Stepbrother Secrets by Lauren Branford Read Free Book Online Page B

against his tanned skin. Just like clockwork, my dear stepbrother was back in the pool.
     

Casual Encounters
     
                  Quickly, I assembled my day outfit: a black bikini, an oversized hat, a soft crimson blanket, and a pair of oversized glasses.  For me to take my normal gazing post, it was important that I was not seen. I walked along the path that led away from the pool and climbed the hill. At the top, I unwrapped a turkey sandwich and began my undercover work.
                  Sebastian made laps around the surface of the pool. This must have been how he kept in shape. I heard that while in college, he played water polo and several other aquatic sports. Lydia loved to talk about her son. Story after story proved that she had an intense interest in him. It appeared as though we had more in common than just my father.
                  For the next hour, I sat under the shade of the trees at the top of the hill, inconspicuously looking over at the well-built man who was striking interesting poses on the lounge chairs. His body never ceased from grabbing all of my attention. While I wanted to stay for longer, this particular afternoon was much hotter than usual. Beads of sweat began to form under my hat and trickle down the sides of my face. When I had enough, I decided that it was time to call it a day.
                  “It’s okay, Audrey,” I whispered to myself. “He does the same schedule every damn day; you won’t be missing a thing.”
                  The problem with going to an all-girls boarding school was that it was comprised of all girls. Not only did our cycles sync, but we also raged on one other. Sometimes, it was impossible to discern over which of the girls hated me more. The good that came of this was my quick learning on how to be cunning. If one girl planned to take me down, I found about it first. Then I would take her down.
    All of the female pupils came from affluent families. However, my father being a billionaire meant that I had the most friends. My mother was also a well-known fashion writer and socialite, which helped with this as well. I was the brainy hybrid of their brief marriage.
    For years, my mother was the “other woman” when my father was first married. He divorced; she became pregnant, and soon they exchanged vows. That was, of course, thrown to the wayside when my mother discovered that she wasn’t the only other woman.
                  I was certain, however, that my father had changed his ways. Now at the age of sixty, he no longer seemed to marry for status. Lydia and Sebastian Bernard came from a prosperous community on the other side of the state. Her late husband, Sebastian’s father, came from old money in France. After his unexpected passing, they inherited most of his capital. However, it paled in comparison to the amount of wealth my father had obtained from creating new uses for plastics in war, spacecrafts and automobiles.
                  Walking back down the hill, I found my way into the house and shut the door. I placed the blanket on a chair and threw the wrapper to my sandwich in the trash bin. Quickly, I rushed up the stairs to change out of my bikini. After entering my room, I found the dress I had laid out for myself on the bed. Just as I removed my sunglasses, I noticed that someone was standing in from of me.
                  “Hello, there,” Sebastian greeted me from the doorway to my room. He was standing in a towel and still dripping wet with pool water. His auburn hair was now dark from moisture.
                  “Good afternoon,” I replied.
                  “Where is everyone else?”
                  “Gone.”
                  “Gone?” he inquired as he walked toward the kitchen. A bright red apple sat on top of a basket of fruit. Sebastian picked it up and took a bite with his