Mated To My Obsessive Stepbrother

Chapter 82

Chapter 82

KESTER.

The room still smelled of her faint traces of sweat and sex, the sheets tangled from where I had fucked her until her voice broke,

I had brought the sex from the mini room to the main bedroom. I wanted to mark every corner of this room with our sin. And I almost did.

Just a few more corners left.

She had clawed at my back, bitten into my shoulder, screamed my name like she had nothing left in her world but

1. me.

And for a while, that was all I needed.

Now, reality had crept back in.

I sat at the edge of the bed, naked, one hand dragging through my damp hair while the other scrolled through the endless stream of disaster flooding my inbox.

The Scotland branch was bleeding money. Someone was pulling strings behind the scenes and cutting off my -supply chain.

I exhaled slowly, rubbing the bridge of my nose. Valor Lante was behind this. That much was clear. But they weren't attacking directly. They were using Belinzo.

The contract between Belinzo and Valor Lante had seemed harmless on the surface-just a standard supplier agreement, nothing more. But now it was obvious what was happening.

They were prioritizing Valor Lante's shipments, pushing Zamford Tech to the bottom of the list.

They had cut me off from the very materials I needed to keep my projects moving.

My fingers tapped on the keyboard of my laptop as I typed out an email to Rhys Carter, my Operations Manager.

Me: I need you to get to Scotland ASAP. Dig into the supply chain. Find out exactly where the chokehold is. If Belinzo is the problem, I want proof. If Valor Lante is pulling the strings, I want leverage. We can't afford another quarter like this. If you need to put pressure on the smaller suppliers, do it. But I want shipments moving. Call me the second you get anything useful.

I hit send, then reached for my phone. There were other fires to put out, and I had to do it myself. Not because there wasn't someone who could help―June could. With a single word, she could smooth this over.

Her father's connections stretched farther than the Mediterranean Sea. That's how connected he was.

He could twist Belinzo's arm, put pressure on Valor Lante, and make sure the Scotland branch stopped bleeding before the next quarter collapsed on me.

That was why my father wanted this marriage so fucking badly. It wasn't about me, or love, or family. It was strictly about power.

And inaybe that was what I should do. Maybe I should stop being so fucking stubborn, marry June, let her fix this and be done with it.

But I wasn't going to.

I wasn't going to crawl to her. Wasn't going to let my father push me into a life I didn't want with a woman I felt

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Chapter 82

nothing for.

my company back from the edge on my own, then I had no business running it. Jaw tight, I dialed Logan Drake, my

Belinzo contract with Valor Lante. I want to know if there's a loophole we can use to break their exclusivity

end. "This again? Kester, if Belinzo signed

their rights." My voice came out sharp, low. "I care about getting

over.

pause. Then, "I'll see

I hung up.

was on, and the low hum of the news already felt like a distraction to me. I felt like turning it off already. But before I picked up the remote, a name mentioned by the reporter

Elliot Greyson.

Hooked

face was on

display-the one he had obviously taken before he got on the

Young Entrepreneur, Found Dead Mid-Flight

off when I heard angry

fucking thing, still running theories, still digging for answers they'd never find because the only

"Kester!"

Fuck. Not now.

stairs sent a pulse through my skull. I already knew why

back, muscles coiling, bracing myself just

in my shirt, her hair still a mess from what

she saw me sitting

eyes flicked to the TV, then

"You knew."

was not a

Instead, I set

plane, Kester. He was the one was talking to when you walked in and dragged me with you. And now he's dead." She left the door and took slow steps toward me as if she were walking close to something she couldn't bear to believe. She looked at

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Chapter 82

let the silence settle between us while I let her

hitched, and I saw tears gathering

crying for

Another. Fucking. Man.

girl and her attachment to them? Why does

with this, Kester. Please." She whispered, desperate for me to deny it. One tear slipped down her cheek. A single drop, but it felt like I was bleeding from the heart. I hated it when she

to wear. "You know who I am, Kasmine. Don't ask me to lie

the whimper that had already escaped

I already had enough I was handling. Women's drama wasn't one I'd like to add to my

trying to make me feel something I didn't. "He was here on

don't fucking care, Kasmine!" I snapped at her, turning to face her. "And if another man fucking touches you like that again, I'll do more than kill him silently

"I'll cut off

"Kester..."