More Than A Favor

< More Than A Favor

Chapter 98

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Ashton had come looking for me quite a few times before, but this time, he was standing right at my door.

“What do you want now?” I asked, trying to mask my confusion and lingering unease.

“I agree,” he said simply.

I frowned. “Agree to what?”

“To date you and be your temporary boyfriend,” Ashton clarified.

I blinked in surprise, caught off guard by his change of heart. “Why did you change your mind?”

“If I didn’t, you’d keep putting yourself in dangerous situations, like going on blind dates with men who follow you home,” he said, his tone a mix of exasperation and sternness.

His blunt answer amused me. In the dim light of the hallway, his reluctant yet resigned expression brought a smile to my lips.

“You’d be doing something against your will,” I teased. “Won’t that make you unhappy?”

Ashton must have caught on to my playful tone because he took a step closer. Instinctively, I backed away, but the railing behind me left me nowhere to go.

He reached out an arm, placing it on the railing and effectively pinning me between him and the cold metal. My breath hitched.

“Ashton…” I murmured, my voice trailing off.

“How could you be so foolish to go on blind dates like that?” he scolded softly, his voice warm and close to my ear.

A shiver ran down my spine. His words chastised me, but his tone was laced with something tender, almost affectionate.

I didn’t move or speak, the moment stretching between us.

The silence wasn’t awkward–it was charged, alive with an energy I couldn’t quite put into words. Standing so close to him, I could hear his heartbeat, steady and strong.

After a while, Ashton withdrew his arm and stepped back. “You’re not allowed to come home this late by yourself again.”

“Okay,” I replied quietly, unable to argue.

A moment later, I remembered my manners. “Thank you,” I added, my voice soft.

I was thanking him for saving me earlier, for agreeing to help me deal with the Mercer family, and for being there when I needed someone the most.

I gestured toward

turned to leave, he said, “That guy made it all the way to your building. Who knows if he’ll come

He had a point. What if the man

staying the night,” Ashton announced, extending

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< Chapter 98

confused by his

he said simply.

widened in surprise. “You want to stay

want me to sleep at your door?” he asked, his tone

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“It’s not like we haven’t shared a room

We had slept in the same room before,

my keys, and we went upstairs.

glanced around. “I’ll sleep

was over ten years old, small, and barely long

in the apartment–my parents‘ room–but

in my room,” I offered. “I’ll take

put down my bag and rummaged for a pair of my dad’s old slippers, handing them

to my room while I grabbed my pajamas and checked to make sure there was nothing inappropriate lying

parents‘ room, Ashton called out, “Wait a

in the doorway of my

shared a hotel room before, but here, in this familiar

Ashton spoke. “I think it’s more appropriate for me to sleep on the couch.”

at him,

in your room,” he continued. “I… I’ll

words left me feeling like I was somehow mistreating him.

he was doing–he was trying to push me, slowly

men being the most cunning seemed to apply perfectly

yourself,” I said, brushing him off before retreating

fear from earlier still lingered, and my mind replayed the hallway incident

Ashton hadn’t shown up, my meager defenses might not

been

odds he decided to come see

Ashton. I wondered if he was really sleeping on the couch or if he had taken my room

the living room. He was still awake, likely moving around

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