In Love With My Evil Stepbrother

Chapter 80: Christmas Gift “Cin,” Ms. Griswold steps aside and letsinto her presidential suite.

The room is enormously large. While I'm still carefully studying the layout of the room, Ms. Griswold already walked pastto the liquor caband poured lierself a scotch. “So,” she takes her seat and crosses her legs, “Why do you need to see me?” Her eyes are full of distant. She doesn’t even hate me. She just thinks that I'm a dirt that doesn’t deserve her tand attention.

“Well?” she urges me. “Hurry. | don’t have all day.” So | speak, straightforwardly, “Call off their marriage now.” She pauses for a short moment, and then burst into a booming laughter. She lauglis so hard that her scotch spilled out. “Oh dear, oh dear,” she shakes her head still laughing, “Are you coming here to beg me? If you are, at least givethe proper attitude, like crying, pleading, dropping to your knees?” “I'm not liere to beg you,” my jaw tenses. Yet she carries on as if she didn’t hear me, “Your mom was really good at it you know? She beggedto give up on Shawn. She begged so hard that | almost feel sorry for her” | stride over and snatch her glass of scotch. The next moment, | smash the glass onto the floor, causing her to jump up from her seat and scream.

“You crazy little bitch!” she yells at the top of her lung. “What are you doing!” “Do not insult my mother,” | point a finger at her panic face. “You thought I didn’t know what happened? My mom met Mr. Ramirez after you two were divorced. She doesn’t need to beg you to give up on Mr. Ramirez, because he already left you a long tbefore that.” Her face is twisted with fury and embarrassment, “You disrespectful little shit-" “I would have poured that scotch onto your face if you weren't Eason’s mother. Now, sit and listen to me!” 1 point at the sofa and command her. I'm a little shocked at how brave | am right now. | used to be terrified of confrontations. | tried to avoid it at all costs. Yet now, I'm bossing around Ms. Griswold. God I'm proud of myself.

Guess I'm just really mad at what she did to Eason, Anger givescourage.

She stares at me, astonished. To my surprise, she sits down eventually under my command and snorts, “What else do you have to say? Their marriage is settled. There's no way I'm calling it off.” | decide to cut to the chase, “I know you are after Eason’s inheritance. Katherine's family is carrying huge debt.

Only the Ramirez's money can get them out of their deep hole. Call off their marriage now or I'll tell everyone about this.” She sneers, “That's your big reason? Wake up to the real world dear! All upper-class marriages are based on either money or title. Eason has money and Katherine has title. It’s a win-win.” I looks at lier coldly, “I also know that you are daling Katherine's father.” That's when her cocky smile freezes up. | carry on, knowing that I've pushed the right button, “You are trying to use Eason’s inheritance to save the Booth’s family, right?llow do you think Mr. Ramirez will react to this? If he finds out that his ex-wife is ganging up with lier lover to steal his money? | guess he wouldn't be very pleased.” She narrows her eyes dangerously, like a predator setting eyes on its prey. But I'm not afraid of her anymore.

Between the only two people in this room, I'm the younger and stronger one She slowly rises from her seat, approaching me. “You've got a lot of nerve meddling our business, young lady. Do you know what you are facing? We are fucking powerful people. | can stamp you out like a fucking cockroach if | want to.” “Oli yeah?” | whisper back, staring defiantly into her eyes. “What can you do?” “OK if you really want to know...

oh you are studying at Columbia University, right? And you have a student loan? Can you still afford a school like that if your student loan is revoked?” she ciccles.

My heart sinks. This is low. “No you can’t,” | try to stop myself from panicking, “You can revoke it based on no grounds. Ji’s against the policy -” “Policy my ass. Policy and law are only used to control normal people like you. For powerful people like us, it'll only takea phone call to the university board to destroy your academic lise. Now get it?” | eye her furiously, iny hand curling up into a ball My angry expression pleases her and she continues even more excitedly, “oh and you have a stepbrother Liam right? | heard that he is currently working at a law firm in Chicago. What if | tell you that a senior partner at that law firm also happens to be my friend? It's very easy to fire a junior attorney like him.” “Don’t you touch liim!” | snap.

“Look, I'm not the one here seeking trouble, OK?” she points her finger at my chest and laughs coldly. “None of this would happen if you just step aside and pretend you didn’t see anything. Go find someone ordinary and boring. My son is way out of your league.” She knows aboutand Eason! How could she know? When did she know! Did Mr. Ramirez tell her? No, | doubt it...he knows that we have a rough relationship, so he would never do anything intentionally to deteriorate it.

So she must have lown for a very long time.

And then, something flashes across my mind, and | cry out in shock, “The letter...the flower... the message! It was you!!” 11 there really is a tyysterious someone who took away the letter and flower Eason Sentthree years ago, it could only be her.

She is the only one who had the full access to the entire liouse. She was also around the house a lot, which means that she could easily use my phone to text Lason and deleted the message afterwards.

And most importantly, she is the only person who bales une enough to orchestrate the whole thing Faced by my accusation, she lets out a short and shrill laugh.

“It took you long enough to find out, didn’t it?” she shrugs her shoulders. “That move wasn’t clever, but it was still enough to keep you two separated for years. | did it once. | can do it again.” 1 stare at lier, my body shaking. How could she-how could a mother do something like that to her own son?! “You are his mom for god's sake! Have you ever thought about what's good for him?!” “I have! That's why I'm asking him to marry Katherine instead of you!” she stares atcritically and snorts.

“You think you deserve my son, you little scumbag? I've already lost my husband to that whore. I'm not losing my son again to her daughter!” My chest moves up and down rapidly because of anger. She lets out a sneer and goes into the bedroom.

Moments later, she comes back with a letter in her hand.

| suddenly realize what it is. | can’t believe she still has it after all those years.

“You can have this, on one condition.” She waves the letter in the air, like luringinto a trap. “You promise.

You will never tell anyone about anything we talked about today.” My eyes follow the letter involuntarily, “I promise.” She studies my face, carefully judging if I'm telling the truth. Moments later, she handsthe letter, “Remember. It only takes one phone call to destroy both you and your brother's futures.” | snap the letter away from her and turn around to leave. She giggles behind me, her voice full of mockery, as if she’s laughing at my complete failure. | hurry out of her room, running down the hallway and straight into the elevator. When | make sure no one is around, | carefully take out something from my pocket.

A recorder.

I've recorded every single word she said to me. | sneer internally, looking at the recorder in my palm. Yes, | promised not to tell anyone myself. But people will hear the truth from her own mouth.

| guess slie still underestimated me. She should have searchiedfirst before lettingin.

Then | open Eason'’s letter eagerly. My lieart is thumbing wildly against my chiest.

| can’t wait to see what he has got to say to6 years ago...? ork When | get back liome, it’s almost 12, long past dinner time.

| sneak into the house quietly. Everyone has gone to bed, except Eason. He is sitting by the fireplace when | cin, with a book on his lap.

(Where have you been?” le raises his eyebrow at me. “It’s Christmas Eve. Your mom was pissed off big time.” | dust off the snow on my shoulder and sit down beside him, “I was out getting your Christinas gist ready.” “Oh?” he seems surprised.

| take out a beautifully wrapped gift box and hand it to him, “Merry Christmas Eason.” He accepts my gift, astonished and shocked. The light from the fireplace is dancing in his green eyes, adding a glamourous glow to his pupil. He is so handsome, almost godlike. I look at him intently, not missing a single change of reaction on his face.

“Why are you lookinglike this?” he murmurs. A nervous blush appears on his face, which is kind of cute.

“Nothing,” | smile lightly. “Hey Eason. Can | ask you a question?” “Yeah, of course.” He sits up a bit. “Do you love Katherine?” He suddenly widens his eyes. His jaw is clenched immediately.”...What?” “I said, do you love Katherine?” | repeat my question. And before he makes a sound, | answer that question myself. “I don’t think you do.” He leans forward even more, a clear hint of anxiousness on his face. He stretches out his arm and tries to grab me, but | stand up before he gets me. “Good night, Eason.” | say breezily. | bend down to hug him and feel his muscle tensed up like a piece of rock under his shirt. That hug is really brief. Before he can react, | already walk away. “Natalia!” he growls lowly behind me. “What the fuck” “Just open my gift!” | wave my hand and go upstairs without turning back. That night, I go to sleep with a light mood. But a loud noise wakesup during the middle of the night. | open my eyes sleepily, yawing, and then realize the noise is coming from the door.

Someone is pounding at my bedroom door. “Natalia! Open the fucking door!” God, does he want everyone to hear him? | hurry to the door. As soon as | open it, he storms in. “What the hell is this?” he raises my Christmas gilt, his eyes bloodshot. It's that recorder with all my conversations with Ms. Griswold in it.