Home For The Holidays, Falling For Her Stepbrother

Doe Eyed Beauty

Hunter POV

I flipped through the file, slightly hungover the next morning, scowling heavily to myself. I was still upset that the girl had vanished during the night when I’d been forced to take that annoying phone call from Sandra. I shook my head, reading through the information, sipping from a cup of coffee, the caffeine doing very little to perk up my spirits. Although there had been several other women who had tried to hit on me, none of them had amounted to the big doe-eyed angel I had seen last night and I hadn’t been interested, choosing to go to my hotel room alone. I sighed, still feeling disappointed about it all.

"Dana Thomas" I read, glancing through the file, "twenty-seven years old. Brunette, brown eyes. Female." I rolled my eyes at the obviousness of that statement, "grew up in several foster homes until she turned eighteen" I felt a small pang at that, unable to deny that the girl, who was my stepsister, had it rough. "Lived on the streets for almost a year" I growled, slamming my hand down on the table, sloshing liquid everywhere, "from all reports is extremely independent, resourceful, and reliable. Her current boyfriend goes by the name of Jackson Grant, a 30-year-old business executive with a dodgy credit report and certain displeasing qualities."

There was a photograph of Jackson, and I sneered, taking in his tall and lanky frame, crooked nose, and beady eyes. He looked like he belonged to the mafia or something. I turned the page and then sucked in a breath as a photograph of Dana fell out, my hand slowly reaching down to pick it up, unable to believe my eyes as I took in the picture. It was none other than the girl I had tried to pick up last night.

This was my stepsister, my stepfather’s biological daughter, who had been taken away from him. It was impossible, I thought numbly, but the evidence was staring right in front of me. I stroked the photograph, eyeing her curves, her bright smile at the camera, the soft earthy tones of her eyes, and the confident pose she struck, unaware she was being captured on film. She was stunning. A vision. But, of course, I had seen her before. Up close and personal. My mouth went dry. I almost wanted to laugh at how fate seemed to have brought us together so easily. I hadn’t known the girl’s real identity last night when I met her, but now I knew that she had been none other than the Dana I had been looking for. I met my stepsister last night at the bar and almost took her home! Guilt washed over me. My stepfather would have had a fit if he found that out. I groaned, closing my eyes in exasperation. Of all the women in this town, it had to be her that I had instantly been attracted to. How cruel of Cupid’s arrow, I thought sardonically, drinking down my coffee and taking note of her address. It looked as though any thoughts I had of this angel were going to have to be cast aside. It was hardly appropriate for a stepbrother to have feelings for his stepsister, even one who had no knowledge of him until now.

According to the report that my stepfather Lionel’s investigator had, done, Dana lived with her boyfriend Jackson. They weren’t far away from my hotel. I put my coffee cup down and then headed towards my car in the parking lot, lost in thought. Dana didn’t know about me, her father, or anything about her family. She had grown up all alone. Something that I knew devastated Lionel. His wife, at the time, had taken Dana with her when she left, after discovering that Lionel had been having an affair, and had been involved in a car accident soon afterward. Dana ended up in the foster system with no one the wiser to who she was. By the time Lionel had discovered the truth and what happened, it was too late to find Dana, who had been shuffled from foster house to foster house, her last name permanently changed. It had only been now, with the hard work of an investigator and the use of several hardcore technological databases not provided to ordinary public citizens, that we had found her at all.

I drove to Dana’s house, looking at the rather average building with a grimace. It wasn’t extravagant by any means, but by all reports, Dana earned an average wage and didn’t spend beyond her means. I got out of the car and headed towards the door, frowning when I heard some cries from beyond, that sounded like somebody in pain.

"Help, somebody, please, help."

Dana. I could hear the fear in her voice as she pleaded for somebody to stop hurting her. I could feel my body violently shaking with rage. Somebody was hurting my angel, my stepsister. I had no doubt it was that, no good boyfriend of hers. Without thinking, I kicked the front door open, stepping into the doorway, facing the man who had his hand wrapped tightly around Dana’s neck. Bastard. I abhorred men who laid hands on women, but this was my stepsister he was touching. I was going to tear him limb from limb and enjoy doing it. I cracked my knuckles.

"Let go of her, you bastard."

It wasn’t a request but a demand. He had one chance. I could see the fear in Dana’s eyes. She was white as a sheet. I could feel my fury rising. She was struggling for breath. Jackson commented, and I lost it. I tackled him, forcing him to let go of Dana, who fell to the ground with a heavy thud. I wrestled with the man, getting on top of him and punching him in the face as he tried without success to block my attack. I was filled with rage.

"You son of a b***h" I snarled, hitting him over and over, watching with satisfaction as blood trickled from his lips. "Coward" I raged, "touching a woman in that way" I hissed, smacking his head against the ground hard and watching as his eyes bulged in fear.

"Stop" he gasped, as I pummelled him. "Please" he begged.

Another punch, before I got to my feet. I kicked him in the stomach and watched as he doubled over in pain. I leaned down and grabbed him by the hair and hit his head against the ground, causing him to go unconscious, my rage beginning to diminish, but not completely, as I turned to go to Dana, who continued to lay on the floor.

She was out cold. I bent down and checked her pulse. She was alive but unconscious. I exhaled, looking down at her grimly. I could see fingerprints on her neck, where the bastard had gripped her tightly with his fingers. There were bruises on her arms and her hair was disheveled as though he’d been pulling at it. I cursed, wishing I had hurt him more than I had.

I pushed her hair back from her face gently. Even now, she still looks beautiful. I reached into my cell phone and dialed. Lionel’s voice was eager as he answered.

"Have you found her?" he demanded.

I glanced at the girl and sighed. "I’ve found your daughter, Lionel" I confirmed, "but there’s a" I paused and looked at the boyfriend with a scowl, "situation that might need a bit of your intervention," I confessed.

"What happened? You didn’t kill her boyfriend, did you?" he asked, only half joking.

He knew me too well. Or maybe he recognized what I was capable of more than anyone else did. I gripped the cell phone a little tighter. "Not kill him exactly," I said tightly as Lionel let out a large exhale "but let’s just say for the moment he’s impaired and leave it at that."

"Is she okay?" he asked anxiously, "she's not injured is she?"

"She’s unconscious. The bastard was hurting her when I arrived, which accounts for his condition at the moment." I gave a crooked grin. "I left him in worse shape as punishment."

"Son of a b***h" Lionel swore, sounding violent. "I wish I was there. Get her back here Hunter. I want the doctors to look her over."

"She might not be too pleased to find we’ve kidnapped her. What about her things?" I asked lowly "And the situation here?"

"I’ll take care of it all. I want her to come home where she’s safe and can be looked after. We’re not kidnapping her; we’re simply returning her to where she rightfully belongs," Lionel said darkly.

It was still kidnapping, but if it made Lionel feel better to put it that way or justified our actions, then who was I to argue? I bent down and picked Dana up in my arms as the old man hung up, feeling her body resting limply in my arms, her breasts pushing against my chest as I cradled her, causing me to inwardly groan as I carried her out to the car. I carried her easily, placing her carefully in the backseat, lying her down so that she wasn’t injured any further, and then got back into the car and in the driver's seat. As I drove towards home, which was several hours away, I continued to glance in the rearview mirror, stealing glances at her, captivated by her beauty and intrigued by the kind of person she was. I hoped she woke up in a good mood because I had a feeling that once she discovered where she was, it was all going to go downhill fast. The fact we were stepbrother and stepsister continued to plague me the entire trip, as did my increasing attraction to her. This buxom beauty would prove to test my self-restraint in ways I never could have imagined over the next few days, and as I faced my stepfather, whose relief was palpable as he looked her over, I struggled to contain the desire I felt within, keeping firmly to the background in an effort to hide it, not just from myself, but from everyone else.