My Stepbrother's Dirty Little Secret novel Chapter 72

"So soft," she whispered, "It feels like... like clouds."

My blood turned to ice. This wasn't just fear. This wasn't just shock.

I let go of her heels and reached up, my hand wrapping firmly around her jaw. I forced her chin up, tilting her head back until she had no choice but to look at me. I leaned in, my face inches from hers, my eyes searching for the truth.

I saw it immediately.

Her pupils were massive, black ink spilling over her green iris until there was almost no color left. Her eyes weren't focusing on me, they were jumping around. Her pulse was thrumming against my thumb.

She was drugged. Someone had put something in her system.

"What did he give you?" I hissed, my grip on her chin tightening. The image of Ciro flashed in my mind.

A red wave of fury crashed over me. We trusted him to watch over our family. We had told him to keep them safe when we're not there. Instead, he had brought her to a place where men wore masks and hunted women, and he had filled her blood with chemicals to make her compliant.

To make her a better "prey."

"Did Ciro give you a pill, Gianna? Tell me!"

She just smiled, a small, broken tilt of her lips. She reached up, her hand trembling as she touched the cold silver rings on my fingers. "Your hands are so warm, Raphael."

I felt a roar of protectiveness flare up in my chest. I pulled her closer, my other hand landing on the back of her neck, holding her head steady. I wanted to shake her, to wake her up, but there was no use. I don't even know what she took.

"I'm going to kill him," I muttered against her forehead.

I looked back down at her mangled, bleeding feet and the dilated mess of her eyes.

I stood up, and went to the black cabinet and grabbed the heavy first aid kit. I slammed it down on the table next to her.

"Stay still," I ordered.

Her fingers wrapped around my wrist, pulling my hand back, and pressed my palm flat against her bare waist, right above the edge of her shorts.

"This feels so good," she sighed, her eyes closing. "Do that again. Touch me there."

My blood turned into liquid fire. I felt a surge of heat hit my gut so hard I almost lost my breath. Her skin was hot and soft under my fingers. I could feel her heart racing, her skin humming with the drug that was making her feel everything ten times over.

I should have pulled away. She was high. She didn't know what she was doing. And I wasn't a monster who took advantage of a girl who couldn't see straight.

"Gianna, stop," I said sternly, but my voice lacked its usual bite. I tried to pull my hands back, but she leaned into me, her small body pressing against my chest.

I looked up at her then.

Really looked at her.