Claimed By My Stepbrother novel Chapter 45

Chapter 45

Camila POV

The night stretched on, cold and quiet except for the faint rustling of leaves in the breeze. My boots crunched against the gravel path es 1 kept moving forward. The sting in my scraped palms was a dull throb now, barely noticeable compared to the whirlwind of emotions swirling in my chest.

I didn’t know where I was going. Part of me hoped I’d stumble across something- anything- that could make sense of the chaos my life had become. The other part of me didn’t care where I ended up as long as it wasn’t back home, where Ethan, Greg and my mother’s tears waited for me.

As I walked, a faint sound caught my attention. I froze, my breath hitching as I strained to listen. Voices. Someone was talking or maybe yelling? I couldn’t make out the words, but the tone was sharp, heated.

Curiosity pulled me forward, my feet moving almost of their own accord. The sound grew louder, more distinct, and I found myself slipping off the gravel path and into the shadows of a nearby alley. The dim light from a flickering streetlamp cast long, eerie shadows against the walls of the buildings.

That’s when I saw them.

A man and a woman stood a few feet away, their silhouettes framed by the orange glow of the streetlamp. The woman was tall, with long dark hair that swayed as she moved, her voice rising angrily. The man…

My heart skipped a beat as recognition set in. Liam.

But it wasn’t the Liam I knew. Gone was the playful glint in his eyes, the easygoing smile that always seemed to put people at ease. Instead, his expression was cold, almost chilling, and a cruel smirk twisted his lips.

The woman was yelling now, her voice cracking with emotion. “You’re a liar! A cheat! I can’t believe I ever trusted

you!”

Liam didn’t say a word. He just stood there, hands in his pockets, that same cruel smirk plastered on his face as if her anger amused him.

Then, without warning, she slapped him.

The sound echoed through the alley, sharp and loud, making me flinch. Liam’s head barely moved from the impact, but his smirk only grew wider. The woman glared at him, her chest heaving with anger, before spinning on her heel and storming off.

I held my breath, watching as Liam slowly turned his head to follow her retreating figure. His expression was unreadable now, but there was something in his eyes- something dark and unsettling- that made my stomach twist.

I was about to turn and leave, to get as far away from this scene as possible, when his voice cut through the silence.

“You can come out now.”

My heart stopped.

For a moment, I considered pretending I hadn’t heard him, staying hidden in the shadows. But the wa calm, confident, like he knew I was there- left me with no choice.

said it-

1/3

Chapter 45

Swallowing hard, I stepped out into the dim light, my arms crossed tightly over my chest. “I… I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, I stammered, my voice shaky.

Liam’s eyes locked onto mine, and I felt a shiver run down my spine. That cruel smirk was still there, though it softened slightly as he tilted his head, studying me like I was some kind of puzzle he couldn’t quite figure out.

“What are you even doing down here?” he asked, his tone casual but laced with something I couldn’t quite place.

I hesitated, unsure how to answer. “I was just… walking,” I said finally, avoiding his gaze.

“At this time of night? Alone?” He raised an eyebrow, the smirk fading into something closer to genuine curiosity.

I shrugged, not trusting myself to say anything more. The truth sounded ridiculous even to me: I had stormed out of the house after accusing my stepdad and his son of being monsters, wandered aimlessly until I ended up here, and now I’d

stumbled across this.

Liam took a step closer, his boots clicking softly against the pavement. I forced myself to stand still, even though every instinct was screaming at me to back away.

“You shouldn’t be out here,” he said, his voice low. “It’s not safe.”

I let out a bitter laugh, the sound harsh in the quiet alley. “Trust me, I’ve had worse nights.”

He didn’t respond right away, just kept looking at me with that same unreadable expression. For a moment, I thought he might say something else, but then he glanced over his shoulder, towards where the woman had disappeared.

“She won’t be back,” he stated, almost to himself.

I frowned, my curiosity getting the better of me. “Who was she?”

Liam turned back to me, his smirk returning. “No one important.”

The way he said it made my stomach twist again. There was something so detached, so uncaring in his tone that it sent a chill down my spine.

“Right,” I muttered, suddenly desperate to get away. “Well, I should probably-”

“Wait.”

The single word stopped me in my tracks. Liam took another step closer, and I noticed for the first time just how tall he was, how his shadow seemed to stretch out and engulf mine under the streetlamp’s glow.

“You seem… off,” he said, his eyes narrowing slightly. “Like something’s bothering you.”

I froze, my mind racing.

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