Chapter 5: The Seduction

Mark slammed the Uber door. He picked up his trolley and swung his laptop bag on his shoulder as he climbed the porch steps. So good to be back home after two days. These were two good days. The IPO was getting closer, which meant he was finally nearing paydirt after leaving the firm he had started with Tim. Tim had been disappointed that Mark had left their firm to report to someone else, but Galaxy Technologies, as that cliche goes, made him an offer he couldn’t refuse.

Two days on the road. Two days of VC pitches, customer handshakes, and controller meetings that dragged on forever. Two days of bad coffee and pretending to care.

And then there was Sarah. Filming another one of her “wellness sessions” with those two guys and Iman—the woman who’d reached out to set it all up. When he got the notification, he locked himself in an office and saw the preview with a low, simmering regret that he wasn’t there to record it himself.

At least he’d stopped by Mary’s. That helped.

Stopping by the door, he said, “Hey Siri, open the door.” Smart lock. Sarah’s idea. The lock opened, and he stepped into his house.

He dropped his bags near the stairs, removed his dress shoes, and went over to the kitchen. Taco night again. He saw his family making tacos with the tortillas, fajitas, vegetables, and sauces. And fried chicken. Yes, they had weird food combinations for dinner.

“—like the mitochondria are the powerhouse, but they never tell you it could be an alien!” Mark heard Lily’s voice carry from the dining room, always excited to discuss new sciency stuff.

His family was already seated around the table, fajitas almost done.

He took a few steps toward the dining room when Lily launched herself at him. “Daddddd!” Lily screamed. The scent of her perfume—Hermes, Sarah’s Hermes—came with a whiff, and Mark had to force himself not to inhale too deeply.

Mark’s hands found her bare waist on instinct as she hugged him, and her short top had ridden up. “Easy there, tiger.” He forced a chuckle. He was trying not to notice how her breasts pressed against him. “Miss me that much? I was just gone for two days.”

“Obviously.” She kissed his cheek again—a little longer. “We saved you the crispiest chicken skin pieces.”

“Liar.” Mark smiled at her and gave her ponytail a playful pull. “You ate them all, didn’t you?”

Lily’s giggle followed him into the dining room, where Sarah sat at the head of the table, wearing a low-cut dress. She knew Mark loved seeing her cleavage when he returned from trips, but today she wore it for an extra audience.

Jason barely glanced up from his tacos and chicken. Cutting pieces by knife, eating by hand, sauces dripping down... “Hey, Dad.” A glob of sour cream clung to his stubble. The kid is gross.

Emma met his eyes properly, her gaze sharp even through half-empty wine glasses. She was the only one allowed to drink alcohol since she was 22, but Mark had shared a beer with Jason as well. “How was New York?” Her own bare foot traced slow circles on Jason’s calf under the table.

Mark dropped into his usual seat beside Sarah. “Productive.” He accepted the plate Lily pushed toward him, heaped with chicken and a taco she had made for him.

“How was the flight?” Sarah asked, her bare foot brushing his ankle beneath the table. A secret hello.

“Late as usual, but it allowed for more time at Mary’s,” replied Mark.

Jason’s fork dropped, making a clanging noise. Emma looked at Sarah, trying to find some meaning in that sentence.

Lily took some Coke from the fridge and plopped into her chair with exaggerated noise. “Is Aunt Mary still doing those weird ‘holistic’ cleanses and, ugh, detoxificants?” Her knee bumped Mark’s thigh as she reached for the sour cream.

“Yes—she tried feeding that to me. I refused,” Mark chuckled, watching Sarah’s fingers tighten around her wine stem. Interesting. He leaned closer, kissing her cheeks and taking that opportunity to whisper. “Saw your latest upload. That reverse one with the...”

Sarah elbowed him sharply as Mark let out an “Owww.”

Emma sighed like the world’s most put-upon daughter. “Jesus, Dad. Gross. Some of us are eating.”

But her bare toes were now tracing Jason’s thigh beneath the tablecloth, through his shorts.

Lily, always the performer, launched into a story about school. “I don’t even want to go tomorrow,” she sighed, pouting extra for Mark. “Two of my teachers are out, so it’s just subs. The only real class is AP Bio, and I already finished the project with Stella.”

Sarah arched a brow. “You’re not skipping school, Lily.”

But Mark, ever the indulgent father, waved a hand. “She’s eighteen, babe. She knows what she’s doing.” Then smiled at Lily. Had she grown overnight?

Lily beamed, sticking her tongue out at Sarah, who rolled her eyes dramatically. Jason and Emma exchanged glances—how the fuck did Lily manage to pull that off? Emma thought, ‘Mom had never let me skip school. But then Mom was not fucking me then also’

Jason cleared his throat. “Unlike Lily, I don’t have the luxury of missing class. I’ve got a lab at eight.”

Emma nodded. “Me too. And I’ve got work. Depositions all morning.”

Sarah yawned and stretched, hands together, giving the effect that her breasts were almost coming out of her dress. “Elizabeth and I are doing brunch, then shopping for work.”

The reference to Elizabeth sent a ripple through the table. Elizabeth Callahan—Tim’s wife. The kids didn’t know the full extent of their parents’ relationship with the Callahans, but they knew enough.

Sarah’s phone buzzed with a series of texts from ‘The Corrupted Sinclairs’ group chat, a new group name for Mom and the siblings.

Sarah smirked as she put her phone away and then stood up abruptly.

“Emma, help with the dishes. Jason, your laundry’s still in the dryer. It doesn’t take 2 days to dry, you know...” She shot Mark a look. “And you need to shower. You smell like airport.”

Mark caught Lily’s wrist as she stood to go. “Since when do you wear your mom’s perfume?”

Lily leaned down until her lips brushed his ear. “Since I learned how much you like it.” Her pinky finger—innocent, delicate—traced the shell of his ear before she said, “G’night, Daddy, I mean Dad.”

Mark stared after her, then slowly got up to go, not knowing what to think.

Later, the kids were all gathered in front of their parents’ bedroom door, the siblings trying to listen to the sounds coming from inside and piece together what was going on. Emma had her cheek pressed against the door, trying to listen in. Jason, taller, had his ears above her head, and Emma could feel him breathing down her neck. Lily knelt beside them in her pajama shorts and tank top.