Bullied By My Alpha Stepbrother novel Chapter 39

Jasmine

As I stood in the crowded party, surrounded by people and music, my thoughts were far from the festivities. I couldn't help but feel an overwhelming sense of fear and anxiety every time Hardin was nearby. Every touch, every word, made me cringe with revulsion.

And the way he had mouthed the words that I was next made me want to puke.

“Come with me Jasmine, let’s go over to the balcony,” Nadia mentioned, but I simply shook my head with a forced smile, while her eyes searched mine worriedly.

“You are sure you don’t want to go?”

“Yes,” I voiced out, then Nadia gave me a warm hug before leaving to join the rest of the crowd.

My mind was consumed with doubts and questions about what I did feel for Hardin. I had accepted the fact that whatever I shared with Hardin was mainly because I had no choice, and I definitely had no romantic feelings for him. But still, the thought of him being with other girls made my blood boil with anger. How dare he violate me whenever I was with Lorenzo, and now do his thing as he liked, shoving it in my face that I could do nothing, and that he was free to flirt with whoever he wanted? It was all so wrong, and I struggled to keep my emotions in check.

“I am back already, Jasmine,” Nadia said as I tried to turn away from where I stood. She had come just in time, though it did not favor me as I wanted to stay in every possible place away from Nadia’s continuous questions.

With visible concern etched on her face, “You had to come so soon?” I probed.

Nadia got to where I was before answering, “Yes dear. I didn't feel good about leaving you like that. Is anything really the problem?”

I wanted to tell her what was really going on, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. How could I tell her that my own step brother was the cause of my fear, as his molestations did not seem to stop. I was afraid that she wouldn't believe me, or worse, that she would judge me for keeping quiet and not reporting the abuse to the authorities.

Besides the last thing I wanted was for Russo to hate Hardin, which was certainly going to be the outcome. The look of terror and the threat to kill that always showed on Hardin’s face flashed through my mind and instantly, I flinched.

I managed to force a smile to Nadia and told her that everything was fine. Nadia looked at me skeptically, but she didn't push the issue. We chatted for a few more minutes, with my mind wandering about while I thought of a valuable excuse to leave Nadia’s presence.

Mainly because I was worried about the exact thing that Hardin was doing at that moment with Astrid and the other girl, and on the other hand, I did not want to mistakenly blurt out the troublesome things that filled my thoughts.

As I saw Lorenzo's name flashing on my phone, I knew that this was my chance to escape Nadia’s presence, and get some fresh air. I couldn't bear the worries that ran through my head any longer.

I ignored Lorenzo’s call. I did not feel like we had anything exactly to talk about besides the project that we had to do together, but I knew he was not calling for that. He had been giving me very weird vibes lately that I did not like, and I was doing my best to stay away from those conversations.

“I will quickly take this call,” I said to Nadia, then left the balcony as though I had something important to discuss.

But no! It was all because I wanted to know what Hardin was doing and confirm by myself that it was all my imaginations and that he actually was not fucking those girls.

Left with no other choice, I began to walk just about the building, trying to locate the exact room that Hardin was in, all in an attempt to get a feel of what exactly was going on inside the room.

Just as I took a bend into a passageway, I saw Astrid and the blonde haired girl coming out of a room, and involuntarily, I hid by a corner, cursing within my breath that I had not held my peace and stayed back with Nadia in the first place.