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 m e 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 direction s. 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. Wel l, 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. Pushin g 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.” Bef ore 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 pa rent 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 w alked 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 e yes 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 w hat 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 m ade
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 o n my face de epens. “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. W e 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 ev en
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 a ll 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 t o 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 s hop 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 p eppering my face with kisses. I giggle and squirm u nder
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 b eneath 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 shr ugs. “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.