Seduced in Ink

by Carrie Ann Ryan

  Well, then. That was a good way to start. Wasn’t it?

  Aaron quickly got out of the car, gave the keys to the valet, and went to Madison’s side. She was already halfway out and just smiled, sliding her hand into his offered palm as he helped her out.

  He had his jacket and the flowers in his other hand and knew he likely wasn’t making the best impression, but they were laughing. And when she leaned into him, her eyes bright, he couldn’t help but think that maybe this was working.

  The ruse.

  Nothing else.

  Nothing else needed to work.

  You ready?” Aaron whispered.

  “Always.”

  They held hands as they ascended the stairs. Madison’s parents stood in the overly large doorway, the glass archway stunning though very intimidating—probably precisely what they intended.

  “Mother, Father,” Madison said, her voice deceptively light.

  “Madison. Aaron.”

  Aaron resisted the urge to clear his throat before making sure Madison was steady on her heels before handing the flowers over to Madison’s mother. They were not grocery store flowers, they were hothouse lilies, ones from a very fancy nursery nearby. One of his friends knew the owner and had been able to get in and find out exactly what Maeve McClard preferred. Aaron saw the surprise on her face for a bare instant before her eyes cooled, and she took the flowers with a nod.

  “Thank you, Aaron.”

  “Thank you for welcoming me into your home,” he said, his voice pleasant. He squeezed Madison’s hand before her parents moved back, welcoming them into the house.

  “You have a lovely home,” Aaron said.

  “I know. We worked long and hard on it. It’s our pride and joy. Much like Madison here. Well, much like she was anyway.”

  At that pointed remark, Mrs. McClard handed over the flowers to her maid, who stood nearby, before gesturing towards the sitting room.

  “Come. We can meet our other guest.”

  Aaron frowned, but Madison spoke up first. “Guest? I thought you just wanted us here for dinner.”

  “Of course, we do. But why would we want just the two of you?” Maeve’s heels tapped on the marble as she made her way, her husband right behind her.

  “I have a bad feeling about this,” Madison whispered.

  “We can still escape. I may have to tackle the valet for the keys, but we can make it work.”

  “Let’s go,” she whispered. Aaron took a step back, trying to tug her away, but she stood firm.

  “I lied. We have to go in. We can’t run.”

  “No, we can’t, but I’m always that option for you.”

  She gave him a look that went straight to his dick, and he did his best not to let it get to him.

  Getting a hard-on in this situation would only lead to horrible things.

  Painful stuff.

  “Madison,” her mother snapped from the other room.

  “Let’s join the inquisition,” Madison whispered.

  “Because nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition?”

  They were laughing again as they made their way to the parlor. When they entered the room, Aaron nearly choked on his spit.

  Guy stood near the window, a glass of whiskey in his hand, joking joyfully with Madison’s father.

  Aaron hated the guy. And yes, his name, as well.

  “Mother?” Madison asked, confusion in her tone.

  “You both know Guy. He is such a wonderful family friend. We figured he’d be a perfect dinner guest to join us tonight. After all, Madison does need to explore her options.”

  “Options?” Madison mouthed, and Aaron squeezed her hand again.

  Tonight was going horribly.

  Seriously bad.

  Aaron had not been wrong. Horrible wasn’t even the beginning of it.

  It started with Guy and continued with the fact that he had been sat at the opposite end of the table from Madison, near her father. Guy got to sit next to Madison, and Aaron hadn’t been able to do anything to stop it. If he had tried, he’d have likely made a scene, and everything would have been ten times worse.

  When the appetizers showed up, everybody got a delicious and perfectly flakey pastry filled with cheese and meat. Madison got a lettuce wrap.

  She shook her head when Aaron opened his mouth to say something. Instead he sat back and watched as her mother treated her like she was nothing. Not intelligent enough to think for herself. And not able to make her own choices.

  Madison tried to bring the conversation back around to happy things, tried to remember the good times, and was even nice to Guy. All the while, Aaron held his tongue, wondering what the fuck was going on.

  When dinner was served, Madison wasn’t served potatoes. And when dessert was offered, she declined. He had a feeling that she wouldn’t have been able to have it anyway.

  Madison was gorgeous. Yes, she had curves, and he fucking loved them.

  She wasn’t slender like her mother, but the two had different bone structures and body shapes that worked for them.

  The fact that Madison’s mother was not so subtly fat-shaming her? Jesus Christ, Aaron was ready to murder someone.

  But Madison took it, the hurt in her eyes so perfectly hidden that he wasn’t sure anybody but he had seen it.

  When it was time to leave, Aaron could barely speak through his rage, and his hands were shaking.

  They got into the car without even a true goodbye or an offer to visit again. He had no idea if the pretense had worked, and honestly, he didn’t fucking care. He was too angry.

  They made it out of the neighborhood without Aaron speaking a single word. Madison sat still and looked at her hands.

  He pulled off the road to stop at a local neighborhood park, let out a breath, turned off the car, and got out.

  “Aaron?”

  “I need to breathe.”

  Madison got out and started to pace next to him, her hands in front of her as she stood still after a moment.

  “I’m sorry about tonight. It didn’t work out the way it should have, did it?”

  “Why? Why did that even happen? How could you just sit there and let your mother do that to you? And why did I do nothing and let it happen?”

  Aaron had never been this angry before, nor had he ever felt so helpless.

  He had tried to speak up during dinner, to defend her. Every time he moved to speak, Madison shook her head and pleaded with her eyes.

  And he had done nothing.

  He was just as complicit in her pain, and he hated himself for it.

  “I’m sorry, Aaron. I’m so sorry.”

  “Are you fucking kidding me? No, you don’t get to be sorry for this. It wasn’t you.”

  “I know, but I’m used to it. If I let Mother do what she wants, it goes quicker, and we usually end up having a pleasant evening. It just didn’t turn out that way tonight because she was still trying to set me up with Guy—with my fiancé in the room.”

  Madison looked down at her finger, the moonlight shining off the diamond. He just snorted.

  “So, you let your mother treat you like shit. You let your father passively-aggressively do nothing to stop it. And you call that a pleasant evening?”

  “They’re not always that bad.”

  “Could’ve fooled me.”

  “They’re not. She was being particularly icy tonight, probably because she’s not getting what she wants. But she’s not that bad. Not all the time.”

  “I don’t know if I can believe it. Why does she continue to demean you? Why do you want her approval?”

  “Because they’re my family.” Desperation filled Madison’s eyes. “Other than Lincoln, I have no one. I don’t have friends from middle school or high school or even college that I see anymore. People change, and it’s tough for me to make friends to begin with. I’m weird and awkward, and I’m sometimes so focused on work that I lose touch with people. But I’ve always had my family. Yes, they’ve gotten worse over time, bu
t they’re still mine.”

  “You’re better than this, Madison. You’re sexy as fuck. You’re smart. You’re sweet. And you would do anything for your friends. I just don’t understand why you don’t see that.”

  Aaron’s chest heaved as he tried to get through his anger. But before he could say anything else, Madison rose to her tiptoes, her hand on his cleanly shaven face, and her lips on his.

  Aaron didn’t stop to think. Instead, he wrapped his arms around her, gripping her tightly against him, and deepened the kiss, her mouth parting for his. He ravaged her, needing her taste, her touch. Just needing her.

  This was a mistake, but he didn’t fucking care.

  He had her in his arms, her taste was imprinted on him, and yet he craved more.

  When he pulled back, both of them breathing heavily, he swallowed hard.

  Her lips were swollen from his kisses, the bruising force of the impact making his knees go weak. She looked up at him, blinking.

  “Oh.”

  “Oh,” Aaron echoed. “I actually didn’t mean to do that.”

  “I think that’s my line.” She paused for a moment while Aaron tried to collect his thoughts. “You were standing up for me like that, and…I didn’t know what to do. Sorry.”

  “Please don’t fucking say you’re sorry again tonight.”

  “Fine, I’m not sorry. Though I don’t think kissing you was the most appropriate action.”

  “I think of all the things that happened tonight, that was probably the most appropriate.”

  “Aaron?”

  “I think we should keep doing this. If we’re going to keep up this charade, I think I want to keep kissing you.”

  It was a mistake, a horrible one. Something that would hurt them both in the end. Part of him hoped that she’d say no. That she’d push him away and laugh it off.

  But when she rose to her toes again and brushed her lips against his once more, he was lost.

  So fucking lost.

  And, honestly, he wasn’t sure if he wanted to find his way out again. Ever.

  Chapter 7

  Aaron leaned against the deck railing and looked at the forest beyond. They were at Liam’s cabin in the woods, although hopefully without the horror stories. He inhaled the sweet scent of nature and food, the smoker and grill working overtime behind him.

  He was exhausted after not being able to sleep well the night before. Worry and stress over what the fuck he was going to do with Madison had kept him awake. As well as the fact that he’d had sex dream after sex dream about her.

  He was going to hell, a fiery one that wouldn’t smell as good as this. And it was all his fault.

  Given that Madison’s cousin, the person most likely to send him to that hell, stood a mere two feet away, his nerves were stretched tight.

  “You want to talk about it?” Lincoln asked, lifting the beer to his lips to sip quietly.

  Aaron shook his head. “Talk about what?”

  Aaron wanted to talk about many things, and he was usually the talker of the group. Ethan might speak at a faster pace, but Aaron was often the one with random topics.

  It was just…he wasn’t sure what to say today.

  “How about the fact that I hear you’re an engaged man?” Benjamin said from behind him. Aaron turned to see his cousin walking towards him.

  Benjamin was one of his family from Fort Collins. Sadly, he didn’t see him often.

  Even though they didn’t live that far away, between work, family, and life, the two sets of cousins rarely saw one another beyond video conferences and stolen weekends.

  Aaron liked Benjamin and was happy that his cousin had been able to make his way to the mountains.

  “That’s me, engaged,” Aaron said, taking a sip of his beer.

  “We heard it was fake,” Ronin said. Ronin was a friend of Marcus’s and new to the group.

  This evening was a guys’ night, one where they’d have meat, maybe a vegetable or two, and drink a whole shit ton of beer. There were enough rooms in Liam’s cabin—considering that it was basically a log mansion in the woods—so nobody even had to bunk together.

  None of them had to worry about driving home, so they were going to drink too much, overeat, and likely snore.

  Ethan and Lincoln would be sharing a room, of course, and Aaron was grateful that his room was on the other side of the cabin. He was pretty sure those two wouldn’t stay quiet all night.

  And some things a brother just did not need to hear. Ever.

  “Are we telling everybody that it’s fake?” Aaron asked, giving Marcus a disappointed glare.

  “I only told Ronin about ten minutes ago, and it was because he asked and sounded excited. I’m not going to lie to my friends. Sorry.”

  Aaron frowned. “Fine. But nobody else.”

  “I shouldn’t tell my siblings?” Benjamin asked, grinning. “Because they’re getting excited about the wedding. All of the weddings, in fact. You Boulder bunch keep getting hitched. But if this one’s fake? It may put a damper on the whole thing.”

  Aaron finished his beer and was grateful when Ethan handed over another without him having to say anything. “I don’t know. Just give me time. Don’t tell anybody else. We don’t want Madison’s parents figuring it out more than they probably already have. It reduces the whole thing to a complete farce.”

  “More than it already is?” Liam said, warning in his tone.

  “What did you expect me to do? Her parents are horrible people.” Aaron looked over at Lincoln. “Sorry. I know they’re your aunt and uncle. But, seriously.”

  “I hate them. Really hate them. I don’t even know if they’re going to be invited to our wedding,” Lincoln replied.

  Ethan spoke up. “Holland and I already decided they aren’t. Her family’s not going to be invited, either. It’s pretty much just going to be a huge Montgomery family wedding. Fuck the rest of your families. I’m sorry, but I’m putting my foot down here.”

  Lincoln shook his head and smiled before leaning down and kissing Ethan on the lips.

  Ronin propped himself against the railing next to Aaron, wincing as he adjusted his prosthesis. He was working with an updated version from what Aaron could remember and looked to be having some problems. He’d been through hell and back, but he never complained. It made Aaron’s issues feel small in comparison.

  “Madison’s family sounds like a bunch of assholes,” Ronin began and then winced for an entirely different reason, glancing at Lincoln. “Sorry.”

  “Don’t be. My aunt and uncle are assholes,” Lincoln said with a laugh. “Seriously, you don’t have to clarify you’re talking about her parents only. I’m pretty much an asshole for not wanting to be part of the family. And for walking away from the situation. I try to shield Madison as much as I can, but she still loves them for some goddamn reason,” Lincoln grumbled into his beer. Ethan leaned over and kissed him on the cheek.

  Ethan gave Lincoln a sad smile. “She loves them because they’re her parents. I remember a time when they were nicer than they are now.”

  “I just want to shake them for doing what they did.” Aaron told the guys everything that had happened during the dinner, including them inviting Guy. Everyone just stared before they all started grumbling and shouting at once.

  “My God,” Benjamin said. “I’m surprised you didn’t punch the woman. Not that you’d ever hit a female, but I feel like this would have been an appropriate time.”

  Aaron snorted at his cousin. “Oh, I thought about it, believe me. But I stormed away angrily, wasn’t polite, and drove to a park with Madison so I could yell at her. I was very mature.”

  “You yelled at my baby cousin?” Lincoln asked, glowering.

  Aaron held up his hands, keeping his beer secure.

  “Yes. But she yelled back, and we just talked…” He trailed off a bit, and Lincoln narrowed his eyes.

  Ronin snorted from behind him, while everyone else started to laugh.

  “Talk. Sur
e. Just talking? What’s going on with you and my cousin?” Lincoln asked.

  “Nothing,” Aaron lied quickly. “I’m just her fake fiancé. Everything’s normal.”

  “Nothing is normal about the sentence you just said,” Ronin said, laughing. “I need to tell my girlfriend. At least when this is all over, and I’m allowed to tell her.”

  “Hey, did you know that Ronin is dating my coworker, Julia?” Ethan asked, helping Aaron change the subject with a wink.

  “Seriously? Small town,” Aaron said, grateful.

  “Yeah, we’ve been together for a while,” Ronin said, shrugging. “We didn’t realize that we knew the same family until we talked about the Montgomerys one night. You guys breed more than rabbits,” Ronin said, and the rest of them laughed.

  “And you haven’t even met my siblings yet,” Benjamin said. “I have four of them.”

  “Dear God. There’s like a hundred of you.”

  Aaron set down his beer and began counting on his fingers, laughing. “Yeah, maybe a hundred and twenty by now. They all keep breeding, too.”

  Ronin snorted. “I’m glad I was invited to this then without having to marry into the family. Unless that’s somehow on the table for later.”

  “Since you’re my friend now,” Marcus began, “you’re one of them.”

  “If somebody does the one of us cult chant, I’m going to walk away,” Ronin snarled as Aaron opened his mouth to say that exact thing, apparently at the same time as Ethan. Both of them threw back their heads and laughed while the others joined in.

  “We have this cult conversation often,” Ethan began. “But we’re not a cult or in a cult. We’re just a family that wants the best for everybody involved. And right now, that includes having some ribs. Because I am starving, and they smell amazing. Liam, are you watching the ribs, or are we going to end up eating charcoal?”

  Liam flipped him off and went over to the smoker. “They’re almost ready. I also made coleslaw, potato salad, regular salad, beans, mac and cheese, corn, and a few other things. I even brought Arden’s cornbread, and I might die just thinking about it. It smells so good.”

  “What do you mean? We have veggies?” Aaron asked. “I thought this was a man’s evening.”