Playing to Win: A Contemporary Romance Box Set

by Romi Hart

  I stepped into the shower as Alex turned on the faucet and a glorious spray of water fell from the oversized rain shower head. He slipped his arms around me as the warm water came down on us.

  “You think you can handle me when you’re injured?” I looked down at his ankle.

  Alex hopped over to the tiled bench and sat down. “That’s what this is for.” He watched me standing under the water, rivulets streaming down my body. I loved his eyes on me, devouring every inch of my body. I tilted my head back and arched my back, letting the water splash down on my face. Under the rush of water, I heard Alex murmur in appreciation. “God, you look so good.”

  Turning my back to him, I looked over my shoulder and smiled seductively. I bent over; water slipped down my round ass. Grabbing a bath pouf, I squeezed a generous amount of liquid soap into it. I lathered myself up while looking into Alex’s eyes. Alex’s cock grew hard and thick while I ran my hands up and down my sudsy body. Alex gripped his lengthening dick with his hand. My mouth watered for it.

  I came over to him and began to soap his rock hard body down. He licked my nipples, but I pushed him back gently. “You’re dirty. Not until you’re clean.”

  He bit his bottom lip looking up at me in pure desire. “I like being dirty.”

  “I know you do.” I ran the pouf all over his body down his back, his firm ass, between his legs, and down his strong calves. I positioned the shower head so the water hit his torso at an angle. It rolled down his taut abdomen.

  I knelt down in front of Alex and took his entire cock into my wet mouth. I wrapped my lips tightly around it and sucked firmly. Alex’s hand gently caressed the top of my head as he murmured in pleasure, “Jasmine. Jasmine.”

  Hearing my name on his lips made me suck harder. My tongue twirled around his tip. I could taste his salty pre-cum. The briny taste turned me on. Shoving his rigid dick down my throat, I could feel my pussy warming and throbbing in excitement. Alex’s fingers tangled into my hair as his thighs tensed.

  I wanted to suck him off until he came into my mouth, but Alex gently pushed me away. “I want to be inside you right now.” He pointed at one of the drawers underneath the sink. “There are condoms in there.”

  Dripping, I shimmied out of the shower to the sink. I bent over pushing my ass out to reach for the condoms in the drawer. Alex groaned, “You’re killing me, Jasmine!” Grabbing a condom and ripping it open with my teeth, I gave him a sultry smile.

  With my pussy aching for him, I quickly slipped the condom on his magnificent cock. Before Alex had a chance to speak, I straddled him easing my hungry cunt down on his dick. The pressure of his girth and length was wonderfully intense. I gasped from the breathtaking sensation.

  “You’re so tight. It’s so wet.” Alex whimpered. His hands were tight and firm around my waist.

  I kissed him hard on the mouth while I lifted my pussy slowly up the length of his cock. Then, I slammed my body down with force, feeling his dick fill me up deep.

  Alex squeezed my ass firmly. “Your hands feel so good on my body,” I murmured. He licked and sucked my nipple with his mouth and tweaked the other with his fingers. I cried out in pleasure.

  I arched my back against the stream of water, loving the sensation of the water against my skin. Alex grabbed my hips while I swiveled them. I wiggled and bounced on his cock screaming out. “Alex!”

  Wrapping my legs around his waist, I shut my eyes tight feeling my pussy quiver softly then harder until I came with thunderous force. I could feel Alex’s mouth kissing me all over as I shuddered and bucked in his lap.

  Out of breath, I opened my eyes and saw that he was smiling at me. “You look hot when you come.”

  I bounced up and down on his cock again. “Your turn.”

  He gripped my hips to stop me. “Whoa there. I want to finish on the bed.”

  Lifting myself up off his still hard dick, I said, “You can keep going?”

  He held his thick cock in his hand and shook it at me playfully. “I can go all night.” My pussy tightened when he said this. I was ready for another round.

  On the bed, Alex turned me over on my hands and knees. He buried his face into my pussy with vigor. His stuck his tongue inside of me. The marvelous feeling sent shivers up my spine making me throw my head back into a sumptuous moan.

  His hand reached under to play with my swollen clit. He teased my hard little button with a tight circular motion. A tingling sensation rose up from my pussy and exploded throughout my body. Shuddering, I screamed, “I’m coming, Alex!”

  Alex pulled his mouth away from my quivering cunt. On his knees, he quickly pushed his sturdy dick inside me. Slipping between my trembling pussy lips, he thrust into me deep leaving me panting. Alex ran a tender hand down from my neck to my ass. Craning my head around to see his face, I grinned. “I love you.”

  Alex cupped my chin with his hand and said, “I love you.” I kissed his thumb. I loved this man so much.

  Alex held onto my hips while thrusting into me. Pushing back against him, I wanted him as deep into my pussy as possible. I watched in fascination as Alex’s eyes tightened. His thrusts became harder and faster. Deep inside my cunt, I felt a spectacular tingle again. The tingling erupted into a pleasantly violent orgasm.

  I shook as Alex let out a clamoring groan. He collapsed next to me sweaty and out of breath. I fell into his arms looking around his bedroom feeling safe and loved.

  He kissed me on the cheek sweetly. “I love having you here.”

  I looked up at him. His brown eyes shone in the dim light. He was so handsome. It felt so wonderful and comfortable to be in his arms. After a few moments, my eyes felt too heavy to keep open. All my problems: my dad, Joseph, the restaurant, school, they all fell away. Sleep gently pulled me towards it.

  Alex whispered, “Move in with me. Let me take care of you. You can quit the restaurant and just focus on school.”

  His sweet words touched me so much. I was speechless with no idea what to say. So I kept my eyes shut and pretended I was asleep.

  14

  Jasmine

  Katarina, my Uber driver from the night before, was kind enough to ask me if I needed a ride back into Ocala. Uber drivers generally refused fares from Gainesville into Ocala and vice versa, complaining the drive into the boondocks wasn’t worth it. Honestly, I didn’t blame them. It probably wasn’t. I knew that I would likely have a devil of a time getting a ride back home the next day.

  “I’m not going to need to go back to Ocala until tomorrow morning,” I told Katarina who watched me gather my stuff to hop out of her Honda Pilot.

  She smiled generously. “No worries. What time?”

  There was no way I could ask this sweet lady to take me back to farm country at the break of dawn. I shook my head. “No, ma’am. That’s okay. It’s going to be very early. I can find my way back.” I was sure Alex could just drive me back.

  Katarina wagged her finger at me. “I have a daughter about your age, Miss Jasmine. Nothing would make me happier than to make sure you get home when you need to.”

  With her insistence, I scheduled an Uber ride early at 4:30 AM to be picked up at Alex’s. It was early enough that my father and brother would still be asleep. The oxen would even be snoozing at that time.

  Before I left, I ruffled Alex’s hair gently as he slept. “Bye, Alex.”

  One eye popped open. “Leaving so soon?” He grabbed my hand and squeezed.

  “I’ve got work all day.” Stooping down to him, I kissed his lips. “I had a wonderful night with you. I love you.”

  Smiling, he murmured, “I love you, too.” As I walked towards the door, he called after me, “I hope I see you soon.”

  “I hope so, too.”

  He flopped his head back down on his pillow with a dreamy grin on his face and watched me walk out. His bed looked so cozy and inviting with him in. I wished I could have stayed all day.

  Since it was Veterans Day, there weren’t any classes, freeing me to work
the lunch shift. After Katarina dropped me off at home, I took a quick half hour nap but still went in to the restaurant before anyone else. My brother and my dad were still in bed when I left. Being off for just one entire day, recharged me and I was ready to return to my hectic work and school schedule again.

  Payday was coming up, and I had to get payroll in order to be ready for it. I sat in the back office, going through the time cards of all the staff. It was a tedious task, but someone had to do it.

  It surprised me when my brother came into the restaurant shortly after I had. Joseph stumbled in looking just as surprised as I was to see him. “Hey! What are you doing here so early?” I asked him, noticing the dark grey bags under his eyes.

  He rubbed his eyes with a fist. “Came in to get some work done.” He guzzled down a Monster energy drink. “What are you doing here?”

  “Same. Trying to catch up on everything." I held up a time card. "Payroll."

  My little brother looked dead tired. He nodded, running his hands through his hair. “Great. Thanks for doing that. I’ve to go to work on the server schedule next week since Maritza is still going to be out.”

  I raised my eyebrows in confusion. What was he talking about? Maritza was out?

  “You know because of her appendix?” Joseph explained. He searched my face for recognition.

  Anxiety swirled inside of me. I had no idea Maritza was out sick for her appendix. She was our head server. I had been so caught up with work, school, and Alex that I hadn’t even noticed our head server had been out.

  I stood up in shock worried about Maritza. Before I could say anything, Joseph assured me. “She’s okay. I sent flowers to her hospital room.”

  I sighed, relaxing a bit. “Thanks for taking care of that.” I paused, thinking about how hard Joseph worked since I started school. “Thanks for taking care of everything.”

  He nodded, gulping the last bit of Monster left in the can.

  Stepping around the desk to get a better look at my brother, I saw how deflated he looked. “You look awful.” Joseph looked sickly and grey. He even seemed thinner and smaller.

  He sighed. “I feel awful, Jas. I know I’m the one who told you to go to school, but I honestly had no idea how much work it would be without you here all the time.” He chewed his lip.

  “I’m sorry, Joseph.” My chest tightened in guilt for taking off yesterday.

  Joseph vented his frustration. “It’s just that Dad’s new changes to the menu are eating up so much more time than I expected.” He shook his head. “And Maritza is out. I asked Nia if she can cover, but Nia’s in school just like you are.” He groaned. “We are busier than ever before, which is great! But, I miss sleep. It’s hard to be the Sous Chef and the GM.”

  We both looked down, gazing at her feet. Any mention of a general manager indirectly brought up the subject of my mother. “I wish dad would just hire one. This restaurant needs a proper general manager.” I crossed my arms tightly around myself. My brother nodded, silently agreeing.

  “Jas, I don’t know how much longer I can keep this up.” He lifted the Monster to his lips, but then realized it was empty. He shot the empty can into the trash.

  “Okay. I’ll figure something out. You’re going to get sick working this much.” I put my arm around my brother and led him to the couch in the office. “Take a nap.” My brother and I used to fall asleep on this couch when we were little kids, waiting for our dad to finish up with work. When we’d wake up, we’d be in our beds at home, not even remembering our father carrying us there.

  He vehemently shook his head. “I can’t do that. There is so much to do.” He resisted, but I pushed him down on the couch.

  “I’ll take care of the server schedule and morning prep work in the kitchen.”

  He sat on the couch bolt upright ready to jump up and work. “Are you sure?”

  I unfolded the blanket slung on the back of the couch. “I’ve got it.”

  He relaxed onto the couch, throwing his feet up and closing his eyes. “I’m so tired. Thanks, Jas.”

  I threw the blanket on him and softly patted the top of his head with my palm. “Of course.” Looking down at him snuggled on the couch, I remembered when we were little and he would come into my room, scared of monsters under his bed. He’d crawl in next to me, clutching his stuffed dinosaur, Ty Ty. It didn’t take much to get him to go back to sleep. All he needed was my company and in a minute or two, he was sound asleep, snoring even.

  Scooping up the timecards and grabbing the server schedule book, I quietly tiptoed out. Disappointment welled deep in my belly. There were still four more weeks left in the semester. Could Joseph make it that long so I could, at least, finish the semester?

  He looked absolutely terrible. I’d be a horrible person if I asked him to hang in there for four more weeks. There was a huge possibility that I would have to drop out mid-semester. All my hard work would be for nothing.

  I spread out all the paperwork in the General Manager’s office that used to be my mom’s. Hardly anyone ever went in there. It was dusty from rarely being used. Even the soft chewy peppermints that melt in your mouth had been left in a little porcelain bowl on her desk. My mother loved those mints. But gross. Those peppermints were a decade old.

  I grabbed the bowl to toss the peppermints into the waste bin but looking down at the red and white striped candies nestled in the bowl, I couldn’t do it. I put the bowl back down where it was with a pain in my chest.

  Directing my attention back to a time card, the inevitability that I’d have to drop out of school hummed in the back of my mind. My life as a college student had been short-lived. It was foolish to think I would have been able to keep up the lie all the way until graduation.

  Before the lunch rush started, I’d finished payroll, worked out the server schedule, and had the kitchen prepped and ready to serve. When my father came in, he grunted at me in approval. I wondered how long it would be until my dad actually used words to communicate with me again.

  I was in the kitchen, slicing octopus when Nia skirted by me whispering in my ear. “Man. Here. Eat!” Her eyes were wide and serious. I dropped the knife slowly. It couldn’t be. She saw the look on my face and nodded fiercely as she quickly strode back out to the dining room.

  When the door swung open, I saw Alex and his teammates, Ronnie and Perry, sitting at a table. It wasn’t great that Alex decided to come in, but seeing him with his friends allayed my fears. There was no way my dad was going to make a scene especially if Alex had not come alone. Safety in numbers, right?

  I tried to convince myself that my father would never jeopardize the chance an anonymous Michelin judge had come to lunch that day. Michelin starred restaurants were frequently visited by incognito judges to ensure consistency in the restaurant’s quality. The restaurant had to always adhere to the highest standard of fine dining because we just never knew when we were being judged.

  Returning to slicing the octopus, I clenched my jaw. My dad was definitely going to be furious, but he would talk to me about it later. The worst I expected was my father chewing me out at the end of the day, but I had plenty of hours before then to mentally prepare myself.

  Suddenly, my dad stormed past me and out of the kitchen with his eyes aflame. He pushed the door open with such force, it swung back hard with a furious swoosh. I hung back in the kitchen momentarily in disbelief that my dad was going out there to talk to Alex.

  Then, my dad's booming voice growled, “You are not welcome in this restaurant!”

  Dropping my knife with a clatter, I rushed out to the dining room. Guests sat in shock, watching my father shake his clenched fists at Alex and his friends. “You will not be served! Get out!”

  Alex held his hands up in defeat while his friends looked around startled and uncertain. Alex, Ronnie, and Perry stood up carefully while the entire dining room, guest and staff, stared open-mouthed. I couldn’t believe my eyes.

  15

  Alex

  M
y bright idea of going to El Buey as an act of goodwill to Jose Fontaine ended up being the worst possible plan of action for peace. After our unsuccessful talk at the Fontaine house, I thought patronizing the man’s restaurant would undoubtedly show him I supported Jasmine and her family’s business.

  I was so wrong. When Nia seated us, I thought we were in the clear. Surely, the staff would have stopped us at the hostess stand if Jose didn’t want us on the premises. Like every man who has been taken by surprise by an enemy at a meal, I sat down at the table and relaxed.

  Perry, our goalie, asked Nia questions about the menu. He was from Austin, Texas and loved red meat so naturally, he had a ton of questions. Nia was pretty sweet natured and was happy to explain everything in detail. While they talked, I looked over the menu, deciding on what to get for lunch.

  Foolishly, I forgot momentarily that we were even at Jose Fontaine’s restaurant and that I had anything to worry about at all. Jose was a reasonable man, and heck he was a businessman after all. He certainly wouldn't turn away paying customers. I didn’t expect to see Jasmine while I was there but knowing she was nearby somewhere made me happy.

  As Nia described the different kinds of buey available for lunch, I heard Jose before I saw him. “You!” Lowering my menu, I knew that bellowing voice. Jose’s finger was aimed right at me, yelling at me to get out.

  Patrons around me stopped eating and talking. Everyone was frozen staring at our table. Startled, the staff stopped what they were doing. Every eye in the restaurant was on us. Beads of sweat sprung up on the back of my neck. My peace negotiations had gone terribly wrong.

  Nia pushed up her black frame glasses with a trembling finger and gave us an apologetic smile. “Uncle Jose, is there a problem?” Her voice was topsy-turvy, the pitch rising and falling oddly. Nia seemed to be spooked pretty badly.

  Was everyone afraid of Jose Fontaine?