Page 15 of Heartless Stepbrother

Then his voice cut through the night.

Low. Smooth. Dangerous.

It wasn’t just sound, it was a stroke of velvet wrapped around a blade, threaded with an American accent that curled around each word like he had all the time in the world to ruin me.

“Careful, princess,” he drawled, his gaze dragging over me like a sin. “If you stare that hard, I’ll start thinking you want a turn.”

I froze.

Every inch of my body tensed, my breath locking tight in my lungs as my gaze snapped back to him. He hadn’t moved much, just the slightest tilt of his head, that smirk still carved lazily across his mouth like it had been born there.

There was no shame in his voice.

No embarrassment.

Just that infuriating calm. Thatknowing.

“I… I really am sorry,” I said again, my voice smaller now, swallowed by the night. The apology sounded stupid. Hollow.

He didn’t blink. Didn’t nod. Just watched me.

And then he moved.

A step forward. Slow, predatory, soundless on the sand.

Beside him, the girl shifted. I could feel her discomfort, like a ripple through the air. But she didn’t say a word. Didn’t look up. Didn’t matter.

Because all of his focus was on me.

And suddenly, I wasn’t just a stranger on the beach.

I was atarget.

The moon caught his features again, more fully this time. And my breath caught.

He was beautiful in that cruel, sculpted way that made your instincts scream and your body betray you. Sharp cheekbones, that jaw like it had been carved from judgment itself, lips too full to be kind, and eyes… his eyes. Black in the moonlight, unreadable, but burning with something I didn’t want to understand.

His eyes dropped, dragging down my body slowly, deliberately, inspecting my bare feet, tangled hair and clothes that suddenly felt too thin, too transparent.

There was no shame in his gaze. No decency.

Only possession.

Like he’d already claimed me without ever touching me.

I swallowed hard.

A strange heat pulsed under my skin, equal parts humiliation and something else I didn’t want to name.

“I said I was sorry,” I said again, stronger this time, pushing back against the haze of him, of this moment. “I didn’t mean to intrude. I’ll go.”

I took a step back.

His chuckle stopped me cold.

Low and dark, it rasped out of him like smoke, curling around me with that mocking edge I was starting to recognize as his signature.

“Running already?” he asked, taking another slow step toward me. “That’s disappointing. I thought you were enjoying the view.”