Connor: A Cowboy Stepbrother Romance Novel (11 page)

My dad let out an angry sigh, but in the background I could hear the sound of typing.

“Goddammit, Emily,” he whispered. “Fine. I’m looking him up. But this is highly illegal so don’t you dare tell anybody about this.”

“Of course,” I said. “I won’t say a word.”

The typing continued in the background. My dad and I didn’t speak as he looked up Connor’s name in the police database. Suddenly, I heard my dad say something under his breath.

“Holy shit,” he whispered.

My heart skipped a beat.

“What is it?” I asked.

“Connor Watson, correct?” he asked.

Then he spelled out his last name just to be sure.

“W. A. T. S. O. N.?” he asked. “That’s how you spell it?”

I swallowed and then responded, “Yeah, that’s it. What does it say?”

“Well, let me ask you this first, Emily...” he said. “Why exactly did you want me to look him up?”

There was no use in hiding anything from him at that point, so I spilled my guts.

“Because Mom had found out something about Connor living in Boston at one point and robbing banks for a living. I wasn’t supposed to say anything to anybody, but I had to know if any of it was true.”

My dad was quiet as he listened. Then he finally spoke up.

“Well, let’s put it this way,” he said. “In regards to him being a bank robber. Well, yes, according to his record, that’s true. He was arrested five years ago for it and did his time in jail.”

My jaw dropped and I felt a wave of dizziness come over me. I suddenly felt nauseous.

“Seriously?” I asked.

“Yes, Emily,” he said. “It’s true.”

Then he paused for a moment.

“But that’s not only thing I’m seeing here,” he said.

“What is it?” I snapped back. “What else?”

“It seems there’s a whole hell of a lot about your new stepbrother that you didn’t know,” he responded. “This list is a mile long. Where should I start? There are many racketeering charges in here, including money laundering, fraud, extortion, loan sharking and bribery. You name it, it’s in here.”

My stomach turned and I stood up from the bench, taking a few deep breaths.

Oh, God...

I was about to respond when I heard the sound of footsteps approaching me from behind. I quickly turned around to see Connor walking toward me. He was wearing sweatpants with no shirt. His hair was messy and it was clear that he had just gotten out of bed.

“Everything okay out here?” Connor asked, as he neared the bench where I was standing.

I whispered into the phone, “Dad, I have to go. I’ll call you back.”

Then I hung up and slipped the phone into my pocket.

“Connor, we need to talk,” I said. “Right now.”

Connor’s boyish smile faded.

“About what?” he asked, looking concerned.

My arms were crossed as I stood there defensively. I was pissed.

“I wasn’t going to bring this up because I was worried about the consequences, but I don’t care any more, I need to know,” I stated. “Who are you, Connor? Tell me everything about your past or I’m leaving this farm and never coming back.”

Connor’s expression was unchanging as he gazed at me. We both stood there in silence for a few seconds and then he finally spoke up.

“I guess it was only a matter of time before this got brought up. But okay,” he said, matter-of-factly. “I’ll tell you who I am, or rather, who I
was.
Have a seat.”

We both sat down on opposite sides of the bench. I was dizzy with emotion but I did my best to keep it together.

“Well, go ahead,” I said, impatiently.

Connor sighed as he looked at me. A defeated expression was on his face.

“I’ve made some mistakes in my life, Emily. I’m by no means a perfect man. By the sound of it, it seems you already know a fair amount about my history. But I’ll give you the short version of what happened,” he said.

My arms were still crossed as I looked at him, waiting for him to continue.

“I moved to Boston when I was eighteen. My whole life I had watched my dad struggle with money, and I went out there with the intention of getting a degree and a high paying job. Unfortunately, I didn’t get the degree. I did, however, get the high paying job. But as you may already know, it was an illegal job. I robbed banks, Emily. I did it for years before I finally got caught.”

My heart began beating faster in my chest as I listened to his words.

“The thing is, Emily,” Connor continued. “Is that I was good at it. And I never hurt anybody. And most importantly, because of the risks that I took, I was able to get my dad completely out of debt. He would have lost this farm if it hadn’t been for the mistakes that I made in Boston. And yes, I had plenty of other charges on my record besides bank robbing. But it all comes with the territory.”

“Is that everything?” I asked.

Connor nodded, keeping his eyes locked with mine.

“Yes,” he stated. “That’s everything, Emily. I made some mistakes when I was younger but my intentions were always pure. I was a stupid kid. I didn’t realize that there were better ways to make good money. I’m really sorry that I never told you. But ever since I got out of jail, I’ve spent every moment just trying to put that life behind me. Every time I think about it, I just die inside. I wasted so much of my life inside of those concrete walls.”

Tears began to fill my eyes. I suddenly felt guilty for even bringing it up. It was clear that it was a sore spot for him and the fact that he had come clean to me was enough for me to forgive him. I scooted up next to him on the bench and leaned my head against his shoulder.

“I’m so sorry, Connor,” I whispered. “I just can’t believe that you’d ever do something like that.”

Connor wrapped an arm over my shoulder and held me close.

“Neither can I,” he responded. “But I was a different person, then. I was rebellious, angry, and didn't consider the consequences. But you know what? As I sit here next to you right now, I can’t say that I completely regret having done anything in my past. If I hadn’t done those things, then I may not have met you. I mean, if we had lost the farm all of those years ago then my dad probably would have been so depressed that he wouldn’t have ever gone on that dating site and met your mother.”

The tears that were filling my eyes finally overflowed and began to slide down my cheeks.

“I hadn’t thought of it like that,” I said.

Connor reached over and squeezed my shoulder affectionately.

“I just want you to know that I’m not a bad person, Emily,” he said. “And I hope, that in time, you’ll be able to see that on your own.”

I looked up at Connor through my tears.

“I already do, baby,” I whispered. “I already do.”

There was a long road ahead of me, though. There were so many things about Connor’s past that I had to accept. But I was willing to do it. I loved the man, after all. And I guess that’s what love is. It’s accepting someone for who they are
and
who they were. I knew it wouldn’t be easy, but I also knew that if I wanted to stay with him then I didn’t really have a choice.

And as we held each other next to the wildflower field, the strangest thing began to happen. I felt all of the anxiety and tension release from my body. Connor had been so forward with me about everything, and he had good reason to do what he did in Boston. And whether that was just a justification for it or not, I’d never know. But it didn’t really matter. All that mattered was that Connor was mine. The sexy, muscular, blue-eyed, ex-con cowboy who was snuggling with me on that bench was all mine, and nothing could ever take that away from me.

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...A
nd they lived happily ever after. Robert and Mary got married on Friday of that week, making Emily and Connor’s “stepsibling” status official. It forced them to live out their intimate lives in secret for years, until they finally decided to come clean. And when they finally did, nobody was too surprised.

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~The End~

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Steven: A Billionaire Stepbrother Romance Novel

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T
his novel is complete and ends with a HEA. 

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"I
don't care what anybody else would think about this, Steven. Just take me right now..." 

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M
y ordinary life as a young woman changed drastically when my mom got remarried. Things got complicated quickly and the entire dynamics of our family got turned upside down when William and his son, Steven, moved into our home. 

Steven was fifteen years older than me. He was gorgeous, muscular and rich. As a successful entrepreneur, Steven had no need to live under our roof, but had decided to do so in an effort to really get to know his new family. 

But even though society said that it was wrong to lust after my stepbrother, I find myself unable to control my urges. And it isn't long before both Steven and I step over the lines of what most people would consider to be "acceptable behavior". 

Can our love for one another be fully expressed or will it have to forever remain a secret?