Sunset Thunder (4 page)

HOW COULD TWENTY-five minutes pass by so swiftly, while one was staring at the arms on the clock as they ticked by? Wasn’t the saying something like,
watch a clock and time ticks by slower
...
what a crock.
 

Violet’s heels tapped an anxious beat against the floor under her desk, drumming a matching tune to the rising reaction inside of her due to consenting to this crazy situation. Finally, not wanting to be late, she stood and put a stop to it. 

Pull yourself together. 

Twenty-five minutes ago she’d convinced herself this would be the easiest meeting of her life. Now...
now...

She stopped at the full-length mirror hanging on the back of her office door to evaluate herself. Not that it made any difference now, she couldn’t change her outfit and give the Bensen party the implication that she was nervous, uncomfortable, and regretting her decision to coordinate their wedding.

Why did Missy have to get wind that there was a cancellation in the gold room on her wedding date?

Now, it was the big decision: silver room or gold room? That’s all this meeting was about and yet almost every member of the wedding party was attending...including Ryder Carlex.
Why did he irk her so?
Oh, she knew why, because he’s a playboy, that was why.

Violet smoothed the sides of her perfectly twirled updo and straightened the deep purple blazer over her straight, narrow cut skirt. Maybe she should have added a black blouse instead of the stark white one she wore, to suit the dark feelings in her gut.

“This won’t be hard,” she said to herself in the mirror, her neutral matte lipstick talking back to her. “It’s a quick debate and settlement of one room. That’s all.”

In January, Violet and the happy couple had privately tackled all the details of their wedding day. She had managed that without the panic intensifying inside her today. The bridesmaid posse also hadn’t been watching every move Violet made, analysing her, judging her, and hating her. And the date of the ceremony hadn’t been just around the corner either. It was all becoming increasingly overwhelming.

Violet felt the panic arsing again. “Two more meetings,” she promised herself in the mirror, holding up two fingers as if her eyes needed convincing. “Maybe more, if Missy has a bridezilla attack...”

Her head dropped, dreading more meetings. Then she lifted it back up, breathing reassurance into her lungs. “Pick a room today. Go over the final details next week and home run.”

Until the day you watch Missy walk down the aisle. Oh, I’m not watching. Did I just have a double-sided conversation with my reflection? Was it in my head or out loud? Does it matter? 

Violet shook off the panic and left her office, carrying the confidence she was accustomed to.

Simple and quick, pick a room and done.

As her long legs took her down the hallway, every step felt like a tunnel was caving in on her. She stared at the end, where she could see the cheerful, engaged couple waiting for her by the lobby desk. Missy was tucked comfortably into Joel’s side, with his arm wrapped around her like they were made for one another. Violet had never fit in the nook of Joel’s body like that...and Joel had never wanted her to. Joel had never loved Violet like he loved Missy. He had never even
tried
to love Violet. And Violet knew Missy came from an average family and that she wasn’t Joel’s ticket to more money...like Violet had been. The settlement Joel had sealed with Violet’s father left Joel with enough money to live more than comfortably for the rest of his life...and now he was inviting Missy into his life of luxury.

Suddenly, the assurance of a quick meeting vanished and all the craziness of this ridiculous plan that she’d been battling all morning came rushing back, in an overpowering spin from the inside, coursing all the way out and around her body.

Her feet stopped. The speed of her heartbeat increased and amplified so loudly that she could hear it banging in her ears. Her breathing declined and she couldn’t catch a breath. No air would enter and none would leave.

I am having a panic attack. Or a heart attack. Or I am about to lose it in front of everyone. What if I pass out? I think I am going to pass out.

Dizziness overtook her body, a feeling Violet was not accustomed to and she flew through the closest door beside her. Slamming it shut, the weight of her body crashed against the solid wood for support, while her shaking fingers had enough intelligence to lock the handle. Trying to force her breathing into a regular, steady pace, she closed her eyes and inhaled deeply.

This was crazy. This was absolutely insane!

Violet had to distract herself from these horrible rushing emotions, which were throwing her
way
off her game. Her dad would be so disappointed...and it was his fault she was in this predicament in the first place.

Don’t play the blame game, it will get you nowhere. Focus on the now...focus on a solution...a distraction.

One hand was pressed against her panting chest, while the other was clenching the door handle like it was her lifeline. She forced her tightly squeezed eyes open, to take in her surroundings: the lobby washroom.

A sparkling marble floor was beneath her black stilettos. Mirrored walls reflected her distraught state and the chandeliers hanging over each sink twinkled light, giving the room a romantic feel.

A
romantic feel? Why? Why today, did she have to notice the romantic feel of the washroom?

From her position, Violet could see there was no one was in the stalls lining the left side of the room.
Thank goodness.
She didn’t need guests to witness her having a meltdown.
Violet Caliendo having a meltdown.
It was absurd.

But she wasn’t the only one in the washroom. Standing across the room, unnoticed by her entrance, was a man standing six-foot-five, with his back toward her. He stood with a familiar confidence of a man who had everything and in a nonchalance stance, one hand tucked casually into his slacks, of a man who knew he was women’s eye candy. He was the one and only: Ryder Carlex.

He was drop dead gorgeous.

What? Where did that come from?

Ryder was talking on his cell phone. “Susan, hey. I was thinking about stopping by tonight. We got interrupted this morning for Joel’s thing, and we really didn’t spend enough time together. Can you let me know if Kelly is going to be there tonight too.”

Susan? Kelly?
 Blonde and brunette from this morning’s conversation between Ryder and Joel.
Interrupted? Bed tumbling. Sexual encounter...

“I’m going to bring some supper with me.”

How thoughtful.
Feed his skanks.

“Text me when you get this message. I’m not sure which of you are spending the night and, if I don’t get a text, I will bring enough food for all of us.”

Spending the night? Two of them?

He was ruthless. He was a playboy...
a player
...just like Joel had always told her he was.

Two women? Two women!
Ryder Carlex had absolutely no morals. He was a selfish, sex-crazed male specimen that made others look bad.

But his body was remarkable, there was no denying it. Even wearing clothes, she could still see his upper torso spanning through his white button-up dress shirt that was tucked into the black dress slacks hugging his trim waist. He was hot. It stirred heat between her legs. 

Stirred heat between her legs? Stirred heat between her legs! There was no heat stirring between her legs.

Violet crossed her legs. 

“See you tonight.” He slid his cell phone into his back pocket, and Violet couldn’t help but notice how firm his ass was.

Firm ass? Did you really just think that?

Ryder turned and looked at her. 

How was it possible that he was even sexier then only seconds ago?

When his smouldering, blue as lake water, eyes registered who was standing before him, an amused dance played across his flawless tanned

face and he flashed his pearly white teeth in her direction.

Violet’s legs uncrossed.
Cross them back. Cross them back!

That look across his striking face, was the exact look he flashed every woman and had them uncrossing their legs. He liked women. He had sex with all women, any woman who batted an eye of interest in his direction...and any woman who didn’t.

Susan...Kelly...Hello Violet.

Violet had already made up her mind
not
to let the idea that was rousing in her head go anywhere in the same vicinity as her filter. If she did, her filter would have knocked the idea that had her blood boiling, right out of her head and on its ass. Violet’s filter hadn’t been helping her all morning anyway, and right now she needed a distraction. 

Violet hands pushed her away from the door. 

What are you doing? Where are you going? Oh, you know.

Women threw themselves at Ryder Carlex all the time. He was rich, he was handsome, he loved women and he took them. Right now, Violet wanted to be taken. She wanted to be distracted from the situation she’d put herself into and she needed a release.

Ryder Carlex was the perfect man to give her a distraction, a release, and he would walk away from her without any expectations.

***

RYDER STOOD LESS than fifteen feet away from the ice queen as she started toward him, and he didn’t see a single shred of ice in those deep blue eyes. He saw a bottomless, malicious fire as she sauntered her seductive hips toward him and it was causing a sudden burning bulge in the front of his pants. 

Seductive hips? Seductive hips! Damn right this woman had seductive hips, and they were heading in his direction.

Why, in all the time that he’d known Violet Caliendo, had he never noticed she had a stunning body? It was like a revelation slapped him across the face and time froze, so he could fully take in her exterior in a whole new, much more, exciting perspective.

Violet was tall, equal to his height when she was wearing those sexy black heels. She was slim, with a delicate frame posed under the thin, but crisp material of her blazer, continuing down her silky throat to the ivory skin across her collarbone. Her white, silk blouse was tucked perfectly in the high-waist skirt hugging her lower body and showing off captivating curves in all the right places...and long legs. Violet Caliendo had long, lean legs that disappeared under the skirt just above her knees.

His fingers suddenly had a mind of their own, wanting to inch up that skirt, and follow her thighs to the warm area that...

Whoa! What? No. Back up! 

What are you doing allowing your thoughts in that direction...a lusting direction...for Joel’s ex-wife?

Wasn’t there some sort of bro code he had to follow?
Follow?
It wasn’t like Violet was heading toward him to have sex with him, demanding that he dip into the bro code.
Was she? No, that was ridiculous.

Ryder had seen Violet at least half a dozen times since her divorce from Joel, and she hadn’t given Ryder a second glance. He wasn’t sure that she’d given him a first glance, so there was no way she was heading his way for
sex
. But she
was
heading Ryder’s way and he was allowed to
look...
appreciate how attractive she was....
wasn’t he?

Violet Caliendo was definitely not the grab-a-man-in-the-bathroom-for-sex type of woman...although at the moment, he wished she was.

No, you don’t. Yes, I do. Do you know who you are talking about? Ice Queen. Ring any bells?

Oh, Violet was ringing bells alright, but they weren’t warning Ryder of who she was, but rather what she could offer.

Why the hell was she
sauntering
right toward him? And why did her eyes look ready to dive into him? And why was the thought that maybe she would dive into him the most exciting feeling he’d had in years?

As he noticed the full, round mounds of her breasts pushing through the white button-up...
move your eyes back to hers
...he wondered why he hadn’t ever taken her beauty in.
First, she was your best friend’s wife and then she was the ice queen...that was precisely the reason why he’d never recognized her body was a temple he wanted access to.

Donald Carlex didn’t raise a son to steal a woman out from under someone and he definitely taught Ryder to stay away from the loveless ones. That’s exactly what Joel told him Violet was.
A cold-hearted, loveless woman. An ice queen.
 

But this ice queen could saunter. This ice queen could hold a solid stare and move in a solid sway and walk a steady pace in those spike heels that only added more to her sex appeal.

Violet walked all the way to him. Not inches away, not even centimeters away from his suddenly, very horny self. Her warm, not cold, body came in direct contact with his and he could feel her heat penetrate through his clothing. At the same time her fingers tightly wrapped around the front of his shirt.