More Than A Favor

< More Than A Favor

Chapter 98

* Get 5*

Menu

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.

didn’t respond; he simply looked at me. I gestured toward the stairs. “I’m

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

He had a point. What

night,” Ashton announced, extending his

15:27

30.63%

< Chapter 98

for?” I asked, confused by

he said simply.

want to stay at

else? Do you want me to sleep at your door?” he asked, his

Get 5 >

= Menu

mouth to protest, but he added, “It’s not like we haven’t shared a room

true. We had slept in the same room before, and nothing had happened.

him my keys,

“I’ll sleep on the couch,” he

barely long enough for s omeone of Ashton’s height. His legs would

room in the apartment–my parents‘ room–but I couldn’t let

my room,” I

my bag and rummaged for a pair of my dad’s old

Taking the slippers, he walked to my room while I grabbed my pajamas and checked to make sure there was nothing inappropriate lying

I was about to enter my parents‘ room, Ashton called

He was standing in the doorway of my room, his

felt strangely tense. It was absurd. We had calmly shared a hotel room before, but here, in this familiar two–bedroom space, the air felt

it’s more

at him,

sleep in your room,” he

left me feeling like I was somehow

was doing–he was trying to push

old saying about quiet men being the most cunning seemed to apply

brushing him off before retreating to my

I lay in bed but couldn’t sleep. The fear from earlier still lingered, and my mind replayed the hallway incident

meager defenses might not

have been disastrous.

odds he decided to come see

if he was really sleeping on the couch or if he had

He was still awake, likely moving around or

15:27

30.54%