He chuckled. “I do. I wanted something that seemed like an actual house, but was close to downtown. And here I am, right in the heart of it, with this place.” He smiled at me. “You’re welcome to stay as long as you like, you know. It’s not like I’m running out of room here, or anything.”
“I can see that!” I laughed, still marveling at the vastness of his home. “Holy shit. This was not what I was expecting.”
“I’ll take that as a compliment,” he replied, grinning as he took my suitcase and began walking toward a hallway. “Come on. I’ll show you to your room.”
I followed him, but couldn’t stop staring at how glamorous his penthouse was. When he’d moved, Sarah had told me he’d ended up in some pathetic apartment, as though he’d had to sacrifice the stability and expansiveness of a home by escaping her wrath. What I saw now confirmed for me that she was only bitter he’d turned on her, and that I was much better off living with him than I was under her rule.
I practically skipped down the hall, grinning like an idiot as my stepbrother led me to my room. It was even bigger than the one I’d had back at home, although that had barely been larger than a closet. Sarah had seen to it that I got the space meant for a live-in maid. As old as the house was, it might have even been slave quarters at some point… It was her way of letting me know what the pecking order was.
“Feel free to decorate it,” he told me, setting down my things on the queen-sized bed. “Seriously, I don’t mind. Anything you need, just let me know.”
I nodded, trying not to beam too brightly, but I knew my happiness was written all over my face. “Thank you so much, Jacob. This means the world to me, but… I couldn’t possibly ask you to spend your money on decorations...”
“It’s cool,” he answered, wrapping his arms around me in a tight hug. “I remember what it was like. I want you to treat this place as your home now, Amber. I want you to feel like you can make it your own. Besides, I’ve been trying to spend my money for years but every time I check the account, it keeps getting bigger. Compound interest on top of the stocks Granddad left me…”
Then he paused, looking down at me. His blue eyes were glazed with regret and concern. “I… I don’t think I ever apologized to you. You know, for my mom.”
“You don’t have to do that,” I told him, and I meant it. Her sins were her own. I never held Jacob responsible for any of it, and I’d always hoped he knew that.
But he shook his head at me and gave me a squeeze. “She’ll never do it on her own, and somebody has to say it. It makes sense for it to be me.”
“Jacob…” I began again, but the look on his face silenced me. He was determined, and I knew once he put his mind to something, there was no stopping him.
“I’m sorry for what she did to you,” he told me, rubbing my arms as he stared into my eyes. “Hell, sometimes, I’m sorry we ever even came into your lives. If we hadn’t, you and your father would probably have ended up a lot happier.”
That stung a little. Sarah was awful, sure, but I never imagined life without Jacob in it.
But then he smiled faintly and added: “I know it’s selfish of me, but even with all the hell she put you through, I’m still glad you’re my sister. I just wish we’d… met a different way.”
My heart warmed, but I was still a little confused. What did that mean—a different way? And why did he look so sad when he said it?
For the moment, I shrugged it off and squeezed his arms too, smiling as I felt the bulge of his biceps beneath his shirt.
“I’m glad I’m your sister, too,” I told him. “I’ve never regretted that for one second. I swear. And if I hadn’t had you there all those years, I… I don’t know what I would have done,” I settled on at last.
It was true. Sarah had made my life an absolute nightmare, and sometimes, I thought about taking the radical way out. But I could have never done that to Jacob. It would have destroyed him.
He smiled and embraced me again, pressing me tight to his hard, broad chest. I closed my eyes, drinking in his scent. There was something about his touch, his smell that made me feel so safe, so at home—complete, even. No other man had ever made me feel that way. I was starting to wonder if one ever would.
Eventually we parted, and Jacob ran a hand through his hair, laughing softly. “Well, I’m glad we’ve got that out. Wouldn’t want this to become too mushy, right?”
“Right,” I said, smiling broadly. “Hey, you know what would be cool?”
He raised an eyebrow. “What’s that?”
“A movie night,” I said. “You know, like the ones we used to have back at the old house. When Sarah and Dad were gone, I used to sneak into your room, and we’d cuddle up under a blanket and watch shitty B-movies on that huge TV you had, remember?”
“Of course I do,” Jacob said. “How could I forget?”
I grinned. “And this time, we won’t have to sneak beers. We can drink as much as we please.”
He laughed at that. “Thankfully, I have better taste than our parents did. I have wine.”
That was fine by me. I preferred a glass of red, anyway. “Great. Let me get my stuff put away, and then we’ll put on a movie. Sound good?”
“Sounds great, an escape from pretending to be a grown up,” Jacob said with a smile. “I’m happy you’re here, sis. I really am.”
“Me too,” I replied. “And thank you, Jacob. Again.”
“You’re welcome,” he said, then left me to sort out my belongings.
I was overjoyed at the prospect of living with my brother, and even happier that he seemed just as pleased as I was. I couldn’t wait to get close to him again. I was so relieved that so far, it seemed like we were picking back up right where we’d left off.
As I stowed my luggage, I remembered that Jacob and I had always had movie night in our pajamas. In the spirit of reliving old times, I opened up my suitcase and pulled out my short, kimono-style robe. It was black and partially sheer along the hem and the sleeves, but there was lining over the torso, so it wasn’t like it was inappropriate, or anything. It was also my favorite loungewear, and while it might have been a little risqué, Jacob and I were both adults. I had nothing he hadn’t seen before.
The thought of my brother seeing something intimate of mine did bring redness to my cheeks, though. We were close, obviously, but he’d only ever really known me as a child, a teenager, his baby sister. What would he think if he had to see me as a woman?
I debated over my clothing choice for a while. I probably could’ve thrown on an old t-shirt and some sweats, but the kimono robe was what I really wanted to wear.
Fuck it. If this was going to be my house, too, then I needed to act like it. I stripped down to my panties and put on the robe, sighing as the soft fabric brushed my skin. I cinched the waistband tightly, noting how the robe exposed my legs, yet left most of my chest covered. It was still modest, in a way. At least, that was what I told myself.
I took a moment to steal into the bathroom attached to my room and examined my appearance in the mirror. I had definitely grown up since Jacob last saw me, and filled out, too. My hair was longer, and a beautiful shade of red that had darkened with age. My eyes were brighter and bluer than he probably remembered, and my eyeliner only made them appear all the more obvious. I was a full C-cup now, with a tiny waist and
womanly hips and legs that went on forever. Despite all the issues I’d had growing up, self-esteem wasn’t one of them. I knew I was beautiful.
But would Jacob think that? And why did I care? He was my brother—well, my stepbrother, but it was all the same.
Wasn’t it?
I frowned at my reflection and brought my robe a little tighter around my body before heading out into the living room. Jacob was already sitting on the couch, scrolling through Netflix on an enormous home theatre system in search of the worst movie he could find. He wasn’t in his pajamas, which made me feel a little uneasy about what I’d chosen to wear. I decided to break the ice about it before he could say something.
“I guess you forgot about the pajama aspect, huh?” I said, grinning nervously as I sat down beside him.
Jacob stared at him, clearly trying to not let his gaze drop as I got comfortable on the cushion. For some reason, I liked that he had to restrain himself. “I… guess I did, yeah,” he said with a laugh that seemed a little too shrill. “Those aren’t exactly the pajamas I remember you wearing as a kid, though.”