Page 4 of Ryder’s Storm

“I’m sorry, Dad. I understand.” She forced a smile, despite having lost another argument with him. No wonder her father was a successful businessman. He always got what he wanted. “When are you coming to the city?”

“Not for a few days. I have to fly to Phoenix tomorrow on business. But Claudia might come up tomorrow. She has some things to do in San Francisco.”

“Oh, she’s not flying to Phoenix with you?”

“No, you know she hates the desert heat. But I won’t be gone for long. Promise.”

“I miss you,” she said. It was the truth. She and her father had always been close.

“Miss you too, honey. Chin up! I’m told that Grayson Woodford is a handsome young man.”

Her father wasn’t wrong. “Trust me he has the arrogance to go with his looks.”

“Just don’t make his life hell, okay?”

“Okay, Dad. Have a good flight.”

“Bye, honey.”

Scarlet disconnected the call, when she heard a sound from the door. It startled her. She spun around and saw Grayson standing in the door, a frown on his face.

He was handsome, she had to give him that. Tall, dark hair, fit body. He probably had a swarm of women drool over him wherever he went. But Scarlet didn’t like him. After all, he was her jailor, and he was full of himself. Clearly, the heir to the Scanguards empire was spoiled rotten. She’d looked into Scanguards before her father had hired them. Unfortunately, she hadn’t found anything that would disqualify them in her father’s eyes, or in her own. They were a very well-run operation with glowing reviews from previous and current clients.

Nevertheless, Scarlet didn’t like the idea of having a bodyguard in general, nor Grayson in particular. He couldn’t be much older than her. How much experience could he really have at this age? He didn’t strike her as somebody who spent his days and nights training to be the best in his field. Clearly, he’d gotten the plum assignment because he was the owner’s son.

“So you think I’m arrogant,” Grayson said while he ran his eyes over her.

His look said that he didn’t like what he saw. It didn’t bother her. She liked wearing her long hair in an efficient ponytail, liked the casual clothes, the worn-out jeans and the oversized sweater that hid her curves. Her clothes made her feel safe, because she could hide behind them, just like she hid behind metal-rimmed glasses that made her look older than she was, even though she didn’t need them. She had perfect vision. Just like her clothes, her glasses were part of her image: the bookworm and PhD candidate who was focused only on her studies and was not interested in men.

Unfortunately, over the last few years, a sexual need had arisen in her that she couldn’t deny anymore. Every so often, she had to leave the façade of the demure bookworm behind, and take what she needed to feel better. She couldn’t deny herself the carnal pleasures that her body demanded from time to time. She could only suppress them for so long, before she lost control over her actions and did what she needed to do to find peace, if only for a little while.

“Was that a question?” Scarlet asked.

He raised an eyebrow. “I don’t have to make conversation.”

“Then don’t.” She looked at the clock on the kitchen wall. “My takeout from Tomaso’s should be ready. Let’s go.” She grabbed her handbag. It was her largest one, large enough to hide the things she needed for tonight.

“You’re eating that late? I thought you had dinner already.”

“Well, working on my thesis burns a lot of calories. I need food. And since I don’t want to cook, I need takeout. And before you ask, no, they don’t deliver. They’re short on drivers. If you don’t want to drive me, then I’ll go by myself.” She knew his answer before he gave it.

Grayson glared at her. “Nice try. Not a chance. I’ll drive you.”

“Thank you,” she said, giving him an overly sweet smile, because she knew it pissed him off. There was something rather satisfying about pushing Grayson’s buttons.

Grayson’s Audi TT was parked in the driveway. They jumped in, and without a word, Grayson drove off. Scarlet settled into the leather seat. She felt hot beneath her bulky sweater and reached for the button to switch on the air conditioning.

Before she could touch it and turn it cooler, Grayson barked, “Don’t touch the controls. I’ll do it.”

“Then turn the heat off already.”

“The heat isn’t on. It’s a comfortable 68 degrees in here.”

“Comfortable for you. But I’m hot, so put the air conditioning on.”

“You can’t be hot.”

She shot him an annoyed look. “Says who?”