To Trap a Billionaire

Nineteen.

I woke feeling groggy when I heard a loud knock on the door. I sat up and ran my fingers through my tangled hair. I would have to dump my head in a sink to untangle the curls. Arlo groaned as the knocking persisted.

"I'll be in the bathroom," I said before I rolled out of the bed and stumbled to the toilet. I peed before washing my hands and running water through my hair to untangle it. I rinsed my mouth with mouthwash before going down to the living room. I stopped at the bottom of the stairs when two sets of eyes looked at me.

"Why am I not surprised? She slept over?" Clara asked, looking back to her son.

"Yeah, let's go with that," he said. His mother hesitated before she glared back at me.

"This is a private conversation, dear. Find your clothes and go," she said.

"I invited Lyra. You, however, decided to just stop by unannounced," Arlo defended me. "Lyra is staying. Say what you need to," Arlo said. His mother sighed and crossed her arms.

"I was coming to tell you that you can come back to the company," his mother said.

"I feel a big 'if' coming on," Arlo interrupted.

"Stop this silliness, son. Grow up and run your father's company. Go back to our safety net with Gwendolyn and listen to me. I was by your father when he was here. I know what I'm doing. Why don't you just trust me?" she asked, trying to guilt him into letting her have her way.

"Why don't you trust me?" he countered. Clara glanced in my direction and made her opinion clear. She didn't approve of me. It went beyond just wanting him to be with Gwendolyn. She saw me as trouble. Well l, technically her intuition as correct.

"You expect me to believe that you did all of this because of Lyra?" he asked, not buying it.

"Of course not... although it was a part of it. I know what to do. All you have to do is go on autopilot. I'm trying to set you up to succeed," she tried to explain.

"Dad already did that for me, but thanks anyway," he said to her. She sighed dramatically.

"I guess I'll have to hold on to the company then," she said, heading to the door. She was trying to blackmail him.

"I guess you will," Arlo confirmed, as his mother lingered at the door. She huffed out a breath with her fists balled before she left. I released a breath I didn't realize I was holding as I relaxed slightly.

"Well, she hates me," I said, trying to lighten the mood.

"She's threatened by you," he corrected as he walked over and wrapped his arms around my waist. "Good morning," he said as he kissed my forehead. I chuckled.

"Good morning," I smiled. "You could have taken your mother's out," I mentioned.

"I don't want to be with Gwen," he countered. "Let's not talk about this anymore. Want to go out for breakfast?" he asked. I nodded as a smile slipped onto my face.

"I'm just going to shower and get ready," I said, letting go of him. He kissed me gently before letting me go to my room. I took a quick shower and ran a flat iron through my hair before doing a little eye makeup. I dressed in a pair of black slacks and a peach blouse. It wouldn't be worth it to check in on the office seeing as Clara had just left. I slipped on a pair of flats before going back to the living room. Arlo was dressed and ready to go. He easily wrapped an arm around me as we walked to the door.

"So what did you have in mind?" I asked. He smiled and kissed the side of my head in the elevator.

"It's this little place my dad used to take me to all the time. They have the best pancakes," he said. reaching the lobby, I soon noticed a commotion outside. I held Arlo's hand tightly. This didn't look good.

"Arlo, we may need to push that court date up," I said warily. He didn't seem to notice the eyes that went straight to him as we kept walking.

"The car is right on the other side," he said as he put a hand on my back to prepare to push us through. As soon as we hit the glass doors, questions were being thrown our way. Questions about Arlo, about me, about the company, about his mom... just everything. The hotel's small security team was trying their best, but the crowd still pushed in on us. Arlo did his best to shield me, but he could be all around me at the same time. He sternly ordered some people to move as I kept my head down. We slid into the car before Arlo slammed the door behind us.

"What the hell?" Arlo grumbled in frustration. "I bet this was my mother's doing," he said.

"I guarantee it," I agreed. "Either Clara or her sidekick, Gwen," I said in irritation. Arlo released a breath and shook his head.

"I'm sorry, Lyra," he apologized. I shook my head and held his hand in mind tightly.

"I know it's not your fault. This is really nothing. So we'll get some unwanted attention. As long as I have you, I don't really care about the rest," I said with a light smile. I wanted to gag myself, it sounded so cheesy, but it worked. He lifted my hand and kissed it before we rode in a comfortable silence.

When we reached the restaurant, it was quiet and peaceful. No paparazzi to be seen. We had a quaint breakfast that was actually quite delicious. We avoided talking about work or anything company related for the time being. I think we were both worn out from this morning. Back at the hotel, the driver parked in the back just in case. We made it up to Arlo's penthouse without a fuss and just relaxed for the remainder of the day.