Page 111 of What Started In Deception

“I know.” But she let him go, heading back to the counter for her water, still trying to process how she felt about what had just happened. Taking a cooling sip, she cleared her throat as she moved back to the couch, where Ty fixed himself in his boxer briefs. “I’m going to watch a little TV before I head back to bed.”

“I’ll watch with you. If that’s okay.”

She nodded. “Sure.”

He captured her hand again, holding her gaze. “You’re sure we’re all right?”

She nodded again, even as she tried to decide if she was more embarrassed about the fact that she’d just thrown herself at him or the fact that she’d let herself forget that Ty saw her as a friend and he was trying not to hurt her feelings after putting on the brakes.

“Lie down with me, Lyd.”

She hesitated as she nearly told him that they shouldn’t, but the last thing she wanted was to make their situation any more awkward than it already was. “Okay,” she said, settling on the cushions next to him.

He covered them up with the soft throw, then reached over her for the remote before he hooked his arm around her waist and pulled her back against him. “Are we thinking of a show or a movie?”

She swallowed as she stared at the TV, trying to keep her body relaxed as Ty clearly tried to move them beyond the cringeworthy moment. “Uh, you pick.”

“I’m thinking that we should watch a couple episodes of Bluey. Everly mentioned it several times today, and I had no idea what the hell she was talking about.”

She looked at him, sending him a small smile, wishing that he didn’t have to be so damn adorable. “Bluey’s a cartoon dog.”

“Yeah, I got that part. I just figured that if we watch a couple of episodes, I’ll be able to have a conversation with her about it.”

She smiled again as she held his gaze, trying to figure out how she was supposed to not completely fall for him. “It sounds like we should watch Bluey, then.”

He cued it up and pressed play on the remote, snuggling her close again. “Just in case we fall asleep… Night, Lyd.”

“Night,” she said, cocooned in his warmth, dozing off minutes later.

Ty’s eyes flew open in the bright light pouring in through the windows as Lydia stirred on the couch next to him. He smiled as she turned her head on the pillow that they shared and met his gaze. “Morning.”

She smiled back, looking exhausted and beautiful after a measly three hours of sleep. “Morning.”

“I think we missed our episodes of Bluey. I saw the introduction, but I can’t remember anything else.”

She grinned. “I guess we’ll have to try again tonight.”

He hesitated before he hooked his arm tighter around her waist, not entirely sure where things stood after their early morning make-out session. “Is this all right?”

She nodded as she rolled onto her side. “I’m really sorry, Ty. For this morning. For throwing myself at you.”

He shook his head. “There’s no need to apologize. This entire situation is confusing.”

She nodded. “It certainly can be.”

“You’re a gorgeous woman, Lyd. I like the hell out of you. We just can’t go there.” And he’d never spoken truer words when he told her how sorry he was after he stopped them. Everything about Lydia was exceptional. It wasn’t lost on him that he was missing out.

She nodded. “I promise I’ll keep my hands to myself.”

He shook his head again. “You don’t have to keep your hands to yourself. I don’t want you to keep your hands to yourself.”

“I guess my lips, then.”

He sent her a small smile, regretting all over again that she wasn’t his to have. “We had a bit of a blip. It’s no big deal.”

She sighed as she nodded. “I guess the next question is, now what?”

He shrugged as he shook his head. “I’m not entirely sure. Obviously, something’s going on with Will, but I don’t think it’s an affair. There’s absolutely no proof of that in any of the surveillance.”