Tempted by My Brother's Best Friend (Age Gap Romance)

He is a 10 but he is a decade older than me, my brother’s best friend, a therapist who wants to counsel me and... he likes to hurt little girls like me.

“What were you doing this morning?”

“I was meditating.”

He is right. I am a terrible liar.

Aiden raised his eyebrows. “Is that so?”

He waited for my answer, crossing his arms over his chest. I got distracted by the way his biceps bulged.

He noticed me staring. I glanced down at my lap, twiddling my thumbs. “Y-yes, Doctor Aiden, I was meditating and I-I focused on my breath like you taught me—”

“Why are you lying to me, Ivy?”

My head snapped at him. “I-I am not lying.”

Aiden tilted his head and my throat went dry when he said, “Then why did I hear your voice moaning my name when you orgasmed with your fingers inside you?"

He is her first love. She is his best friend's little sister. Will a chance reunion lead to true love?

I was a good girl. An honor student.

A dutiful daughter, sister and a sweet girlfriend to my boyfriend until I found him in my best friend’s bed. I didn’t want goody-two-shoe nice boys who gave me empty promises.

What I wanted was a man who wouldn’t hurt me. When I found my brother’s best friend, Aiden Stone, with only a towel around his hot Greek body dripping wet from a shower, I decided that what I wanted, what I had been wanting for years, was him.

The only problem? He is a decade older than me, my brother’s best friend, a therapist who wants to counsel me and... he likes to hurt little girls like me.

1 - Yes, Dad

Preview

“What were you doing this morning?”

My eyes widened, my heart pounding in my ears. I glanced at the diary and it struck me. Those ruffled pages. Shit, shit, shit. After journaling every day for a week, I wrote my fantasies regarding Aiden on different torn pages. I always tucked them back in the diary, reminding myself to pull them out before I brought it to the session. But I was in such a hurry that I had completely forgotten about them.

Did he read it? I hope he didn’t. I would rather eat raw broccoli than have him read all those pages.

Looking away from him, I lied and carelessly shrugged my shoulder. “I was meditating.”

I mentally winced at my lie. He had tried coaching me to meditate, but I could never do it.

He is right. I am a terrible liar.

Aiden raised his eyebrows. “Is that so?”

I didn’t like the tone of his voice. He seemed serious, and I prayed that the ground would swallow me up. He waited for my answer, crossing his arms over his chest. I got distracted by the way his biceps bulged.

He noticed me staring. I glanced down at my lap, twiddling my thumbs. “Y-yes, Doctor Aiden, I was meditating and I-I focused on my breath like you taught me—”

“Why are you lying to me, Ivy?”

My head snapped at him. I shook my head, “I-I am not lying.”

Aiden tilted his head and my throat went dry when he said, “Then why did I hear your voice moaning my name when you orgasmed with your fingers inside your pu -sy?”

1 - Yes, Dad

Ivy

I was wet.

Completely soaked.

It had to rain today of all days. Maybe the weather reflected my emotions.

My finger pressed on the doorbell, wishing my brother would hurry. Wet puddles formed around my feet as cold water dripped down the tips of my dark hair, trailing down my face. I knew the mascara I had applied that morning was ruined, and my eyes were puffy and red.

“Hayden!” I sniffled, running a hand across my face and pressing the doorbell again and again. “Hurry, please!”

Stupid. I was so stupid. Maybe I deserved it for being such a naïve idiot.

Rain kept pattering around the porch, wetting the freshly cut grass. The scent of wet earth and grass gave me comfort as I stood outside my brother’s house in San Diego. He had told me he would be here, hopefully with Zara, his fiancée, my best friend and Princess of Azmia, who was very pregnant. They were getting married in a couple of months in Azmia, and wanted to visit and meet their friends and family.

I needed to hug my elder brother and hear him curse about stupid boys and coddle me like he always did whenever I was sad. I wanted to hear him talk about his work as a Navy Seal, about Azmia, and his life as a soon-to-be-Prince. Very fitting with our last name.

“Hayden!” I cried out, my voice thick. “Open up. Finally, I thought you’d—oh.”

My lips parted as I came face to face with chiseled abs, water sluicing over each contour of the muscles. Rain muffled into the surroundings as I trailed my eyes over the chiseled chest, my mouth going dry. Licking my lips, I raised my eyes from strong collarbones, lick-worthy adam’s apple, to sharp jaw, inviting lips to very familiar thundering grey colored orbs.

“Petal,” he whispered, his eyes roving over my face, calling me with the nickname he had been using since he met me.

My eyes flickered down to the white towel wrapped around his waist, staying far too long on the perfect vee of his hipbones. The short trail of dark hair leading under the towel made me curious, creating an odd twinge of need between my legs and making my cheeks warm.

He is your brother’s best friend, Ivy. Get your head out of those dirty fantasies.

But I couldn’t. I had been crushing on his symmetrical face since the day he piggy backed me home and stayed with me until Hayden bandaged my bruised knee.

“Aiden.” I licked my lips, my throat dry. “I didn’t know you’d be here.”

“I missed you…” His eyes softened before he noticed my soaked clothes and wrapped his large, warm hand around my arm, dragging me in. “Come inside, you will get cold.”

I shivered, not from the cold, but from his touch as it singed through my skin. His eyes clouded when mine travelled over the muscles of his body—how the deltoids of his back clenched and unclenched when he pulled my suitcase inside. In just a towel.

I may or may not have checked out his ass, too.

With flaming cheeks, I looked away at the empty hallway filled with our picture frames on the wall. “Where’s Hayden? I thought he would be home by now.”

“He didn’t tell you?” He said, his body closer to mine. “Zara got a flu so they will arrive next month.”

I frowned, “Is Zara okay?”

“If it was serious, I’d know, Petal. Don’t worry about it.” Of course, he’d know. Besides being Hayden’s best friend, he was a brilliant psychiatrist who helped a lot of soldiers and Navy Seal officers going through PTSD or more.

But hearing I wouldn’t be able to meet my brother for a few more weeks made me sad. I tried to hide my disappointment and crossed my arms.

His stormy eyes fell on my chest, and he cleared his throat. “Stay here. I will bring you a towel.”

He walked past me, straight towards the room, keeping the door ajar. I looked down at myself and cringed in horror. My nude bra was visible through the thin cotton top I had worn that morning, my cold nipples poking through the wet fabric.

I tried to cover them as much as I could with my long hair when Aiden came back, handing me the towel, his tall height looming over me. He had changed into a black tee—boo—and grey sweatpants, his feet bare. There was something odd about seeing him like that, with his damp hair sleeked back and the dim light creating shadows on his sharp face.

When I was young and he was in high school, I had always seen him wearing pants and shirts. After a couple of years, when I was in high school and he was busy with his work as a therapist, I rarely saw him in anything but crisp shirts and suits that stretched over his broad shoulders and pants that covered his long legs.

Aiden stepped closer, his hands gently patting my wet hair with a dry towel. He smelled so good. Of musky, sweet cologne and something sharp. I wanted to step closer and bury my face in his chest, take a long sniff and hug him.

But I didn’t, because I didn’t want to seem like a puppy.

His voice was low as he said, “I am staying here until I find a house nearby. I didn’t know you would be back so soon from your university.”

Right. The reason I was soaked with mascara running down my face and the constant ache in my heart.

Images of Jason in bed with Amanda flashed in my head, making my eyes burn and stomach heavy. Was I that naïve that I didn’t know Jason was cheating on me for half of the year we had been in a relationship? Probably. Amanda, my friend and dorm mate, and Jason, my now-ex-boyfriend, used to hang out a lot, and I passed their relationship as platonic, trusting both of them. I was a stupid twenty-one-year old who believed that their relationship was anything more than that.

I came back home with a suitcase as fast as I could.

“Yeah,” I cleared my throat and looked down at my soaked Spirited Away socks, which Zara had bought for me. I felt like that. A wet sock. “Things happened and I…”

Shaking my head, I trailed off and peered up at him. “I never thought I’d meet you so soon.”

His lips quirked. I knew after knowing him from years that it meant he was happy. “Me too.” Stepping back, he said, “I… I had to leave Denver and come here.”

I furrowed my brows at him and waited for him to say something more, but neither of us wanted to talk like that, standing in the hallway, after years of not meeting each other face-to-face.

I took a sharp breath when he tucked a wet lock of hair behind my ear. “I know he made you cry, Petal.” His eyes hardened when he gazed at me as if he could read me like a poem. “But we will talk about what that shit did to you to make your cry after you take a hot shower.”

I swallowed the lump in my throat, not able to meet his piercing eyes. I must be crazy to find his domineering tone hot. But my chest warmed hearing that tone. Aiden always used it with me to make me eat food on time when he was sleeping over at our house, telling me to be careful while I chopped onions and holding my hands under tap when I cut my finger, disapproving of my prom date and telling me not to go to the after party.

I wish I had listened to him because I had called him, not my brother, at two in the morning at the after party of the prom. Crying and asking him if he could pick me up. He had even given me his hoodie that I never returned and bought me ice cream at early morning.

He never once mocked me with his told-you-so look, just took care of me when I needed someone.

I didn’t think he would enter my life once again when I got my heart broken by Jason.

“Yes, Dad,” I teased, walking past him, his knuckles brushing my arm.

I shivered with goosebumps and hurried upstairs to my room when I felt him watching me. Hayden had insisted on having a room of my own in his house because he wanted me to visit him more. After leaving for Azmia, he had given me the keys, but I had lived at dorms to be more social.

Everything was still the same. With beige walls, a twin size bed in the corner with a metal head frame, white lace curtain surrounding the bed, fairy lights all over the walls hanging over Audrey Hepburn’s poster, my half-empty closet, a vanity dresser with mirror and a bookshelf filled with fantasy books and my soft toys from childhood.

I trailed my finger over the picture frame of us three. Me, my brother and Aiden when I was a kid. Being nine years older than me, I didn’t get to hang out with them a lot, but when I did, they treated me like their equal. I was smiling shyly at the camera because I was insecure about my braces at thirteen, my dark hair in two pigtails, my lilac dress flowing in the wind. Hayden was grinning, his blue-grey eyes as bright as the ocean behind us in the backdrop. My eyes averted to Aiden, the person I had been crushing on since I was six.

His eyes were clear, piercing grey, facing the camera with his face stern, his onyx hair tousled perfectly as if he had rolled out of the bed, a lock of hair falling over his forehead and touching his slashing dark brow. The corner of his lip curled just a little. He was amused and happy. I knew it even though some would think he looked bored. After knowing him for all these years, I knew he seemed happy at that moment. I glanced at his arm, his hand pressing against my shoulder, a friendly gesture, but it made my stomach flutter like it did when I was thirteen.

Stupid. That’s what I was. Stupid and naïve that someone like him, like Aiden, would ever return the feelings I have been harboring inside me since we first met. He was smart and poised, treating his patients with kindness and being awarded for his voluntary work in hospitals. Being one of the best therapists in California, he was nothing short of a celebrity in his community. Compared to him, I was a twenty-one-year-old girl who got her heart broken because she couldn’t see through Jason’s sorry excuses.

I huffed and stripped out of my soaked clothes, heading straight to the ensuite bathroom. I would need a warm shower, some food and some alcohol to talk to call my brother and have a chat with Aiden.

Access the entire book + more books + bonus content on P*****n (p*****n.com/mahimistry)

2 - It’s Not Going to Lick Itself

2 - It’s Not Going to Lick Itself

Aiden

There are times in my life that I wished I wasn’t me, Aiden Stone. Like opening the door and seeing Ivy, my little petal, after such a long time. My first thought on seeing her was, ‘It must be a dream.’ A very weird dream. Where her clothes were soaked, chocolate hair dripping with water, her bright blue eyes red and puffy, mascara running down her cheeks. My second thought was that she had been crying, and I wanted to do terrible things to the person who had made her cry.

I had bought her favorite doughnuts when she got her first periods, heard her talk about her awkward first kiss under the bleachers because she was too scared to talk about it with Hayden and get embarrassed by her friends. I had picked her up from her prom after party, gave her my hoodie and bought her ice cream at three in the morning. I had hugged her goodbye when I left with her brother for his deployment and my work, hoping she would take care of herself.

I cared about Ivy. My little petal. That was why I was I was going to do terrible things to the person, to the shit, who made her cry.

It was also why it was unfortunate that my third thought was widely different from the first two. I hated being myself when I thought of her… differently. I was truly a sadist to get turned on by her red, watery eyes. All I could think about was wrapping my fist around her hair and seeing her sky eyes gleam with tears of pain and pleasure, hazy with lust but trusting me to take care of her and her needs. Being on her knees with my hands on her face and fucking those pouty lips—

“Fuck,” I breathed, swallowing the lump in my throat and glaring at the semi in my sweatpants. I had to stop thinking about her.

Which won’t happen when she is under the same roof, taking a shower, all wet and naked—

I closed my eyes and thought about all the ways I helped my patients with their anxiety. I took four deep breaths. After clearing my heads of all the filthy thoughts, I made a list why I should never think about the said filthy thoughts.

1. She is Ivy Knight.

2. She is Hayden Knight’s little sister, my best friend’s sister, and he would dump me in the Arctic Ocean if he ever knew about these thoughts.

3. She is young. Eleven years younger than I am.

4. She probably thinks of me as her elder brother.

5. Did I mention she is related to Hayden Knight? The person who can and will murder me if I ever thought about touching her inappropriately.

Yes, that list was good and it should help remind me every time my blood rushes to the south. But it was the fourth point that truly scared me. I knew I had been overly protective of her when we were young—I still was, but I never meant it in a brotherly way. No, I just didn’t want her to get hurt. I wanted to care for her. But not the way a sibling does.

As if he knew I was thinking about him, Hayden called me. I picked up after one more ring, hearing him say, “Hey, asshole. Did you miss your favorite person?”

“Hello to you too, darling,” I said, stirring the red sauce, hating myself for the small twitch on my lips. Hayden Knight was a pain in the ass, but he was my close friend. We had been mistaken for brothers, but it was clear from one closer look that our eyes didn’t match and he was more charming with talking our way out of a situation. “Why on earth would I miss you out of everyone? In fact, I’m glad your Azmian princess whisked you off of San Diego and keeps you locked in her palace.”

I heard a shuffle and a soft feminine voice. “Aw, Aiden! I knew you secretly liked me underneath all that ‘I hate everyone, people are stupid’ guise!” I shook my head hearing Zara Knight Latif, the Princess of Azmia, and the fiancée of my best friend, try to mimic my voice.

“Why are you out of bed?” Hayden asked her and for a moment, all I heard was bad reception and clothes shuffling. “You should’ve called me, I would have—”

Zara didn’t let him finish. “Aiden, tell your friend that I won’t fall the second he looks away.”

“You would’ve landed on your bump if you had looked where you walked.”

“I would love to see where I’m walking, but I can’t see my feet, you ass.”

“Then hold my hand, I’m here for—”

I cleared my throat, watching the steam rolling off of the pasta in the pan. “As much as I’d love to hear you both bicker, I have something to tell you, Hayden.”

“I’ll leave you boys to it.”

Hayden yelled when she walked away, “Please have a guard with you!”

My heart felt heavy hearing them bicker lovingly. Hayden had saved her life, promised her safety, care and love for their engagement and even trying his best to be a good father for his soon-to-be-child and a good husband when they get married.

Hayden, the man who had fucked his way through half of the San Diego’s single women, was now expecting a child and marrying the woman he met once and pined on her for two years, so much so that he never once flirted with anyone.

“All good?”

I heard him sigh. “Pregnancy is a hard thing.”

I chuckled, “You don’t say.”

“I’m serious. All her mood swings affect me and I don’t know what it is, but I can’t stand anyone looking at her when she is pregnant with my child—”

“You’ve been reading too many fantasy romances—”

I could hear him grin when he replied, “Maybe. Zayed asked me to try one and I’m stuck now.” Zayed was the Sheikh of Azmia and his good friend. “Anyway, how was the date?”

“Date?” I pinched the bridge of my nose and remembered how last night went when I had arrived in San Diego. The expensive wine, dessert and a hotel room. “It went well, I suppose. A one-night stand. But it doesn’t matter, I need to tell you something—”

“Was it that bad?” He asked from the other line, something shuffling.

“Hayden,” I said and he knew it was serious when I said his name. I turned off the stove and leaned back on the island. “I am at your house and you won’t believe who showed up at the door.”

“Addison in a trench coat?”

Hearing the name of my ex made me lose my appetite. If she had appeared like that, which she would never have, I would have locked the door on her face.

“She would never do that.” I sighed. “It was your sister with a suitcase. She was crying. I believe something happened with her bo—”

“Is she okay? Should I come back—wait, let me check the ticket—”

“Hayden, she is twenty-one. She can take care of herself… and I am here, too.”

He didn’t reply for a few moments. I held my breath.

“Yes, I trust you, of course,” he sighed. I clenched my hand in a fist. Another reason for hating myself to even have a hint of attraction towards his sister. “I will see if I can come back, but I need you to talk to her, Aiden.”

“Of course, I will talk with her—”

“No, Aiden,” he paused. “I meant, as a therapist.”

“What do you mean?”

“You know how it was when mom left. When we left. She hasn’t been herself since she went to university. With Zara here, she lost her close best friend, and I have been trying to talk to her, see her, but I need your help. If you can, I want you to talk to her, give her a few therapy sessions. If not you, someone else.”

I knew what he meant. Her mom had divorced her father and left. Her father couldn’t cope with the sudden loss and ignored both of his children. Hayden was a senior in high school, but Ivy was barely six years old and had no one. They both had tried to bond with each other, but she never had a parent figure in her life and it may have affected her.

I clenched the phone in my hand and said, “I will take care of her. You don’t have to worry about it.”

“Thank you. I will call Ivy tonight. See you soon.”

“You too,” I replied, ending the call. Staring at the cooked spaghetti, I let out a sigh, raking my hand through my hair.

His phone call was a living reminder that I should not think about—

“Did you cook this for me?”

Ivy was wearing the same fucking hoodie that I had given her on her prom night. It’s not going to lick itself, it said in bold white letters. I wondered if she knew what it meant. Hayden would punch me if he knew I had given that hoodie to his sister. His little sister, who was wearing just the hoodie, the hem reaching her creamy thighs.

I licked my lips, turning my back to her, and tried hard not to wonder if she was wearing anything underneath that hoodie.

“You should eat it before it gets cold,” I said, serving the hot spaghetti in red sauce. I kept the plate on the table and pulled out a chair for her, motioning her to sit, my nose filling with the sweet floral scent of her shampoo.

“Who were you talking to?” She asked, twirling the fork around the pasta and eating it. “Was it Hayden?”

I told her about his call, about Zara and how he would call her soon and that she should stay in the house for a while until the university classes start again and she has to go back to dorm. After asking about her business school, I brought up the main point I wanted to discuss with her.

“Why do you have that thinking-face on?” Ivy asked with a small smile, keeping the plates in the dishwasher.

I managed to keep my eyes on her face and not her bare thighs. “Thinking face?”

She nodded, her finger hovering over my eyes and mouth. I ignored the urge to pull her closer, hold her wrist and check for myself if she was wearing anything underneath that damn hoodie.

“Your eyebrows are pinched together and you have that dark gleam in your eyes whenever you are thinking,” Ivy said, her voice light. Her blue eyes dropped to my mouth. After three seconds, she looked away, licking her lips.

I didn’t think it would be wise to tell her that that was my I-want-to-take-you-over-my-lap-and-check-if-you-are-naked-underneath-my-hoodie-and-spank-you-like-the-naughty-brat-you-are look.

“I agreed with your brother that I will have a few sessions with you,” I said, holding her wrist and lowering it from my face so I could meet her eyes. Her pulse was beating wildly underneath my thumb.

“Sessions?” She breathed.

Naughty. Fucking. Girl.

The corner of my mouth curled. “Not those kinds of sessions, you naughty little Petal,” I crooned, slowly rubbing the pad of my thumb over her pulse. “Therapy sessions.”

“I wasn’t thinking anything.” Her cheeks turned the loveliest shade of pink. “Therapy sessions? What? You will be my therapist then?”

“Yes, Petal.” I let go off of her wrist and stood up, easily towering over her as she craned her head to look at me. “I will be your therapist and you will be my patient.” I said the words that I’d never say in front of her like a porn star about to bend her over the dining table.

And like the beginning of any porno, she stuttered, wide doe-eyes blinking up at me.

“But I am…” she trailed off.

I raised my brow and continued, “If you don’t want to sit in the same room with me after tomorrow’s session, Hayden or I won’t bother you again, Ivy. Give me one day, one hour.”

Her slender throat bobbed as she blinked up at me. I held the reins of my dirty thoughts and watched the way her face softened, agreeing with me like I knew she would.

“Okay, I will have a session with you,” she whispered.

I hid my smile.

Good. Fucking. Girl.

3 - Use Your Tongue

3 - Use Your Tongue

Ivy

“Sorry, I had a call,” I said, closing the door behind me. I looked at the comfortable pale blue couch and sat in the middle.

It had been two weeks since we started therapy sessions. By we, I mean, me and Aiden or as I liked to call him—Doctor Aiden, during the sessions. His clinic was not at all like I had imagined. It was minimalist and cozy, with his certificates and various awards lined on the wall behind his desk. The bookshelf comprised a few books and antiques and craft pieces his patients had gifted him. There was a coffee table between the two couches that faced each other that always had sweets, savory snacks, tissues and a candle.

His obsidian dark eyes kept looking at me through the thin framed glasses that should not make him more attractive than he already was. But they did. It was unfair how deliciously hot he looked in them. It made me want to lean closer and take away his glasses to see what he would do. His hair was sleeked back, his stubble neatly trimmed over his sharp jaw. A crisp grey shirt stretched over his broad shoulders with sleeves rolled over his forearms and the veins on his arms shifted ever so slightly when he wrote something in his diary.

I licked my dry lips.

The cursed frame glasses perched on his strong pointed nose, his soft lips in a thin line, made him look like the main cast of a high school porn video. Worse thing was that I could imagine him as a stern hot teacher, punishing student over his lap—

My mental pornography starring the man across from me came to a halt when he said, “Whose call was it?”

Smoothing my hand over my flowy white skirt, I lied. “Oh, i-it was nothing important.”

Aiden’s eyes narrowed, my eyes fixed on his hands. His long fingers closed the diary as he stood up from the chair behind his desk and strode towards the small couch across me. His movements were graceful, confident.

If I tried walking without looking at the floor like that, I would get my shoe stuck on the rug and trip.

“You are still a terrible liar, little Petal,” he said in his smooth voice, his legs widening when he sat down. A spectacular image of a composed gentleman, a notepad on his thigh with a pen.

I was a terrible person to be jealous of that notepad.

“I am not little anymore,” I argued weakly.

I felt little and small compared to him. It wasn’t because he was tall or more than a decade older than me. It was something else entirely that gave me the shivers and made my heart rate increase. The way he presented himself and the surrounding air, always charged with something that made me intimidated by him ever since I met him.

“I am twenty-one now.” I said, raising my chin a little. “I am a big girl.”

Aiden smiled, as if he knew how little I felt around him. That my age had nothing to do with it. He shifted, crossing his leg, his shiny black shoes gleaming in the light of his office.

I swallowed the lump in my throat when he peered over his glasses and said, “We will talk about that call at the end. Tell me about your day.”

I started, much more relaxed, since the first day. I was frozen and tensed at the start of the first session, but Aiden was wonderful. Listening to me, his expression was impassive yet soothed me to say it all out loud. About how I truly felt when mom left, the emotional detachment from my father, how lonely I felt when Hayden had to leave for his studies and then work. How I was bullied and awkward when it came to making new friends. How different Jason had made me feel.

The corners of his mouth twitched whenever I mentioned Jason, my ex-boyfriend, as if he had some sort of dislike towards him. I knew that expression well, because he made that same face whenever we had seafood. He hates seafood. Does that mean he hates Jason too?

“And how do you feel now?” He asked, removing his glasses and pinning his eyes on me.

I blinked, not knowing how to put it into words. So, I stuck with, “Better. Much better than how I was when I broke up with Jason.”

His lips twitched again. “Hm, have you been doing your assignments?”

Assignments comprised little daily puzzles, and affirmations which he had asked me to do every day. Especially after ending each session, to know my emotions better. I cherished his secret smiles when he would find me doing them at the kitchen island after our dinner. I secretly did it for his smile. Wanting to please him. I enjoyed doing them, reflecting on myself and figuring out what I wanted with introspection little by little each day. It gave me more clarity and assurance and acceptance of who I was as a person. I also enjoyed pleasing Aiden, making him smile because of me.

“Yes, sir,” I said, beaming proudly at him.

My heart stuttered when his eyes flickered to me, a dark gleam in them after hearing my reply. I scrambled my thoughts, wondering if I had said anything wrong. I didn’t want to disappoint him by saying something wrong—but then again, he knew all the good and ugly parts about me in just a few days.

“Good,” he replied, clearing his throat. “Before we end this session, I want to ask you about that phone call.”

The tone of his voice had changed. He wasn’t being a professional therapist anymore, he was being my brother’s best-friend. A concerned brother’s best-friend.

I hated it. Because I knew despite of how infatuated I was with him, all he could see was his friend’s silly little sister. Never anything else.

Clenching my hands, I said, “It’s none of your business, Aiden.”

He didn’t reply for a few moments. I held my breath, counting each second. I swear I could feel the pressure increasing in the room, pressing down on my skin in the light airy room that resembled peace and safety. But now it felt heavy… and scary. Scary in a good way. It was anticipation burning through my veins, my heartbeat increasing with each second.

“Is that any way to use your mouth in front of me, Petal?” Aiden asked, his voice rumbling through my bones, caressing the innermost parts of me as he leaned back. Arrogance and something terribly arousing rolled off of him. It curled around my body, sizzling me and making me want to do terrible things for him—

I should have taken my backpack and rushed out of the room if I was smarter. But I wasn’t. I wanted to see with my own eyes how he would react.

Tilting my head, I heard myself say, “Do you want to see how I use my mouth, Doctor Aiden?”

His eyes turned darker, almost onyx, despite how bright the room was. He opened his mouth to reply, but my phone rang with a shrill ringtone. It was one of the rules to keep it silenced, but I had forgotten today after the chat with Jason before the session.

“It’s him, isn’t it?” He asked as I checked the caller ID.

“I am sorry, but I have to take th—”

I gaped when he took my phone from my hands and accepted it, pressing it against his ear. My eyes betrayed me for a moment, falling over his muscular, strong thighs, the way his pants fitted him perfectly. Especially that ass—

Focus Ivy!

I am.

Not on his ass.

“No, you fucking prick. Have some decency to accept you cheated on her,” Aiden snapped.

My eyes widened hearing Jason’s voice on the other side of the call, a vein popping on Aiden’s neck. He seemed furious. I had never seen him that way before.

His eyes flickered to me for a moment. With his jaw clenched, he answered, “Fortunately, I am not like you, so I won’t answer that vulgar question of yours. Instead, you should spend those brain cells to reflect on your life choices that made you end up here. Calling the sweetest girl you had the honor to date, after cheating on her and begging her to take you back. Do yourself a favor and don’t dare to call her again.”

I was still gaping when he ended the call, presumably blocking his number and handing me the phone. I quickly closed my mouth when Aiden’s face appeared in front of mine, with only an inch separating us. I could smell his cologne, the sharp musky male scent making me want to lean closer and press my nose against the collar of his neck.

His eyes dropped to my lips when I licked them. I held in my breath when his warm finger tucked a piece of hair behind my ear. “Despite everything stopping me, little Petal, I would love to see how you use this pretty mouth of yours,” he whispered, my belly tightening.

I clenched my thighs when he stood up and took a step back, his piercing dark eyes pinned on me. “Before you leave, take the diary from my desk and write about your emotions and feelings.”

It took me a few moments to gather my thoughts and reply, “You want me to journal?”

“Yes, Ivy. Journal your daily thoughts. As soon as you wake up and before you go to sleep.” He sat down on his chair and opened the drawer, giving me a leather-bound black diary. I started from his face and the diary when he clasped his hands and leaned on the desk. “Can you do that for me?”

Yes, Doctor Aiden. Should I kneel and suck your cock too?

With a flushed face, I scolded my mind for going into the gutter at such an inappropriate time. I took the diary and looked through the blank pages.

“Only my emotions?” I asked.

“Whatever makes you happy, sad, angry, disappointed, anything. I want you to write about what makes you feel. And bring this with you next week, okay?”

I could do that. I could write about my emotions every day and night. I nodded, keeping the diary in my bag.

Aiden said with a much deeper and commanding voice, “I asked you something, Petal. Use your tongue and answer me.”

I blinked at him, at the sudden change in the air. “I-I...” I forgot what I was going to say. “Y-yes, Doctor Aiden. Of course, yes, um. I will bring the diary with me during the next session.” I stammered, and by the twitch in his sharp jaw covered in little stubble, I knew he noticed my nervousness.

“Good girl.”

4 - I am Always Here If You Get Scared

4 - I am Always Here If You Get Scared

Ivy

I had practically sprinted out of his office, almost making fun of myself, when I tripped on my shoes. Thankfully, I didn’t fall flat on my face. Knowing he would be busy with his work, I reached home and tried to ignore the burning sensation between my legs and make us some dinner.

For two weeks, we had fallen into a routine. He would wake up early to go to the gym and make us breakfast. By the time I got ready and had my breakfast, he would be back home, showered and ready in his crisp shirt and silk pants, making a small lunch for both of us. I would cook the dinner and we both would have it together, sometimes calling Hayden and Zara. It almost felt like how it was before.

My stomach tightened with nerves when I heard the front door open. Even before he stepped into the kitchen, I knew it was Aiden, the intense air thickening with sexual tension when he greeted me.

“You’re early,” I said.

He tilted his head. “I didn’t have any more appointments. Do you need my help?”

I shook my head. “You can go freshen up. We can have an early dinner.”

Aiden nodded, unbuttoning the top few buttons of his shirt. I swallowed, my eyes greedily taking in the tanned muscled skin. “We should watch a movie together. It’s been a while since we had any movie nights.”

***

Movie night was a terrible idea.

“Are you sure you are not scared?” Aiden asked, his voice low when the creaking paranormal sound continued from the flat screen of the television.

I had my eyes squeezed shut. “I’m not scared,” I lied pathetically, my voice nothing but a mere whimper.

I heard him sigh somewhere beside me on the couch and felt the warm blanket around my shoulders. I made a small sound at the back of my throat when he pulled me flush to his side, his arm holding me close.

“Now you can hide your face whenever you want, little Petal,” he crooned, his lips pecking my hair.

“Stop babying me,” I said, my eyes fixed on his side profile, the sharp jaw, his stubble, long lashes creating shadows on his cheeks.

“Then stop being a baby.” He turned towards me, my heart rate increasing. “It’s just a horror film. No one is going to haunt you.”

I didn’t believe him.

Aiden shifted, and I held my breath. Not because of the horror film, but because of how warm his body felt against my side. It was perfect, the easy, comfortable way we fitted together. I clenched my thighs, ignoring his strong, hot body.

“Do you want to watch something else?” He asked, his voice smooth, his hand gently running thorough my hair. I wanted to press myself against him and have his fingers run through my scalp.

“You wanted to watch this movie,” I argued.

“Because you chose this,” he said. “I asked you before to choose a rom-com, but you assured me you will watch this.”

Aiden was right. I picked the horror film because I wanted to show him that I was not little anymore and… I wanted to please him. I knew he enjoyed watching horror films with Hayden, how they would laugh at certain scenes and mockingly scare each other. I never stayed up to watch paranormal stuff with them. It always terrified me.

I looked between him and the television. Squealing at the horrifying jump scare, I pressed my cheek against Aiden’s chest and squeezed my eyes shut. His arm tightened around me and I heard the film music stop.

“Come on, Petal, you can open your eyes now,” he said softly. “It’s gone now.”

“Promise?”

“Yes, I promise.”

Trusting him, I opened my eyes and noticed the television was turned off. The living room was dark, a dim yellow lamp lit in the room’s corner. I shifted towards Aiden and realized I had jumped on his lap during the scary scene.

His eyes were pinned on my face, his hand rubbing my back soothingly, allowing me to stay on his lap. I bit my lip, knowing he could feel that I wasn’t wearing any bra underneath the worn-out tee shirt of my brother.

Shit, my brother. I had forgotten that Aiden was my brother’s best friend first. He saw me as his little sister.

“I’m sorry,” I said, trying to stand up from his thighs, but he stopped me.

“Shh, Ivy,” he said, his warm breath brushing my cheeks. “Stay. I know you are scared. Your heart beat has increased.”

It increased because I was on the lap of my childhood crush.

I didn’t complain as the side of my body relaxed on his strong chest. I could hear his steady heartbeat, smell the musky scent of his cologne. I wish I could press my nose against his tee shirt and inhale his male scent. Closing my eyes, I made myself comfortable on his lap.

After a few moments, I don’t know when I woke up in my bed. The blanket covered me and the fairy lights were on, the door of my bedroom was kept ajar. Aiden must have—

The curtain of the window flew in the dark, and my heart pounded in my ears. Nope. Not sleeping alone tonight. I took my pillow and tiptoed out of my room. In my sleepy haze, I knocked on the door. He opened it after a few seconds, raising his brow at me.

“I can’t sleep alone,” I said sheepishly, looking down at the floor. “I got scared.”

I was surprised to feel his hand on my arm tugging me inside. “I know, Petal.” He brought me to his bed and said, “I am always here if you get scared.”

The sheets of his bed were dark grey as I laid down on one side, nuzzling deeper in the pillows that smelled like him. I felt the slightest brush of his knuckles on my cheeks as he whispered goodnight and switched off the lights. I didn’t get scared the entire night, sleeping like a baby because I knew Aiden was sleeping a few inches away from me.

***

I woke up squirming. Wet arousal pooling in my underwear as I looked around the empty bedroom of Aiden. It was seven in the morning and I knew he would be at the gym.

Lying back on his bed, the smell of pine and his cologne wafted in my nose. I played the images of the wet dream in my head, his large hands stroking my body, ordering me to finish my assignments on time and showing him how I used my mouth on his hard length as he praised and degraded me.

Biting my lip, I slipped my hand underneath my pajama shorts, feeling the damp arousal on my underwear before moving it to the side and pressing my finger against the aching clit. A small moan slipped out of me. His name was on my lips as I whimpered, pushing two fingers inside me and twisting my pebbled nipples with my other hand.

“Aiden,” I whispered breathily. “Please…”

I groaned, the sound of my fingers dipping inside me turning me on. Wishing they were his fingers, thicker and longer. His other hand pinning down my thigh, forcing me to stay still while he bruised my pussy with his hands and mouth, overstimulating me and edging me. I imagined his commanding voice whispering in my ear to spread my legs wider and not to come until he said so.

“Please fuck me,” I whimpered, squeezing my eyes shut and arching my back. The cool sheets were a reminder that I was in his bedroom, his scent overpowering me.

I bit down on a pillow to muffle my moans when I orgasmed. I breathed loudly, gaping at the ceiling as my fingers drenched with my cum, my core throbbing and sensitive, my nipples red.

That was one of the most intense orgasms I have ever had. And that fast.

Shaking my head, I sat up on the bed, blushing at the sight of my spread legs in front of the mirror. My face flushed. My hair was a tousled mess. I wondered how it would feel to have his large warm hands fondling my sensitive breasts, his fingers tweaking my nipples until I moaned with pain and pleasure.

I am a mess.

I made the bed, making sure that my arousal hadn’t left any stain on the bedsheets. I straightened my tee shirt, patted my hair, and opened the door.

My heart dropped in my stomach.

“Aiden…”

5 - I Hate Liars

5 - I Hate Liars

Aiden

I was expecting to see Ivy sleeping between my pillows and blankets, her pouty lips parted, looking like a sweet angel.

What I was not expecting was her soft voice, whispering my name over and over again with a gasp between them. As soon as I walked upstairs, ready to wake her up after my early workout in the gym, I heard her moans.

Her sinful whimpers drew me closer to the unlocked door, my eyes squeezing shut.

“Aiden,” I heard her breathy voice. “Please…”

My skin tightened, and blood rushed down to my crotch. I clenched my jaw, controlling myself with pure will when my dick pressed against the boxers, urging me to use my hand. Or barge inside and order her to beg more. Hear her little whines of desperation. Tell me what she wanted.

My naughty little Petal.

I heard the wet sounds of her cunt, soaked with her arousal. My breathing turned harsh, and I wanted nothing more than to wrap my hand around her throat and use my hands on her. Plunge my fingers inside her dripping sex, choking her until she begged me to come.

But I wouldn’t allow her to come until she begged prettily, used her pouty lips on me. Fuck. What I wouldn’t do to feel her warm mouth around me, her blue eyes tearing up when I feed her my cock.

“Please fuck me.”

I exhaled sharply, hearing her muffled moans. I knew she came, climaxed in my bed with her fingers covered in her cum, trying so badly to stifle her whimpers. I counted to ten, controlling my breathing and forcing my boner down.

If I acted on my urges, I would take her pretty ass over my lap, spank her and have her throat fucked before she would beg me to fuck her. I wouldn’t be gentle, I would be rough. I didn’t want that for Ivy. If it had been someone else moaning my name, I would have fucked them by now and told them to leave. But I couldn’t do that to Ivy.

Never with my Petal. She deserved more.

I would need a lot of hours to worship her body, memorize the curves of her skin on my tongue and lips before edging and denying her orgasms. Until she was nothing but a desperate, wet, needy Petal. Then I would slide inside her, holding her neck to see her eyes pinned on me, reminding her I was making her feel all the pain and pleasure.

Hearing the soft rustling sound of my bedsheets, I straightened up. A moment later, the door opened.

I gazed at the wide blue eyes of Ivy. Wearing nothing but a long tee shirt that reached her thighs. I wanted to turn her around and pin her to the wall. Yank that tee shirt over her ass and give it a good spanking before checking how wet she was from her orgasm.

Would she enjoy my hands on her body? Manhandling her, holding her, ordering her to stay still? Would that make her pretty pussy wet?

“Aiden…”

“Little Petal,” I drawled, my eyes dipping to her chest. Her nipples pebbled underneath my scorching stare. Naughty mixen. I raised my eyes and asked, innocence lacing my voice, “Did you just wake up?”

Her cheeks flushed, and she tried to cover her breasts with her hair, crossing her arms. “I did,” she lied, faking a yawn. “I might sleep in today before our session.”

I let her walk past me, the scent of feminine arousal and the musky scent of sex clinging to her. I let her because I didn’t trust myself to be gentle with her when she had just lied to me.

“Ivy.”

She stopped, turning towards me with wide eyes, knowing I rarely called her by her first name. “One thing you should remember is that I hate liars.”

Her body shuddered, her eyes tracking over my clothes, my skin, covered in a thin sheet of sweat from strength training.

She licked her lips. “You do?”

“Yes. I prefer bitter truth than sweet lies, Ivy. Even if the truth seems daunting.”

She knew that I knew.

“What do you do when you catch a liar?” She asked, her eyes dancing with curiosity. It was no doubt that she found it thrilling. Wanting to know what I would do next.

“I make them confess the truth.” Leaning closer to her face, I whispered in her ear, “And if a liar is as pretty as you, I punish them.”

I pulled away, watching her breasts heave, a red flush creeping up her neck. “P-punish them?”

I hummed.

“How?”

Smiling darkly, I tapped her nose. “Let’s hope you won’t have to find that out, Petal.” I turned, walking into my room. Pausing, I said, “Don’t be late like yesterday. I don’t like tardiness.”

Before I could close the door, Ivy said, “Or what? You’ll punish me too?”

I gazed at her through my lashes, her curvy frame and the teasing smile on her lips. She didn’t know how dark my desires went, how she fueled them since the day I had the urge to protect her.

Keep her safe and ruin her for me.

“I will if I have to, little Petal.”

***

“And this is the third guest room,” the pretty redhead waved her arm around the empty room as I glanced around the walls. I walked past her, towards the window that was directly against the house across from the one I was standing in. And a kid, no—a girl was playing with her gaming controller as a man joined her in the living room, ruffling her hair and picking up another controller.

I clenched my jaw and glared at the redhead, my real estate agent. Her eyes turned wide, seeing my face, and she looked away.

“You didn’t tell me this house had neighbors.”

“W-well, Mister Aiden, this is the only house that fits all your needs from two garages to more rooms and security. I’m sure you can overlook neighbors living in such a cozy home. And those are the Millers, I can introduce to them when we—”

“No need.” I left the room. I wasn’t here to make neighbors, just to see another house from the few that had disappointed me. Miss Poppy, the real estate agent, was right. The house suited me perfectly, with tall ceilings, beige walls, a fireplace, and more rooms than I’d ever need.

It would have been perfect for a family if—

I wasn’t going there. Addison had shown her true colors, and that was it. I was moving on. I had already moved from Denver and the house could be another step.

“Do you want to check the pool?”

“No, thank you.” I tilted my head and said, “Where can I sign the papers?”

Forty-five minutes later, I walked out of the agency building with a set of keys in my pocket and a bottle of Champagne gifted from a very flushed Poppy. I hope her boss paid her well. She was sweet and professional.

Checking my watch, I sat in the driver’s seat in my car. Thirty minutes to start my session with Ivy. She didn’t know I was looking at houses. I could take her to dinner—no, that’s too romantic. I could order Chinese takeout to celebrate and we could watch another movie together.

6 - Why Are You Lying to Me?

6 - Why Are You Lying to Me?

Ivy

“No, tell me, did he do that thing with his tongue?”

I giggled, seeing her scrunched face, and shook my head. Her English accent was stronger as she lived in Azmia, in the Golden Palace, and it made me happy seeing her glowing, warm face.

“Why are you laughing? I’m serious, I want to know.”

“No, Zara, he didn’t… he didn’t do anything with his tongue.”

She said nothing for a moment, straightening her phone, the background of one of the gardens in the palace as she walked slowly, guards following her as she finally said,

“What an asshole.”

I chuckled, playing with the hem of my dress. “I still can’t believe you are a Princess.”

Her smile softened, her short dark hair framing her elfin face with sharp cheekbones and hazel eyes that glinted in the sunlight. “I apologize for not telling you sooner about… everything, Ivy.”

I knew. She had apologized and accepted my brother’s proposal, the same man whom she was pining over for years until she stumbled into him in our house.

“It’s okay, Zara, I forgave you a long time ago.”

“Did you tell Hayden about him?” Her expression grew dark.

I sighed and rolled on my back on the bed, looking at the ceiling. “If I tell him that Jason cheated on me with my roommate, he would get mad. Very mad.”

“Furious.” She noted.

“Mhm, and I don’t care about it anymore,” I lied. Of course, I cared about it. My first ever boyfriend cheated on me. With my friend and my roommate. “I just want to move on, focus on my studies, you know.”

“And Aiden.”

My cheeks turned red, thinking about him. She knew about my little crush on him, and she hadn’t stopped convincing me to confess to him and know if he likes me or not.

But I’m too scared to do it.

“You should ask him before you end up getting hurt, Ivy.”

I eyed the closed door of my room. “Maybe you are right, Zara. But you didn’t see how he looked at me this morning. He looked… hungry.”

Like he wanted to eat me.

Her soft laugh made me smile. “Did he look hungry for breakfast, or you?”

I didn’t reply, my cheeks warming.

“You have it bad for him, sweetheart.”

“I know. He is very kind and generous with me. I love talking to him more than Hayden because he doesn’t treat me like a little sister… even though he might think of me that way.”

“Oh, Ivy. You should talk to him about your feelings. Tell him you don’t see him as your elder brother,” she said as she walked from the garden into the Palace, nodding at the maids and guards who bowed at her.

“Please tell me you blocked Jason. If he does anything, I can ask my brothers to—”

“Aiden did.”

“Explain.”

I blushed thinking about how hot he looked when he swore at him, the vein on his neck looking very inviting. “Jason called me during the therapy session and Aiden picked it up. He threatened him and told him not to call me again, blocking his number.”

“That’s good.”

“So, he is now sending me emails and apologizing for having sex with Amanda.”

“He is a dick. Block him everywhere.”

“I will—oh shit, Zara, I am so sorry but I have to go,” I panicked, checking the time, running around my room to shove things into my handbag. Chapstick, sunscreen, house keys and the journal. I didn’t have the time to take out the ruffled papers I had placed inside it and shoved everything inside my bag. “I am going to be late for the therapy session.”

“I love you, bye!”

I sent her a flying kiss as she ended the call. If I drive fast enough and the traffic gods are with me, I can make it in time. Even five minutes early.

***

I didn’t make it in time.

“I am so sorry, Aiden, the traffic was so bad,” I heaved, taking support of my knees to control my breathing. So much for dressing up in a cute dress, applying light makeup and curling my hair in waves for the session. I wiped down the sweat from my forehead and straightened up, daring to peek at him.

Aiden looked like he always did. His face was stern without any emotions. His eyes travelled down my body, and I held in my shiver when they raked over my bare legs.

He made a dramatic point of checking his wristwatch that cost more than the car I drove and hummed. “We will talk about your tardiness after the session. Sit.”

I quickly sat down and drank some water, the cool air of the air conditioner breezing through my skin. The session started, and we made usual talk about my day, what happened that week or if anything exciting happened that I wanted to share with him. There was one moment where I was emotionally overwhelmed when he asked me a couple of questions about my childhood and my ignorant father. But he looked proud of me when I answered them patiently and quietly without tears pooling in my eyes like all the sessions before.

He had told me it would take time to go through my childhood and remember certain instances, but he would be there for me and we could always talk about something else.

“You seem quite happy today, Ivy,” Aiden said, noting something. I ignored the disappointment when he didn’t call me by my nickname. I liked my name, but he always called me Petal.

I twisted my fingers on my lap, the flimsy material of the dress brushing over my thighs. “Yes, I am happy. I am enjoying the vacation, reading books and even called my friend.”

Aiden looked up. “Which friend?”

I grinned. “Zara, Hayden’s fiancée. She showed me the Palace gardens and told me I can visit Azmia anytime.”

“I am glad you have a friend you can rely on, Petal,” he said with a smile.

I crossed my leg and tried not to think about that same smile between my legs, teasing me with his tongue, teeth, and lips.

He asked me about my other friends.

“I haven’t talked to Noah for a while, but we usually DM each other on I*******m.”

His pen halted, and he looked at me, tilting his head. “Noah?”

“Yes, he is a really good friend of mine. Very sweet and charming. He always buys me iced coffee when we study together in the library during finals.”

“Hm.” Aiden didn’t ask anything more about him and questioned, “And you lived in a dorm, right? What about your roommate?”

My smile dropped, and I looked at the coffee table between us. Somewhere inside his office, a paper rustled and the sound of swallowing the lump in my throat reminded me of my friend having sex with my boyfriend—ex-boyfriend— in my room.

“Ivy?”

I blinked at Aiden and shook my head. “It’s n-nothing.”

“Tell me.” He said, “Take a deep breath and tell me about your roommate.”

So I did. Scrunching my hands into fists as I recalled the events of that day. Going to my dorms late at night after studying for hours in library and thinking Amanda had another guy over like all the other times, but the shoes belonged to Jason. I had gifted them to him for our three-month anniversary and walking into my room to see both of them embracing each other, moaning each other’s names. Jason had never touched me like that. Never.

“He cheated on you. With your roommate. Your friend.” Aiden’s expression was blank, but I knew he was angry. His dark grey eyes had turned almost onyx, and it made me feel warm.

“Yes.” I shrugged. “I left them and came back in the morning to pack my bags and come home to be with my brother. You know the rest.”

There was silence in the office. I had gotten used to it.

“And how did that made you feel, Ivy? Seeing your boyfriend—”

“Ex-boyfriend.” I corrected him.

“Yes. Seeing your ex-boyfriend with a person who you thought was your friend?”

“It hurt.” I sniffled and blinked my eyes. I won’t cry. I won’t cry. I won’t cry. “It still hurts. I thought he liked me, even loved me, but you don’t hurt the person you love. Not like that.”

“Do you want to talk more about it?” He asked softly, knowing well that if we delved into it, I would cry.

I shook my head and pursed my lips.

“Okay, tell me about your journaling.”

We talked more about the days where I would write two-three pages a day or days when I could barely write a paragraph. He listened to me and asked questions when I would stop talking, urging me to drink water and keep going.

“Do you mind if I see what you’ve written?” He asked, his dark eyes soft.

My muscles tensed as I met his obsidian eyes. They ran over my body and noticed how stiff I had become. My eyes lingered on his light blue shirt, stretching over his shoulders, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, with a navy-colored tie. Maybe it was my imagination when I thought his eyes had stayed far too long on my chest and my legs. I shuffled in my seat and tucked the strand of my hair behind my ear.

Aiden’s eyes flickered to my face, and he closed them for a moment, as if he was taking his time. He finally said, “You don’t have to if you don’t want me to read. I will understand and respect your privacy.”

I licked my lips, trusting my instinct. “I-it’s okay, I don’t mind. You can read it.”

I handed him the diary, frowning at the ruffled separate pages that I had shoved between them. He silently read the entry of my first day while I squirmed in my seat. I may or may not have drunk too much water, so I excused myself to the washroom.

When I came back, I could feel the change in the air. Aiden was sitting on the couch, but his posture was stiff. He barely addressed my presence when I sat down in my seat. I saw the diary was placed beside him and his jaw was clenched.

“Is everything okay?” I asked, my voice small.

He finally looked at me and the corner of his lips twitched. Leaning back on the couch, he said, “Yes, I suppose you could say that. I want to ask you something, Petal, and I want you to be honest about it.”

Frowning, I nodded.

His eyes darkened, and he said in a stern voice, “Use your mouth.”

“I—um, yes, Doctor Aiden.”

I didn’t know why I felt the need to address him seriously.

“What were you doing this morning?”

My eyes widened, my heart pounding in my ears. I glanced at the diary and it struck me. Those ruffled pages. Shit, shit, shit. After journaling every day for a week, I wrote my fantasies regarding Aiden on different torn pages. I always tucked them back in the diary, reminding myself to pull them out before I brought it to the session. But I was in such a hurry that I had completely forgotten about them.

Did he read it? I hoped he didn’t. I would rather eat raw broccoli than have him read all those pages.

Looking away from him, I lied and carelessly shrugged my shoulder. “I was meditating.”

I mentally winced at my lie. He had tried coaching me to meditate, but I could never do it.

He is right. I am a terrible liar.

Aiden raised his eyebrows. “Is that so?”

I didn’t like the tone of his voice. He seemed serious, and I prayed that the ground would swallow me up. He waited for my answer, crossing his arms over his chest. I got distracted by the way his biceps bulged.

He noticed me staring. I glanced down at my lap, twiddling my thumbs. “Y-yes, Doctor Aiden, I was meditating and I-I focused on my breath like you taught me—”

“Why are you lying to me, Ivy?”

My head snapped at him. I shook my head, “I-I am not lying.”

Aiden tilted his head and my throat went dry when he said, “Then why did I hear your voice moaning my name when you orgasmed with your fingers inside your pussy?”