Club Desire: The Complete Series Box Set

by Amy Brent

  He patted the slight gut that protruded over his belt. I took another drink to mask my amusement. There was no doubt in my mind that Gloria and Alan were soulmates. They both loved each other with a passion that would make even teenagers blush. It was sickening at times. It also made it much harder for me to talk about the string of women I enjoyed every week, now that my divorce was finalized. That counted as a healthy exercise in my opinion. I needed a good balance between relaxation and work. So far, having a woman in my bed once a week helped lower my blood pressure. I could get through the week without wanting to tear one of my employee’s heads off.

  “That woman loves you,” I said. “I wouldn’t worry about your gut too much.”

  “I suppose that I shouldn’t,” Alan said, and the depressed tone caught my attention. He offered a small smile. “I guess I’m going through a mid-life crisis. Mansion in the Hamptons. A hot wife. A beautiful daughter who’s an adult now. A business that pays the bills…”

  “And you still feel like it’s not enough,” I finished for him, nodding in understanding. “I get it. I’ve been going through it, too.”

  “I just miss the way women used to look at me in passing,” he said. “Not for my paycheck.”

  “You’ve got a good woman, though, that loved you well before a paycheck that paid for the house here.” I smiled bitterly. “The women that come to me only see the net worth floating over my head at this point.”

  “And for other reasons, too,” Alan pointed out. “You don’t look like you’re forty-four. When is the last time you even had something to eat?”

  “Two days ago,” I said, shrugging. “I don’t have my chef anymore because my work hours are too crazy.”

  Alan gave me a critical look. “Don’t tell Gloria that. You know that she’ll show up to your penthouse with groceries and meals without your permission.”

  “She’s welcome to come anytime,” I replied, laughing.

  “It’s a good thing that I trust you. I’d have a fit if it were some other man letting her into his penthouse.”

  The office door opened. Gloria entered, dressed in a trim white dress, with her blonde locks pulled back delicately from her slender face. Her heels clicked against the hardwood floors as she approached with a wide smile.

  “Good to see you,” she said and wrapped me in a quick hug. “I’m glad that you could make it today.” She pulled back with a frown. “You’re thin, Cole. Have you been eating enough?”

  “More than enough,” I said. “The party looks great. Thanks for the invite.”

  A pleased smile spread across Gloria’s face. She was the type of woman who let strangers into her house to show her wealth. She hosted parties all the time. Celebrities even showed up at times from what Alan told me.

  “It’s a wonderful party,” she said, beaming. “You haven’t even come outside to look at the patio and garden. There’s plenty of food and drinks down there for you.”

  I gestured at the whiskey on Alan’s desk. “I have good whiskey right here. Your husband knows me well.”

  “I also know that the two of you are hiding,” Gloria said. “Please, sweetheart. Come down to join the rest of us.”

  Alan smiled indulgently at his wife. “I will, darling. Just give us a minute to catch up in peace without eavesdroppers.”

  “Fine,” she said.

  “These parties mean the world to her,” Alan said once her heels retreated down the hallway. He set his glass down with a long sigh. “I better go out there. I don’t want to sleep in the guest room again. You’re the lucky one right now.”

  “Not really lucky. Just divorced and bitter.”

  I swallowed the last bit of whiskey in my glass. Bitter wasn’t even the right word to cover how I felt when it came to Stephanie. Hateful? That wasn’t the right word, either. All I knew was that it felt like a deep and ugly hole that I could never fill with enough alcohol and sex.

  “Try not to spiral down too far,” Alan said. “If you need me, don’t hesitate to call. I’ll come out to the city to see you if you need me to. We’ll tell Gloria it’s poker night if she asks.”

  I shook my head at him. “No, don’t. I’ll be fine. I have more than enough work and other things to keep me occupied for a while.”

  “If you’re sure?”

  “Positive,” I said and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. “Let’s go before Gloria comes up here again. I’m itching to enjoy some fresh air away from the city.”

  Chatter and laughter filled the afternoon air. I followed Alan outside through open doors that allowed the sea breeze to come through. The smell of the ocean, fresh cut fields, and flowers filled the air. Everyone was gathered on the back patio, or on the slope of the green yard and garden area. Waitresses walked through the crowd with platters of food and drinks in their hands.

  I didn’t bat an eyelash when Gloria immediately sidled up to Alan, looping an arm through his to lead him in the direction of another couple. Years of friendship told me never to take it personally anymore. Gloria thrived on her reputation while Alan didn’t give a shit if anyone liked him or not. He indulged his wife because he was in love with her.

  I grabbed a glass of champagne from a platter that walked by. Parties were never my idea of fun. Sweat gathered at the back of my neck from the sun dipping down in the horizon, blasting the entire backside of the Summers’ mansion in late summer heat. If I had three days off with no real work to get done, then I would need something to occupy my time while I was in the Hamptons. A woman to fight off the stab of loneliness whenever I glanced in Gloria and Alan’s direction as they smiled sweetly at one another.

  Sometimes, it was impossible to believe that the two of them had never once broken up or strayed apart through thirty years of knowing one another. They were inseparable. Neither one cheated. Downing the champagne, I signaled a waiter over to order a strong whiskey, since we’d left the bottle upstairs.

  Stephanie had told the judge she’d been abandoned throughout the entirety of our five-year marriage. “He’d rather sit in his office,” she’d complained at the time. “We don’t even see each other.”

  Not that she didn’t enjoy the endless credit limits or the various men she met while shopping in the city. I didn’t count that as very lonely, but I let those thoughts get chased away by the welcoming sight of a slender blonde woman dressed in a tight tennis skirt in front of me. Her long and tanned legs were perfectly muscled, and her dainty toes had been painted an eye-catching shade of turquoise. Waves of sun-kissed blonde hair bounced against a strong back. That ass was perky and gorgeous. Enough to grab onto and thoroughly enjoy.

  My cock stiffened. That was my idea of fighting off loneliness. Much better than a whiskey at this point.

  Intrigued, I made my way through the crowd to the blonde’s side and cleared my throat to pull her attention away from the couple she was talking to. She turned to face me, and a blast of ice water crashed over me when I recognized who it was.

  “Mr. Crayton?” Violet Summers said, smiling up at me. “I thought that was you. I’m so glad that you could make it out.”

  Fuck. I forced that wild surge of lust away. This was Violet—my best friend’s daughter. I should’ve known that she would be here at the party. She’d just turned twenty-two, and she cradled a glass of wine in one hand. She was a younger version of Gloria, from her petite and tight form to her generous bust.

  I tore my gaze away from her tanned chest with an inward grimace. I’d done a lot of fucked up things in my life, but touching my best friend’s adult daughter would never be on that list. That was a surefire way of losing my last friend on the planet.

  “I figured that I’d need to make it to at least one event,” I said, voice tight with tension. “I just wanted to say hello.”

  Violet offered that charming smile again. What the fuck happened? I couldn’t remember the last time I’d even seen Violet. It’d been several years, but she was an adult now. A full-grown and mature woman now.
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br />   “Thank you,” she said. “I’m glad you’re here. Mom says you need a break from the city.”

  I nodded stiffly. “Work never sleeps. Excuse me. I just remembered something I need to tell your father.”

  Not giving her a chance to reply, I walked away from Violet, toward the side gate that led back to the front. I needed to get the fuck away. I needed to forget what had just happened.

  Chapter 2

  Violet

  Cole Crayton finally showed up. Words couldn’t describe the rush of excitement that went through me. Not to mention the heat pulsating between my legs. The entire summer had passed without any sign of Cole at one of my mother’s parties, but now this was it. I had my opening. I had my chance.

  I watched as Cole beelined it quickly through the crowd, but was stopped by my dad before he could reach the garden gate. The two of them were swept into a conversation with another one of my dad’s friends.

  The tense expression on Cole’s strong and freshly shaven face didn’t help the fluttering in my stomach. I recognized that look in his cobalt blue colored eyes. It was the look of pure interest and lust. He had wanted to fuck me, but the second he recognized me, a cold wall had come down between us. I’d expected it, partly. Cole was a gentleman. He would never lay a hand on me, never look in my direction because I’m his best friend’s daughter.

  And he had no idea that I wanted him. Since I was fifteen years old, I’ve wanted him. I wanted that fit and muscled body pushing up against mine. I wanted to be one of those women I’ve overheard my parents talking about with my mom. He was filling a bottomless void with alcohol and women from what I gathered since his divorce.

  It made my plan that much easier.

  “Excuse me,” I said to the couple whose name I couldn’t remember. They lived a few miles down the road in another mansion. Another one of my mother’s “good neighbor” friends that she secretly competed with all the time.

  Making my way through the crowd of people gathered on the back patio, I sidled up close to where Cole stood to talk with my dad and a few other men. All summer I had pestered my father constantly about talking to Cole about securing an internship role at Crayton, Inc. They needed help with their expansion. I needed the experience, and it would put me in front of Cole every single day.

  I bit the inside of my cheek in aggravation when I caught of Martha Myers also sidling up to Cole. Recently divorced too. Unfortunately, she wasn’t exactly bad looking either, with her dark hair and well-endowed breasts. Cole’s eyes fixated on her as she swept him up into a conversation that I couldn’t hear over the chatter of other people.

  Jealousy smoldered in my chest. It took all my self-control not to claw Martha's greedy eyes out. I wanted to tell her that he had looked at me with much more interest than her. But I had too much riding on this to give into the urge.

  My father turned to talk to someone else when he realized Martha’s intent. I was seething now, wishing Dad would broach the topic of my internship with Cole. When it came to his best friend, my dad never brought him up, besides a passing comment that he wouldn’t be at whatever party my mother was throwing. He visited Cole in the city too, but I doubted that he ever brought up what I’d asked him to.

  “Dad,” I said, tugging on the edge of his shirt sleeve to gain his attention. “Can I talk to you?”

  “What is it?”

  He followed me away from the rest of the crowd.

  “Have you asked him yet about the internship?”

  A guilty expression crossed his face. “I forgot, Vi. I don’t believe he has internships open right now anyway.”

  “Don’t you think it would be a great experience though?” I asked, trying to keep my voice level. This was my one and only chance to get close to Cole, which was the only place I wanted to be. “My resume would look awesome with an internship at Crayton, Inc.”

  “You don’t have to worry about that sort of thing, Vi. That’s why I have worked as hard as I have—so you and your mother won’t have to worry about money.”

  “I know that, dad. And I appreciate it, but--” I tried to think of the best way to describe it. I loved my family. I’d grown up with wealth, but I wanted my own life. I wanted the experiences that my parents took care to shelter me from. I’d attended prestigious to private schools. I’d even finished college online because my mother was terrified of me going wild with a little bit of freedom.

  I didn’t even want to think about dating because any guy who even came close to me was scared away by the Summers name.

  A soft, toned arm brushed against my shoulders. The smell of my mother’s perfume filled the air as she brushed back some of my hair. Her eyes were a bit unfocused and glossy when she looked at me.

  “Maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad idea, honey, to let her go for the internship,” she said. “Think of the people she would be meeting too. She’ll be working with Cole, and he’ll keep her safe.”

  My father sighed in exasperation. “It’s not Cole that I’m worried about. It’s the other billionaires that he works for that might be desperate for female companionship. That’s what I am worried about.”

  “Cole wouldn’t let that happen,” I said. I hoped that he would be the one looking at me. Not someone else.

  “I can’t just ask him to take Violet into his company. That’s not my call.”

  “Oh, for God’s sake,” my mother muttered, handing me her glass of wine. “We’ve been friends for over twenty years. Do you think that Cole would tell us no?”

  “Gloria--”

  “Mom. Wait--” I reached for her elbow, but she danced away from the both of us.

  “Cole,” she said, loudly enough to gain his attention. “Alan and I have a small favor to ask of you.”

  Cole’s eyes flicked over to where I stood rooted next my dad. My cheeks burned hotly under his gaze. This was humiliating, but whatever it took, right? My mother knew how to get what she wanted from people.

  “What is it?” he asked.

  “Alan has been meaning to talk to you about your internship program,” she said and gestured towards me. “Vi here is wanting some experience in the business field. She’s been looking into your company.”

  A strange light flickered in Cole’s eyes. He started to shake his head, but I stepped forward to interrupt him. My heart raced against my ribcage. No matter how many times I had practiced in front of the mirror, it was still nerve-wracking to face him. Cole was a business man. He wouldn’t take me in as an intern if he didn’t believe I would benefit the company in the long run.

  “You know that I graduated from college early,” I started, thankful that my voice wasn’t shaky like my nerves. “You know that my dad has taught me everything, but I can help your company. I can help with the expansion.” I locked my eyes on Cole’s unwavering ones. “Nothing will stop me until I prove my loyalty. I’ll do anything that you tell me to do. Whatever you want me to do.”

  The rest of the party continued around us. I watched as Cole’s eyes darkened at the undercurrent I hoped he would pick up on. For that wild moment, his eyes were on me, and only on me. Not Martha. Not my parents. He was seeing me for the first time as an adult—particularly as a woman.

  “It won’t be easy,” Cole spoke then, the husky timbre in his voice sending a shiver down my spine. “I won’t be easy on you. Just because you’re my best friend’s daughter, I won’t make your job easy. It’ll be challenging.”

  I tilted my chin up to meet his eyes bravely. The setting sun cast an orange glow on Cole’s face. I could see the beads of sweat gathered at his dark hairline. The heat between us was consuming me from the inside out.

  “I’m not afraid,” I said. “I’ll do anything it takes to give you what you need.”

  Cole didn’t reply. His eyes were still focused on me, scanning my face for a long moment.

  “Fine,” he said, breaking eye contact finally. “I’ll take you up on your offer. Tuesday morning, you start with the other intern.” He t
urned to look at my mother who clapped her hands cheerfully. “Don’t ask me for any more favors, Gloria. I don’t hire random people into my company.”

  “You know Violet. She’s quick to learn. I’m sure that she’ll fit right in.”

  “No more business for the rest of the night,” my father said, wrapping an arm around my shoulder. “Let’s enjoy the weekend before Cole and Violet head back into the city.”

  “I am actually going to retire for the night,” Cole said. “It was a long drive, after an even longer day.”

  He shook hands with my father, kissed my mother’s cheek, and then stopped in front of me briefly. Sweat gathered in my palms. I could smell his cologne still clinging to his skin from earlier in the morning. Our eyes met, but it was difficult to read him. I couldn’t tell if he was happy, or irritated with the situation.

  “I’ll be seeing you on Tuesday morning, then, at 8:00 am,” he said smoothly. “Not even a minute late, Violet.”

  I suppressed a tremble at the way my name came off his tongue. I imagined it coming out of his mouth in a different scenario.

  “I understand,” I said. “I’ll be there early.”

  Cole nodded once before slipping out through the gate that was his original escape plan. Relief flooded me. After all this time, after all this planning, I finally had the opening I needed. That same delicious heat filled me just thinking about it.