by Lauren Wood
Chapter 2
Colt
The sun was coming in through the window and it was blinding me. I don't know why the hell the curtains were open, but I didn't have the strength to get up and close them. I looked over and saw the blonde in the bed with me. I didn’t remember her name so I called her babe and asked if she would shut it. It was easier that way then to play the name guessing game. I wasn’t very good at it. I should have a system in place.
The blonde didn't look so happy to be woken up and she cut her eyes at me, telling me to get up and do it my damn self. She turned back over and practically growled at me.
Me, I was trying to always keep it light, but it appeared that the mystery woman didn’t like my sense of humor.
“Well I can see that we're not going to be soul mates.”
From the look on her face, I would imagine that she agreed as well. It was strange to have a woman mad at me before I kicked her out, but I figured it was just as well because that's where was going to go anyways.
“Well, since you’re up, I need to get to work soon so...”
She made a face and started to get up.
“And let me guess, you need me to get out of here so that you can leave right?”
I had a feeling that she had heard it before, but I had to think that it had something to do with her attitude. She wasn't very friendly, though I do remember her being rather friendly the night before. When she had a few drinks in her, the blonde had been delightful.
Since she wasn't going to close the curtain and I wasn't going to get any more sleep because I had a feeling she was about to start bitching, I turned to the night stand and grabbed a cigarette out of the pack next to me.
I needed a rush of nicotine, as bad as I need some caffeine. I was going to make my way to the kitchen to make coffee soon. I knew now that the last thing I should do was ask her to make it for me. If she did, I had a feeling that there was going to have a little extra spit in it.
I started to get up and I was hard, but I wasn't even going to attempt it with the blonde. In the morning light she wasn't at all what I was looking for and instead of trying to pretend that this was going to go anywhere, I didn't say a word. I just let her huff and puff and get dressed, cussing me under her breath. She did say it loud enough for me to hear her, so I figured she wanted me to. It wouldn’t be the first time that I was called a dick and it wouldn‘t be the last.
Part of me wanted to remind her that she wasn't bitching about its last night when she was screaming out my name from so many orgasms. I had her begging for it. I would never get why women changed so drastically in the morning light, but they all seemed to.
Last night, I was looking like a conquest to her, but now that I didn't want her, it was time for her to go. I knew that it was because she was upset, her attitude, but it still wasn’t something that I wanted this early in the morning. The cigarette was helping with my sanity at the moment, though not as much as I would have liked.
It wasn't long before the woman was leaving, and she still didn't have anything nice to say. I got no thank you for giving her a ride with one of my drivers. I don't know what she expected, but she obviously did not get it from me. It wouldn't be the first time that I had let a woman down, but for some reason I was a little irked about it today. I thought last night had went well. And sometimes I didn't understand why women couldn't just accept that a great night, could just be a great night. Who said that it had to be anything more than that?
“I see that another one has left you and it doesn't look like she has a smile on her face. You really should work on that Colt. I have a feeling that you would do better in the day, if you weren't cursed out every morning by some random woman. There has to be a better way.”
Ralph thought it was funny, but he was lucky that he was the best butler that I'd ever had. He had been around, working for my parents when I was younger, and he was one of many things that I took from the house when I left. His witty humor was a little harder to deal with in the morning sans strong coffee.
He left and came back a moment later with a cup of coffee in his hand and I was ready to take on the day, as well as Ralph’s sharp tongue. I answered his smart-ass comment, now that I had a little caffeine in my system.
“They are pleased in the night, and that is all that I worry about. I can't help it if they want more and expect more the next morning. You would think that women would know by now. I thought that they all gossiped, so I would think that someone would have said something by now.”
The butler found me funny and just shook his head like I was hopeless. Maybe I was, but I didn't see anything changing. This was just the way life was now and I didn't have much of a problem with it. I didn't like the first ten or fifteen minutes in the morning that it took a woman to get out, but it wasn’t going to change me going to a bar and doing the exact same thing again tonight. If not for one-night stands, what in the hell was the use of living in Las Vegas?
Ralph said something about the phone ringing, but I didn't even hear it. I never answered it and when I did it was never good news, so I decided that I just wasn't going to anymore. He was really good at getting rid of most people and he only made me care when it mattered. I really don't know what I would do without Ralph, I would most likely be lost. He was the buffer that I needed between me and the rest of the world.
So, when he went off to get the phone, I didn't think anything of it. It was only when he came back, holding the phone, telling me that I need to take it, that I cared.
“Who is it?”
Ralph had been with me and my family for a long time, but I had never seen him look at me quite the same way before, as he was now. It was as if he had heard something or finally knew something that he didn't know about me. The man had known me since I was a baby, so it was hard to think of anything that he didn't know. Who can make him look that way?
“Well Sir, the woman says that she is your wife. I told her that you don't have a wife, but she insists that you talk to her. Her name is Candy.”
I was about as stunned as my butler was. I hadn't heard that name in a very long time, but I knew immediately who it was. Candy was a one-night stand that turned into something else and she was one of the only women that I was with, that I actually remembered her name the next morning. But instead of showing her off, she had been gone when I woke up.
Moving to take the phone, he pulled it back and covered the speaker.
“Explain.”
I chuckled at him and told him that I wasn't telling him shit.
“Just give me the phone and there won't be any trouble.”
The man had me by one hundred pounds and about six inches, even though I was over six foot tall myself. He just shook his head and held the phone up a little higher, but I refused to jump for it.
“I married her. It was a very long time ago and I haven't talked to her since. Now give me the damn phone Ralph!”
He lowered the phone and gave it to me, but it became clear that he wasn't going to leave the room. It didn't matter if I wanted privacy or not, he was there to hear it and there was nothing I could do about it. Ralph was more than a butler, or I would have fired him a long time ago.
I took the phone and said hello, not realizing how badly I wanted to hear her voice until then.
“Hi, is this Colt Marks?”
“Yeah baby, it's been a long time since I heard from you. I was wondering when I was going to hear from you again.”
“So, you remember me?”
I agreed that I did, and I have to say that I was a little peeved that she didn't remember me as well. It was not so fun when I was the one that was forgotten.
“So, what can I do for you wifey?”
“If you could kindly divorce me and sign these papers I need to send you, that would be great.”
It wasn't like I was surprised by what she wanted. I knew that a lot was different than when we said, ‘I do’ and we got married. Our minds were in a different place, but at
the end of the day, I still thought about her and I had to wonder if she thought about me as well. I didn't want to get divorced. I wanted to see her again and figure out why in the hell I still thought about her. Why out of all the people I had dated, why her?
Chapter 3
Candy
“Well is that any way to speak to your husband? I haven't seen you in how many years? I think that you should at least ask me first how I am doing. I have missed you Candy.”
While I didn't remember him at the moment, there was something about his voice that seemed very familiar. I don't know why but I remembered it from my past. At some point, we had been together, or I wouldn't be having this trouble now. But I really wasn't sure what to think about it. This wasn't a joke and the man on the other line sounded like he was smiling. I didn't have to see his face to know it to be true.
“Considering that I didn't even realize I had a husband, I figured that my introduction was as pleasant as it could be.”
“If you didn't know about me, why are you calling me now?”
“Because I was in the middle of getting married when a lawyer came in to tell me that I was still married, and I couldn't marry Jax, the man of my dreams. Apparently, we got married when we were drunk in Las Vegas I take it?”
“That was a mouthful. I am a little hurt that you don't remember me, I sure remember you. And you weren’t that drunk.”
“I tell you that you ruined my marriage and you're the one that's hurt?”
“Look, I can tell that you're a little upset right now, but I assure you that I wasn't trying to ruin your marriage. You can't marry anybody else because we are married. And no offence, but you haven't been a very good wife. I don't think I've had one home cooked meal since we've been married.”
I couldn't believe the audacity of this guy. He didn't know me, but he was talking to me like you did. We had met one time, a long time ago and even if it did get hot and heavy, which I imagine it did, I didn't want to deal with him now. And that night must not have been that special because I didn't even remember him or it.
“Well I haven't gotten one birthday gift, not one anniversary gift, or a present for any other holiday for that matter. I think that most wives would be a little upset, but I'm not.”
“Touché”
He was now openly chuckling, and I don't know why the sound of it was driving me so crazy. I wanted him to take this seriously because I certainly was. The last thing I wanted to do was be married to some joker, or any other person for that matter. I was supposed to marry Jax. It was destined and whatever I had to do to get rid of this guy, I would do. Maybe he wanted money or something, I don't know. But whatever it took. That's what Jax said.
“So seriously, we need to get divorced. It is bad enough that I didn't get to marry him last week, but I don't want to put this off any longer. I will send you the paperwork, my lawyer has already drawn it up for me, all you have to do is sign it.”
“And if I don't?”
I sighed out loud and asked him why the hell he wouldn't. He had no reason to stay married to me. I’d tried to keep my cool, but it was going to be impossible.
“Don’t you ever want to get married for real?”
He just laughed at the idea and said that he was already married, so he didn't want to try again.
“What kind of husband would I be if I was out looking for another bride?”
“You would be the sort of husband that was not really married. I know that there is paperwork that exist that has my signature on it, but that doesn't mean anything.”
“If it doesn't mean anything, then why are you calling me?”
I had to take a deep breath and close my eyes for a minute. This was not the way that the conversation was supposed to go, and I didn't know how to talk to him. I had no idea where he was coming from, but it seemed like he was just trying to be a pain and I didn’t understand what his reasoning was for doing so.
“It means something because I can't marry Jax. That is all it means to me and I would really appreciate it if you would sign the papers, so that we can both move on with our lives.”
“If you want to divorce, then you have to come up here for a little while. It has been a long time since we saw each other, and I wouldn't feel right signing them without at least seeing you again. Do you really want to do this before you see me again? It has been a long time. Things change.”
“Yes, yes, I do.”
It was his turn to let out a frustrated noise and I wasn't sure why that was. Why did he get to be upset about this? Apparently, he knew about it and could have changed it at any time. Why he didn't, I have no idea, but that didn't matter now. All that mattered was that I broke the connection with him so that I could move on with my life with Jax. I didn't feel like that was too much to ask.
“If you want me to sign the papers, you have to come here. It is just that simple. Whether you want to see me or not Candy, I really want to see you again. Come up for the weekend and if you still want them signed at the end of it, I will sign them. That is the best I can do and there is no negotiations.”
It was his tone of voice that reminded me of something about him. Apparently, I did know a little bit about Colt and what I remembered wasn’t good.
“You're a lawyer, right?”
“Yes, I am Candy. See, I knew that you remembered me.”
“No, I just figured by your attitude that you were. If I agree to go up there, what would be the point? We are pretty much strangers and we both have a life. Why would you want to do that?”
His request with strange at the best, and I had no idea what he had going on in his mind. Surely, he had to see that this was a bad idea. How could he not?
“I just have to see you. Isn't that enough?”
It was something that I wanted Jax to say to me, not a man that I had gotten drunk with seven or so years ago. I was getting a headache just talking to him and I wasn't sure how I was supposed to fix this.
Jax had pushed me to call him, but I had tried my best to get it done without my estranged husband. My lawyer said that it would take up to six months to do it that way and I didn't want to wait that long. The only way that was going to get me divorced right now and marry the man that I loved, was to get him to sign the papers. His signature was the only thing standing in my way and I wasn't going to let that happen.
“What I mean is, I want to know what you expect out of me Colt. I am supposed to be married to someone else, so there is no way that I'm going to go up there and sleep with you. I don't know what you have on your mind but if this marriage isn't consummated, I am sure not going to start.”
“Oh, it was consummated alright. Many times. I even got you to come so hard you passed out a couple of times, but you refused to believe it. You said that it had never happened before. Does the man that you are about to marry, make you so the same?”
I couldn't believe that he had said that out loud and sadly it made me shiver inside. I was starting to have a few flashbacks of my night with Colt and I can't say that it was bad memories. I would never admit to him that Jax never made me come that way. It may not have been perfect in the bedroom, but we had something more, we had love. He had close ties to my family
“Well, whatever happened that night is not going to happen again. As long as you understand that and agree to that, I will meet with you.”
“No Candy, I want you to come stay with me for the weekend. I can get you a flight out of there in about an hour. You are still in Southern California, right?”
“Yeah.”
I wasn't going to ask him how he knew that. He already knew too much about me and it made me uncomfortable. All I know for now, was that I had to tell Jax about this and he wasn't going to be very happy.
When I got off the phone with Colt and we had decided to meet up, I went to the bedroom to see if Jax was awake from his nap. I don't know how I was going to tell him this, but surely, he had to see that this was the only way. He was going to like the idea of i
t, about as bad as I would have if I was in his shoes.
I couldn’t believe how much one night of drinking had screwed up my life.
Chapter 4
Candy
The last thing that I wanted to do was talk to Jax, so when I went into the bedroom and he was laying down, I tried to leave as quietly as I came. I didn’t want to argue with him and he was going to be pissed about me catching a plane to spend the weekend with Colt. There was no way that Jax was going to let that happen and I wasn’t sure how the hell I was going to tell him about it. Maybe I could just leave a note…
“Candy, what’s going on?”
I stopped at the door and groaned out loud. The last thing that I wanted to do was to talk to him and he seemed to think that I had all the answers. I didn’t, but I was going to have to come up with something fast. He wanted me to tell him that everything was okay, but it wasn’t.
“I didn’t mean to wake you up baby. I just thought that I would talk to you a little bit.”
“Did you call him?”
I told him that I had, and he waited for more. I didn’t know if he was going to like the more, but I knew that I had to say something to him. I had to let him know that I wasn’t going to let this guy get the best of me, but at the moment, he had us over a barrel. Surely, he could see that this was all just a last-ditch effort on his part.
“Yeah, I did.”
“And…?”
The words were on the tip of my tongue, but I couldn’t manage to get them out. I wanted to tell him the truth, but it was impossible for me to tell him the truth. He was never going to forgive me if I lied though…
