~ELENA~

I sit up slowly, my legs still trembling, my breath shallow, and my body a hazy mess of tingling sensation and exhaustion.

What just happened??

My skin is still flushed, and my cheeks are burning–not from shame, but from the memory of how that stranger thoroughly wrecked me.

I glance around the room, half expecting him to walk back in and say something...anything. But he doesn't. He's really gone.

He didn't ask for my name or digits before leaving.

I don't even know his name too.

I exhale deeply and finally peel myself off the bed, walking...no, wobbling...towards my dress on the floor.

My red panties are still around my knees. I pull them up first and wince as the fabric brushes my over sensitive skin. Then I slip into the red dress and smooth it down, adjusting it over my curves.

My hair is a mess and my lipstick is all but gone, and my lips are a little swollen. I look like I have just been ravished.

Because I have!

I stand in front of the mirror for a second, tilting my head. A small smile forms on my lips.

Damn, Elena!

I reapply some lipgloss I have in my clutch, do my best to finger comb my hair into something that doesn't scream, just got fingered by a sex doll, and walk out of the room like I have just conquered the world.

The pulsing bass of the club returns as I step back into the hallway. I follow the lights, descending the stairs until I find my girls in our VIP section.

Valentina sees me first and her eyes widen.

"Look who's finally decided to graze us with her presence" she teases.

Gianna gasps, mouth open in mock horror.

"Oh my God, you actually went through it??" She asks.

"I cannot believe it!" Valentina squeals, slapping my arm as I sit besides her. "You made out with a stranger! Actually, scratch that, it might be more than made out. You disappeared for like.... almost an hour!"

Gianna fans herself. "Elena, girl....did he least say his name? Or are we calling him Mr. Kisser from now on?"

I laugh, reaching out for my cocktail and taking a slow, cooling sip.

"You two dared me" I say, cocking a brow at them. "Don't act shocked. You literally said I should kiss that stranger or I am doing the laundry for a month. So I kissed him. The rest...just sort of happened."

Valentina leans in, eyes wide with curiosity.

"What do you mean the rest just happened??"

Gianna scots closer, grabbing my arm.

"Don't you dare go quiet on us now. Spill! Did you...do it?? Like it-it??"

I smirk and shake my head. "Nosy much?"

Gianna gasps dramatically. "You did! Oh my God, you totally...!"

I hold up a finger.

"I'm not confirming or denying anything" I tell them.

Valentina groans. "Oh come on, don't leave us hanging like this."

"I can," I say sweetly, taking another sip of my drink. "And I will."

"Did he at least kiss good?" Gianna pouts.

My lips curl into a slow smile as I glance at them.

"You could say that."

"You're evil. Give us details, now!" Valentina lets out a frustrated squeal.

But I stand up, picking up my clutch.

"Nope, it's late. And I, for one, am exhausted" I say.

"From what, exactly??" Gianna teases.

"Ask your imagination" I throw her a wink.

They both groan in protest as I start making my way out of the VIP lounge.

"Elena, don't you dare walk away from us with that smug grin on your face!"

"I'm walking, Val," I call over my shoulder. "But just so you know...that dare? Best dare ever."

They burst into laughter, grabbing their purses and hurrying after me.

We step out into the cool night air, heels clicking against the pavement, still buzzing from the music, the drinks, and now....my little adventure.

And as we head towards the waiting cab, Valentina throws an arm over my shoulder.

"I swear," she says. "If this turns into a romcom and you end up falling for the hot stranger, I want maid of honor rights."

I just laugh and shake my head.

If only she knew....I have no idea who he is.

But somehow, I have a feeling this isn't the last time I'll see him.

And God help me, I hope I do.

***

We are back home and I am about to go to bed with Valentina and Gianna when my phone beeps.

I check my phone and see it is a message from mom. I open it and read it.

"Elena darling. Don't forget you're moving in to your new house tomorrow. Enough staying at Valentina and Gianna's place."

I roll my eyes.

I don't want to move into any house and have been delaying by staying with Valentina and Gianna at their house.

But I can't keep postponing it anymore. So I'll finally move in tomorrow.

I sigh deeply. Tomorrow is going to be a long day.

****

The next morning, my mom sends a car to come pick me up at Gianna's and Valentina's place.

She says her new husband is a billionaire.

She doesn't say he's a Mafia.

She definitely doesn't say he has three sons.

And she really doesn't say they're triplets.

After hugging Valentina and Gianna bye and promising to always visit them, I enter the car.

I have just two suitcases.

The black car drives off, and almost an hour later slows in front of a mansion that looks more like a fortress-wrought iron gates, stone pillars, cameras that blink red as we approach.

I hug my cardigan tighter around me and press my face to the glass.

It's beautiful....but in a cold, haunted kind of way.

The driver opens the door without a word.

"Miss Elena. The family is waiting inside" he announces to me.

The family.

I step out and stare at the estate that now apparently belongs to me too.

Before I can even reach for my suitcase, the front door opens.

And they step out.

Three of them. Tall. Broad shouldered. Inhumanly attractive.

And identical.

Triplets.

My breath catches.

My eyes dart to the one on the left, then the one in the middle.

But it's the one on the right who tilts his head.... just slightly.

That face. That smirk.

The world tilts.

Oh my God!

This face! It's the same face at the club.

It's him.

The stranger I had kissed.

The one who wrecked me without telling me his name.

But wait...

The middle one just raised an eyebrow at me...exactly the way he did when I said,"Don't stop, please."

My stomach flips.

No.

Was it him??

I glance at the one on the left...he's expressionless, unreadable, arms folded, but his eyes...God, his eyes burn into me like he knows.

Holy hell!

Which of them did I make out at the club with??

~ELENA~

I try to school my expression but I'm frozen at the base of the mansion steps, staring like a complete idiot.

Triplets.

My new stepbrothers are goddamn triplets.

And I made out with one of them.

One of them.

My brain short circuits.

Yes, they're identical, but they're not the same.

The one on the left wears a black suit like he's born in it. He doesn't smile. Doesn't blink. Just watch me with cold, expressionless eyes.

The one in the middle is all tattoos and smirks, like he knows he's trouble but enjoys it. A silver ring glints in his ear as he tilts his head.

The last one lingers at the top of the steps, arms crossed, quiet. Then his expression softens.

One of them is the mystery man who rocked my world last night, but which one??

"You must be Elena. I'm Nico," the tattooed one says, striding towards me with a lazy grin.

"That's Vincenzo...Enzo for short" he gestures to the one in the suit. "And the other one is Riccardo."

They're all staring.

I grip my suitcase tighter, trying to pretend like I'm not internally combusting.

"Hi," I say softly to them.

Nico's smile widens. "So you're the new sister."

He says it as a joke or as a challenge but I can't tell.

Vincenzo doesn't speak. He just turns and brushes Nico's shoulders as he enters the house.

Nico lingers for a second longer before following him inside.

Riccardo stays where he is, watching me.

"You look nervous," he murmurs.

I swallow hard.

"Shouldn't I be??"

"Mom isn't home and dad is away for a week. So we're the only ones at home for now" he says, and just like his brothers turns and walks away.

Then on a second thought, walks back to me and helps me carry both my luggages into the house.

"Follow me. Let me show you to your room" he says and I follow him.

We climb the long stairs that feels like it's never ending and start to walk through the long hallway.

"This is Vincenzo's room. He's the first one of the triplets" he informs me as we walk past a door.

"And this is Nico's room. He's the second one" he says as we walk past the second room. "I'm the third one."

"This is your room" he says as we stop at the next room after Nico's. "And the room after yours is mine."

So my room is after Vincenzo's and Nico's, and before Riccardo's.

I roll my eyes. I am in the middle of them.

Riccardo opens the door for me but doesn't come in.

He keeps my luggages at the door.

"Feel at home" he says, then turns and walks away.

I stare at him till he's no longer in sight, before pushing my luggage into my room and shutting the door behind me.

The room is beautiful and designed in my favorite color, purple.

It's stunning...soft lavender walls, golden lighting, and elegant decors that whisper luxury.

A cozy reading nook with a cushioned window seat overlooks the garden outside.

A plush queen sized bed, layered with fluffy pillows and a velvety comforter sits beneath a delicate chandelier that bathes the room in a warm, golden glow.

It's everything I loved, wrapped in quiet perfection.

I begin to unpack and my mind goes to Valentina and Gianna.

Oh, how they'll love to hear about this recent update..

But it'll be a gist for later. For now, I must unpack.

***

Later that night...

The dining room is enormous–vaulted ceilings, gold trimmed walls, a crystal chandelier that drips light like snow.

I sit at the long table in a velvet chair that feels too expensive to touch.

I'm not hungry.

My mother and her new husband sit at the other end.

Her new husband is supposed to be away for a week but he had returned home with mom this afternoon.

He introduces himself as Lorenzo Romano to me.

He is a man with so much authority and charisma. And for some strange reason, I can tell he's very dangerous.

He is talking in soft murmurs with my mom from where they sit.

I don't catch much, only phrases like "expanding territory" and "cleaning up loose ends."

Mafia talk.

I'm too stunned to process it.

My mom got married to a Mafia Lord???

I don't have enough time to think about it, when they walk in.

All three of them.

Dressed in black. Moving like shadows.

Vincenzo takes the seat across from me. Nico drops into the one right beside me. Riccardo sits at the other end, near the wall, barely looking up.

I can feel Nico's eyes on my bare shoulders.

"I hope you like red" he murmurs, pouring into my glass before I can even answer.

"I'm twenty two" I reply.

"That's legal" he grins.

By

But I feel his presence like heat against my skin. There's something in the way he moves–controlled, deadly.

"You don't talk much, do you?" I ask softly, looking at him.

His hands pauses. He lifts his eyes.

My stomach flips.

"I talk when it matters," he says.

That's all. But it hits harder than it should.

This is definitely not the one I made out with at the club. If he was, he shouldn't be this cold towards me.

It's probably Nico or Riccardo.

Nico chuckles. "You'll get used to his grump phase. It's lasted twenty five years so far."

Riccardo finally speaks from the end.

"You shouldn't be here, Elena."

My heart stutters.

"I didn't choose this" I reply.

"Doesn't matter" he says. "This place changes people and not for the better."

Nico raises an eyebrow. "You're worried that we'll corrupt her??"

Riccardo doesn't answer. He just stares into his wine glass like it holds the end of the world.

Vincenzo finishes his food in silence, then stands without a word.

"Where are you going?" I ask before I can stop myself.

He pauses. Looks over his shoulder.

"You don't want to get too comfortable, sorellina" he says in a voice that sounds exactly like the one in the club.

Then he walks out.

Nico watches me with interest.

"Do you even know what that means??" He asks.

I shake my head.

His voice lowers, almost a whisper in my ears.

"It means little sister."

And suddenly I'm burning.

Because Vincenzo said it like a threat. Not a warning.

***

I return back to my room after dinner. I lay on my bed big enough to lose my thoughts in. But peace is impossible.

I can't sleep.

I stare at the ceiling, heart pounding.

They all look the same and almost sound the same.

Why did it have to be triplets??

One of them kissed me like his life depended on it.

One of them whispered sweet things to me.

One of them had his hands all over me.

But which freaking one??

I groan, grabbing a pillow and pressing it to my face.

There's a soft knock at the door.

I freeze.

Then another knock...firmer this time.

I open it.

It's Nico.

Of course it's Nico.

He leans casually against the doorframe, shirt unbuttoned halfway, like he knows he's sexy.

"Can't sleep??" He asks.

"Something like that" I reply.

He raises a brow. "Want company?"

Red alert. Red. Alert.

My brain is screaming.

But my mouth??

It says, "Sure."

Idiot!!

~ELENA~

Nico stretches out on my reading nook like he owns it. One leg propped up, his shirt still half unbuttoned, and that smug devastating grin playing on his lips.

I lean against the doorframe, arms crossed.

"You always make yourself this comfortable in a girl's room?" I ask.

He shrugs, unbothered. "Only when the girl looks like she's dying to ask me to stay."

I scoff.

"In your dreams."

"Oh sweetheart..." he glances at me through those thick lashes. "You've already been in my dreams."

My cheeks burn. This man is impossible.

I walk past him, pretending not to care and sit at the edge of the bed.

"You're always this flirty with your stepsisters??" I ask.

"That's when she's beautiful and sexy as hell" he murmurs.

He clicks his tongue.

"You're not really my sister. Not by blood. Not by bond. And definitely not by heart."

He leans forward. "So I don't see you as my stepsister."

He stands, then begins prowling around the room like he's been here before.

He taps the edge of my dressing table and picks a book I had kept on it while unpacking.

"Romance novels?" He says with a smirk.

"Guilty."

"Seems you like books. We have a library with so many books in the house" he says.

"Really?" I squeal in delight.

I love books.

"Yes," he says.

"I can't wait to read them. I've read a lot of books and I want to read more" I say.

"Any of them involve falling for your stepbrother?" He teases me.

I throw a pillow at him. He catches it easily.

His eyes flick to mine, something unreadable in them.

Silence stretches between the both of us. Not awkward.... just charged.

"So" he says eventually. "Tell me something real."

"Like what??"

"Why did you move here??" He asks. "Heard you were living in America and studying there."

I hesitate.

"My mom got married after my father's death" I say finally. "And I didn't want her to feel guilty for dragging me into it. So I came along."

Nico stares at me.

"Ooh, alright."

"And I'm still getting to know my new stepfather" I say.

"Lorenzo??"

I stare at him in disbelief.

"You address your father by his name??" I ask.

He shrugs his shoulders. "It's not a big deal."

"Wow" I mouthed.

He walks over towards me, his presence suddenly too close, too warm.

"Can I ask you something??" he says.

I nod.

"Did you meet any of us recently before moving in here?"

My eyes widen.

"Why...why do you ask??" I say.

"You've got this look in your eyes since you got here. Like you're haunted. You looked like you recognized one of us." He replies.

I open my mouth, then close it.

"I don't think I've seen any of you before moving here" I lie.

He smirks.

"Are you sure, little dove??"

I gasp softly.

The one at the club called me "baby doll" and now he's calling me "little dove"

He's not the same person.

Or is he??

"Yes, I'm sure" I lie again, daring him to talk about the kiss if he's really the one.

"If you say so, little dove," he drawls.

His eyes hold a sinister look in them.

My ribs begin slamming against my ribs.

He leans down, brushing a lock of hair off my cheek.

"I really want to know what your lips taste like. I've imagined kissing you since I set my eyes on you today" he whispers in my ear.

Then he stands straight.

"But not tonight," he smiles. "Tonight I'm just here to keep you company."

He turns away, moves back to the reading nook like nothing happened.

I exhale shakily.

He's dangerous and straight forward.

In a different way from Vincenzo.

Vincenzo is cold, unreadable like a loaded weapon.

But Nico??

He's the fire you know is going to burn you-but you still reach out to him anyway.

We end up talking for hours.... nothing important. Just past relationships, which makes me realize that Nico is a playboy, books, music, and how he once dyed Riccardo's hair pink while he slept.

I laugh more than I should.

When he finally stands up to leave, he pauses at the door.

"You've got a secret, Elena," he says softly. "And I can't wait to figure it out."

He leaves, and I'm left staring at the closed door, heart still racing.

And one thought fills my mind.

He's not the one who kissed me.

But he's the one who might ruin me.

My phone suddenly rings and I check who is calling.

It is a WhatsApp group call and it's Valentina and Gianna calling.

"My girls!!" I squeal in delight, then answer the call.

"Hey baby!" They both chorus.

"My sweethearts" I exclaim. "I miss you guys already"

"We miss you too" they chorus.

"Hey Elena, switch to video call" Valentina says.

And I immediately switch to video call.

"How did moving into your new house go?" Gianna asks.

I can see their faces on my screen.

"Show us your new room" Valentina interrupts.

I do that.

I show them my room.

"Wow, it's beautiful" Gianna exclaims.

"And classy" Valentina supports.

"Seems your new stepfather is swimming in money" Gianna says.

"I guess" I shrug my shoulders.

"You haven't answered me. How did moving in go?" Gianna says.

"Cool. But guess what girls??"

"What??" They both exclaim.

"I have three hot, handsome, sexy and identical triplets as my new step brothers" I blurt out.

"Oh my!" Valentina exclaims.

"What the hell!" Gianna squeals. "How about I come over to spend the weekends??"

I laugh.

"You wanna seduce them, huh?" I tease.

"Yes yes!" She laughs.

Valentina narrows her eyes at me, leaning closer to the screen.

"Wait, wait, back up. Triplets? And they're hot?"

"Identical triplets," I repeat with a dramatic sigh, flopping back on my bed. "Like sinfully attractive. You wouldn't want to believe it unless you saw them."

Gianna lets out a squeal so loud I have to pull the phone away from my ear.

"This is some stepbrother fantasy gone wild situation!" She says.

Valentina grins like a devil.

"Tell me everything. Names. Personalities. Every detail. Now."

I groan.

"Okay, there's Vincenzo...he's cold, silent, gives off major serial killer vibes, but in a hot broody way. Then Riccardo...cool, chill, charming and caring. And Nico..."

I trail off for a second, feeling my face flush.

Gianna immediately notices. "Oh, oh. Something happened with Nico...didn't it??"

"I mean...he was in my room earlier. Being all flirty. And gorgeous. And frustrating" I mutter.

Valentina wiggles her brows. "Was he shirtless?"

"Half" I grumble. "But that's not even the craziest part."

Gianna and Valentina lean closer in perfect unison, their eyes wide.

"What could possibly be crazier than living with three hot triplet step brothers??" Valentina asks.

I bite my lip.

"Okay, you remember the night before I moved? The night at the club? The handsome stranger I kissed?" I ask.

Gianna gasps. "No. No way! Don't tell me..."

"It's one of them" I close my eyes and groan. "It's one of the triplets."

The screen explodes in chaos.

Gianna lets out a scream that's half shock, half excitement.

"WHAT!? Are you serious?"

Valentina drops her phone for a second before scrambling to grab it again.

"Elena, what the hell??"

"I didn't know" I yell defensively. "How am I supposed to know that the handsome stranger you both dared me to kiss is my stepbrother??"

"Fuck!" Valentina exclaims.

"Tell, was it just the kiss??" Gianna asks.

"We made out" I say and blush hard.

"Oh my!" Valentina gasps.

Gianna is fanning herself with her hand, laughing like a maniac.

"This is better than a damn Netflix series. So who was it? Which of them?" She asks.

"That's the problem" I sit up, pulling a pillow to my chest. "I don't know. I can't figure it out. Nico called me "little dove" earlier, not a baby doll. So maybe it's not him. Vincenzo doesn't talk much and Riccardo? I honestly don't know. They're all too good looking and it's messing with my brain."

Valentina stares at me wide eyed.

"Elena. Babe. You accidentally made out with one of your step brothers before you knew he's your step brother."

"Yeah" I sigh, hiding my face in the pillow.

Gianna bursts out laughing again.

"Girl you've already failed the step-sibling challenge and you just moved in. This is insane. I love it!"

"I'm doomed" I groan.

"No," Valentina says with a wicked smirk. "You're not doomed. You're in the middle of a forbidden romance plot. And we need to know who the mystery kiss guy is. Operation baby doll is finally on."

"I'm scared," I whisper, half laughing.

"You should be," Gianna grins. "One of them has tasted your lips and has touched you. And the other two might want to, too."

My stomach flips. I don't say anything.

Because deep down, I know she might be right.

And that terrifies me.