Chapter 2

PIERRE POV

As soon as my body relaxed on the world’s comfortable bed, I was out in a second. I swear it felt like I was drifting away on a soft, fluffy cloud with Adele singing a lullaby at the back of my head. I woke up about an hour later to the sound of a knock on my door.

Despite having slept for only an hour, I felt utterly rested and was pretty energized. I guess the king-sized bed had some sleep elixir buried deep in the mattresses. I jumped off the bed and yanked the door open, revealing Adelaide, aka mom, or birth-giver as Shakespeare would call her, to find her standing at the door, changed into a red dress and black heels. 

“My little boy.” She once again flew into the room before pulling me into a tight hug. 

“Mom, I am 17,” I said trying to pull myself off her death clutches,

“So what?” She ruffled my hair so hard I felt it biting into my scalp,

“You’ll always be my little boy.” She said and slightly pushed me to the side.

“It’s time for dinner.” She announced smiling down at me. At this point, I knew I had to let go of my grudge against her. I couldn’t hold it while she was being like this. It was just… Futile!

“You’re ready?” She brushed off the non-existing greases off her dress, and I nodded. She may have been married off to some rich guy, but she was still the same woman who would brush her hands all over her thighs whenever the nerves blanketed her.

“Can I at least wash my face first? I kind of just woke up now.” I said pointing to the bathroom, and she nodded. I took off to the bathroom and did as I promised, coming out feeling like a new baby straight from its mother’s womb. Mom didn’t waste time whisking me to her side and together, we rounded the bazillion corners and climbed downstairs until we entered an expansive, opulent dining room that made me feel like I have stepped into yet another different world. 

The interior was a mixture of dazzling white and navy blue accents, with a glass dining table, placed right at the heart of it. The built-in lights cast a warm glow around the room and the little miniature decors gave it a homey, yet lavish feeling. While at it, my eyes landed on a buffet placed neatly on the table, making my mouth salivate and my stomach flip dance inside of me. 

Shyly, I let my mother guide me until we arrived at the table, then placed me in front of her before presenting me to the two heads that sat there waiting. Instantly, I recognized her husband, Gabriel Rhodez. He was one soul you would make out amidst millions of people. Although he was slowly aging, the gray hairs in his midnight black hair made him look like something sculpted by the universe itself, his sharp jawline standing out proudly and his scruffy beard (with a faint gray tint as well) decorating his manly face. Not to sound like a crappy stepson but the man was a literal panty-dropper on two legs.

“Babe, Poseidon, I know you have met my beautiful son, Pierre.” Mom squealed gripping my shoulders so tight I felt like I was getting my collarbone dislocated. I am sure she wasn’t even aware that she was about to break my bones, she was just too excited. 

“Sweety, you met Gabriel at the wedding, and my other son, your brother.” She called out yet again and that's when I took a good look at the other figure she gestured at. 

My heart paused in its beating and everything around me ceased to move when ocean-blue eyes fell on me. Recognition marred the perfect, unblemished face, confusion flashing across it as the blue eyes darted between my mother and me. The little lump on his throat bobbed when he swallowed saliva, probably trying to get a firm grasp of what the hell was going on. 

I followed his move and swallowed down the suffocating lump in my throat and decided to focus on something else, while my mind tried to figure out what kind of joke the universe just cracked.

HOW THE HELL COULD IT BE HIM?

“Please, make yourself at home.” Gabriel’s rich voice boomed around the haze of confusion, forcefully yanking me back to the present because that's just how commanding he was. He commanded the attention and claimed it, and he knew the effect he had on people, on everyone. And it turns out I was not an exception to his charms.

“Thank you, Mr. Rhodez.” My voice came out pressed and forced, and I cleared my throat trying not to look at the eyes that were burning holes into my skin, coming from across the table. 

“Please, Gabriel is fine. We’re family.” He commanded yet again, and all I could afford was a small nod with a tinge of a forced smile. 

Mom pushed me into the seat beside hers, making a grave mistake by placing me opposite a seething Poseidon who was a second away from snapping the platinum fork in two. I chanced a look at his beautiful face, then swallowed hard when my eyes met his. Goosebumps clothed my body like a second skin, causing tiny ants to run along in my bloodstream. It only took an angry glare and THAT NIGHT came flashing across my mind, like a flock of sheep lined in a small cue, replaying over and over again.

"You're going to love Chef Jody's steak. It's the best in the entire world." Of course! Their food was prepared by the chef.

My mom served the food like the mistress of the family, and without further ado, we dug into our perfectly prepared dinner. She would occasionally brush my hair here and there or sneak a kiss on my cheek, causing the whole attention to be on me. And while at it, I would chance nervous look across the table, only to find my dear brother glaring daggers at me. I could feel questions brewing deep inside of him, but he was still so dazed that he didn't even know how to voice them out.

Like him, I was just as confused. I had no idea that I would stumble upon him and honestly, had I known, I would have prepared myself… better. Matter of fact had I learned that he would be my brother, I wouldn’t have slept with him the moment I laid my eyes on his perfectly fine self, just to avoid this moment. 

“I am full.” He didn’t even give others the chance to refute, just pulled back from his chair and took off.

“Don’t worry about him. He is this grumpy, always. But he is not a bad kid.” His dad called out, accompanying his words with a small smile. I nodded and then looked down at his deserted plate to find that he barely touched his food. The steak was well untouched and the potatoes around it were smashed to pulp. I had no doubt about the fact that he did all that, taking the well-baked lumps of potatoes as my head.

If only he knew I was just as shitty as he was. The rest of the dinner was about me and my life back in France since Gabriel was highly fascinated about... everything.

Frankly, I did not take him as an easy-going guy but the more we talked about this and that, the more I found that he was just a normal human being, with deep and fat pockets unlike the rest of the common world. 

A little later, I am talking about, after a red-velvet cake for dessert later, I was finally off the hooks and excused to my bedroom. Mom was sure to let me know that tomorrow was going to be a little hectic since I was going for the school registration yadah-yadah, but school was the last thing on my mind.

After settling in my new bed, I fished out my phone and shot a quick text:

The boy from my mom's wedding, he is my stepbrother!