Sinful Desires (Elite Heirs of Manhattan #3)

1. Aria

1

ARIA

“ S orry about that, sis.”

Four words with the power to take everything I thought I knew and turn it upside down.

From a complete stranger.

Thoughts of my parents’ happy marriage and my secure family hit me all at once. So many of my friends came from miserably broken homes and hardly knew their parents. I used to think we were better than them. Looking back, it’s not something I was proud of.

Only the sharp pain in my bottom lip alerted me to the fact that I was chewing the hell out of it, gazing out the window of the SoHo restaurant where my sister was supposed to meet me for lunch. She would be as shocked as I was when I confessed everything that went down earlier when I learned exactly how a deer feels when headlights bear down on them.

The only thing I couldn’t convey was how he’d made me feel for weeks. Showing up in random places. The spin class where he’d stared daggers at me until I couldn’t stand the thought of showing my face. Standing behind me in Starbucks. Hanging around outside the restaurant where Valentina and I ate dinner a week ago. It had gotten to the point where I looked for him wherever I went.

He hadn’t said a word until today, but there hadn’t been a need to. His intense energy spoke volumes until he’d decided to stop playing around and finally introduce himself as a member of my family.

“My name is Miles.” He offered a charming grin while his eyes—green flecked with gold and apparently blessed with the ability to stare through me—darted over my face, searching for my reaction to his little announcement. It made my skin crawl the way he observed me like a predator anticipating his prey’s first move.

What was I thinking? He was nobody. A creep with an accent. “I don’t care what your name is, and I don’t care what scam you’re trying to pull.” I snatched my matcha latte from him, which, for some reason, made him laugh like there was something funny about that. “And if you think you’re the first person ever to claim you came from one of my dad’s swimmers, think again. I’m not impressed.”

“So distrusting,” he murmured. His accent would’ve been a serious turn-on if the rest of him wasn’t so repulsive. The sensual mouth now curved in a knowing grin. The laughter in his eyes. He scrubbed a hand over his head, raking his fingers through short, dirty blond curls that were just a little too long. They gave him sort of a roguish look.

“Whatever you say.” I wasn’t about to give him another moment of my time. There I was, worrying about him being a dangerous stalker when really he was nothing but a pathetic jerk with a scam in mind. Why he’d spent weeks intimidating me was anybody’s guess.

“Why don’t you ask your father?” he called out to my back. I turned away, determined to forget he existed. “Ask him about Leila.”

I paused my retreat, turning slowly to find him sneering down at me. What was it about the look in his eyes? The way they crawled over my body, pinning me in place? I would’ve sworn he knew everything about me, down to the color of my underwear. A chill ran through me when he moved closer, ignoring the crowd around us. “Run away if you think it will help, but I promise it won’t.”

How had he made that sound like a threat? How could he possibly be a threat to me? Somehow, I had regained control of my legs and wasted no time getting the hell away from him, almost knocking a toddler to the floor along the way. His revelation had unsettled something deep down, and to say I had been freaked out was an understatement.

If only he hadn’t used her name. Leila. She was part of Dad’s past before I ever came along. But she was very real, and they had once been married. I might have been able to dismiss the whole thing as a potential restraining order if it hadn’t been for her name.

Was Miles trying to say he was my brother by Leila? Why would he come at me with such a nasty, almost threatening attitude? I had nothing to do with our parents’ past.

If we had a half-brother, why wouldn’t Dad tell us?

Did Mom know?

The question burned a hole in me as I sat there, toying with a glass of chardonnay and waiting for Valentina. I wouldn’t normally have wine with lunch, but today, it felt necessary as my thoughts insisted on spiraling to a very dark place. If Mom didn’t know there was another kid out there, I couldn’t bring myself to hurt her by breaking the news. Was it my place to say anything? Should I talk to Dad first and figure out how much of what Miles said was true?

Why did it have to be a secret? I realized that was what bothered me the most. It felt like a dirty secret. If the whole thing was innocent, something that happened before Dad and Mom got together, why not come out and talk about it? Why hide Miles from us?

It made me think back on something I’d overheard Dad talking about a long time ago. I used to love hanging around when he was with his best friends, creeping up on his study while they were having guy talk or whatever it was. We weren’t supposed to hang out nearby as they had a tendency to talk about things kids shouldn’t hear.

Come to think of it, it was Mom and Dad’s tenth wedding anniversary, and the big party they’d thrown at the apartment had wound down. Uncle Barrett and Dad had retreated to the study for brandy or something, and I had tiptoed behind them instead of going to my room to change out of my party dress. Uncle Barrett’s voice had floated out through the half-open door. “Ten years. Did you ever see yourself reaching this point back when you were married to Leila?” He’d laughed.

“Don’t speak that bitch’s name,” Dad had warned in a voice that made me wince, his anger evident.

“All I know is you became my fucking hero the night you turned her down in front of that whole party full of people.” I had peeked in to see Uncle Barrett laughing, slapping a hand against Dad’s back, and raising a glass like he was toasting him. “No wonder she ran to England when she knew you didn’t want her back.”

And Miles did have an English accent, didn’t he? It still didn’t mean anything. My father had not and would never cheat on Mom. That much I knew, and nobody could convince me otherwise. He was so in love with her, it was insane, and their relationship had taught me from a young age what to expect from a man. I would never settle for anything less than what they had.

So why keep Miles a secret? Why had I never heard his name until today? Was it possible that Leila tried to get Dad back and slept with him? Maybe she had deliberately gotten herself pregnant. Growing up the way we had surrounded by very wealthy people with complicated lives, it wouldn’t have been the first time hearing a story like that.

The difference was the story had never involved my parents.

My life.

When Valentina showed up twenty minutes late, I knew something had to be up. My twin could be a real pain in the ass on a lot of things, but she was always punctual. “Sorry, sorry.” She kissed my cheek before dropping into a chair and groaning like she’d just finished running a marathon. Even all worn out, she looked fantastic in a knee-length camel coat I didn’t recognize.

“I’m borrowing that,” I informed her, reaching out to test the weight and softness.

“I only bought it over the weekend,” she informed me with another dramatic groan, growling before she yanked the fabric out of my hand. “Let me break it in first before you steal it.”

“So what’s up?” I asked, rolling my eyes when she took my glass of chardonnay and gulped the rest of it down.

Flipping her mahogany locks over one shoulder, she sighed like a woman with the weight of the world on her shoulders. Blue eyes similar to mine flashed as she explained, “You name it. I swear, everything that could go wrong today did. The new club I’m supposed to be promoting? The one opening in the meatpacking district?” My head bobbed. “They failed their final inspection, so the whole opening is getting pushed back weeks. Now I have to go and kiss ass with everybody who was supposed to be working with me on the run-up to the opening and be like sorry, my mistake, I’m working with a bunch of fucking amateurs.”

I had no idea how she did her job. The girl kept so many plates spinning all at once and always managed to keep everything moving smoothly. “That sucks. I’m sorry.”

“I’m going to need an entire bottle of this.” She twisted in her chair, looking around for a server. When she caught the attention of someone, she held her glass up, then two fingers. Settling back down, she waved her hands, blowing out another sigh. “Sorry. How are you? Let’s talk about something fun.”

Well, there went my intended topic. “I texted Rose to let her know I’d need something for the gala,” I told her instead of mentioning Miles.

Our mother’s nonprofit was coming up on thirty years of empowering women, helping them find employment, and giving them the skills they needed to advance. It only seemed fitting to throw a huge celebration.

“Oh, hell, it’s time for that already?” Shaking her head, she pulled out her phone to scroll through her calendar. “I swear to God, I’m losing it.”

“It’s weeks away,” I reminded her. She was so organized when it came to her clients but not so much when it came to her own life. “But yeah, maybe you could ask Rose for a little help finding something to wear.” Ari was fine for dressing Mom and her friends, but Rose understood what women our age liked.

“What about you?” When two glasses of wine arrived, she snatched one up without looking at it, her familiar blue eyes never leaving my face. That was the thing about being a twin. I couldn’t hide anything from her any more than she could hide from me. I might be able to lie to other people, but not her. “You look as though you have something on your mind. All frowny and squinty.”

Why waste time pretending? For one thing, she didn’t need to hear about it right now. It might be better to keep this to myself and try to learn what I could about Miles. If this all turned out to be nothing, I didn’t want to stir up shit that didn’t need to be stirred.

“I’m fine. I really am,” I insisted when she smirked like she didn’t believe me. “It’s just been a long day. I’m not feeling great.”

“What, you mean staying with Mommy and Daddy isn’t super refreshing?” She batted her eyelashes before snickering when I groaned. Mom had insisted I stay in my old room for a few weeks while my apartment was being renovated. Talk about being put on the spot. Refusal would’ve hurt her feelings. “You know, you don’t have to stay there. Mom would get over it,” she pointed out.

“That’s not the problem.” Dammit. I caught myself too late.

“What is the problem?” The gears were turning, for sure. It would’ve made things less cringeworthy if I’d come out and told her everything, but it would’ve meant dumping more stress on her already hectic day.

I could handle things on my own.

There was only one surefire excuse. “Cramps,” I whispered, grimacing. When she sat back, nodding and frowning in empathy, it looked like I was home free, even if it was a complete lie.

“You’ll feel better out on the slopes in a couple of weeks,” she predicted.

Of course, I had almost forgotten about the trip to the family’s cabin in Vermont. It had been Valentina’s idea after we’d had so much fun hanging out with our cousins and friends at the Goldsmith estate in the Hamptons. It had meant all of us getting together for the first time since Colton and Rose started dating, and we’d had a blast. We hoped to get a little time in on the slopes prior to spring rolling around.

“You’re right,” I agreed with a genuine smile. “It’ll be good to get up there for a while.” And hopefully, by then, the whole Miles problem would be in my rearview mirror. I felt a little better by the time I started sipping my fresh wine, and my sister had me cracking up before long with stories from a recent disaster of a first date. It was enough that I could almost forget the whole thing.

That was until we parted ways so she could hurry off to a meeting. There was nothing stopping thoughts of Miles from rushing in and wrapping me in a fog of indecision. My heart was beating too fast as I stepped onto the sidewalk and took a deep breath of cool air. It didn’t do much to clear my thoughts, and my pulse still pounded sickeningly. Was I having a panic attack? I’d never had one that I knew of, but I had heard them described, and this sure as hell felt like one—short of breath, sweating, the whole nine yards.

“You okay, sweetheart?” An older man noticed me practically clinging to a light pole, struggling to catch my breath. I nodded and gave him as much of a smile as I could. What was it people said about New Yorkers? We weren’t nice, but we were kind. That man was another example. He continued on his way, and somehow, the distraction he had provided helped me regain control of myself. Not that I had forgotten my worries, but I could keep moving.

And once I started moving, there was one place I knew I had to be. If I had to wait a while for Dad to get home, so be it. I wanted to talk to him face-to-face and immediately. Otherwise, there was no way I’d be able to function. As it was, I was hanging on by a thread.

After a short walk, I entered the apartment building I had called home for most of my life. The staff at the front desk had changed, but not much else had. There was something comforting about walking the familiar path to the elevator. The ability to move on autopilot, going through the motions I’d gone through so many times before, stabilized me.

Stepping off the elevator on the top floor, I opened the door to the sunshine-drenched penthouse. “Hello?” I called out, closing the door behind me, noting how quiet it was. I hadn’t expected Mom to be around at this time of day—her work at the nonprofit normally kept her out until at least late afternoon or early evening, depending on her committments. Dad, however, had a more flexible schedule.

I was counting on him being home while Mom was out for the sake of privacy.

My heart sank a little when silence was the only response I received until his voice rang out. “In my study, Pumpkin.” Normally, the sound of my childhood nickname would make me roll my eyes. Instead, I had to blink back the tears that came from out of nowhere. He couldn’t have lied to us. I was twenty-eight years old and couldn’t handle the idea of my father lying to me.

He met me in the doorway, smiling broadly as I approached. Aside from the silver threading through his dark hair and the lines at the corners of his eyes, he could have passed for a man twenty years younger.

It was that broad smile and the way he squeezed me when I gave him a hug that left me feeling heavy and conflicted again. He was in a fantastic mood, and I was here to potentially ruin it. “You’re just the girl I wanted to see,” he murmured, kissing the top of my head. “Well, you and your sister.”

“What’s going on?”

He was still smiling wide when he took my hand and tugged me into the room. “There’s someone I want you to meet.”

At first, I couldn’t make sense of what I saw before me. It was like the man sitting in one of the leather chairs in front of Dad’s oak desk, dressed in a dark suit this time, his dirty blond curls now tamed went out of his way to look nice for this meeting.

That didn’t change anything. The knowing grin I’d seen earlier was firmly in place as Miles stood, straightening his suit jacket and extending a hand.

“Aria, I would like you to meet Miles Young.” With his arm around my shoulder, Dad led me to where Miles waited for a handshake. “He’s your stepbrother.”

My stepbrother?

Mute with shock, I lifted my hand but barely felt the pressure as Miles engulfed it with his much larger hand. My stepbrother. It was true. Ice spread its way through my veins. Was I dreaming?

“Aria.” Miles’s rich voice practically dripped with what probably sounded genuine warmth to my father but sounded a lot like sarcasm to me when paired with the humor dancing in his gold-flecked eyes. “You have no idea how long I’ve waited for this.”