My Stepbrother's Dirty Little Secret novel Chapter 277

Chapter 277

Raphael

I stood near the center of the room, my suit jacket perfectly buttoned, playing the part of the supportive brother.

Kylie stood beside me. She was talking about some tech merger, but my attention was focused on the walls. Claire’s work was everywhere. The canvases were bold and raw, filled with strokes of color that looked like they were bleeding into each other.

“Your sister-in-law is incredible, Raphael,” Kylie said, leaning in to see a piece better, “The detail is insane.”

“She’s a force of nature,” I murmured, and for a moment, I felt a genuine spark of pride. Claire had worked herself to the bone for this, “She sees the world in a way most people are too scared to. I’ve watched her stay up for forty-eight hours straight just to get one shade of red right. I’m proud of her. This is exactly what she deserves.

I took a slow sip of my champagne, the bubbles sharp on my tongue. I was about to suggest we move to the next room when the world suddenly went sideways.

Across the crowded floor, past a group of critics, a woman stood with her back to me.

Everything else in the room-the art, the people, the music-just stopped. My brain stalled, the gears grinding to

a halt.

She was wearing a black silk dress that didn’t just fit her, it lived on her. But it was the back that made the glass in my hand feel like it was about to shatter.

The fabric dipped in a deep curve, exposing every inch of her smooth spine. It went lower and lower, past the small of her back, until it reached the very top of her curves, just barely hinting at the start of her ass in a way that was so bold it felt like a blow to my chest.

I knew that skin.

I knew the way she carried her head.

Gianna.

My pulse didn’t just speed up, it became a riot. I felt the blood leave my head and rush south, leaving me dizzy and wanting to do something stupid. I usually saw her in oversized shirts, pants, and messy ponytails.

Dante said something else to her, his voice low and private, and Gianna let out another soft giggle/her eyes crinkling in that way they only did when she was truly happy.

The sound was like nails on a chalkboard to me.

I took another aggressive swallow of champagne, the bubbles burning my throat, but it did nothing to cool the fire starting to roar in my chest.

Gianna

“Dante…”

I felt Dante’s entire body go rigid for a split second before he forced himself into a pose of boredom. Victoria stood there, looking like she had stepped off a runway, her eyes darting between Dante and the way I was tucked firmly into the crook of his arm.

“Victoria,” Dante said. He didn’t even turn his head. He kept his eyes on me, his thumb tracing slow, lazy circles on my bare shoulder. He sounded like he was greeting a telemarketer he was about to hang up on.

This was my cue. I leaned in, pressing my shoulder against his chest, and looked up at him with a gaze so sweet it felt like I was pouring syrup over him.