Page 18 of One Night Seduction (ONS #1)

Arianna

I’m standing in the mirror, staring at myself because I truly think I’m in shock. There is no way in fuck I just walked in on what I thought I did, right?

I know I did, though. I heard my mother’s moans all the way from outside.

When I came in, I heard her shout Logan’s name, and my stomach dropped.

I couldn’t stop myself, my feet carried me there on their own accord.

When I got there, it was like witnessing a car accident.

No matter how badly I wanted to, I couldn’t look away.

The instant Logan looked at me like a dazed deer in the headlights, I wanted to run.

Unfortunately, yet again, my feet wouldn’t cooperate.

Instead, I just stood there, staring at him and him at me.

I felt the sting of betrayal running through my veins, but why?

He owes me nothing, I’m nothing to him, he’s nothing to me.

Hell, I literally told him that he should stop hyper focusing on me and redirect that attention to someone who wants it, specifically my mother. And he did.

I just didn’t realize how soon or well he would take directions. Usually, a man like him doesn’t take directions from anyone. Guess there’s a first for everything.

Blowing out a heavy breath, I choose to brush off whatever feelings I’m currently experiencing because, frankly, they are unwarranted and not welcome. Well, I try to at least. The souring in my stomach refuses to pass, and a whole host of thoughts begin running through my mind.

Why does this upset me so much? I literally told him to do just this. I should be happy his attention is off of me once and for all. This is a good thing. Right?

You’d think so.

Swallowing back the bile attempting to rise in my throat, I open the bathroom door.

Ty is there with a patient smile, like he’s been waiting for me.

I smile, a little bit of my agitation settling as his eyes light up when he sees me.

Pushing off the wall, he closes the distance between us, his hands gripping my hips to steady me.

“Hey, you okay?”

“Yeah,” I answer too quickly. “Why do you ask?”

He frowns slightly. “Well, I came inside and saw you sprint to the bathroom. You looked upset.”

Before I can respond, two figures emerge from down the hallway.

Ty and I both turn to see my mother wearing the most sated smile I think I’ve ever seen while Logan has his arm wrapped around her shoulders.

Ty’s jaw nearly hits the ground as they saunter past us, my mother throwing me a Cheshire grin over her shoulder.

“Make sure you knock next time, Ari. I taught you better than that.”

A sting flares inside my chest at that. Maybe it’s the reminder of what I just saw or the reminder that she was such a shit parent and still manages to be condescending.

They disappear out the back door, joining my Aunt Marissa and the twins. When the door shuts, Ty whips around to face me, outrage splashed across his face.

“He didn’t.”

I let out a bitter laugh. “Oh, trust me. He did. I walked in at the end and…yeah. They most definitely did.”

The mental image of Logan inside my mother…is something that will haunt me for the rest of my life, no doubt. Okay, maybe not haunt, but disgust, absolutely. Ty curses under his breath, rolling his eyes before looking at me tenderly.

“Are you okay?”

I dismiss him with a wave and smile. “Why wouldn’t I be?”

He continues watching me with concern, and I feel my smile slowly fall before I shrug.

“I have no right to be jealous or upset or whatever. I literally told him to give his attention elsewhere?—”

“But now you miss it on you?” he guesses.

“No!” I argue. “I just…my mother is the worst.”

“That she is. You know you can talk to me, right? We’re friends.”

His hand reaches up to cup my face, and I sink into it, smiling up at him.

“I know. In a few short days, you’ve become one of my favorite people in the whole world.”

He grins at that.

“It’s because I’m so excellent at sex, huh?”

I let out a laugh and shake my head.

“I mean, yes, that helps, but it’s you. I adore you .”

Something in his eyes soften at my words, but he doesn’t speak, and I realize I might have made him uncomfortable.

“You know what I mean. I adore you in the sense that I care and appreciate you. I’m really glad we agreed to no strings or expectations because I’d hate to jeopardize a friendship like this!” I add on .

His smile becomes tight, and I instantly feel like I’ve already made this awkward. Mr. Playboy doesn’t do relationships or big feelings. We agreed to be light and carefree, but now I’m sitting here telling him how much I adore him.

Blowing out a heavy breath because I’m just killing it tonight, I wrap my arms around his waist so he won’t pull away from me.

“I’m being stupid and rambling. Ignore me, please.”

His tongue runs over his lower lip like he’s contemplating something before he smiles, bending down to press his lips against mine. I welcome it happily as his hold on my face deepens.

“Coming up for air anytime soon?” my mother snarks.

Ty and I break apart, my irritation bubbling back up as I turn to her.

“What happened to knocking, Mother?”

“In the hallway?” she asks with an eyebrow raise. “Besides, now we’re even. We all decided to head up to Leavenworth for the night tomorrow. You guys in?”

Leavenworth is a cute little Bavarian themed village in the middle of the Cascade Mountains. It’s a little over two hours from the lake house, so it’s great for a day trip but even better for an overnight stay. It’s a total tourist trap, but really fun to go to once in a while.

“Sure, we’re in,” Ty answers as he looks down at me to check.

I nod my head, and my mom actually smiles at that.

“Great, I’ll let Logan know,” she says as she saunters out of the room.

“More like she’ll let his credit card know.”

Ty snorts before letting out a sigh. I nuzzle into him as he holds me tighter and places a kiss to the top of my head.

My Aunt Marissa and Uncle Tom took their car with the twins while Ty, my mom, Logan, and I all piled into his car.

Though Ty and I tried to get out of it, Logan insisted, which felt like a special brand of torture.

The whole ride, my mother was practically in his lap as he was driving, kissing his hand, his neck, and I’m pretty sure at one point rubbing his cock before he politely stopped her.

What happened? I thought he loved a good voyeur moment.

Ty and I just minded our business, and in true Ty fashion, he wouldn’t stop cracking jokes the entire ride up. He was definitely the much needed comic relief for the car.

When we finally drive past the “Welcome to Leavenworth” sign, relief washes through me. Despite not really being able to get away from them, we can at least get some space. Logan booked us all rooms at one of the hotels right in town, or should I say, my mom booked it with his credit card.

We check in, grabbing our room keys as we go to drop off our stuff.

The plan is to shop around town a little and then get dinner later.

Ty and I drop off our bags, and I go to head back out the door so we can meet everyone when Ty playfully tackles me, pinning me to the bed as he begins peppering my face with kisses.

I giggle and squirm under him as he continues, his large body effectively rendering me helpless.

“Ty! Stop, Stop!” I laugh as he smirks and pulls away.

His hand comes up, brushing away some hair from my face as he smiles down at me. It’s a heavy smile, like there is way more beneath it than you can tell from the surface. I tilt my head curiously as I reach out to cup his cheek.

“You okay?”

“Yeah, I just wish we could stay in bed all day together. ”

I lift my eyebrows in suggestion and wink.

“I mean, technically, we could.”

He groans, burying his head into my neck.

“Don’t tempt me, Ari.”

Lifting his head up again, I smile at him as he stares into my eyes.

“What?” I ask.

“I just always want to remember you like this.”

I give him a funny look as I tilt my head.

“You act like we’re on borrowed time or something.”

He shrugs. “Feels like it sometimes.”

“We still have a few days before we all head back to the city,” I remind him.

“Yeah.” He nods, rolling his lips together as he seemingly mulls over something. “Maybe when we get back, we could go to a Crusaders game.”

“Didn’t know you were into football?” I smile.

“Lots you don’t know about me, Ari.”

“I guess so,” I tilt my face towards his. “I’d love to.”

He smiles at that, a wide, blinding white, dopey smile.

“It’s a date.”

With that, he presses a quick kiss to my nose and stands up, grabbing my hands and hauling me to my feet before lacing our fingers together and heading down to the lobby to meet everyone.