Ex To Stepmom

Start Reading

After breaking up with my secretly wealthy ex-boyfriend, I quickly got together with his adoptive father.

Not long after, I found myself sitting at their family dinner table.

Right across from me was my ex and his new flavor of the month.

Smiling sweetly, I picked up a piece of green bell pepper and dropped it right into Logan's bowl. Everyone knew it was the one vegetable he absolutely despised.

I looked at his new girl and casually mentioned that since she called Sebastian her step-dad, she ought to start calling me step-mom.

I even made her an offer. Fifty grand if she called me Mom once. Half a million if she said it ten times.

Hearing this, Logan slammed his hands on the table and shot up from his chair.

He furiously demanded to know who the hell I thought I was, screaming that since his dad had not said a word, I had no right to order his girlfriend around.

I simply shifted my gaze to the man sitting beside me.

Sebastian was slowly chewing his food, not even bothering to lift his eyes.

I gave a thoughtful nod, reached into my purse, and tossed a crumpled medical bill onto the table.

The moment Logan's new girlfriend saw that paper, all the color drained from her face.

She grabbed Logan's sleeve, her voice trembling with tears, and begged him to just call me Mom.

I was twenty-two, and Logan was eighteen.

I had been forced to drink until I blacked out. When I woke up, my head was splitting, and I was completely naked.

Logan was sitting on the edge of the bed smoking a cigarette, his jacket draped over his shoulders. He did not even bother to look back at me.

"You were the one begging for it last night."

My brain was a hazy mess. I had zero recollection of what happened, but the guilt crushed me. I immediately apologized.

"I am so sorry. What do you want? Anything I can do to make this right, I will do it."

Logan thought about it for a second. He told me to become his girlfriend to compensate for taking his virginity.

I nodded and agreed.

My shifts at the campus bar were not enough to cover both my living expenses and Logan's tuition and allowance, so I picked up a second job working the day shift as a cashier at a convenience store. I was working two jobs, running myself into the ground.

To be closer to his dorm, I rented a cramped, overpriced room in a rundown apartment building near his university.

On my one rare day off, I took Logan out on a date. By the time we got back to my apartment, it was already ten at night.

My roommate, Sierra, was just heading out for her night shift. She rolled her eyes the second she saw me.

"Was that your boyfriend downstairs? Looks like a broke loser, just like you."

"Unlike me. I just met a trust-fund kid a couple of days ago. He tipped me a thousand bucks without blinking."

When I ignored her, she scoffed.

"Forget it. Trying to talk sense into your thick skull is a waste of time. Those rich guys and corporate billionaires are incredibly easy to please. Keep your mouth sweet, act a little submissive, and stroke their egos. That is how you get paid."

"If one of them actually takes an interest in you, even if you are just his side piece, you are still set for life."

I ignored her. Most of my paychecks went straight into Logan's bank account.

Whenever we had our weekend dates, he would press his lips against mine and whisper sweet promises. "Do not worry, Ivy. Once I graduate, we will get married, and it will be my turn to take care of you."

His long fingers would roam over my body, the air in the room turning heavy and hot, but we never went all the way again. I always assumed it was because our first time was so traumatic. I thought I had forced myself on him, leaving him with emotional baggage.

I buttoned up my coat and walked him back to his dorm.

Just as I turned to leave, I heard his frat brother laugh and ask who I was.

Logan's voice drifted out, casual and annoyed. "Her? Just some desperate stalker who will not leave me alone. She is so annoying."

Lately, Sierra had been acting incredibly anxious.

When I walked into the apartment, I caught her aggressively taping up a shipping box containing the heavy gold bracelet her sugar daddy had bought her a few days ago.

"Gold prices are tanking right now. Why not wait a few weeks? You could get a lot more for it," I asked, setting down my cheap takeout box.

"I will sell my stuff whenever I damn well please. Mind your own business."

Her eyes darted to my dinner, and a nasty smirk crossed her face. "You should spend more time worrying about your little boy toy. I heard his frat is throwing a massive party at the club downtown tonight. Do you have a night shift? With a pretty face like his, if you do not keep him on a tight leash, some rich girl is going to snatch him right up."

Seeing me freeze, Sierra paused. "...Wait, do not tell me he did not even invite you?"

Logan and I had been together for three years. He usually played the role of the sweet, obedient boyfriend, but I constantly worried about him. Ironically, we had met at a bar, so I knew exactly what happened at those parties.

I called my manager, faked a sick leave, and rushed to the club. Standing outside the VIP room, I leaned in to peek through the glass.

Before I could, the heavy door swung open. Logan's frat brother stumbled out, completely wasted, squinting at me in the dim light.

"Oh, you are... Logan's stalker, right? Looking for him?"

I ignored the insult, trying to look past him into the booth.

"Do not bother looking. Logan is not here. He does not even live in the dorms. Why would he waste his time slumming it at a frat mixer?"

"He does not live in the dorms?" That was impossible.

"You really are clueless, aren't you?" The guy looked me up and down with obvious disgust. "Everyone on campus knows Logan's family is loaded. You are out here flipping burgers and scrubbing floors, thinking you can bag a billionaire heir? Keep dreaming, sweetheart."

My heart plummeted into my stomach.

An hour later, I was standing outside the gates of the most exclusive luxury high-rise in the city, getting aggressively blocked by a security guard.

"I said no entry. I see girls like you showing up in the middle of the night all the time. If you go in there and cause a scene, I am the one who gets fired!"

While we were arguing, the roar of an engine cut through the night.

A sleek, limited-edition sports car pulled up ten feet away. Logan hopped out of the driver's seat, laughing and dapping up his wealthy friends before they drove off.

Still smiling, Logan turned around and locked eyes with me.

His grin vanished instantly. "Ivy... I thought you had a shift tonight?"

"This is my friend's place. I was just visiting," Logan lied, his voice tight.

"Stop lying." I took a step forward, my anger boiling over. "That jacket you are wearing? The watch on your wrist? I have never seen them before. You are rich. You can afford to live in a place like this. So why the hell have you been bleeding me dry for three thousand bucks a month? Why did you play the pathetic, broke victim for three years?"

For three years, I gave up any semblance of a normal life. I lived in a roach-infested shoebox. I ran between two exhausting jobs and survived on four hours of sleep. I gave up all my weekends just to take him on dates, and I paid for every single movie ticket and dinner. If the food was not expensive enough, he would throw a tantrum.

My eyes burned, and tears of pure frustration spilled over.

Logan lunged forward, wrapping his arms around me. The harder I pushed, the tighter he held on.

"Ivy, I am so sorry. I was just terrified you would freak out if you knew the truth. I was planning to reveal everything on your birthday. It was supposed to be a massive surprise."

He was still lying to my face, and I genuinely could not comprehend what he gained from this twisted game.

But the crushing heartbreak suddenly gave way to razor-sharp clarity.

He wanted to put on a show? Fine. I would play along. I wanted to see exactly how far Logan was willing to take this.

So, as he spouted his hollow excuses, I slowly nodded.

And Logan actually bought it. He faked a relieved smile and kissed the corner of my mouth. "Ivy, I knew you loved me too much to stay mad."

That night, I slept in Logan's sprawling, multi-million-dollar penthouse.

When we walked through the lobby the next morning, the same security guard practically bowed to me. "Have a wonderful day, Miss."

The following day, Logan handed me a platinum card with two million dollars loaded onto it. For the first time in my life, I walked straight into a luxury designer boutique.

"Box this up."

The sales associate completely ignored me, continuing to fold scarves.

I slammed the platinum card onto the glass display. "I said, box it up."

The associate's demeanor flipped instantly, flashing me a brilliant, obsequious smile.

I returned to my crappy apartment carrying a mountain of designer shopping bags. Sierra nearly choked on her water.

"Where the hell did you get the money for that? Did you finally bag a sugar daddy?"

I threw myself onto the cheap sofa and opened a real estate app to browse luxury apartments. "My boyfriend."

"You dumped the broke college kid?"

"Nope."

Sierra shrieked. "He is a trust-fund baby?! Are you kidding me? How did you get that lucky?"

I let out a dark, self-deprecating laugh. "Yeah. So lucky."

I walked into my room, packed my bags, and moved out of that miserable apartment forever.

The night before my twenty-fifth birthday, I got a call. Logan was wasted and demanded I come pick him up.

It was pouring rain outside. My umbrella was useless against the wind, and by the time I reached the upscale restaurant, my clothes were soaked through.

I stood outside the private dining room, raising my hand to knock, when a burst of obnoxious laughter echoed through the wood.

"I officially won the bet, right? I dated that bartender for three whole years! I played the broke college kid, drained her bank account, and the stupid bitch was still totally obsessed with me! I told you guys, women are all gold-diggers. Give them enough money, and you can make them do whatever you want."

It was Logan.

My hand froze mid-air as a chorus of mocking voices joined in.

"Logan is the absolute king! Rich or poor, he gets the job done. Fair is fair, the keys to the Porsche will be at your house tomorrow."

"You gotta admit though, that bartender's body is insane. When I dragged him to your bed that first night, I copped a feel. Her waist and ass are top-tier. You got lucky, bro."

"Whoa, chill. I never actually slept with her. That one-night stand was completely staged just to trap her into dating me. You know how strict my family is. If I accidentally knocked up some trashy nobody, I would be cut off."

"Smart move, man. Escorts like her are just for practice anyway. When it is time to settle down, you have to marry someone from our tax bracket."

My fists clenched so hard my nails dug into my palms. I kicked the door open with a deafening crash.

The room went dead silent. Logan, his face flushed with alcohol, stared at me in shock. "What are you doing here?"

I plastered a sickeningly sweet smile on my face. "I heard you had too much to drink. I came to take you home."

I dragged Logan's drunk weight back to the penthouse and dumped him on the bed. He passed out immediately.

Grabbing a cold beer from the fridge, I sat alone on the balcony.

The things they said were vile, but surprisingly, I felt absolutely nothing. Because I never actually loved Logan. Our entire relationship was built on the crushing guilt I felt over taking his 'virginity'.

Since he faked the whole thing, the debt was wiped clean. I owed him nothing. In fact, he owed me three years of my youth.

I pulled a crumpled piece of paper from my pocket. It was a private phone number I had secretly copied from Logan's phonethe number of his legal guardian.

The phone rang three times before a deep, irritated voice answered. "Who is this?"

He sounded like a man who was very unhappy about being woken up in the middle of the night.

"Mr. Sebastian Vance, I am Logan's girlfriend. I am pregnant. I need to meet with you tomorrow. Does that work for you?"

I lied through my teeth without missing a beat.

"Why the hell should I believe you?"

I let out a soft laugh and switched to a video call, panning the camera over Logan's passed-out face in the moonlight.

"If you refuse, I cannot guarantee your golden boy will wake up in one piece. I am sure his heroic late parents would not want anything bad to happen to their only son, right?"

Sebastian Vance was a notoriously ruthless corporate titan. Anyone who dared threaten him usually had a team of private security kicking their door down within thirty minutes.

I swallowed hard, trying to hide my terror.

The line was dead silent for a long time. Finally, the man sighed.

"Fine. Meet me at the Jade Garden tomorrow."

When Logan finally woke up, I was calmly setting out a massive breakfast spread on the dining table.

He leaned against the doorframe, a nasty sneer on his face. "You heard everything last night, did you not? Why are you still here? Who are you putting on this pathetic housewife act for?"

"Do not think I am going to pity you. The bet is over. I am done playing house with you."

I completely ignored him, sitting down to eat my eggs.

Logan laughed maliciously. He pulled out a chair across from me and kicked his feet up on the table. "Playing deaf? Fine. I will make sure you get the message."

He pulled out his phone, dialed a number, and instantly switched to a sickeningly sweet voice. "Baby, I am sending you my address right now. Come over, I have a massive surprise waiting for you. Love you."

Hanging up, he immediately ordered a bouquet of 999 premium roses on a delivery app. He cranked the volume on his video game to the max, glaring at me every few seconds to see if I was crying yet.

I acted like he did not exist, calmly stood up, and started washing the dishes.

The second I finished, the doorbell rang.

Before Logan could even stand up, I beat him to the door and yanked it open.

Sierra was standing on the doorstep, dripping in head-to-toe designer labels.

The moment she saw me, her perfectly manicured eyebrow arched. "Well, well. If it isn't Ivy, the girl who bagged a billionaire. What are you doing in my boyfriend's apartment?"

Logan shoved me out of the way, pulling Sierra inside. "I got black-out drunk a few years ago and accidentally touched this club waitress. She has been stalking me ever since. You know her?"

Sierra let out a mocking laugh. "We do not know each other. I just saw her serving drinks at a dive bar across town."

"I knew it." Logan pulled out the massive bouquet of roses he had ordered. "There is no way a high-class girl like you would associate with trash like her."

The two of them treated me like invisible air, aggressively flirting back and forth before collapsing onto the sofa, practically making out.

I stood a few feet away, entirely unfazed, casually pulling out my phone. I snapped a crystal-clear photo of them swapping spit, then slipped the phone back into my pocket.

"Ivy, I already have a fianc. Sierra's family runs a massive international conglomerate. She just moved back from Europe. We belong to the same social class, so just give up."

"Keep the money I gave you. Consider it a tip for your services. We are done."

"No," I said flatly. "Unless you wire me another five million, I am not leaving."

Before Logan could even react, Sierra leaped off the couch and slapped me hard across the face. My cheek burned instantly. I glared at her, but she violently shoved me backward. I tripped and fell hard onto the floor.

"Ivy, stop being a greedy, delusional bitch!"

She grabbed the massive bouquet and started hurling the heavy roses at me, snapping the stems against my skin. "A useless, pathetic loser like you deserves absolutely nothing!"

"Five million? In your dreams. Do you even know who Logan's guardian is? Sebastian Vance. Say one wrong word to the press, and he will have you erased before dinner."

Slam!

The heavy oak door was violently shut in my face.

Sitting on the floor of the hallway, rubbing my stinging cheek, I suddenly started laughing.

Logan faked being poor to scam me out of my money, only to get scammed by a fake heiress pretending to be rich.

Karma really was a bitch.

My phone buzzed in my pocket.

"Hello, Miss Ivy? This is Mr. Vance's driver. I am pulling up to the lobby now. You can come down."

It was my first time sitting in a customized Maybach.

When I arrived at the Jade Garden, Sebastian had already ordered. The table was covered in the most aggressively spicy, heavy dishes imaginable. Two glasses of expensive liquor sat in the center.

Sebastian pushed one of the glasses toward me. "Drink."

I did not move.

He chuckled, picking up his own glass and taking a slow sip. "Drink it, Miss Ivy. I had my team run a sweep. You have absolutely zero medical records at any OBGYN in the state, and no pharmacy records of buying pregnancy tests."

"I think it is safe to assume you are not pregnant."

Sebastian was thirty-four. A relatively young age in the cutthroat corporate world, yet he held absolute, terrifying control over the entire Vance empire.

A few hours was more than enough time for him to strip my entire life bare.

Everything I knew about Sebastian came from two sources. First, networking with high-end escorts at the luxury clubs I visited after Logan gave me the black card. Second, vague complaints Logan used to make when he was drunk.

Sebastian was an illegitimate child, utterly despised by his aristocratic family. He spent his childhood being viciously bullied by his half-siblings. When he was sixteen, they pushed him into a freezing, rushing river and walked away, leaving him to drown.

Logan's mother, Officer Morgan, was walking by with her husband. Logan's father dove into the freezing rapids and managed to shove Sebastian to the riverbank, but the current dragged him under. He never resurfaced.

Logan was three years old.

Two years later, Officer Morgan was killed in the line of duty. Logan's greedy relatives swarmed like vultures to steal her pension, completely abandoning Logan.

By then, an eighteen-year-old Sebastian had brutally seized power within the Vance family. He crushed all opposition, legally adopted Logan, and became his sole guardian.

Did Sebastian actually love Logan? Absolutely not.

Everything Sebastian did was driven by a heavy, suffocating guilt toward the people who died to save him. He provided Logan with unlimited wealth and protection. He had more than repaid his debt.

I picked up the glass of liquor and threw it back like a shot. The alcohol burned my throat.

"Logan told me he is marrying a European heiress named Sierra. Why did you not stop him?" I asked.

"He is an adult. We share no blood, and legally, he is not my responsibility anymore. I do not care who he marries." Sebastian smiled lazily. "But instead of talking in circles, why do you not get to the point?"

I took a deep breath. "If Logan keeps acting like a degenerate psychopath, he is going to destroy Officer Morgan's legacy. You do not step in because he constantly weaponizes his parents' death to guilt-trip you."

"But I have zero emotional baggage with him. On top of that, he scammed me out of three years of my life. Nobody knows exactly how to break him better than I do."

"I read the financial reports. The Vance board of directors is pressuring you to get married to stabilize the stock. Let us sign a contract. A fake marriage."

Sebastian raised a sharp eyebrow. "You have guts, I will give you that. Coming into my territory and actively plotting revenge against my ward."

He stood up. The sheer physical presence of the man made me instinctively shrink back, a cold shiver running down my spine.

I was gambling with my life.

If I won, I would get everything I wanted. If I lost, the absolute worst-case scenario was going back to scrubbing floors. I had already hit rock bottom. I had nothing to lose.

His deep, freezing voice dropped from above me. "But I have to admit, I am extremely curious to see exactly how you plan to discipline my deadbeat son."

"Come home for dinner tonight, Mrs. Vance."

I won.

Sebastian moved with terrifying efficiency.

An hour later, holding a freshly stamped marriage certificate, I was sitting in his car heading toward his sprawling private estate.

On the way, his phone rang. He casually tapped the speakerphone button.

"Hey Dad, I am bringing my new fiance home for dinner tonight. Figured it was time you met her."

"Fine." Sebastian's dark eyes slid over to me. "Perfect timing. I just got my marriage certificate. There is someone I want you to meet as well."

Before Logan could ask a single question, Sebastian hung up.

The estate was obscenely massive. A butler in a tailored suit respectfully took my cheap duffel bag and carried it up to the master suite.

Sebastian led me down a different hall and opened the double doors to a walk-in closet the size of my old apartment. Racks of pristine, haute couture dresses lined the walls.

"Pick one."

I pulled out a soft pink silk gown. The fabric felt like water. In twenty-five years, I had never touched anything so expensive.

"Do you have a secret girlfriend? Do not worry, once the contract expires, I will sign the divorce papers immediately. I won't ruin your actual relationship."

"I do not have one."

"Then who are these for?"

I turned around. Sebastian was leaning against the doorframe, his face blank. "There is no other woman. I just had my assistant buy a wardrobe based on your measurements this afternoon. If my staff could not handle a basic task like that, I would fire them."

He paused, then added defensively, "If I actually had a girlfriend, why the hell would I fake a marriage with you?"

I snorted, covering my mouth to hide a laugh. For a guy who looked like a literal mafia boss, his personality was surprisingly petty.

I picked a sleek, understated black dress and applied the absurdly expensive makeup he had provided. Standing in front of the floor-to-ceiling mirror, I actually gasped.

Money really was magic. The exhausted, overworked barista was gone. Staring back at me was a polished, dangerous socialite.

"Are you ready? Logan is pulling up to the gates."

"Coming."

I walked out of the closet. Sebastian's gaze dropped from his Rolex to me. He froze completely still.

"Is it... too much?" I asked, feeling suddenly self-conscious.

"It looks good." He quickly averted his eyes, clearing his throat. "Let's go down. They are waiting."

"Dad! Where have you been? My fiance has been waiting out here. You are being totally disrespectful to her"

Logan was lounging on the imported Italian leather sofa, his arm draped possessively around Sierra. Sierra was picking nervously at her nails, looking absolutely terrified to be in Sebastian's house.

Seeing Sebastian and I walking down the grand staircase, fingers tightly laced together, Logan's voice died in his throat.

He shot to his feet. "What the fuck are you doing here?"

I lifted my chin. Sebastian remained completely silent. I knew the rules. From this second forward, Sebastian was not going to fight my battles for me.

"Why shouldn't I be here?"

I held out my free hand. The butler immediately stepped forward, placing the red marriage booklet onto my palm.

I flipped it open, shoving the stamped photo right into Logan's face.

"I am Sebastian's legally wedded wife. That makes me your stepmother. Watch your tone when you speak to your elders, Logan."

"Bullshit! Where did you get a fake ID printed so fast? Dad, say something!" Logan looked panicked, desperately searching Sebastian's face for a denial.

Sebastian ignored him completely and walked straight to the dining table.

Because we had guests, the private chef had prepared a massive feast.

My eyes immediately locked onto a sizzling plate of spicy green bell peppers. Technically, this dish should never have been served, since Logan threw a fit whenever he smelled them.

I threw a quick glance at Sebastian. He was hiding a smirk behind his water glass.

The man was petty as hell.