More Than A Favor

Chapter 173

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I needed to come up with a reason… The phone in my hand vibrated twice. It was a message from Nora. It was a GIF of a woman in a sexy nightgown striking a seductive pose after a bath.

Nora had added a note:

“You could give it a try.”

I rolled my eyes and sent back a facepalm emoji. Though I scolded Nora internally for being inappropriate, I couldn’t deny that her suggestion had merit. It wasn’t a terrible idea–I just needed to come up with a good excuse to show Ashton this side of me.

I walked to the bathroom to shower while brainstorming ideas.

Using Jeremy’s message as an excuse wouldn’t work–if I mentioned it, Ashton would surely stop me from responding. Asking him to fix the water pipes was out too, as there wasn’t anything wrong with them (and I couldn’t exactly go breaking them).

Saying I was hungry and asking him to cook seemed like the best option.

With this plan in mind, I hurried through my shower. When I finished, I pulled out the sexy nightgown I had hidden away in the back of my closet.

The nightgown was one I had bought when Logan and I got engaged. Back then, I had imagined us building a life together, sharing our home, our dreams… and moments like this. But Logan had never even seen it. Now, Ashton would.

The black silk fabric hugged my curves perfectly, its sheen accentuating my figure in all the right places. The delicate lace trim added an air of mystery, and the way the fabric contrasted with my fair skin made it impossible to ignore.

Even I found myself staring in the mirror, thinking, This is enough to make anyone’s mouth go dry.

“Knock, knock.”

A knock on the door startled me out of my thoughts. At this late hour, it could only be Ashton.

My cheeks flushed instantly. I raised a hand to pat them, trying to calm myself as I glanced at my reflection one last time. Then, I walked to the door, calling out, “Who’s there?”

“It’s me. I made you a bowl of oatmeal.”

pleasant voice carried through the

saved me the trouble of

the straps of my nightgown a little lower for

the door.

hungry,” I said, leaning casually against the doorframe.

oatmeal, but his gaze quickly fell on me. I saw his Adam’s apple bob as he swallowed hard. His reaction was immediate

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mind, four words floated by: It’s working.

(–)6882) Mery

for the bowl while playfully praising him, “You’re really on point with the boyfriend duties.”

bright red. He handed me the bowl, but I couldn’t resist teasing

steadied it. Then, he looked back at me,

spine. Suddenly, I had a bad premonition that things were about to

tried to pull my hand back, but Ashton didn’t

heart raced, pounding so hard I thought it might burst from my chest. I had been the one

I stammered, my

the distance between us. Instinctively, I stepped back, but this only allowed him to move into the room, shutting the door

myself pressed against the shoe cabinet, trapped between Ashton and the wall. Both of us still held the bowl of oatmeal, and I couldn’t help but

He simply stood there, impossibly close, his gaze locked on

wave of regret washed over me as I thought, Why did I think

she had also warned me that men couldn’t resist being teased. I

to stay calm. I could tell Ashton was

to maintain control.

oatmeal’s here. You can go now,” I said, trying to sound composed, though my

ightly.

Ashton didn’t move.

“Ash-”

he interrupted, his voice low and hoarse,

sound of his voice sent a shiver down my spine. My nerves felt like they were on the verge of snapping, an indescribable

reply, though my voice came