The Boyfriend I Let Her Steal

I brought my mom and aunt to see the house I’d just bought. But when I opened the door, I found my cousin wearing my clothes and rolling around on the couch with my boyfriend. My aunt made the decision right then and there. “You haven’t even let him touch you. Just let Natalie have Ryan.” Looking at the faces of these people who called themselves my family, I was secretly laughing. None of them knew I’d been waiting three whole months for this day. The door was barely open a crack when my family and I heard my cousin’s shameless moans. “Oh, baby… who’s better, me or Evelyn?” “You, of course, sweetheart…” My boyfriend, Ryan Miller, was panting. Even then, he couldn’t resist taking a shot at me. “Your cousin’s such a prude. She won’t even let me touch her!” “She’s nowhere near as dirty as you. God, you feel so good.” I instinctively tried to close the door, but my aunt, standing behind me, wasn’t having it. She had always been hot-tempered and domineering. She pushed straight past me and shoved the door wide open. In the sparsely furnished living room, two bodies were tangled together. The door slammed against the wall, startling them out of their lust-filled haze. Natalie turned toward the noise. When she saw the three of us walking into the living room, she screamed, covered herself as best she could, and cowered behind Ryan. Ryan looked furious. I couldn’t tell whether it was because we’d interrupted him right before the finish line or because so many people had caught him in the act. “Ryan, you’re Evelyn’s boyfriend! How could you sleep with her cousin?” My aunt glared at his bare chest, her voice booming. “What’s Natalie supposed to do now? Who’s going to marry her?” “Stop yelling! Your daughter’s the one who seduced me!” Ryan rubbed his ear irritably, then looked past everyone to me, standing silently at the back. Ever since we’d started dating, I’d gone along with almost everything he wanted. I’d never even raised my voice at him. When our eyes met, I let hurt and confusion fill my face. My aunt was still screaming and cursing. I took a deep breath and worked up the courage to ask: “Aunt Diane, fighting won’t solve anything. What do you want to do about this?” “What do I want to do?” At my question, her sharp tongue finally stopped. Her eyes darted around before discreetly moving away from the expensive watch on Ryan’s wrist. “Evelyn, we all heard what they said. You and Ryan haven’t actually done anything yet…” “Why don’t you let Natalie have him?” “No!” I rejected her demand without hesitation. “Anything but that.” Seeing how firm I was, Natalie Brooks panicked behind Ryan. She stuck her head out and snapped, “Evelyn Hayes, are you out of your mind?” “Your boyfriend’s already slept with me, and you’re still treating him like some kind of prize?” I opened my mouth to argue, but my timid mother, who hadn’t said a word since we arrived, finally moved. She reached out and caught my arm. “Evie, your aunt does have a point. Maybe… you should let Natalie have Ryan?” “Mom?!” I turned to stare at her in disbelief. She knew how unreasonable and unfair the request was. She lowered her head, too ashamed to meet my eyes. “You’re older. You should let your younger cousin have her way…” I’d heard those words countless times growing up. Natalie had always loved taking my things. Whenever I cried or fought back, Mom would use that same line to comfort me. My eyes reddened with hurt, but I still refused. “I’m not giving Ryan up to anyone!” “Everyone makes mistakes. Yes, he betrayed me, but I love him. I’m willing to forgive him!” I’d made my position clear. No amount of cursing from my aunt and Natalie, or pleading from my mother, could change my mind. Watching the chaos, Ryan’s lips curled upward. Apparently, he was very pleased with my performance. I’d protected his pride and given his ego an enormous boost. Only then did he graciously announce his decision, as though bestowing a reward. “I’m not some object you can pass around.” “For now, I have no plans to break up with Evelyn.” At that, the room finally went quiet. I tried and tried to hold it in, but eventually, I couldn’t take it anymore. I rushed out the door. I was afraid that if I stayed another second, I’d burst out laughing. God. What an arrogant, delusional loser.A week had passed since that incident. During that week, Ryan had made several attempts, both subtle and obvious, to get back into my good graces. Sometimes it was roses waiting on my desk when I arrived at work. Sometimes it was coffee and pastries delivered when I was tired. Other times, he deliberately waited outside the office building after work. I ignored all of it. “Evie, I understand you’re upset, but enough is enough. You need to know when to stop!” That day, I was working in my office as usual when Ryan finally lost patience and came to see me during business hours. He opened with a line straight out of some overbearing-billionaire romance. I kept reading my documents without looking up, my voice cool. “Office relationships are against company policy. Do you want us both to get fired?” Ryan shrank back a little. He couldn’t afford to lose his job. More importantly, he couldn’t afford for his personal cash cow—me—to lose mine. His bravado immediately faded. I decided not to push too far and offered him a little reassurance. “What you did was awful. I said I’d forgive you, but don’t I have a right to still be upset?” That put his mind at ease. He smiled and settled into the leather chair across from me. “Evie, you said it yourself. Everyone makes mistakes. Besides, this wasn’t entirely my fault.” “You’re so obsessed with your career that you won’t even let me kiss you.” “I’m a normal, healthy man with needs…” The more he talked, the more convinced he became that he was right. I listened quietly, sneering inside while arranging my face into a thoughtful expression. “You’re right, Ryan. But I really don’t have any time or energy to spare. I’m not in the mood, either.” “I’m only a junior manager. I don’t make that much more than you do. “You spend a lot, and you send money home to your parents. If I don’t work hard to earn more…” The moment I mentioned money, Ryan changed his tune. “I know. That’s why I’ve never forced you, have I?” “I understand how hard you work. You should try to understand my situation, too…” He made it all sound so reasonable. Just as he was gearing up for another round of manipulation, his phone vibrated several times. His expression shifted almost imperceptibly when he read the messages. He muttered, “Something urgent came up,” and hurried away. I couldn’t have been happier to see him leave. I also had a pretty good idea who had texted him. Sure enough, by the time darkness fell and I was preparing to work late, Natalie sent me several pictures. A trash can overflowing with suspiciously crumpled tissues. Torn lingerie scattered across the floor. And Natalie, flushed and smug, cuddled against a sleeping Ryan. “Evelyn, ever since we were kids, I’ve always gotten whatever I wanted!” Her provocative message stirred absolutely nothing in me. If anything, I wanted to laugh. I wasn’t afraid of Natalie fighting me for him. I was afraid she might lose interest. After a moment’s thought, I decided to add fuel to the fire. “Ryan’s a person, not a possession. Come talk to me when you’ve actually won him over!” She didn’t reply, but I knew I’d lit a fire under her. I wasn’t worried about Natalie disappointing me. After all, she’d been right about one thing. Ever since we were little, whenever she wanted something I had, she’d do whatever it took to steal it. I was used to it. That didn’t mean I intended to give in forever. Pushing unimportant people and problems out of my mind, I threw myself into work. It was late into the night when I finally stretched, rubbed my tired, stinging eyes, and got up to pack my things. When the elevator doors opened, I saw someone I hadn’t expected. My boss stood alone in the empty elevator, tall and straight-backed, his unsmiling face practically warning everyone to stay away. He merely raised an eyebrow at the sight of me. I pressed my lips together, debating whether to wait for the next elevator. Before I could decide, he reached out with his long fingers and pressed the door-open button. “What are you standing there for? Get in.” His familiar tone came in a low, rich voice. Awkwardly gripping my backpack strap, I forced myself to step inside. “Thank you…” The doors closed. Before I could finish thanking him, a pair of arms wrapped tightly around my waist from behind. He buried his head against my neck, his voice muffled and wounded. “Since when are you so formal with me?”“Evie, what’s so great about a piece of trash like Ryan?” “We’ve been together since college. Six years, and you still won’t go public with me.” “He’s only been at the company a few months, and suddenly you’re ditching me for him. You even took him home to meet your family.” “Office relationships are against company policy…” The more he talked, the angrier and more worked up he became. “Believe me, I can have him packing his things tomorrow!” “Adrian, stop it.” His hair tickled my neck. I couldn’t help turning my head to nuzzle against him. “You always do this. You never tell me what’s on your mind. You always think you have to handle everything yourself.” Adrian Cole turned me around to face him, looking thoroughly displeased, and captured my mouth in a heated kiss. He kissed me until my face burned and I could barely breathe. But we’d been apart for over a month, and I really had missed him. So I rose onto my toes and wrapped my arms around his neck. He lifted me, kissing me all the way from the elevator to his car in the underground garage. He pressed me beneath him. In the narrow back seat, I had nowhere to escape. “Where did he touch you?” “I didn’t let him touch me.” That answer improved Adrian’s mood considerably. His voice softened. “Can I?” “Mmm… be gentle.” After so long apart, being one with the person I loved again drew a satisfied sigh from both of us. Afterward, Adrian held me, looking thoroughly content. “Evie, you’ve always known your own mind. I won’t interfere with your plan. But how much longer are you going to make me suffer?” I narrowed my eyes lazily and teased him on purpose. “What? I told you back when you were pursuing me. “If you wanted to be with me, you had to be prepared to stay my secret for the rest of your life.” “…I’ve already waited six years.” After a brief silence, Adrian lowered his head and bit my neck. “Forget keeping me a secret forever. I’d even spend my whole life as your side piece if that’s what loving you takes.” He sounded so aggrieved that I couldn’t bear to tease him anymore. I kissed the corner of his mouth to soothe him. “Soon. Be good. I know this hasn’t been fair to you. Just wait a little longer.” Adrian said nothing, reluctantly swallowing another vague promise. Then he caught my waist and pulled me astride him. “I’ve suffered terribly. You owe me a lot more compensation than that…” After a night of indulgence, I finally managed to calm Adrian’s anxiety for the time being. Utterly worn out by my efforts, I took the next day off and stayed in bed. Ryan didn’t check on me, but Natalie sent another message. The pictures were so explicit that one glance felt like a threat to my eyesight. My mouth twitched as I saved them in disgust. I tapped the audio file, and Natalie’s and Ryan’s voices filled the room. “Ryan, you’re not going home tonight. Won’t Evelyn be angry that you’ve left her all alone?” “That boring workaholic? She’s probably still at the office!” “You said last time that she won’t even let you touch her. How can she treat her boyfriend like that?” “Exactly. She has no idea what she’s missing as a woman. You’re so much better, Nat…” What followed was a string of sounds that needed no description. My lips curved. Sorry to disappoint them, but I hadn’t spent last night alone. Remembering just how wild it had been made my back seem to ache even more. I shifted uncomfortably as another taunting message from Natalie appeared. “Sorry, Evelyn. I’m getting your boyfriend, no matter what.” “No way! Ryan is my boyfriend. Even if he’s done all those disgusting things with you, I’m still the one he’ll choose in the end!” After sending my suitably defiant reply, I turned off my phone and slept until I woke naturally. Over the following days, I continued working late at the office. Natalie really did have some talent. She had Ryan revolving around her day and night, which made my life considerably more pleasant. Adrian noticed, too. At first, he’d only dared to arrange the occasional late-night “chance encounter.” Now he was bold enough to summon me to the private lounge attached to his office under the pretense of work reports. “Evie, how long has it been since you last fed me that empty promise?” Adrian held my thighs down, working away with his head lowered, and still found time to complain. “How long are you going to let that scumbag keep calling himself your boyfriend?” “Mmm… that’s not up to me…” His forceful movements left me trembling. I clung to his neck, unable to hold back the sounds escaping my mouth. “Just a little longer…” “What exactly are you waiting for?” “I’m waiting for…” My eyes were hazy, and I was about to stumble through an answer when my phone, lying on the couch, began to ring. Seeing the familiar number, I pointed at it and smiled. “If I’m right, that’s it.”