The Stepbrother’s Hidden Desires

Sara stood with her arms crossed, looking at Annabel who stood before her, towering over her by half a head. Though Annabel’s face showed reluctance, David stood behind her, his gaze fixed on Annabel, not allowing her to retreat.

Sara couldn’t bring herself to like Annabel, but since David brought her here, she had to be patient. “So, what’s the matter?”

Annabel cleared her throat awkwardly. “Um… that day, I, uh… What was I doing…” She turned to David, wearing a look of resignation.

David reached out and tapped Annabel’s head, chuckling helplessly. “Well. I’m not going to help you.”

She braced herself. “I’m sorry, Sara. I was wrong that day. You can scold me if you want.”

Sara barely paid attention to what Annabel was saying. She only noticed the affection in David’s eyes as he looked at Annabel, and her heart sank. “You two?”

David smiled faintly, one hand in his pocket, the other stroking Annabel’s head, answering her question with action.

“She was being too stubborn that day. Today, I brought her here to apologize to you!”

He generously introduced his girlfriend, and Sara’s lips twitched, her expression somewhat downcast. She forced a smile. “Actually, She should apologize to you. The mud all splashed over you that day. But you don’t need to apologize for your relationship now, right? Anyway, congratulations to you both.”

Sara understood his intention. He was rejecting her but also saving face for her, clarifying their relationship in front of Annabel.

David watched Sara leave in silence, and Annabel snorted softly. “What, are you going to miss her?”

He ruffled her hair. “Were you jealous that day?”

“Which day?”

He knew she was pretending not to know, but he didn’t expose her. He continued, “We happened to meet on the street that day. I didn’t expect you to see us.”

Remembering Annabel’s craziness that day, David gave her a stern look. “You’re a lunatic. If you act like that again, I won’t want you anymore.”

Annabel stopped in her tracks, raising her hand to solemnly promise, “Don’t worry, I promise to be a gentle and kind woman from now on. I’ll do whatever you say!”

David chuckled softly. “You talk too much! And stop hanging out with that playboy.”

A few days ago, he heard from Perez that Cody got drunk at a restaurant near the school. Annabel had comforted him, draping her arm over his shoulder. “It’s okay, I’ll find you an even prettier one in the future.”

“Hmph, in my eyes, he’s just like a brother. I’m telling you, he’s a fool. He only knows how to spend money on those vain women. None of them genuinely care about him.”

“Yeah, yeah, you’re the best in the world.”

She blinked. “I’m not perfect, but I love you the most.”

He smiled but said nothing, already accustomed to her daily declarations of love.

He chuckled but didn’t reply, already accustomed to her daily declarations of love.

Annabel also hoped that he could say some sweet words like “I love you,” but every time, he would pretend to be clueless. Fortunately, Annabel, being easygoing, didn’t mind. For her, having the person she had longed for by her side was satisfying enough.

On January 15th, when the school started winter vacation, the two of them took the train back to Annabel’s hometown. When they arrived at the station, Annabel was reluctant to leave, clinging to David until he finally managed to get her into a taxi.

Back home, Annabel’s grandmother was delighted. The room had been tidied up half a month ago. Thomas was still as strict as ever with her, always nitpicking at her faults. As for Brenna, she still liked to pretend to be a good stepmother in front of others.

The New Year was fast approaching. Logan called to say he wouldn’t be coming home for the New Year. When Brenna heard the voice of the girl on the other end, she felt a bit uneasy.

After dinner, Brenna sat alone in Logan’s room, packing up. She might not have been mentally prepared for her son to leave her.

Someone knocked on the door, and Thomas walked in, placing his hand on her shoulder. “Thinking about Gan?”

Brenna sat on the edge of the bed, holding Thomas’s hand, sighed softly, “He’s never been away from me since he was little. After what happened last time, I’m always worried.”

“How about you go to Kenland with Gan for the New Year?”

Brenna turned around, tilting her head up softly asking him, “What about you?”

Although she was in her forties, the look in her eyes as she looked at Thomas was still as tender as that of a teenage girl in love.

He felt a bit apologetic, “My mom and Bella are at home. I can’t leave them alone. Besides, I can’t take them with us, and Bella probably wouldn’t want to go.”

Brenna was stunned for a moment, taking Thomas’s hand and pressing it against her face, “If you’re here, I’ll be here with you. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be in the mood over there. Besides, it wouldn’t be right to leave Mom and Bella alone.”

Thomas really liked Brenna’s gentle and considerate nature. He pitied her even more, “Alright then, after we finish dinner on New Year’s Eve, we’ll go to Kenland together the next day.”

Brenna was both surprised and happy, feeling guilty and conflicted after a while, “But how about Mom? What should we say to her?”

“Don’t worry, I’ll talk to Mom about it.”

Brenna nodded, feeling somewhat melancholic, “It seems like Gan has a girlfriend now, it should be Aria.”

Thomas frowned, “That girl is quite complicated.”

Suddenly, there was a “meow” at the door.

When they turned around, Annabel stood at the door holding Garfield, sneering, “What a drama queen!”Copyright Nôv/el/Dra/ma.Org.

Thomas’s face darkened, before he could reprimand her, Annabel spoke first, “Why don’t you stay until after the 3rd before leaving? Otherwise, Grandma will be really heartbroken. It’s fine if you want to spend New Year’s with your wife and son, but Grandma has raised you, it’s not easy for her. Logan isn’t even your biological son, your wife’s fortune changed with my mom’s help, and now she’s become the wealthy wife that many people at Eastdown court. Do you even know who you owe more to?”

Her words hit the nail on the head, even Brenna’s expression changed. Thomas’s face darkened, “Shut up, who taught you to talk to adults like this?”

Annabel snorted, holding the cat, she returned to her room, leaving Thomas’s scolding behind.

Although Grandma often complained Thomas, what mother wouldn’t worry about her child? The more Annabel thought about it, the angrier she became, leaving the little cat aside, she picked up the phone and called Logan.

It took a while for the phone to be answered, and on the other end, there were cheerful voices, both male and female, mostly likely gathering outside.

“Logan, living it up, huh?”

The voice on the other end sounded surprised, “Annabel?”

“Why aren’t you coming back for New Year’s? When your mom makes a move, Thomas will fly over right after New Year’s Eve to be with you. How sad Grandma must be. Are you really that busy? Busy enough to not even have two days free? When can’t your drama queen girlfriend stay with you? Why are you so selfish?”

Annabel became angrier as she scolded, Brenna was a drama queen, even the son she gave birth to had the same taste.

There was silence on the other end of the phone for a few seconds. “Well, I know.”

Annabel felt relieved in her heart and hung up the phone decisively.

Salvador lay on the pillow, looking plaintively at his owner before jumping onto her back, resting his head on her shoulder. She reached back to pat Salvador. These past few days, he had been listless and refused to eat. She had taken him to the vet, but the doctor had only said that he was in a bad mood, without giving any further explanation. This little thing was extremely reliant on her, and this feeling of being needed made her feel strange. After raising her for so long, their bond had grown deep.

Opening the group chat with her high school classmates, everyone seemed to be in high spirits due to the holidays. Despite Aria being in Kenland, she wasn’t attending the same university as Logan. But Kenland was so small that it didn’t matter how far apart they were.

Taking advantage of the lively chat, Annabel snapped a photo of Salvador and sent it to the group for help. “My Salvador hasn’t eaten for two days, and it’s worrying me. The vet says he’s in a bad mood. Does anyone have any suggestions?”

The group offered various dubious ideas.

“She must be heartbroken…”

“Probably just bad food.”

The most dubious was Louis, “You should starve alongside him; maybe that’ll move her.”

Annabel knew she couldn’t rely on these people. Putting down her phone, she grabbed Salvador. “I’m feeling down too. Who’s going to comfort me?” Salvador turned his face away, proud and ignoring her.

She tapped on David’s profile picture. He had been ignoring her like Salvador for the past few days. She sent a message, “My cat is in a bad mood.”

“…”

Her: “You’ve been ignoring me for days, and now I’m in a bad mood too.”

David: “I was busy the past few days. I’ll be free tomorrow.”

Her: “You have to kiss me tomorrow to cheer me up.”

David: “…”

While other couples have the boyfriend trying to seduce his girlfriend, these two are the complete opposite.

Thinking about earlier, she asked, “Is it true that once men marry, they forget their mothers?”

David: “Why would you think that? I wouldn’t.”

Annabel looked at the message and felt like her brain was malfunctioning.

Her: “…”

David: “What’s wrong?”

Her: “University students can also get married. Let’s go register tomorrow and have a graduation photo with our child after we graduate, that’s perfect!”

David: “You’re not of legal age yet…”

Her: “Oh, then you don’t need to rush. Just wait for me for another year and a half.”

David: “I’m not in a rush…”

Her: “Aren’t you afraid someone will steal me away?”

David: “Who’s foolish enough to go after a ticking time bomb?”

David waited for her response for a while, thinking she might be angry.

As he was almost at his stop, he suddenly received a message from her, “When I reach the legal age, are you brave enough to marry me? I want to have a real family of my own.”

David chuckled; she was back to her usual teasing self. He replied happily, “Sure, if you dare to marry me, I dare to marry you.”

It was just a joke to him, but she took it seriously.