morning," he muttered, voice rough with sleep.

I turned slightly, enough to look at him. Up close, in actual daylight, he looked... different. Not just attractive-there was something steadier about him. Older. Like he knew exactly what he was doing. Always.

"Morning," I said, quieter than I meant to.

For a second, neither of us said anything. And weirdly, it wasn't awkward.

It should have been.

He brushed a strand of hair from my face, thumb tracing my lower lip with surprising gentleness. “You okay?”

I nodded, biting my lip. “Better than I expected after… everything.”

A small smirk tugged at his mouth. “Good. Because I’m not done making you feel good.”

Before I could respond, the sound of keys turning in the front door echoed through the apartment.

My heart stopped.

“Shit… that’s my mom,” I hissed, scrambling out of his arms and grabbing the nearest piece of clothing– his oversized black shirt from last night. It fell to mid-thigh, smelling like him and making my core clench involuntarily.

He sat up calmly, the sheet pooling at his waist, revealing the hard lines of his chest and abs. No panic in his expression. Just that same controlled confidence.

“Relax, sweetheart. We’ll handle it.”

Handle it? My mother was about to walk in on me half-naked with a stranger in her living room after I’d spent the night getting fucked senseless by him.

Footsteps approached. Mom’s cheerful voice called out, “Lila, honey? I’m back early! The trip got cut short, and I have the most amazing news!”

I froze in the middle of the living room, hair messy, legs still shaky from last night, wearing nothing but this man’s shirt.

Mom appeared in the doorway, suitcase in hand, her face lighting up when she saw me. Then her eyes shifted to the tall man now standing behind me, pulling on his pants with casual ease.

“M-Marcus?” she said, surprise turning into a bright, delighted smile. “You’re already here! Perfect timing.”

Marcus.

She knew him?

Mom rushed forward, linking her arm through his like they were old friends. No… more than that. She looked at him with that familiar sparkle she got when she was infatuated.

“Lila, sweetheart, I want you to meet someone very special.” She beamed, completely oblivious to the tension crackling in the air. “This is Marcus Kane. My fiancé. We’ve been seeing each other for a few months now, and he proposed last week during the trip!”

The floor dropped out from under me.

Fiancé.

Stepfather.

The man who had called me “good girl,” who had made me come on his fingers and then on his cock, who had spilled deep inside me last night… was going to be my new stepdad.

Marcus’s blue eyes met mine. For one brief second, raw shock and something much darker hunger, possession, flashed across his face. Then it was gone, replaced by a smooth, charming smile as he extended his hand toward me like we were meeting for the first time.

“Lila,” he said, voice perfectly calm and deep, carrying the same authoritative tone that had commanded my body hours earlier. “It’s very nice to finally meet you. Your mother has told me so much about you.”

I stared at his hand, the same large hand that had pinned my wrists and gripped my hips while he thrust into me. Heat flooded my face..and lower. My thighs pressed together instinctively as I remembered the stretch, the fullness, the way he’d praised me when I came first.

Mom laughed lightly, still clinging to his arm. 

“Isn’t this wonderful? We’ll be a proper family now. Marcus is such a successful businessman, he owns several companies. He’ll be moving in with us soon.”

I forced myself to shake his hand. The moment our palms touched, electricity shot up my arm. 

His grip was firm, lingering a second too long, thumb brushing the sensitive skin of my wrist in a secret caress.

“Nice to meet you… Marcus,” I managed, voice strained. My heart hammered so loudly I was sure they could hear it.

Mom didn’t notice. She was already chattering about wedding plans and how perfect everything was going to be. “I’ll make coffee! You two get acquainted while I unpack.”

She disappeared into the kitchen, leaving us alone.

The second she was out of sight, Marcus stepped closer. His presence loomed over me, that same commanding energy from last night filling the space between us.

His voice dropped low, meant only for me. “Sweetheart…”

“Don’t,” I whispered fiercely, stepping back until my back hit the wall. “This can’t happen. You’re…you’re going to be my stepfather.”

His blue eyes darkened, roaming over my body in his shirt, lingering on my bare thighs. “Last night you were screaming and moaning while you came on my cock. Twice. Before I even finished inside you.”

Heat pooled between my legs at his crude words. I clenched my thighs, but it only made the ache worse.

“That was before I knew,” I hissed. “We have to pretend it never happened.”

Marcus leaned in, one hand bracing on the wall beside my head, caging me without touching. His breath brushed my ear.

“Too late for that, princess. I already know how tight you feel. How sweetly you come for me. And I have no intention of forgetting.”

A shiver ran through me. Part of me wanted to push him away. The other part, the reckless, heartbroken part that still throbbed from his touch, wanted him to kiss me right here.

Mom’s voice called from the kitchen, “Coffee’s ready! Come join me, you two!”

Marcus pulled back slowly, that dangerous smirk tugging at his lips. “We’ll talk later. Alone.”

He walked toward the kitchen like nothing was wrong, leaving me pressed against the wall, heart racing and body traitorously aroused.

This was going to be hell.

And the worst part? Some forbidden part of me was already looking forward to it.