Jack allowed her to slide down his body and watched her eyes go wide as his manhood throbbed between them. They had fit before and would again. Enjoying the sight of each other, Jack turned her so the bed was behind her and gently pushed her back so she would sit, allowing his hand to touch the tops of her soft globes as he did so. Then he knelt before her and cupped her breasts, first one and then the other. When her eyes closed, he took it further, squeezing one, and then placing his mouth on the other. He took one nipple into his mouth, and gently tugged on it with his teeth. Her cry was soft, but needy. He felt her legs begin to shake beside him. She was ready for him, but he wasn’t ready yet. He wanted to taste her other breast. He released the nipple he was locked on to and then took her other nipple, giving it the same attention. She moaned again, louder. “Oh, Jack.” He heard the urgency in her tone.
Jack loved hearing her moan his name, too, and rewarded her by letting one hand drop from her shoulder to her thigh. He stroked her leg and thigh and felt her body tremble in anticipation of his next move, heard her soft gasp as his hand covered her femininity, and lifted herself up to him by tilting her pelvis upward encouraging him to do more. He wanted more.
Gently, he eased her back onto the bed without breaking the contact he had on her pussy; he licked her breast and then sucked hard, pulling the nipple into his mouth. Bearing his weight on one elbow, he curled in beside her while his hand roamed and explored her wet folds. He allowed one finger to enter her then and found her wetter. He traced her crevice from the bottom to the top while her tight little bundle of nerves lay exposed and twitching. He wanted to know every inch of this woman. She murmured her approval as he circled her clit with his finger. Her soft sighs continued as her head tossed slowly from side to side. He loved how her body reacted to him, and he broke contact with her nipple to watch her body tighten and arch. He loved seeing her back arch off the bed as he circled her clit over and over again. Her body wound tightly for him, waiting for the release he would give her. Her tits were wet from his mouth, and they glistened and puckered tight as her first release soared through her body. She hissed through her teeth and called his name. “Jack, oh, Jack, yes, please,” she whimpered, begging for it as her body exploded. God, she was beautiful when she came for him. He knew then he didn’t want anyone else ever to give her this pleasure. He wanted exclusive rights to her–all of her. She was his.
When she began to settle from her first release, she reached for him, and he took her mouth once more. His cock was desperate to sink into her, claim her completely, but she’d asked to be loved well, and he didn’t want to rush. He could wait. She was worth it.
Kissing and nipping along her rib cage, along the stars that adorned her, his hand caressed her pussy again, and he was pleased that she was already pushing onto him after recovering so quickly, but he wasn’t ready, not just yet. “I’ve never wanted to please a woman the way I want to please you, Dawn. Please know that.”
“Oh, Jack,” she hissed, pushing up on her heels to urge him on. She didn’t think she could ever get enough of him. He was an expert at lovemaking. He knew how to please a woman. His words made it all the more special.
Finding her sensitive clit, Jack began to work her again, eliciting tiny whimpers of pleasure. When she began to move to his ministrations, falling into time with him, he stretched his body up to hers to press a kiss to her sweet lips. While she moved beside him, he inserted first one finger, then two, and stroked her there, matching the rhythm she kept. He felt like he was going to explode when her slick, sweet pussy began to convulse around his fingers. She was coming undone for him. He watched her brown eyes close, blocking out everything in the world but the two of them. As her fists gripped the bedding, she climbed the abyss, and he knew he would never tire of watching his woman surrender to him.
“Oh, Jack, yes!” she cried out, as her hips met his thrusting digits stroke for stroke. He had made her come again and still she yearned for him. The feel of him inside her. “Hold me,” she pleaded as her heart hammered in her chest. She felt so at home with this man and hoped his words were true. She was falling hard.
“Kiss me again,” he whispered, and though still recovering, she couldn’t refuse him. Didn’t want to. She wanted it all. Whatever this man was willing to give her. Whatever time he could give her, she just hoped beyond measure that it would be a piece of his heart. Though she didn’t know him as well as she would like to, she believed she knew enough to know he was a good man.
As she kissed him, she reached down to grasp his cock in her hand and loved it when he hissed at her touch. So, he liked it when she took the initiative, too. She used her small hand to stroke him and spark the fire he had ignited and quenched within her, not once, but twice.
He couldn’t hold out any longer. He’d left his wallet on the table and quickly retrieved a condom and slipped it on.
His grey eyes glowed like quicksilver in the lamp light, and without warning he took control once more, turning her body so she was beneath him. Removing her hand from his cock, he placed the engorged head at her entrance and rubbed her sensitive bundle of nerves before pushing into her slightly. She felt her body stretching as he slid inside, possessing her completely, and she couldn’t help the sigh of satisfaction that escaped her. It felt amazing. His being a part of her, connected at the core, being one.
Jack stilled, although his body wanted to pump into her fast and hard to make the friction that would bring him the release he so desperately needed. But tonight was about Dawn. About showing her that she meant something to him. With her sheathed around him, hot, slick and wet, he was right where he needed to be.
“Open your eyes,” he grunted, and when she did, he began to move. She moved with him. With eyes locked on each other, he rocked in and out of her, rocked her, stroked her, until she made kitten-like sounds that told him she was close. His cock throbbed and pulsed inside her. He could feel his balls tightening. He was close. He moved faster and slid against her apex until he felt the tremors in her pussy that told him she was about plunge over the edge, and when she did, he went with her.
Wave after wave took her this time, exhilarating Dawn as she watched Jack come with her. And it was pure bliss to climb and fall together with him. Dawn saw the veins on his neck bulging, felt the blood pumping under her hands that grasped his biceps, and knew he was fighting for control; but when she screamed her pleasure, he exploded inside of her.
And lost his heart in the process. He lay beside her and pulled her into the crook of his arm, holding her close.
“Jack?” she whispered when their heartbeats returned to normal.
“Yes?” he asked, pressing a kiss on the top of her damp forehead.
“I want this to last,” she confessed, hoping he didn’t think her a fool. She had no idea if he was feeling what she was. She didn’t want to scare him off, either.
“I do, too,” he admitted. He knew this was not the right time. Not the right way to start a relationship. But it was the truth. He wanted her more than anything.
*
The light from the window streaming in from the river view of the Mystic woke Dawn. She hadn’t meant to spend the entire night, but here she was naked and held tightly in Jack’s arms. This strong, powerful, mysterious man was making her hope for more than she’d ever wanted before. She hoped he wouldn’t break her heart. She knew now that if he disappeared from her life, her heart would shatter into a million tiny pieces. She hated being this vulnerable. It was that thought that made her gently push his muscled forearm off her and slip out of the bed. She needed to get out of there. Jack groaned softly in his sleep.
Hastily, she donned her long blue tank top and quickly fastened her skinny jeans after sliding into them. Jackson Black was tempting. Tempting her into thinking there could be more than just sex between them. She wanted it. But knew it was impossible. Not with her luck, or lack thereof. The early dawn light made her realize that nights like the one before were too good to be true. A
man like this was not someone she could bring home to her family. Hell, she still didn’t really know anything about him. She’d thought him a crook at first, counting cards, and hell, he still could very well be. Scared, she did the only thing she could think of. She ran.
Picking up her heels in one hand, she slipped out of the room and quickly hustled down the hall to her suite, just four rooms away.
Her key card gave her quick access; and when the door shut softly behind her, she leaned against it and then sank down the wall to the floor.
Sighing heavily, she rested her head against her knees and breathed for the first time since leaving Jackson’s room. What the hell was she doing? She had stupidly fallen for a man she didn’t really know, a man she couldn’t be with. Dumb, dumb, dumb, Dawn, she told herself. Here you go again.
Chapter 3
‡
After leaving Jack’s suite, Dawn took a shower and gave herself a pep talk. She told herself she was falling too hard, too fast, and what she needed to do was put distance between them.
She threw herself into her work the following week and turned down shifts on the floor to avoid running into him. Tempted to call him, she resisted. He had her number and hadn’t called, either. So, she focused on work, stayed away from the gaming rooms, and one very handsome enigma named Jackson Black. Her heart would thank her, she kept telling herself.
Another week later, Dawn found herself sitting in theboardroom. There had been a meeting of the directors, and her supervisor asked her to sit in on the meeting with him. She’d only attended a few meetings early on when the casino just opened and was pleased to be included. Five full-time accountants worked at the casino on different accounts, and she was being trained to head up her own department. She’d been hired when she finished her master’s degree and would be the new accountant overseeing the casino’s merchandising department. It was a massive account. So, going to this meeting would let her know how she needed to present her information to the supervisor who oversaw all of them.
Her sister, Eve, had just returned from her trip to be with Lucas while he was on tour along the East Coast. Dawn was thrilled to have her back since hadn’t seen her in a few weeks. Christmas was just a week away, and she was sure her sister had a lot to do. So did she. That was another reason why she just needed to stop thinking about Jackson, although she found her mind constantly reliving their last night together. She wanted to talk to Eve about him but didn’t know how to bring it up.
Eve was the entertainment director at Mystic Nights Casino and her twin sister, older by just a few minutes. She would be at today’s board meeting along with both of her brothers; her mom; the head of security, Tom; the hotel manager; the casino manager; the head of purchasing; and the two council members who represented the people of their reservation.
Each head of a department shared a report. Dawn was shocked when it was Eve’s turn. She let everyone know that she would be stepping down from directly managing Spirits in the Sky, the new nightclub she started just five months earlier. She’d be leaving that to Tammy. Tammy had been doing a great job as assistant manager and could handle the club easily. Eve needed to focus on acquiring new talent and acts, performers and headliners for the resort and theatre venues for them. Her mother readily agreed; and although Dawn was surprised, she understood her sister’s need to step back and focus on her main job. Her sister was also newly engaged, and Dawn knew she’d want to spend as much free time with her fiancé as possible.
Dawn listened when her mother, Tawny Sassaccus, spoke. “That’s a great idea. Tammy has been an asset to us while you were away and definitely can manage the club on her own. We can get her an assistant so she can have some time off when she needs it.”
“Awesome,” Eve replied, then began to list several new acts she was trying to lure to the casino.
“Everything sounds perfect, Eve. It seems accompanying Lucas brought you into contact with some new talent. Well done.” Tawny praised her eldest daughter. She looked around the large oak table and spotted her youngest. Her baby. Now all her children sat at her table at work and home. She was proud of them all. “OK, who’s next?” Tawny glanced around the table. Accounting had already reported as well as purchasing and the hotel manager. That left Tom, her head of security, and the casino manager, Debbie Morrison.
Debbie, the head of the casino, cleared her voice and then began to speak. She normally sounded confident, but there was a sense of urgency in her tone when she spoke. “We are still having the same issues we reported last month in the casino. Lately, we’ve experienced some losses, nothing too big, but it’s been a continuous trend, and it seems to be steadily growing. From what Paul says, the numbers are more worrisome in the poker rooms, and especially at the blackjack tables.”
“Anything we need to be worried about?” Tawny asked and glanced at her son, Jonathan, whose expression was grim.
“I don’t think so. Tom’s got eyes on the dealers. We really don’t think any are connected.”
“You hope!” corrected her other son, Joseph.
“Yes, we hope,” admitted Debbie. A crooked dealer would be horrible, thought Dawn. “But I’d like to have some extra eyes in the poker high roller room. Just to be safe.” By eyes, she meant cameras and people to watch them.
Tom spoke next. “I can do that, and I can put a few more cameras outside the employee locker room.”
“That could be helpful,” replied Debbie, looking somewhat mollified. She hated to think one of her employees was involved. “I hate to distrust them, but we need to know.”
“I understand how you feel, Debbie,” Tawny sympathized. “Of course, we will look at other possible reasons for these serious losses, too.”
Dawn couldn’t help but wonder what kind of losses Debbie was talking about. Just how much was the casino losing in the poker room that had them worried and putting in all those extra security measures? She didn’t want to ask, and the books on the casino were not part of her job. The numbers the casino raked in and the more serious business were handled by their lead accountant, Paul Sach. But hearing that losses were heavy in the poker room made her snap back to Jack. He had won a bit of money from her when he’d been playing black jack. She’d even had the thought that he’d been counting cards for a moment. Alarm bells rang. Her pulse quickened. Something had made her distrust him initially, before she’d fallen, and then ran. Could this be why?
No. It hadn’t been that much, she told herself. Card counting was not what they were talking about here. Jack could not be the one responsible for the kind of losses the casino was experiencing. But her first suspicions on that very first night came rushing back. Should she mention it? No, that was silly, she told herself. Now was definitely not the time to bring up her latest dalliance. That was not something she wanted to bring up in a board meeting.
Tawny glanced Tom’s way. “Have you anything to report for the good of the group?” Her words were precise.
Tom understood. “No, nothing for the group right now, but I’d like to speak to you and Jonathan this afternoon, if I could, about the project we are working on.”
Dawn saw Tawny give Jonathan a measured look, and he nodded. Dawn noticed the muscle working in Jonathan’s jaw and wondered if others had noticed the exchange, but it seemed like they were busy packing up their belongings. “Sure, come up to my office at two. Jonathan, can you join us?”
Her brother nodded. “I’ll be there.”
“Okay, then, that will be all. See everyone here next week.” Tawny dismissed the group and her secretary followed her out as everyone else packed up their things, said their goodbyes and left.
Dawn felt Eve grab her arm. “Have lunch with me today. We have lots of catching up to do.” Her sister’s eyes were bright with excitement. Although they had talked on the phone a few times over the past few weeks, it wasn’t as if they could really talk. She was sure her sister had fun stories to tell about going on a tour with the band Stryker.
She had missed her sister and definitely had a lot she wanted to tell her; she just didn’t know if she should. She hadn’t heard from Jack in two weeks. So, it was not as if there were anything to tell. And even though she knew it was for the best, she had to admit that it stung a bit. “Sure. I’ll meet you at the deli at noon.”
“That will be perfect,” Eve replied gleefully. “I want to talk to Tammy really quickly and give her the good news first.”
“Give her a hug for me and tell her that my thoughts are with her.” Tammy was a dear friend of theirs, Eve’s best friend from way back. Tammy’s sister, who’d always had mental health issues, had recently been charged with many crimes, including kidnapping and attempted murder. Due to her mental health, it was most likely she would be placed in a facility for the criminally insane. It was hard to feel badly for Ericka considering her target had been Eve, but she still felt badly for Tammy. Eve stood by Tammy’s side, though. A true testament to their friendship which ran deep. Tammy had a lot on her plate now. But running the club would not mean more hours than she currently worked. Her career was important to her, and their mom would get her any help she needed to run it.
Eve’s eyes look sad for a moment. Dawn knew her sister was thinking about what Tammy had gone through a few months ago. But Eve brightened quickly. “Will do. I can’t wait to see her. She already runs the club, and I can’t wait to tell her it’s official.”
“Great, I’ll see you in a few hours.” She let her sister give her a quick hug before she scampered off. More slowly, Dawn packed her things and then headed to her office. What she would tell her sister about her the past few weeks, she still didn’t know. Specifically about Jackson Black.
Black Jack Page 3
