Rule Number One: Kissing Your Stepbrother Again Will Ruin You

Elowen

The stupid thing was that I could still hear the annoying sound of his laughter five minutes later. In my head.

I pushed through a crowd of dancing people and headed straight for the kitchen.

My face was still burning. No. Burning wasn’t the right word. I was mortified.

I grabbed the first cup I saw on the counter and took a large sip. Immediately, I regretted it.

“What the hell?”

The drink burned my throat.

Isa appeared beside me, nearly spilling her own drink while laughing.

“Easy there, tiger.”

I coughed. “What is this?”

“Looking at you baby, you really need it. You look like you’re about to pass out.” She narrowed her eyes. “Why is that?”

My stomach twisted. “No reason.”

“Liar.”

I rolled my eyes.

Isa had the annoying ability to know exactly when I was hiding something. Before she could question me further, movement across the room caught my attention.

There he was. Standing near the staircase.

My mysterious stranger. The guy with mysterious blue eyes. The guy I should not be thinking about. He wore a shirt which did nothing to hide the outline of abs screaming to be shown.

My heart immediately betrayed me. One stupid little flutter.

Isa followed my gaze. “Oh.” That was all she said.

I froze.

“Oh, what?” I asked carefully.

Her grin widened. “Oh.” She repeated.

My face immediately heated. “You know him?”

“Baby girl, don’t play dumb with me.” Her grin became even bigger.

“Dumb?” I asked, feigning confusion. “How do you mean?”

She rolled her eyes. “You seem like the one who knows him.”

My eyes widened. “Me? I do not.”

“Sure.”

I groaned. Why are we best friends like this?

Across the room, he was talking to a group of people. Girls. Of course. Two redheads. A brunette. One blonde. They were all laughing. All staring at him. One even touched his arm.

I hated how much that affected me. Elowen, you don’t even know his name. So why do you care?

I questioned myself.

He smells of danger. He is the type of guy who never had to chase anyone. The type who simply existed and people threw themselves at him.

He is annoyingly attractive. Dangerously confident. So why am I still looking?

As if sensing my stare, his eyes lifted and landed directly on mine.

My breath caught. The room suddenly felt chilly.

His lips slowly curved into a smirk. Oh, he definitely remembered me.

Heat rushed into my face. I felt the need to crawl under a table and hide from his gaze.

I immediately looked away.

I'm a coward. Absolutely pathetic. I should’ve stared defiantly at him and never backed down until he did. I will do that next time. Wait, why should there be a next time?

Isa burst out laughing beside me. “You got caught.”

“Shut up.”

She continued laughing. “You got caught staring.”

“I said zip it, Isa!”

Her laughter only grew louder.

Unfortunately, she wasn’t wrong. I had gotten caught. And somehow it bothered me less than the fact that I was trying my best to resist the urge to look again.

The rest of the party passed in a blur. Music, dancing, people screaming to song lyrics I didn’t know existed until now.

Isa dragged me into conversations I didn’t care about.

My eyes kept glancing around the room and, even though I wouldn’t admit it, I searched for him.

And every single damn time I found him, he seemed to find me too.

Yet, I couldn’t bring myself not to look away from his gaze.

Hours later, I finally escaped from Isa and of course, my mysterious stranger, and headed to the backyard.

The cool night air felt wonderful against my overheated skin.

Finally. The peace that I’ve been craving for.

“Running away?”

Unfortunately, that peace was short-lived.

Of course. He followed me. I almost rolled my eyes to the back of my skull, as if doing that will hide the fact that my heart did a little jump.

I turned, folding my arms across my chest.

There he was. The bane of my scattered emotions. Leaning casually against the porch railing with that infuriating smirk on his lips. The light from the moon contrasted with the color of his eyes, making his gaze look mysterious yet beautiful. His hair was dark, some strands fell across his forehead, touching the lid of his eyes. There are two words that come to my mind whenever I stare at him. Strikingly handsome.

My heart started acting stupid again.

Focus, Elowen. You’re not supposed to have thoughts like that.

“I wasn’t running.” I glared at him defiantly, not backing away this time.

“Yeah, of course not.” he shrugged mockingly.

I folded my arms tighter across my chest. “Why do you always act confident when you say something about me?”

A low chuckle escaped his mouth. “I don’t act.” he paused, his gaze intense. “I am confident.”

I curled my fists tight, trying to resist the urge to smack the jerk across the face. Ahh God, what sin did I commit to deserve seeing this pompous jackass tonight?

For a moment, neither of us spoke. The music from inside drifted through the open windows. Laughter echoed from somewhere down the street. The night felt strangely smaller with him standing there.

Breathing in deeply, I joined him, leaning on the porch railing. “I’m Elowen.”

His eyebrows lifted. “Giving your name to strangers now? What were those words you said again?” He paused as if in deep thought. “‘Who told you I want to be your type?’ but here you are in her mighty glory, offering me your name. Are we friends now or…” His left brow lifted.

I couldn’t hold on again. The last thread of patience I had snapped, before I knew it, I was on him, smacking him with my hands.

His laughter rang in my ears, making me feel a thousand and one different feelings all at the same time.

By the time I stopped smacking him, my breath was coming out in spasms.

He stopped laughing but a smile remained on his face. A genuine one for the first time tonight. It made him look less dangerous. More human. Far too attractive.

Maintaining my slightly annoyed expression, I turned away from him, looking everywhere except at him.

I felt his gaze on me the entire time I didn’t speak.

“Zephyr,” he broke the silence. “My name is Zephyr.”

It suited him perfectly. I admitted inwardly. I wasn’t sure how. I just knew that it did.

He started a conversation and, despite my efforts to ignore, I couldn’t.

For a while, we talked. Really talked. About my dream college, the terrible teachers I previously had in senior year.

I learned he had a sarcastic sense of humor. Somewhere between our conversation and the next, I stopped wanting to leave. I managed to relax myself a bit.

When he looked at me again, there was something different in his expression. Something quieter and serious. Don’t get me wrong, the teasing was still there. But beneath it was interest. Real interest. The kind that made my pulse race.

Every time he smirked, my stomach did something weird. Every time he looked directly at me, I tried to continue what I was saying.

The air felt very charged.

“Why—why are you staring at me like that?” I had to ask.

His eyebrows lifted. “Like what, Blondie?”

I frowned. “Don’t call me Blondie. My name’s Elowen.”

A small smile appeared on his face. “The nickname suits you.”

His quiet stare never left my face.

I turned away. My pulse quickening.

The backyard suddenly felt quieter. The music from inside seemed distant now. Muted.

“I don’t like the name,” I said after a long while.

His hand reached for my face, a lean finger turned my head, making our gaze meet. His eyes held mine. “That makes it more satisfying.”

Annoyance flashed in my eyes. I should leave before I get irritated. Just a few minutes back while we talked, I thought we could be friends. I was wrong.

I bit my lip hard. This guy was getting on my nerves.

I fixed my gaze on him, not knowing what to say again. Having exhausted all the words I knew.

Surprisingly, he stopped smirking. His eyes dropped briefly to my lips, following every movement as I bit harder into them.

Nervously, my teeth sank deeper into my lower lip.

His gaze continued to lock onto the movement. His eyes followed every nervous bite, every slight movement of my mouth.

The air between us tightened. What is happening right now?

A dangerous smile tugged at the corner of his lips. “Blondie, I think you should stop doing that.”

I frowned. “Doing what?”

I dropped my hands to my side, glaring at the jerk before me.

His eyes darkened. “Stop biting your lip.”

The anger from earlier turned into something I couldn’t describe. Heat crawled up my neck, but I refused to look away. “And why is that?”

He took a slow step closer. “Are you trying to seduce me?”

I scoffed, letting out a laugh. “Trust me, jackass. If I ever decided to seduce someone, you’d be the last person on the list.”

Something flashed in his eyes. His jaw tightened. The amusement vanished from his face, replaced by a hunger that made my pulse stumble.

Before I could react, a strong arm wrapped around my waist. My breath caught.

One second there was distance between us. The next, I was pressed against the hard wall of his chest. My heart slammed against my ribs.

“Funny,” he murmured, lowering his head until his voice brushed against my skin. “Do you always have to find something smart to counteract me?”

“Well, someone has to keep your ridiculously massive ego under control.”

His grip tightened. That hunger I had seen earlier intensified.

“Stop talking.” His voice was huskier now.

My pulse quickened. “Are you indirectly telling me to shut up?” I eyed him. “Who do you think you are?”

His smirk was gone completely. “I am Zephyr, love.” His gaze remained on my lips. “If you don’t shut up, prepare to bear the consequences.”

Who the hell does he think he is? All my life I have never met someone so pompous like him without a crown to justify it.

I curled my fist tightly, my nails digging into my skin. “I’ve met peacocks with less attitude.” My teeth clenched. “If arrogance burned calories, you’d be a supermodel.”

“For Christ’s sake, Elowen.” he let out a breath, calling my name for the first time tonight. “The more you talk, the more I lose every strand of control I’m trying so hard to hold onto.”

“Feel free to talk back.” I challenged. “I promise, you wouldn’t see me back down.”

“Fuck,” his hand left my waist, grabbing my neck so swiftly. “I don’t want to do that. It's your lips…"

I swiftly touched them. "What's wrong with it? Is it swollen?" I asked, terrified.

"No," his voice came out husky. "I want to fucking kiss you.”