My Ex-Boyfriend Became My Stepfather

After finishing my work, I came home exhausted. But when I got there, I noticed an extra pair of men's shoes behind my stepmother's door. I pushed the door in, and there, right in front of me, was my boyfriend!

Chapter 1

I had never imagined that my mom would end up marrying my boyfriend!

My name was Raina Hinks, and my boyfriend's name was Jed Holt. We worked at the same company.

Jed was a charming and handsome man, the kind of man who turned heads wherever he went. Many women find him irresistible. Yet, he was the one who pursued me, and I happily agreed to be his girlfriend.

I thought we would spend the rest of our lives blissfully together. But everything changed the day I brought him home to meet my family.

Jed and I had been dating for three months, and every day with him felt like a dream.

At his suggestion, I decided to introduce him to my mom.

My biological mother passed away when I was eight years old. Just a few months later, my father remarried a woman named Abril Perez, who became my stepmother.

After I started working at my father's company, tragedy struck again. My father died in a car accident caused by drunk driving. In accordance with my father's will, Abril took over the company.

From then on, I lived with Abril.

When I told Abril I was bringing my boyfriend home, she was thrilled. She went out of her way to prepare a home-cooked feast with many dishes.

Jed arrived at my house and greeted Abril warmly. Abril, in turn, welcomed him with equal enthusiasm.

I had expected the meeting between my boyfriend and my stepmother to be awkward, but to my surprise, the two of them hit it off immediately. Jed even helped Abril prepare a few dishes in the kitchen, and Abril couldn't stop praising Jed's cooking skills.

At dinner, Jed sat between Abril and me. The two of them not only served each other food but also chatted animatedly about all sorts of topics. I could barely get a word in.

Seeing how well they got along, I felt genuinely happy. It seemed like Abril approved of Jed, which was a relief for me.

As they talked, I picked up the water pitcher to refill their glasses. But in my haste, I accidentally knocked a fork off the table. Judging by the direction it fell, it should have landed near Jed's feet.

I was about to ask Jed to pick it up for me, but seeing how engrossed he was in his conversation with Abril, I decided not to interrupt. I bent down to retrieve the fork myself.

The fork had indeed fallen near Jed's feet. As I reached out to grab it, I froze. What I saw made my blood run cold.

Abril's foot was resting on Jed's leg!

I couldn't believe my eyes. I rubbed them hard, hoping I was mistaken.

But no, there it was. Abril's foot, casually draped over Jed's leg. Jed didn't move an inch. He just sat there, letting her foot rest on him as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Was this some kind of flirtation or a power play? My mind exploded.

What on earth was going on?

My stepmother and my boyfriend? I was completely dumbfounded.

Perhaps they realized I was under the table. Abril quickly withdrew her foot.

I straightened up slowly, my eyes darting between the two of them. They were both staring at me.

I fixed my gaze on Abril, suppressing the fury boiling inside me. I wanted her to explain herself.

Abril seemed to understand that I had seen everything. She didn't say a word. Instead, she cleared her throat awkwardly and lowered her head.

Jed, on the other hand, tried to diffuse the tension. He picked up a piece of steak and placed it in my bowl with a smile. "Raina, try this. It's your favorite."

I didn't respond. Instead, I grabbed Jed by the arm and dragged him out of the house.

Once he was gone, I stormed back inside. Abril was in the kitchen, washing dishes.

I knocked the dish aside in frustration and shouted, "Explain yourself!"

Abril didn't answer. She picked up another dish to wash, but I knocked that one aside too. "What the hell is going on?"

Abril finally snapped. "How was I supposed to know he was your boyfriend?" she yelled.

I was livid. "The entire company knows! You're the chairwoman. How could you not know?"

I shoved her hard. "Are you really that desperate for men?"

Abril's face darkened. She raised her hand and slapped me across the face.

Tears welled up in my eyes as I ran out of the house. I had nowhere to go, so I ended up at Jed's apartment.

...

Jed tried to explain the situation to me. He claimed that Abril had been the one to seduce him. And as the chairwoman, Abril held too much power for him to resist.

I didn't know whether to believe him. Jed had never shown any signs of this kind of behavior before.

But I couldn't understand why Abril would seduce my boyfriend in the first place.

From that day on, I moved out of my house and started staying at Jed's place. I didn't live there permanently though, I often spent a few nights at my best friend's house.

I continued working at the company, but whenever I saw Abril, I ignored her. She tried to talk to me several times, but I refused to engage. I couldn't forgive her for what she had done.

One evening, after having dinner with my best friend, I returned to Jed's apartment. He was playing games on the phone.

Feeling sticky and uncomfortable, I decided to take a shower. As I undressed in the bathroom, I noticed something that stopped me in my tracks-a familiar piece of clothing.

It was a pair of cartoon-themed underwear.

I picked it up, my hands trembling. A memory flashed in my mind. I had bought Abril a pair of cartoon-themed underwear just like this one not long ago.

Clutching the underwear, I stormed out of the bathroom and threw it in Jed's face.

He looked up from his game, annoyed. "What are you doing?"

I snatched his phone out of his hands and pointed at the underwear. "Whose is this?"

Jed froze, his eyes darting nervously. "Who else could it belong to? It's mine, obviously."

I let out a cold laugh.

"Really? Since when do you wear women's underwear? And in a size M? Is this Abril's?"

Jed's face turned bright red. He stammered, unable to form a coherent response. Finally, he muttered, "I... I need to use the bathroom, " and hurriedly excused himself, rushing to the bathroom.

I dragged a chair over and sat down in front of the bathroom. "If you don't give me a proper explanation, you're not coming out of there!"

From inside, I could hear him whispering, as if he were making a phone call.

A few minutes later, the doorbell rang. I opened the door to find Abril standing there.

She walked in and said, "You've misunderstood Jed. I was worried you didn't have enough clothes, so I brought over some of your things. The underwear must have gotten mixed in by accident."

I let out a bitter laugh but said nothing. I really didn't want to think so poorly of them.

After that, Abril pulled me aside. She told me she had been investigating Jed lately. He had a bad reputation at the company and was hitting on girls everywhere. He had over a dozen ex-girlfriends. She warned me not to believe a word Jed said because he often lied to me.

Abril had a lot to say to me. Her main point was clear-Jed was no good, and I should break up with him as soon as possible. She even promised to introduce me to someone better in the future.

I rejected her outright! I couldn't bring myself to trust her anymore.

A few days later, it was my birthday. I booked a fancy restaurant, hoping to spend a sweet, romantic evening with Jed.

On the day of my birthday, I arrived at the restaurant on time. From a distance, I saw Jed standing there with a bouquet of roses. My heart raced with excitement. Was he going to propose to me?

He handed me the roses with a warm smile. "Raina, happy birthday!"

I was overjoyed.

But the very next thing he said made me feel extremely cold and heartbroken right away, "Raina, let's break up."

I was stunned, my voice trembling as I asked, "Why?"

"No reason. I just don't think we're right for each other, " Jed replied casually.

"Is it because of Abril?" I shouted angrily. "Is it her?"

"No, you're overthinking it, " Jed said, avoiding my gaze.

"It must be her! You've been lying to me all along! You two have been having an affair, haven't you?" I screamed at him, tears streaming uncontrollably down my face.

Jed turned to leave. "That's it. Goodbye."

I grabbed his arm, sobbing and pleading, "Don't leave me, please. I'm begging you."

Jed didn't look back. He shook off my hand and walked away without hesitation.

...

After Jed broke up with me, I was utterly devastated. I had no choice but to move back my own home.

In the company, I tried everything to win Jed back. I invited him to meals, bought him coffee, and came up with different ways to please him.

But Jed seemed resolute. He refused to reconcile and rejected all my efforts.

I couldn't bear to lose him, but his coldness was unbearable. I cried myself to sleep every night, overwhelmed by heartbreak and unable to focus on my job.

One day, while I was out shopping, my phone rang. It was Abril.

She sounded unusually excited as she said she had something important to tell me and urged me to come home immediately.

I was puzzled. What could make her so happy and so urgent?

I quickly hailed a cab and rushed home.

As I opened the door and bent down to change into my slippers, I noticed a pair of men's shoes on the floor. I recognized them instantly. They were Jed's.

Jed? What was he doing here? A sense of foreboding crept over me.

The living room was empty. I called out for Abril and Jed, but no one answered.

Then I heard strange noises coming from the upstairs bedroom.

I ran up the stairs, my heart pounding.

What I saw left me in a daze. I felt like I was about to faint.

I grabbed the bedroom door and yanked it open with all my strength.

And there they were Abril and Jed! They were making love in bed!

I grabbed the doorframe to steady myself.

Hearing the noise, the two of them turned to look at me, finally stopping what they were doing. Abril hurriedly pulled the blanket over herself.

I was furious. I stormed over and ripped the blanket away. "You two are shameless!"

Jed quickly picked up the blanket and covered Abril again. He grabbed my hand and said, "Raina, I'm sorry. This is all my fault. If you're going to blame someone, blame me."

"Blame you? Now I understand why you insisted on breaking up with me. It was so you could sleep with her! Jed, you're disgusting!" I shouted, pointing a finger at his face.

Abril suddenly stepped in front of Jed. "Raina, this is my fault. I was the one who pursued Jed. If you're going to blame someone, blame me."

Even now, they were protecting each other. My tears fell in torrents as I collapsed to the floor. I couldn't believe things had come to this point.

Abril handed me a tissue, but I refused to take it.

She sighed. "Raina, we're sorry. But we truly love each other."

I felt a wave of nausea. Sneaking around with my boyfriend and calling it true love? How shameless!

"Raina, we've decided to get married. We hope you can give us your blessing, " Abril said softly.

I was stunned.

I turned to Jed. "Is this true?"

He didn't say a word, but his silence said it all.

I couldn't hold back anymore. I burst into uncontrollable sobs and ran out of the house.

...

I stayed at my best friend's place for three days, refusing to go to work. Abril and Jed called me dozens of times every day, but I didn't answer.

I couldn't believe my boyfriend was about to become my stepfather! It was too much to bear.

My best friend was also furious on my behalf and came up with all sorts of ideas to expose them at the company and ruin their reputations.

But my mind was in such turmoil that I couldn't focus on anything.

On the fifth day, I finally made up my mind. I decided to sever all ties with Abril once and for all. I didn't want to get involved in their mess anymore. I just wanted to reclaim what was rightfully mine.

I went back home. When Abril saw me, she was overjoyed and immediately brought me fruit, asking where I had been.

I didn't say a word. Instead, I pulled out an agreement-an agreement to sever ties and divide the family assets.

When she saw the agreement, Abril's face turned dark in an instant. She never expected that me, who was always so meek, would do something like this.

She grabbed my hand and said, "Raina, ever since your father passed away, it's just been the two of us. If you leave too, what will I do?"

I didn't know if she genuinely didn't want me to leave or if she was just unwilling to part with the family assets. I sneered. "Aren't you marrying Jed? What difference does it make if I'm here or not?"

Abril grew emotional. "I can't live without you. But this house doesn't feel like a home without a man in it."

"Then you can find someone else. I don't care! Just not Jed!" I didn't want to argue anymore. "If you break up with Jed, we can go back to how things were before."

Abril clung to my hand, pleading, "Raina, Jed and I truly love each other. Please, let us be together."

Seeing her beg softened my heart for a moment. But as soon as I thought about what the two of them had done behind my back, I hardened my tone and said, "No. You two must break up. Or else we'll cut all ties right now!"

Abril began to cry. Through her sobs, she said, "Since your father passed away, I've done everything I could to take care of you and keep the company running. I've given so much. Can't I just find someone to be with? Why are you so against it?"

Abril's emotions spiraled out of control. She suddenly grabbed a fruit knife from the table and held it to her neck. "Raina, if you keep pushing me, I might as well end it all!"

I was horrified. "Don't do this! Let's just talk it through calmly!"

Abril pressed the knife against her neck, and I saw a thin line of blood appear.