Page 7 of One Night Seduction (ONS #1)

Arianna

I still can’t believe it. I fucked Logan Cunningham. My mom’s ex. My ex-stepdad. Fuck, I think I’m gonna be sick. It’s been three days since I found out who the man behind the mask really is, and I still can’t get over it.

Logan? Seriously…Logan? I just…I’m speechless. He never gave me weird vibes or made me uncomfortable while he and my mom were together. He was always pretty checked out, hyper focused on his work. It’s one of the reasons my mom used to rationalize why she started sleeping around.

He was always a good guy, a kind man. He spoiled my mom rotten and tried to do the same for me as well. I didn’t accept his generosity as willingly as my mom did. Was that his way of trying to get to me? Was he attempting to…fuck, I honestly don’t know.

The fact that he knew it was me while we were fucking, and he still kept going, is fucking insane. I’m still trying to process what was going on in his head.

Probably the same things that were going on in yours.

Despite how horribly wrong and disgusting it was, in the moment, it felt great. When I didn’t know who he was, it was perfect, he was perfect. Together, we were just…

Closing my eyes, I wince as I shake my head. I just need to forget it ever happened. I’m heading up to the lake house my mom rents every spring break in the middle of nowhere. Plenty of space to relax, de-stress and not obsess over the fact that I fucked my goddamn ex-stepdad.

And loved every second of it.

I’ll definitely take that small piece of information to my grave.

Shaking off this weird funk I’ve been in over the last few days, I decide to just let it all go.

There isn’t great cell reception up here, so I can avoid Cassi and Naomi’s questioning, though they both seem to have gone radio silent lately.

We all need a girl’s day soon to catch up.

After I figure out how the hell to process what I’ve done, that is.

When I turn the final corner down the dirt road and park in front of the lake house, nostalgia hits me.

We’ve been coming here for years. It’s a home away from home.

Even though it’s not ours, it feels like it.

There is something special about this place.

I used to spend hours running around the woods and the dock, taking pictures until my camera was out of storage.

It’s where I truly fell in love with photography and where I made the decision to major in it.

As I shut off the car and step out, the crisp Washington air fills my nose, and I smile. It’s been unusually nice lately. Typically, April is nothing but never-ending rain, but we’ve lucked out with a small break. It’s supposed to be sunny and high 60’s to low 70’s, which is scorching for April.

Pocketing my phone, I grab my backpack filled with my essentials for the week and walk up the grand deck.

Of course, my mother would never dare be caught dead in anything less than a mansion.

She’s lucky the market has picked up lately.

I wasn’t sure how she was going to maintain her high-end lifestyle when Logan left her.

She got way too used to being a millionaire’s wife.

Considering her last serious relationship was with my father, a deadbeat mechanic who couldn’t leave the state fast enough when he found out she was pregnant, Logan was certainly a step up. Until she fucked everything up.

Shaking my head at my mother’s “extracurriculars,” I look up at the two-story lake house before me.

It’s huge, with crisp white paint with black trim.

It looks so out of place in such a heavily wooded area.

It belongs at the end of a long winding cul-de-sac with an HOA fee equivalent to most people’s mortgage.

Still, I have a lot of memories here, and I haven’t seen my aunt, uncle, and cousins in a while, which is the only reason I said yes.

Pushing the front door open, I find my aunt Marissa and Uncle Tom unpacking the groceries while my younger cousins Brady and Melanie sit on the couch watching a show.

“Hi guys!” I greet.

The twin fourteen year olds turn to look at me over their shoulders, giving me ‘too cool to be excited’ head bobs before focusing back on the TV. It’s hard for me to remember that they aren’t the same hyperactive kids I’ve grown up with.

“Hi, sweetheart!” my aunt smiles. “Was the drive okay?”

“It was fine. Tons of traffic, of course.”

“We live in Western Washington. You couldn’t escape traffic if you tried,” my uncle says gruffly.

I laugh at that, shrugging my shoulders in agreement.

Quick footsteps echo down the stairs as my mom pops her head around the wall, looking around the room frantically.

“Is he here yet? I haven’t finished my hair!”

My aunt rolls her eyes in annoyance.

“No, Kel. He’s not here yet.”

The tone of my aunt’s voice is a clear indicator that this is my mom’s fifth time asking, minimum.

She gets just as fed up with my mom’s shit as I do.

Hence why she’s my favorite. I didn’t ask for her as a mother, just like she didn’t ask for her as a big sister.

We bond over our mutual irritation like any normal family does.

“Who isn’t here yet?” I ask as a heavy knock sounds at the door.

“Shit!” she hisses, rushing back upstairs to presumably finish her hair.

I scoff and roll my eyes.

Hi, Mom. Nice to see you. Yes, it has been three months since I last saw you. Oh, yeah, school is doing great. I missed you too.

I have to have these conversations with her in my head because if I don’t, we’d never have them.

Wow, that sounded just as pathetic as it feels. It’s bad enough to grow up without a dad. I really had to drive home the childhood trauma with a shallow, complacent mother.

Crossing the living room, I make my way to the door, allowing in whatever new infatuation she’s brought along for this family vacation.

It’s like she doesn’t know how to be alone.

She has to constantly have someone smothering her with attention, or she will combust. Poor bastard doesn’t know what he’s in for.

Pulling open the door, my attempt at a warm and welcoming smile drops as my entire body tenses.

What. The. Fuck.

Deep brown eyes are staring straight at me. Eyes I’ve been trying to permanently scrub from my mind…along with other parts of him. What the fuck is he doing here? He hasn’t been around my family since the divorce. I’d say myself included in that, but…you know .

“Arianna,” he says, his tone not exactly stiff but not warm either. More like careful.

I don’t respond. I’m still trying to decide what the best course of action is. A door slammed in his face, a kick to his balls. Something.

“Ari, let Logan in.” My aunt laughs.

I stay in place for several more seconds, and Logan lifts an eyebrow like he’s wordlessly checking to see what my next move will be. His calculating gaze unnerves me, and I step to the side, allowing him and his black duffel bag inside.

“Why are you being so rude?” my aunt scolds, shaking her head as she wraps her arms around Logan. “It’s been forever. How are you doing?”

Logan hugs her back before she pulls away.

“I’m good. How have you guys been?”

“Better than you. You sure you’re ready to board that shit show again, my friend?” Tom snarks, gesturing upstairs to my mom.

Logan laughs, but it’s more sarcastic than amused. His large hand scrubs at his jawline as my aunt smacks her husband’s chest.

“I’m just here to hang out, decompress a little. I love this place,” he says, his eyes pausing on me for half a second before quickly moving back to my aunt and uncle.

“That’s fine, Logan. It’s none of our business,” my aunt says, casting a side eye to Uncle Tom, who holds up his hands in surrender but has an amused look on his face.

“Just trying to give the man one last chance to run. She’s your sister, babe. I’ve known her for over twenty years. You got out, man, don’t look back now.”

“Tom, shut the fuck up,” my mom hisses as she glides down the stairs, shaking her hips like she’s a runway model and strutting through the kitchen towards Logan .

Her dress, because of course she’s wearing a dress at the lake, is low cut and revealing.

It has spaghetti straps and a lace bodice that transitions into a silk black skirt.

She’s also wearing black heels with her hair in loose, sexy curls paired with a bold red lipstick, practically pointing an arrow to her mouth.

I can’t help but glance at Logan to see how he reacts, and to my surprise, he doesn’t.

His posture is stiff, hands curled tight into fists at his side as his eyes stay on hers.

Apparently, I’m in the way of her catwalk because when she gets near me, she shoulder checks me out of the way.

I stumble for a moment, righting myself and seeing Logan watching me with furrowed brows.

“Logan,” she croons, wrapping her arms around his neck as she presses every inch of her body against his.

He hesitates for a moment before breaking our gaze and wrapping a single arm around her, releasing her almost immediately.

She doesn’t get the hint, though, and continues to hold on like a monkey around his neck.

The entire room glances at each other as an awkward air settles around us before my mom finally pries herself off him.

The entire interaction is cringey at best, and I actually feel bad for her at Logan’s lack of attention.

I mean, what did he expect would happen showing back up here after all these years?

“I have to say I’m surprised you showed up. I wasn’t sure you’d actually come.” My mom smiles.

Logan’s unwavering gaze yet again comes to me before he speaks.

“I wasn’t sure either, to be honest.”

He finishes his sentence by turning that dark gaze on my mom.

“Well, we’re so happy you’re here. Are you hungry? We could run into town and grab some lunch?”