"Well, in any case, I look forward to the next few days." Williamson left, and I turned back to my pile of resumes. I kept at it for a bit, and set the ones aside that I wanted to review more closely for later. Finally, I had it down to my last three, but could get no further until I actually talked with the candidates. I glanced up at the clock, and decided to take a break.
I headed downstairs to the gym, where I could hear Julian's music long before I entered the room. It was still raw, looking more like a dungeon or someone's basement than a high quality gym, but it was beautiful to me. Of course, seeing Julian lifting weights, his muscles rippling under the lights made it look even more beautiful. "How much longer do you have?" I asked after he set down the thirty pound dumbbells he was using for lateral raises. "You look mostly finished."
"One more set, then stretching," he said, taking a drink. "How's it going upstairs?"
"Good. I've got my final three, and I'll make calls after I take a break. By the way, Williamson came by, saying he had a letter for you. Said he had to sign for it. Any ideas?"
"Most likely from my lawyers," Julian replied. "But who knows?"
I watched while he finished his workout and pulled his t-shirt back on, then his warm-up jacket. Thankfully, Erica, Dwayne's wife and fashion consultant for Forrester Hotels, had designed a uniform for Julian to wear that was exercise oriented. I kind of regretted him covering up, he was great eye candy. "Might as well see what Williamson signed for," Julian said. "Although I don't expect much. They'd have called me if it was anything important."
Williamson was in his office, reading his computer screen when Julian knocked. "Hey boss," Julian said, "Krystal said you had something for me?"
"Yes, here you are," Williamson said. "By the way Mr. Castelbon, I'd appreciate it if you could leave your phone on when you are on the grounds."
"No offense Mr. Williamson, but it's a safety rule that I plan on enforcing for all of the employees. When you have five hundred pounds on your back, losing your balance because your cell phone goes off is a disaster."
Williamson pursed his lips, but nodded. "I understand. Can I at least have you promise to do your personal workouts at times that have the least amount of potential problems?"
"I plan on it. After our honeymoon, I'm lifting at midnight. The only people I'll disturb will be the dishwashers upstairs in the kitchen. Once the baby is born and Krystal goes back to work, I'll lift after she gets off shift in the restaurant."
"So be it," Williamson said. He handed Julian an envelope, and went back to his screen. "By the way, thank you for the invitation to the ceremony. Also, Mr. and Mrs. Forrester are due to arrive late this evening. They asked if you would be willing to have a late dinner with them. And if I may ask, where are you going on your honeymoon?"
"We're taking a week in New York City," I told him. "Julian's giving me the gift of going to every three star Michelin restaurant for dinner, and lunch at most of the two star places. As for dinner with Dwayne and Erica, I'd love to. Maybe I can give that kitchen a good test run tonight."
Williamson nodded, a slight smile on his face. "Very impressive honeymoon, Chef. And anything for you in New York, Mr. Castelbon?"
Julian nodded. "Just some nice quiet time with the most beautiful woman in the world." He smiled at me, then tore open the envelope, his eyes flickering over the letter. I could see something grow in his eyes, but I couldn't tell what until he held the letter out for me. "I need to call my lawyers about this, they should have called me."
I took it from his hands and read the paper. It was a form, printed out on a regular printer, and hadn't come from his lawyers at all. It was from DNA Technologies, the laboratory that was handling the genetic test of Gina's baby. There was one line that stood out to me, the only one I cared about.
Adult Male Subject 1: 0% Match
I handed the letter back to him, shaking my head. "Who cares? The information is what's important. Call your lawyers later. Let's go."
That evening, after dinner and a long, wonderful lovemaking session, Julian and I lay in bed, the last night we'd do so as single people. "Hey, I had a question," I asked him after my heart finally stopped racing.
"No, I don't regret not going out for a bachelor party, dinner with Dwayne and Erica was perfect as it was," Julian replied. "Anything else?"
I laughed. "Actually, I think Yuki is more disappointed that she didn't get to give me a bachelorette party. Boy is she going to be surprised when we ask her to be the baby's godmother. Then she can throw me a shower."
"There is that," Julian conceded. "But you were going to ask me a question."
"Yeah," I said, rubbing his chest. "When did you know?"
"Know what?"
"Know that you were interested in me not as a sex conquest or some pawn in a stupid, malicious game, but in me?"
Julian lay there quietly for a moment, and I wasn't sure he was going to answer. "This is going to sound bad," he said, so soft I could barely hear it.
"I promise Julian, no matter what you say, I'm not going to get angry. You don't even have to tell me if you don't want to."
Julian shook his head. "No, it's just that it's embarrassing in a way. Obviously, you know when Gina and I had sex."
"At our parents' reception. Why?"
"Well, what you may not have noticed is that she and I disappeared from the reception just after the two of us danced. About twenty minutes later, we were naked and in the library, when I looked up as a song hit that struck a nerve in me."
"Oh?" I said, turning on my side to look at him, curious. "What?"
"A beautiful angel took the stage away from Meat Loaf and sang the one song I actually loved. I lost myself in her words, and in the fantasy that she could rescue me from the monster I was becoming. It was then, even as my body was with Gina, that my heart and mind started to change."
I grinned and kissed his cheek. "That's not embarrassing at all."
"Why not?" Julian said with a half grin. "Don't tell me you were imagining me when you were singing, were you?"
I grinned, kissed him, and turned over. "Okay, I won't tell you. Besides, we need to get some sleep. We're getting married tomorrow, remember?"
"Then why sleep now?" Julian asked, nuzzling my neck. "We can sleep in, get married, enjoy the family reception, and then go on our honeymoon. We can sleep on the train ride down."
I thought about it, then turned and kissed him. "Maybe a little bit of both? I've never made love on a train before."
Julian kissed me back, his hand caressing my hair, before breaking our kiss to look me in the eyes. "You saved my life, Krystal. You brought me back from the edge of self destruction, and you showed me love. Regardless of what the future may hold, I love you."
There was nothing else that needed to be said.
The End…
While this technically ends this series, there will be a Standalone novel about Dwayne and Erica Forrester. Julian and Krystal will be in it, and you’ll get to see more of their future in terms of career and family!
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Excerpt - Stepbrother Alpha’s Baby
Bella
I’ve always had a crush on my ridiculously handsome stepbrother Stefan. For years, he’s always been there, at my side. We’ve played together, laughed together and even cried together. But then our relationship really turned weird.
Suddenly attracted to him, I could no longer be around him without feeling like a perv. The simple things we used to do with each other, like watch movies together, and even doing homework became incredibly awkward.
Anytime he was near, I found myself filled with sinful thoughts, and when he touched me, it felt like I would burst into flames. Soon, just being in his presence became too much to bear. I started avoiding him at all costs, and when I did encounter Stefan, I would act like a cold-hearted bitch to him so he would never suspect my true feelings.
Naturally, Stefan was confused by my sudden change in behavior. He couldn't understand how I’d suddenly gone from his best friend, to this frosty-ice queen. Though it hurt me to treat him that way, I couldn’t tell him that I was doing this for the greater good. I couldn't tell him that I yearned for his lips pressed against mine and to run my fingers through his silky, blond hair.
I couldn't tell him that I wanted him.
You see, I knew that our relationship could never be, would never be. My fantasy of being with Stefan was just that, a fantasy.
It was during this time that Stefan began dating. He’d bring home girls when my parents weren't home and have wild and crazy sex with them, all within my earshot.
Sometimes, I would listen and get all hot and bothered, and often, I had to relieve myself. I would masturbate and pretend I was one of the girls he was fucking, but that became old after I while. I didn't want to pretend anymore, I wanted the real thing.
Eventually, I grew very jealous of the string of girls he would bring back home and I found it quite easy to continue being a major bitch to him whenever we interacted.
When it came time to graduate High School and move on to college, I was greatly relieved. I had gotten accepted into a prestigious school called North State University, and for the first time in a long time, I was happy.
I was going to finally be free.
I would no longer be burdened by my attraction to my stepbrother or have to listen to him fuck random chicks every weekend. Since I made sure we wouldn't be attending the same university, I knew that I would only see Stefan on holidays, something that was acceptable to me because I knew I would only have to bear his presence for a short time before we were out of each other’s lives again.
Meanwhile, I would be joining the hottest Sorority on North State’s campus, Kappa Beta. As a member of this prestigious Sorority, I knew I would most-likely get hooked up with some popular, hot frat guy and would soon forget all about Stefan and his hot body.
Or so I thought.
* * *
“Come on Bella, swallow that dick!” some chick in the background yelled.
I tried to drown out all the wild cheering from my roused sorority sisters who stood crowded around the table, watching me and my opponent shove big, fat dildos down our throats, and concentrate.
Had I known that dick-guzzling contests were a part of the Kappa Beta’s long line of traditions, I would have never signed up for it, hottest Sorority or not.
Be as it may, I had signed up and had been accepted. And once I committed to something, that was it. I was in. But as one of the new girls, I was automatically looked down upon, and because of this, I was determined to prove myself.
The rules were; whoever gagged on their respective dildo first, lost.
I had already beaten out eight other girls and now only one remained. Veronica George. Veronica was a major bitch, with long blonde hair, green eyes and pouty lips that were currently wrapped around the shaft of her dildo. She was hugely popular and was thought to have the hottest boyfriend on campus, though I thought he was nothing special.
Veronica eyed me with challenge as she pushed her dildo down a half-inch. She was three-fourths down the shaft and I was likewise. So far, it was the furthest anyone had gotten the whole contest. But I could tell that I was going to have to go all the way down to the ball sack to win this one, because apparently, Veronica really knew how to suck a mean dick.
The trouble was, I was really close to gagging.
I gripped the rubbery flesh and pushed it down slowly, hoping I didn’t gag. I could feel it encroaching upon my tonsils and I struggled to keep the dreaded reflex at bay.
What if this were Stefan’s cock?
I had no idea where that thought came from, but it was a bad omen. Suddenly, all I could think about was Stefan gripping me by the sides of my head and throat fucking me for all I was worth.
The thought, while a huge turn on for me, was terribly distracting, and along with all the yelling in the background, I found my focus slipping.
Still eying me, Veronica pushed the dildo even further down, causing a large bulge to appear in her throat. I began to panic. There was not much left for Veronica to take down. One more push and she would have downed the entire length of the 8-inch cock, winning the contest.
I had to act fast, or it was over.
Eying her with defiance, I gathered my courage and tried to force the rest of the entire shaft down my throat. That’s when I nearly lost all of my lunch.
Shit!
The crowd around the table went wild as I wrenched the cock out of my mouth and gasped for air, hacking and coughing.
Across the table, Veronica jumped up, removed the giant dildo from her throat with ease, slapped it down on the table, and squealed in delight. “I win!”
Her words and joyous laughter felt like a knife in my heart. I’ll let you know now that I am very competitive and don't like losing…even a dumb ass dick-sucking contests.
Who had made up such a contest, anyway?
“It’s okay,” I muttered, under the noise of the crowd as I wiped spittle from my lips with the back of my hand and regained my composure. “It’s a stupid contest anyway.” I tossed the fat dick on the table beside Veronica’s saliva-covered one, glad to be rid of it. The rubbery flesh had left a nasty taste in my mouth and I would be glad when I could go rinse with a minty mouthwash.
“Every one quiet!” yelled a voice. It was Hanna Jones, Kappa’s president, standing in the center of the room beside the table.
With long dark hair that she wore in a girly pony-tail and sultry dark eyes, Hanna was dressed in a pink skirt and a white blouse that was tied in a knot to show off her tanned, flat mid-riff. Pink and white were our sorority’s colors.
When the room finally quieted down, Hanna smiled at me. “Nice try, Bella. I was really impressed. I never saw a new girl get so far before.”
“Thanks,” I mumbled. I still couldn't believe I had just participated in the contest. And even worse, I had lost.
“You should be proud,” Hanna continued. “You defeated eight other girls and nearly beat Veronica, our undefeated champion.”
“She wasn’t even close!” Veronica scoffed, folding her arms across her chest. “And you know it.”
“She came closer than any girl ever has to beating you,” Hanna pointed out. “You have to admit that.”
Veronica rolled her eyes. “Whatever you say.”
“Isn’t it time to choose the sacrifice now?” one of the sorority sisters asked Hanna with breathless excitement.
I quirked an eyebrow in confusion. What was this? Were the girls not content with just holding a cock-gagging contest? Now they were into satanic rituals too?
“What’s a sacrifice?” One of the new girls, Sara Delaney, asked. When I first joined the sorority, Sara and I had
become fast friends, mainly out of necessity. Even being in a sorority there were cliques within cliques so that meant new girls had to stick together.
Hanna’s eyes sparkled with mischief. “As most of our senior members here know, every once and a while we honor a deal we have with or brother Fraternity Alpha Gamma.”
“And what deal is this?” Sara asked suspiciously.
Stepbrother Bad Boy's Baby Boxed Set Page 22