Sunk (2 page)

Chapter Two

SLY

Running is my stress reliever, from the day’s work and life in general. Being the head of a company isn’t all peaches and cream. It comes with a multitude of responsibilities and delegating. Mostly the good outweighs the bad. And I’ve worked my ass off to get where I am now.

I sigh as I stand from lacing my tennis shoes. I am in a twenty-four hours, seven days a week gym. It works with my schedule, which is brutal at times. Some days I hardly have anything to do, and some days I am swamped. My life is a cluster fuck. My house needs to be organized, and my family won’t stop trying to set me up on dates. They don’t know I like a certain type.

With my earbuds in place, I pick up my feet and run on the treadmill. Thirty minutes later, I am sweating. Running only provides so much of an escape.

I have a wedding to attend soon, and I want to be in top shape for the tuxedo fitting. I hate weddings, but my man, Charles, is getting married and asked me to be the best man, and I couldn’t exactly tell him no. I met his fiancée a couple of times, and she seems perfect for him. I just can’t wait to get the wedding out of the way, since I don’t have any more weddings scheduled that I need to attend.

Kicking up my feet, running lets me forget my worries. I’m only heading to an empty house, so I won’t miss anything, just my dog, George, who’s probably waiting by the window, like always. He keeps me company since I split from Ambrosia about six months ago. Things between us were going nowhere; she wasn’t who I pictured myself with in the future. I know whoever I am meant to be with will pop up when I least expect it. Isn’t that the saying? But like everyone, I have secrets, secrets I’d rather keep buried. The beast in me knew it was begging to come out. These days I am focusing on myself—improving my fitness and taking my company to the next level.

After my five mile run, I head back to my empty home. George greets me as I enter my ‘too big for me’ house. I pet him and give him a treat before taking him outside. He is never angry with me and never complains when I come home late. He always greets me with licks to the face, excited to see me.

Sliding into the shower, I let the hot water rain over me, soothing my sore and tense muscles.

***

RAINE

Dress shopping is over, and night is slowly creeping up on me. I dread night time. Death has a way of gripping you, choking you like a vise. Mostly, I’ve grown numb, but in my loneliness, and in my darkness, I desperately seek solace. A fog surrounds me, even making sunny days seem gray. Colors are blurred and nothing seems perfect anymore. I guess nothing ever is perfect.

I change into my workout clothes, lace up my shoes, and once my earbuds are in, I jog around the neighborhood. For the most part, my neighborhood feels safe, but you never know what lurks behind you. I won’t be surprised if something happens to me at this time of night. I don’t know why I chance it, constantly putting my life in danger. It’s almost as if I deserve it. I probably do. Maybe I just wish it upon myself.

Darkness descends, engulfing me. The moon and the stars are the only light guiding my way. Most people are inside their homes finishing their meals and getting ready for bed, but this is my daytime. I won’t sleep until the afternoon comes, and it’s become my routine.

After a few laps around the neighborhood, I make it back home safely. I take a shower, letting my body soak as the hot water washes over me. Afterward, I pull on a pair of old yoga pants and a long sleeve tee. With my laptop in hand, I head toward the dining room table to check my email, and to see if Summer sent me her guest lists for the bridal shower and wedding. Going over the details, I am thankful she isn’t having a huge wedding. It looks to be around one hundred guests, mostly family and friends. That I can deal with. I make some notes and get the bridal shower invites started.

The silence is deafening, so I put in my ear buds and the music blasts out my thoughts. I begin walking around the house, puttering around, and straightening things up that don’t need straightening. The door to Ava’s room remains closed. Too many memories, too many tears. Placing my hand on the door knob, I turn it, push the door open, and inhale a deep breath. It still smells like her in here. Her room is decorated with everything girlie—dolls and stuffed animals. Horses were her favorite; she even has horses painted on her wall. It saddens me to think we were days away from her first horse riding lesson and she never got to go. My hand clutches the stuffed horse that was her favorite. At her age, she was starting to outgrow her toys and enjoy more arts and crafts type activities. We made a lot of things together.

I showed her how to make friendship bracelets. I open her jewelry box and sift through her things, touching it all, feeling the strings between my fingers. A tear trickles down my cheek and the memories flood my brain. Sitting on the edge of her bed, I hold the stuffed horse tightly to my chest. Slowly, my body curls into a ball and I press my cheek onto her pillow, crying. I know I shouldn’t have come in here; it is too soon. Does it ever get easier? I can’t imagine it getting better. This is my life, the one that is mapped out for me. I’ll be lonely for the rest of my life. I couldn’t even keep my husband happy. Then Ava was ripped from me, crushing any heart I had left. I want to numb all my pain and don’t know how.

Somehow, I manage to get myself together, and I exit the room, closing the door behind me. The sun is coming up as I resolve myself to the couch. Most people are getting ready for work or coming home from work. Exhaustion finally takes over and my eyes flutter shut.

***

With the bridal shower out of the way, it is now the day I will watch my sister get married. Summer asked if we could include Ava some way in the wedding, and I happily agreed at her thoughtfulness.

Slowly, I walk into Ava’s room. Her favorite color was blue, odd for an eight-year-old girl. I take a blue friendship bracelet out of her jewelry box and quickly leave the room before I think too much about it. I’m already wearing the dress Summer picked out for me, so I carefully slide into my car and drive to the hotel where everything is being held. The ceremony is taking place outside; it being fall, I know it’ll be breathtaking with the fall leaves and décor. The reception will be in one of their ballrooms.

I meet Summer in the room where she is having her hair done. Leaning down, I give her a hug and kiss her cheek, happy for her to have her moment. Clutching the blue bracelet, I hold it out to her.

“Your something blue.” I take her wrist and tie it around.

Her eyes are misty, and she quickly swipes the tears away. She nods, and that’s all I need for her approval.

“That dress looks gorgeous on you, Sis,” she says, changing the subject and sniffling.

“Thanks. You’re going to be one gorgeous bride. I’m so lucky to have you as my sister,” I tell her.

The beautician continues to work on her hair. It is half-up and twisted into a bun while the rest remains down in loose curls. A knock comes on the door and Kim, Summer’s bridesmaid, answers it. A gentleman enters the room and hands Summer a box.

“A gift from the groom,” he says with a deep voice.

“Raine, can you grab that box there?” She points at a silver wrapped box. “It’s Charles’s gift.”

Grabbing it from where she points, I hand it to the gentleman, and his intense stare makes me uncomfortable. He takes the box and smiles before leaving the room.

“Who’s that?” I question.

“That’s Sly. He’s Charles’s best man,” she says nonchalantly.

“Oh,” I said. “Well, aren’t you going to open it?” I ask about her gift, pushing thoughts of him aside.

She opens the long box and a glimmer of silver shines inside. It’s a necklace. She clutches it to her chest, showing how happy she is.

“Here, let me put it on you.” I take the delicate chain and clip it around her neck.

“I got him cufflinks as a gift. I hope that’s okay,” she says, admiring the necklace in the mirror.

“I’m sure he’ll love them,” Kim says.

We never had a rehearsal dinner or anything. Summer wanted to keep the cost low for her wedding, and assumed it would be fine to just figure it out when the day came. The men would join Charles, and the ladies would each walk down the aisle alone. Simple enough, right?

Summer rises from her chair to change into her gown. She is transformed into a princess, straight out of a fairytale. Her veil is long and really sets off the gown. My jaw drops when she emerges.

“Beautiful,” I say, and the other girls nod their heads.

“I guess we better get this show on the road,” she says happily.

We all take the elevator down to the first floor, leaving my sister behind as we walk down the aisle, one by one. I carry a small bouquet of fall colored flowers. I can’t help but notice Sly’s stare, gazing in my direction. I feel so exposed, like he knows my deepest, darkest secret. I try to divert my eyes, but he holds them captive. My stomach does something funny, and it feels like the aisle is forever long. Finally, I make it and take my place by the minister, standing opposite of Charles’s best man.

He’s good looking, I’ll give him that. The tall, dark, and handsome type. With wide shoulders, a little stubble adorning his chin, and caramel color eyes, he has a mysterious look to him.

Putting my focus back to the center of the aisle, I watch as the girls join me, and then the bride follows to the wedding march. She is breathtakingly beautiful. In that moment, I am envious of her and the happy life she is about to embark on with her husband.

I am also happy for her. When she meets Charles, she hands her bouquet to me. The minister starts the ceremony. They each say their vows, which touches my heart and makes me smile. Smiling sure beats shedding tears. A lot of folks are shedding tears and dotting their eyes with tissues.

I shed enough tears as it is, so this is a happy moment. I only wish my parents could be here to witness this, and especially my daughter. The thought pains me. When the ceremony is over, I hand Summer her bouquet. She and her groom walk hand in hand to the area where the reception is being held. Then Sly and I both try to get into the aisle. He motions for me to go ahead. I feel my cheeks heat up, knowing he is behind me. I can feel his eyes on me, and it’s doing funny things.

Chapter Three

SLY

The maid of honor has certainly grabbed my attention. A fucking beautiful sight. Her blue eyes contrast against her dark hair, captivating me, drawing me in. Something connects between us, and I’m not sure what it is. She is demure and beautiful. And the view from behind is goddamned magnificent.

When I first spotted her in the hotel room, she stole the breath right from my lungs. No one, and I mean no one, has ever done that. I kept my composure in her presence. She looked uncomfortable under my gaze, even though she held it, not letting it faze her.

I need to know her and see what pain lies beneath those blue eyes. In the reception room, everyone finds their seats.

“I now announce Mr. and Mrs. Charles Edwardson,” the party planner says.

They make their way to the center of the table I’m currently seated at. The groom sits next to me while the bride sits next to the maid of honor. I think they are sisters. I try to recall if I remember her mentioning one or not. I’ll find out soon enough. Dinner starts, and I’m pissed I can’t be locking eyes with the raven-haired beauty.

After the toast from the bride and groom, I stand to give my best man speech, and then the maid of honor stands to toast the couple. We begin to eat, and I’m more than ready to get it over with. Once the meal is served and everyone has eaten, the DJ starts to get the music going. The couple takes the dance floor to a slow song, and I can see the tears start to flow, even though she is smiling. I do know her parents died some time ago, so I can only imagine that being hard for her, and not having that father-daughter dance.

Collecting my composure and straightening my suit jacket, I stand and make my way to Blue-Eyes. I need to know her name. She turns her head and sees me coming, and once again, we lock eyes.

“May I have this dance?” I hold my hand out for her to accept. And then I wonder, what if she declines? Immediately, I shake that thought. No one has ever turned me down, on anything I’ve offered.

I smile when she stands and takes my hand. We are wasting valuable time here; I need to get her on the dance floor before the song ends. Silently, we find a spot on the dance floor, and my cock twitches in my pants as I pull her in close against my chest. She wraps one hand on my shoulder while I hold her other hand in mine.

“So, are you the bride’s sister?” I ask.

“Yes, I’m Raine,” she replies, looking up at me. “And you are?”

“I’m Sly. Sly Wilkes.”

“As in Wilkes Enterprises?”

“The one and only. I’m the CEO. What is it that you do?” I ask, diverting the attention back to her.

“I’m a teacher’s assistant. I just cut my hours to part-time for now.”

She seems uncomfortable making that statement, as a twinge of pain appears on her face.

“So, what will it take to put a smile on that pretty face? You have such sadness surrounding you,” I admit.

“I haven’t smiled in quite a long time. However, when the bride and groom said their vows that made me smile. But there isn’t much to smile about these days.”

“It’s a shame, really. You should smile. Someone should make you smile every day,” I admit.

And that person should be me.

I feel like I need to know more about her, just everyday things. Once the song ends, we go back to the table and sit. Sitting next to her this time, we are engulfed in each other and barely notice anything else going on. She doesn’t seem taken aback by my forwardness; she seems like a woman who can hold her own when it comes to the big dogs. I can tell she is no pushover, and she’s completely unfazed by me. I’m not used to that. At the same time, she seems to enjoy talking to me, as I do her.

We dance to every slow song, and talk during all the fast songs.

“And what makes you smile, Mr. Wilkes?” she says, her eyes sparkling

“That’s a good question. And now that you ask, I can’t think of anything other than my dog, George. I live alone. And I run a company, actually many companies, so I have to do a lot of delegating, and it’s not all candy and flowers.”

“You named your dog George?” She chuckles.

I whip my head back. “What’s wrong with George?”

“It’s such an old man name,” she teases. “That poor fellow. I mean, I guess it’s better than Bob.”

“Oh, so you think you’re funny,” I tell her.

She lifts a shoulder and smirks. “I have my moments.”

“I like you,” I blurt.

She smiles. “I’ve enjoyed talking to you tonight. You made this night a lot better than I thought it would be, but I really should go,” she says, standing to grab her clutch.

“Let me walk you to your car,” I tell her.

“That’s really not necessary.”

“Please? It’s dark out and you shouldn’t walk by yourself, plus it’s raining. And I’ll just leave when you do.”

“Fine, let me go say goodbye to a few people.”

She relents, and I am thankful to at least get a few more moments with her. She hugs her sister and the groom goodbye. I can tell they don’t want her to leave, but she is insisting. Raine kisses her sister again and makes her way to me.

“Ready?” I ask.

She nods.

Approaching the entrance of the hotel, she sighs at the sight of rain. I take my suit jacket off and raise it to put over her as an umbrella.

“But your jacket…”

“Is just a jacket. I have plenty others,” I insist.

“You’re crazy.” She smiles.

“You smiled,” I say.

***

RAINE

I smiled. This Sly character is crazy, using his jacket as an umbrella just so I can make it to my car dry.

“Can I call you sometime? Maybe even take you out some night,” he says.

Reluctantly, I agree to his invitation to call me. He hands over his phone and I punch my number in. I realize this is silly to even think about another man since my divorce. But something about him intrigues me and piques my curiosity.

“Drive safe,” he says before heading to his own car.

Thankfully, I only had one alcoholic drink, and I believe Sly did as well, and we were too wrapped up in conversation to pay attention to anything else. My sister stole me away a few times to go to the women’s bathroom; she questioned me about Sly, but I still really don’t know him that well.

I do know he is the CEO of Wilkes Enterprises, because I see the billboard advertisements everywhere, and I failed to mention my ex-husband works for the same firm. Yeah, there’s that.

I laugh at the coincidence of meeting the CEO of the same company my ex works for. How crazy that I never met him at any of the company parties or functions. I enter my house when my phone vibrates inside my clutch. Tossing the keys on the table next to the door, I open up my clutch to grab my phone and read the text.

Just making sure you made it home safely. Sly

Me: I just got in the door, but I’m about to go for a run.

Sly: A run, at this time of night. I don’t think that’s safe.

Me: I’ll be perfectly fine.

Sly: Fine! Text me when you come back, so I know you’re safe.

Me: Okay.

I’ve been alone for almost a year, and I have been perfectly capable of taking care of myself, but it does feel nice when someone worries. I change out of my dress and delicately place it in my closet; I’ll probably never wear it again. Summer’s wedding was spectacular and she deserves nothing but that. Meeting Sly caught me off guard, especially when we spent most of the evening in each other’s company. I smile at the thought of meeting this mysterious man.

Pulling myself out of the trance I’m in, I put on my track pants and matching top. I throw my hair into a tight ponytail and lace up my sneakers. Even though I danced, I still feel the need to blow off some steam, to run myself into exhaustion, and to force my mind to another place. I missed Ava so much today; I was thankful Summer included her in the wedding, honoring her memory.

I put my ear buds in, and I’m out the door. The rain stopped on my way home, and I’m glad I won’t be cooped up in the house. My runs provide the escape I need and crave. It’s so late that only the street lamps are providing a dim light across the street.

I have to work tomorrow, so I have that to look forward to. Running against the wet sidewalk causes my sneakers to start squeaking. As soon as I make it close to home, my feet fail me and I slip on the wetness, hitting my knee hard against the concrete. I limp into the house. Stripping off my now wet clothes, I reach for the first aid kit under the bathroom sink and clean the blood from my knee. I wince when I put the peroxide on it and it bubbles up. Taking a cotton ball, I dot some ointment on it and place a Band Aid over the wound.

I take a hot shower, trying to avoid the water from hitting my knee, as it still stings. Warmed up from the shower, I exit and wrap my plush robe around my body. Padding into the kitchen, I make myself some hot cocoa and hear a knock on the door.

The clock reads three a.m., and I’m concerned for my safety. Who the hell is knocking at my door at this time? I look through the peephole and see a familiar face. Sly. Shit, I forgot to text him when I came back.

I swing my door open. “Sly, what are you doing here?”

“I wanted to make sure you’re safe. You never texted me, so I came to see for myself.”

“Well, you could have just called,” I say, adding a little annoyance to my tone. I motion for him to come inside.

“Overrated. Besides, I’m more of a face to face kind of guy. But I see you are perfectly fine.” He scans my body. “Except I didn’t see that earlier. What happened?” He points to my bandaged knee.

“Um, I, uh, slipped during my run. It’s no big deal.” I brush it off with a giggle.

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

“I promise. I’m fine. Can I offer you a cup of coffee, cocoa, or something?”

“Oh no, I’m fine, thanks for offering. While I’m here, though, and see you’re okay, would you be interested in going to dinner with me tomorrow night?”

Dinner. Tomorrow? I’m in my robe and Sly is asking me to dinner. Kill me now.

“Okay, yes, I’ll go to dinner. Just text me a time to be ready,” I say, trying to edge him toward the door, so I’m not suffering anymore embarrassment. I don’t know what I was thinking, offering him a drink. He chuckles and moves to leave.

“Goodnight, Raine. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Goodnight, Sly.” He exits to go to his car.

Closing the door, I rest my forehead on it and sigh heavily.
Did that just really happen?
Why am I having these feelings? Why do I care what he thinks of me?

I move to heat my cocoa back up and decide to immerse myself in a book. That is surely something that can ease my mind. Since I rarely sleep, I can finish a book in a few hours, and that’s exactly what I plan to do to push Sly from my mind.