Dare: A Stepbrother Romance Read Online Free Page A

feigned an innocent expression. “Is that not what I said?”
    Marie laughed. “No, you said Tatiana.”
    I pretended to absentmindedly think things over. “Hmm, I guess I got my words all mixed up. Ah, I know what it is. I was just watching a movie with a main character called Tatiana. I must’ve had the name on the tip of my tongue. Anyway, Sophie, how’ve you been? Long time no see. It must be around eight hours since I last saw you! Sorry, I mean eight years. ”
    Two red splotches had appeared on her cheeks now, and she didn’t meet my eyes as she responded. “Um…I’ve been good. It’s great to see you again, Andrew. Or is it Drew now?”
    Her voice sounded sweet, but it was tinged with a hint of sarcasm that could only be picked up by someone who knew exactly what had happened between us last night at the hotel. I still couldn’t believe it was her. When I’d first seen those sexy curves and later had those delicious lips of hers pressing over mine, I’d never suspected in a million years that the hottie I knew as Tatiana was actually my old childhood friend, Sophie. And how could I have known? She’d given me a fake name for fuck-knows what reason, and she looked completely different. There was no way I would have ever picked her as the same girl from all those years ago. The Sophie I remembered was kinda chubby with frizzy black curls, an overbite and a shy demeanor. Somehow that little girl had grown up into the goddess standing before me right now.
    Judging by the look on her face when I’d walked in, she hadn’t recognized me the other night either. She wasn’t the only one who’d drastically changed. Since we’d last seen each other before me and my Dad moved away, I’d grown about two feet, gained a shit-ton of muscle and lost the shitty haircut and baby-face. I was a completely different person now. Back then, I’d been a stupid little nerd who liked collecting tadpoles and reading books. And now? Now I was the total opposite. Since I’d grown into myself in high school, I’d morphed into the kind of guy who didn’t give a fuck what anyone else thought, which of course made me seem awesome in everyone else’s eyes. The looks and money didn’t hurt either. I’d had girls lining up around the block to try and get with me since I was fourteen, and that wasn’t going to change anytime soon. Thank God for that. Since hitting puberty, I’d loved women, and it was a blessing that they loved me right back.
    We all went into the lounge room, and fragmented memories swept through my mind as I took in the faded floral sofa set, the same old lamp, and the mantelpiece above the fireplace where photos of Marie and Sophie sat along with a few figurines. When we were seven, Sophie and I had dug up some clay from beside the creek that ran through our backyards and tried to make a teapot for her Mom. We’d even painted the ridiculous lump it had turned out as, and there it was, in the exact same place Marie had lovingly placed it.
    I sat down next to Sophie, who seemed horrified by the arrangement, if the expression on her face was anything to go by. Dad and Marie sat across from us, both of them beaming from head to toe, and I suppressed the urge to roll my eyes. No way was this real. There had to be something else going on here. We hadn’t seen Marie or Sophie in years…or so I’d thought. I’d helped out Dad with his company whenever I wasn’t doing photo shoots or promo work, so I spent a lot of time with him. I would’ve liked to think that I’d have known if he was seeing a woman, but apparently he was better at hiding things from me than I thought.
    I leaned towards Sophie and murmured. “So is that what you do for fun, go out at night with a fake identity? Do you solve crimes and do other superhero stuff, or is your area of expertise focused purely on teasing the fuck out of men?”
    Her face was bright red now, and she turned her head and ignored me. I found myself wondering