Chapter 1 The betrayal

"Okay, I'll let him know about it, I think he's busy at the moment," Brooklyn said over the phone, a small smile spreading over her lips as she hung up the call.

Her hands reached for the glass of wine she had been sipping for the past few minutes while scrolling through her contact list to dial his number.

It was still the same, – ringing without any response. Brooklyn heaved a disappointed sigh, her shoulders dropping as she placed her phone back on the table.

Zayne...

Thinking about him excited her. He was her first love, and after so many fantasies and years of being together, – they were finally getting married the next day.

It was supposed to be her bachelorette party, and her step-sister, Kimberly, was the one in charge of all the preparations.

She was supposed to meet up with Zayne at the restaurant by 5pm, and Kimberly by 6pm. But Kimberly had given an excuse that she had to pick up the outfits for her and the rest of the girls, while Zayne was unreachable and nowhere to be found.

Brooklyn checked her watch for the time – 7:24 p m, yet neither of them was meeting up with her. She planned to head home before going to the hotel where the party was being held, but for some reason, she felt compelled to stop over at her mother's house.

It came as a surprise to her when she found Zayne's car parked in front of the house. Brooklyn stepped out of her car, her hands reaching for her sunglasses to take them off. She realized that it wasn't a mistake at all, – that was indeed Zayne's car!

If Zayne was at her mother's, then why wasn't he picking up his calls? Was he busy? Or did it have something to do with the wedding?

"Mum?"

She called out to her mother, her eyes searching the entire place while walking into the living room. There wasn't a sight of her anywhere, and neither was Zayne.

"I wonder where they may be," murmuring, she threw her purse on the couch and was about to ascend the stairs when she saw the housekeeper coming out of the kitchen.

"Skyler. Where's mum?"

"She said she had a meeting," Skyler responded, her hands brushing the edges of the apron she had on, "She left about an hour ago."

Brooklyn nodded quietly, knowing how much of a workaholic her mother was. Sophia Moreno was a career woman who never took her work as a mere obligation.

"It's fine," Brooklyn said with a forced smile, heaving a sigh as she proceeded up the stairs, but remembering something that she had seen earlier, she turned around to ask Skyler, who was about to return to her duties.

"Is Zayne here? I saw his car parked outside,"

Skyler stiffened at the question, a look of hesitation suddenly etched on her face. She didn't say anything and kept fidgeting with her fingers. Brooklyn stared at her with her brows arched, waiting for a response.

"Skyler?"

"I– I need to get back to the kitchen ma'am, I– the oven must have turned off a few minutes ago,"

She didn't spend another second before running off, leaving Brooklyn standing there while dying of confusion.

'It was just Skyler being silly, or maybe it had to be a surprise she couldn't share,' that was her thought as she shrugged her shoulders and concerns off, her legs climbing up the stairs.

Brooklyn headed straight to her mother's room, trying to shower and have a change of outfit before heading to the hotel. She walked slowly, her hands typing a message on the group chat she created for her bachelorette party.

Everyone was responding except Kimberly. And to her surprise and disappointment, Kimberly still hadn't arrived at the hotel with the clothes she was supposed to pick up!

Brooklyn was already fuming. Kim hadn't shown up to meet her and still hadn't gone to the hotel. And the worst part was,- she still wasn't picking up!

She tried calling her again when her eyes caught something in the hallway – one of the guest rooms was open, and she could hear voices of people talking.

Curiosity grew within her. If her mother wasn't home, then who were the people talking in the room? Was it Zayne? Because although his car was outside, she hadn't seen him anywhere since she got inside.

Brooklyn walked past her mother's room, heading straight to where the voices were coming from. Her lips were curled into a smile as she thought of an imagination playing in her head: maybe it was Zayne planning a surprise for her.

She heard a female voice, and for a second, her heart skipped a beat in fear. What was another woman doing in the house? And when Zayne was in it? Or was she overthinking everything again?

Her eyes caught sight of the white stiletto heels that were placed at the door. She could tell whose shoes they were, – they were hers, until she had given them to Kimberly last spring.

So, it was Kimberly in the house? But with who? Was it Zayne?

Brooklyn heard the voices, they were clearer now. She matched one to be Kimberly's, and the other? Zayne...

Standing in front of the half-opened door, Brooklyn realized that it was indeed their voice, but they weren't just talking; they were moaning.

Soft moans...

'Wait. Were they having sex? In her mother's house?'

It had to be a mistake, and she wanted it to be a lie even though she could hear them clearly. Kimberly's voice was moaning his name, – and begging him to go harder while he kept grunting in ecstasy.

She felt her heart immediately jump into her mouth, and goosebumps grew all over her skin. It was a surprise after all, – her fiancée and stepsister had surprised her with their betrayal.

She raised her head slowly and diverted her eyes to the scene; Her naked step-sister was on top of Zayne, whose hands were firmly wrapped around her waist, aiding her bouncy movements on his manhood.

Brooklyn almost passed out at the sight, and couldn't find the tears that were forming in her eyes or the excitement she felt a few minutes ago. Everything had suddenly been replaced with shaky breaths, a failing heart, trembling hands, and quivering lips.

It took so much effort and strength for her not to cause a scene or collapse out of a broken heart. Her eyes were burning, but the fire destroyed her heart more as the sudden realization hit her right in the face.

Zayne was cheating on her with her stepsister. He was having sex with another woman just a day before their wedding, and to think they had both left her waiting for hours only to meet up secretly in each other's arms.

The tears came running freely, but not a single sound came out of her mouth except little, suppressed gasps. She had two options in her head; Confront them or walk away quietly.

Her feet stomped the floor as she descended the stairs, her tears falling harder than rain. Brooklyn rushed to the couch and hurriedly picked her purse up. Her mind wouldn't stop hurting her by replaying the scene of Zayne making love to Kimberly.

"Are you leaving? What– what happened to you?" Skyler asked out of concern, her Instincts already informed her about what had happened.

Brooklyn turned to her with red eyes that had tears streaming down her cheeks, "You knew about it, didn't you?"

"I– I'm sorry, I–"

"-It's not your fault," Brooklyn sniffed, interrupting and wiping her tears with the back of her palms, "Just don't tell anyone I was here, not even my mother,"

"Okay ma'am, but–"

Brooklyn didn't wait for her to complete whatever she had to say. Her feet had already carried her out of the house and all the way to her car.

Her hands gripped the steering wheel but it kept shaking, unable to hold it or even start the car with the keys. She felt so broken to the core, and it got worse when she kept receiving messages and calls about her bachelorette party that was supposed to have begun hours ago.

"Fuck everything!" She yelled, slamming her fists on the wheel, "Fuck the wedding, Fuck Zayne,"

She kept sobbing, her eyes already feeling swollen and itchy. Brooklyn tried her best to hold up, just so she could leave the premises before either of them found her.

'Drinks. Alcohol. Get wasted.'

That was all she could think of at the moment. She was going to drown herself in alcohol and try to forget about her heartache and misery.

Brooklyn pulled up at the hotel, her legs shaking in the platform heels she had on. She couldn't even walk properly; her heart was failing her, and her knees were getting numb.

"Can I get drinks around here?" She inquired from the first person she laid her eyes on – a muscular, tall guy with a blue T-shirt and plain pants on. He stood in the parking lot, next to his car with his hands typing aggressively on his phone.

"Sorry?" His voice was deep, husky, and damn attractive when he spoke, his eyes darting to her. For a moment, Brooklyn forgot all about the heartache and pain she was feeling.

"I'm supposed to be celebrating right now," she sobbed, bursting into another round of tears, "But, I can't even be happy for once in my life. Why does everything have to be so complicated?"

He arched his eyebrows in confusion, wondering what she was blabbing about and how he could be of help. She obviously seemed like a lady in distress, she kept sniffing her nostrils and lamenting about things he couldn't understand.

"Are you okay? Do you want to go somewhere?"

Brooklyn stared at him, her eyes scanning his whole body. She noticed a tattoo on his wrist, but couldn't see what it was clearly.

"Yes," she responded without thinking twice, "Just take me anywhere, I need to clear my head,"

He led the way inside the hotel, and to a suite he had paid for. Brooklyn threw herself on the bed the moment they got in, taking deep breaths and trying to numb her emotions.

"I need some drinks, please,"

He nodded, "Alright, I'll be right back. What do you care for?"

"Shots. Or anything with alcohol in it,"

He nodded again, turning on the lights before walking out.

Brooklyn saw a flash of the scene again in her head, and she tried not to think about it anymore, but it was hard. To make things worse, her phone started ringing and buzzing with messages, all from Zayne.

She hissed at his texts, and then turned her phone off. Tonight she was going to forget all about him and the wedding. All she was going to do was get high, wasted and have sex.

Sex...

The handsome stranger...

She had no idea who he was or what he did. But one thing was certain, she was going to give herself to him.

"I bought the drinks," his husky voice said to her as he returned, holding a few bottles with glasses, "I couldn't find–"

"- I want you to make love to me,"

He almost dropped the things he was holding as he stood there, watching her as she began to undress.

"Are– Are you okay?"

Was it an honest question of concern or an insult? Brooklyn didn't care, she had no idea what she was doing or if she had gone insane. Zayne's infidelity had broken her and this was her coping mechanism.

"Take off your clothes and make love to me," she ordered, getting up to her feet to help him undress, but he halted her with his hands immediately.

"Is that what you really want? For me to make love to you?'' It didn't sound like a question, it was more like a clarification, - a warning, trying to make her aware of what she was about to get into.

Brooklyn nodded without hesitation, her eyes giving him an innocent yet seductive look. She didn't care if what she wanted was wrong, she had been loyal to a man who had been sleeping with her step-sister secretly for 'God knows how long'.

"If we're going to have sex, then I'll be in charge of every single thing," his voice changed to a low, authoritative tone that made her almost melt to the ground. But, the moment she felt his hands on her skin, a tear ran down her legs.

"Now take off your clothes and spread your legs open for me on the bed,"

Brooklyn didn't hesitate. She was ready to be submissive to him for her desires and pleasure. With her seductive eyes staring deep into his dark, narrowed eyes, she took off every piece of clothing she had on.

Her bachelorette party was canceled. And her wedding? It didn't matter to her at that moment. All she wanted was to make passionate love to this stranger all night till the morning of her wedding...