Tease: A Stepbrother Romance (5 page)

As I checked the time, I figured out how much longer we would be at the restaurant. We hadn’t even gotten our meals yet, so I estimated that it would take at least another hour. I couldn’t wait that long to see if this was the video I had been waiting for.

I excused myself and went to the ladies' room. There was a small lounge area with a couch, and I sat down and pulled my phone out again. I always wondered why some restrooms had a lounge. Now I knew it was to watch videos of stepbrothers undressing. It couldn’t be for anything else.

The volume was muted, but I didn’t need the sound. I only needed to see if this was the video I had been hoping for. Jagger slid across the floor as he danced. He turned away from the camera and lowered his pants. He wasn’t wearing anything underneath.

Turn around. Turn around.

I chewed my bottom lip as I silently begged him in the video to turn around. He tossed his pants to the side, got down on the floor, and lay down on his side. He pointed to the camera and mouthed something that looked like ‘now it’s your turn’ before the video ended.

While I stared at my phone, I wondered if I had enough time to watch the video again, but I didn’t want my mother to wonder what had happened to me. I got up and as I walked out the door, Jagger appeared beside me.

“Well?” he said.

“Well what?”

“Oh, come on. I know why you were in there.”

I looked away as my cheeks flushed. I felt stupid for not realizing he would know.

“You don’t have to say anything. I remember the look on your face from last night. You know how you can get back at me for this, right?”

I shook my head. “How?”

“Like I said at the end, now it’s your turn. A little tit for tat, what do you think?”

“I think you’re a dick,” I said.

“I think you want my dick.”

I walked ahead of him and got back to the table just as dinner arrived. He was right. I did want to get back at him. I just needed to think of the right way to do it.

~ Six ~

Sierra

With only two days before we flew to Hawaii for the wedding, I wanted to make sure to get some sun so I wouldn’t burn while we were away. The trip was only for a few days and our parents would move to a different island for their honeymoon, but I was still looking forward to getting away.

I put on a tank top and a pair of shorts and headed to the pool with my Kindle. I was hoping to spend the day reading, but once I stepped outside, I saw Jagger doing laps in the swimming pool and Dex on my favorite lounge chair. I turned around to head back inside.

“Wait, Sierra,” Dex called. “Where are you going?”

“Let her go,” Jagger growled.

Guess he doesn’t want me around.

“Nowhere,” I said as I stepped back outside.

I put my sunglasses on and made myself comfortable in one of the other lounge chairs. As I propped up my Kindle on my lap, Jagger stepped out of the pool.
 

He shook his hair and water sprayed out around him. His body was ripped and tanned and even from where I was sitting, I could see the droplets of water rolling down his skin. It didn’t matter that he was wearing swimming trunks, I managed to see beyond that. The image of his naked body was burned in my brain, and it was all I could see.

Jagger looked in my direction, so I lifted my Kindle to block him from my view. The last thing I needed was for him to catch me looking at him. He had embarrassed me enough with those photos and videos.

Hmm...those videos.

I might not be able to look at him in person, but I could definitely look at the images he sent me without being obvious. Smiling to myself, I swiped my phone and brought up the first video. I was going to have my own private striptease.

“What are you looking at?” Dex asked, trying to peek at my phone.

I quickly turned it off and let it drop into my lap.

“Nothing really. Just some things I need to get for school.”

“Oh yeah, you’re going to that cooking school, right?”

The way he said it rubbed me the wrong way. Despite how nice he’d been the last few years, he reminded me of the prick he had been back when he and Jagger made my life hell.

“Culinary school.
The
culinary school as a matter of fact. The Culinary Institute of America.”

“Well, excuse me,” Dex said.

“Just leave her alone, man,” Jagger said as he tossed his towel aside. “Let’s get out of here. What about that girl from the party?”

“Who? Oh, Ginger? Whatever,” Dex shrugged and rolled his eyes. “I’m talking to Sierra.”

He leaned in closer to me and touched my hair. Dex was trying to get me to focus on him, but I couldn’t look at anything but Jagger. Jagger’s face hardened and he cracked his knuckles as he watched.

“You ever think of straightening your hair?” Dex said. “I bet you’d look hot then.”

“No, it’s too much work. I think I look fine the way it is.”

Dex leaned on the arm of my chair and rested his arm across the back. I didn’t know what was going on with him. Was he flirting with me? As I inched away from Dex, my phone buzzed with a text.

Jagger:
Why don’t you go back inside?

Sierra:
You’d like that, wouldn’t you?

Jagger huffed as he looked at his phone.
Guess he didn’t like my response.
He came over and put his hand on Dex’s shoulder.

“Let’s go out,” Jagger said to Dex.

“Are you crazy?” Dex hissed through clenched teeth before turning to me with a smile. “What do you say, Sierra? You busy tonight? Let’s do something.”

Jagger’s body stiffened and his fists clenched.
Was he jealous?
Whatever was going on, I could tell that it would piss Jagger off even more if I said yes to Dex.

“Sure, Dex,” I said. “What do you want to do?”

Dex grinned. “We’re gonna have a little fun. Ouch! Lay off, dude.” He winced in pain from Jagger’s hand still on his shoulder.

“I really don’t think you should go out with Sierra,” Jagger said.

“What are you gonna do about it? Sierra can go out with whomever she wants. Right, sweetheart?”

“That’s right, I can,” I said.

“Then I’m coming along. You said Ginger had some friends. Make it a double date,” Jagger said.

“No fucking way,” Dex said. “I’m not dragging your hairy ass along on a date.” He got up and pushed Jagger back. “Sierra, I’ll pick you up at seven.”

Dex went out the gate and soon after, the roar of his engine starting filled the air. Jagger sat across from me, resting his elbows on his knees.

“I know you’re only doing this to piss me off,” he said.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I said as I turned on my Kindle.

“I saw you, you’re not into him. You know what he wants, right? You know what kind of guy Dex is, right?”

“What are you talking about? It’s a date, we’re just going out. Deal with it. I don’t know why you’re acting like this.”

“You don’t?” Jagger looked annoyed as he got up and shook his head. “Can’t you just trust me? Stay home. If you want to go out, call Issy. Fuck it, I’ll take you out.”

“Yeah, because I want to go out with you,” I said. “Screw you, Jagger. I don’t need your charity. I’m going out with Dex tonight. Period.”

I got up and went inside before he could say another word. The last thing I wanted was to go out with him, especially when he put it that way. It was bad enough I couldn’t stop looking at his pictures or videos.

His looks were confusing me, making me think he wasn’t as bad as I thought. I had to remind myself how much I hated him. If he didn’t want me going out with Dex, it was probably because he thought his friend could do better.

Asshole. Prick. Jerk!

I didn’t really want to go out with Dex, but after what Jagger said, there was no way I was backing out now. I’d find a cute outfit in my closet and have a fun time tonight. Then maybe I’d rub it in Jagger’s face when I got home.

***

Dressed in my favorite pair of jeans and a blue knit shirt, I was ready for my date with Dex. Jagger was in the loft when I left my room. As I walked past, he paused the TV and leaned forward in the chair as he rested his elbows on his knees.

“Sierra, please,” he said. “I don’t know what I said or what I did, but please don’t do this to get back at me.”

“Get over yourself. It’s not always about you.”

As I walked down the stairs, the doorbell rang. Dex was right on time. I was done talking about this with Jagger. The more he tried to convince me to stay, the more I thought I should listen. If it made any sense at all I would have cancelled the date, but Jagger was just acting out of some weird jealousy or something. Who knows, maybe he didn’t want me to go because he thought Dex would tell me all the shitty things Jagger really thought about me.

Looking up at the balcony, I saw Jagger watching as I left the house.
Why do I feel guilty?!
Dex opened the door to his white BMW, waited for me to slide in, and then closed the door before he got into the driver’s side.

“You look good enough to eat,” he said.

“Thanks. Where are we going?”

“ I know this place along the cliffs that has a great view of the ocean. It’s quiet. You’ll like it.”

“Okay,” I said with a shrug.

Good, this might be a quick date. He probably only asked me out to get back at Jagger too for making such a big deal about it.

Dex turned on some music and we drove in silence. I felt my phone vibrate several times in my bag and took it out to make sure it wasn’t anything important.

Jagger:
I’m a douche, okay? Please come home.

Another text was a photo of him. His blue eyes were wide and pleading. I laughed and Dex turned to look at me.

“What is it?” he asked.

“Nothing. Just a text from Jagger.”

“What’s going on between you two?”

“What are you talking about?” I asked, holding my phone close, afraid he would see the photo.

“Have you two...”

“What? No!”

“Okay, okay. Just thought I’d ask.”

Dex grinned and put his hand on my knee as he turned off the road. The gravel kicked up against the car as he steered it towards a guardrail facing the beach.

He turned off the engine, then pressed the buttons on the radio until he found a song he liked. He nodded his head to the music then turned to me with a weird look on his face.

“Give me a kiss,” he said.

I laughed. He had to be joking.

He pushed his steering wheel up and turned to me. He still had the weird look, but instead of finding it funny, I was beginning to get nervous.

Moving his arm in front of me, he closed off my space. I shrank back against the seat as Dex moved closer to me.

“What are you doing?” I asked.

“Shut up, you’ll like it. All the girls do.”

With his face inches from mine, he closed his eyes. This was not what I wanted at all. With my right hand still clutching my phone tightly, I swung it towards him and hit him in the chin. He jerked back with a surprised look on his face.

“Bitch,” he said as his hand slapped my cheek. “I can do rough if that’s what it takes.”

He slid over the center console, boxing me in further as I pushed myself against the door to stay as far from him as possible. Reaching to the side, I found the door handle and pulled it. The door swung open and I fell onto the ground.

“Leave me alone!” I screamed.

“I like a good chase.”

He leered at me as I tried to stand and move further away from him at the same time. As Dex stepped out of my door, a footstep crunched behind me. I turned to see Jagger standing close by.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” Dex growled.