Explicit Detail

by Scarlett Finn

  ‘Thank you,’ she said, with no other option but to act mollified.

  ‘Forget about him, come and join the game.’

  ‘I suppose we could come over for a while,’ Flick said, and tipped her attention behind her. ‘Rushe?’

  By all outward appearances, Rushe was the same Rushe that he presented to the world. Cool and unmoved, but pissed off and stern; except psychically Flick heard him cursing the elevator for not arriving on his first demand for it.

  ‘Whatever,’ Rushe said.

  ‘Great,’ Joey said.

  Joey led them through a door on the outer edge of the hotel lobby to take them down a sloping walkway that turned on itself to go deeper into the bowels of the building. The happiness in Joey’s tone made Flick wonder if he wanted to stir a reaction in Whyte.

  Flick wished that there had been more time for Rushe and her to plan their course of action. Rushe’s advice would be to remain on guard at all times. But her concern now wasn’t for herself, it was for him.

  Being cover was more complicated for them because their genuine feelings were involved. This wasn’t a ruse, put on to convince the world of something false. On the contrary, what they had was real, and downplaying it was essential. If Rushe got too possessive, or jealous, or defensive, then the others might smell something off.

  So far, Flick hadn’t explained the specifics of what went on between Whyte and her, and now she wished that she had. Ensuring that their stories were straight had become urgent. If the set up was the same as before, then she as a female would be separated from Rushe, who would be expected to go with the men. They didn’t have the time or the space now to make sure they sold the same lines.

  At the end of the slope was a wide hall. They went through a door, and on entering Flick realised they’d arrived in the room, dubbed “A,” coming at it from the other side this time.

  All of the usual suspects were there, and in addition, there were a dozen other people. Laurie took Joey’s arm and he started to introduce his date around. Flick remained in Rushe’s shadow.

  ‘I’m nervous,’ she whispered.

  ‘Don’t hide it,’ Rushe replied, then hooked her hand into his back jeans pocket.

  Flick stayed with him, at his side, as they moved into the room. ‘Rushe!’ Galante came over with a beaming smile and a blonde woman half his size, and probably not far off a third of his age. ‘I tried to get a hold of you.’

  ‘I was out.’

  ‘I didn’t know you were seeing each other,’ Galante said. Flick couldn’t tell if his statement was true. ‘I’m sorry, I don’t remember your name.’

  ‘Flick,’ she said. Either this guy was really good, or really that uninvolved.

  ‘I heard things didn’t go well with Whyte this afternoon. He’s not usually a bad person. He’s just been under a lot of pressure.’

  ‘I’m sure he has,’ Flick smiled. No amount of pressure could excuse Whyte’s actions towards her, but Flick didn’t know what version of events Whyte had relayed.

  ‘I’ve got to get my date a drink,’ Rushe said, moving away from Galante.

  ‘Blind’s at a thousand,’ Galante called toward the retreating couple.

  Taking her to the bar, Rushe brought her all the way around it, then removed her hand from his pocket and smoothed it onto the bar. ‘Stay.’

  Flick observed how he bypassed the alcohol as he poured their drinks. Rushe made a good show, but the only thing that made it into their tumblers was the mixer.

  ‘Listen,’ he said, leaving their glasses to come up in front of her. ‘I’m a forward guy. I know what I want, and I take it.’ She might remind him that they’d met before, but Flick had her back to the room, so only Rushe could see who was close to them, or rather who might be listening.

  ‘Ok.’

  ‘For the duration, when you’re on a date with me, you belong to me. I don’t know who else in here might show interest, I don’t know what shit went on with you and Whyte. But I’m being clear, you don’t talk to another man unless I’m at your side, you get me?’

  Flick nodded, and one corner of her mouth curled up. ‘You’re a real brute, aren’t you?’

  ‘I’ll show you after I separate some of these rich boys from their wads.’

  For all the money in his bank account, Rushe still didn’t consider himself a “rich boy,” then again it was all in the attitude, and Rushe certainly didn’t have the attitude of a socialite.

  He put her drink in her hand, hooked her other one into his back jeans pocket, then took his own drink. Rushe led them out from behind the bar, and she saw that no one had been nearby. The men were all settling in around two separate poker tables. The number of women had thinned to only a few, and those that remained sat around a third table, further away, without a chip or card in sight.

  This had to be a private tournament, or maybe a regular feature, Flick wasn’t sure. But Rushe took her to a spot a few feet from one of the tables, he unhooked her hand, and directed her to stand with her spine at the wall.

  ‘You’re gonna stay here until I need you,’ he said. With his back to the others, he warmed Flick in the shade he provided because his eyes belonged to her love now, just for these few secret seconds. ‘You keep your eyes on me, don’t look at anyone else. Don’t make a sound, ok?’ Flick was familiar with this role, so she nodded. ‘Good girl.’

  Rushe stroked from the top of her head, down to her jaw, and then he spun and took his seat at the table in her direct line of sight.

  ‘You got her trained,’ Joey heckled. ‘After one date, you’re a pro.’

  ‘Start as you mean to go on,’ Rushe said.

  The men jeered and joked as the final preparations for the game were carried out. Rushe didn’t look her way once, but Flick knew that his order to look only at him had been in response to Whyte’s presence. Rushe didn’t want her to look at the man who had assaulted her. Knowing the details made no difference to him, he knew Flick well enough to know her thoughts and emotions.

  He didn’t want her to be hurt or uncomfortable. The words he’d spouted at the bar might have sounded detached or unfamiliar, but they served to remind her of her role, and of his. They were here together, to help each other; they weren’t here to distract one another.

  Rushe conveyed the persona of a man who didn’t care about anything but himself. A mean guy with a one-track mind, more interested in knocking heads together than using his. He projected a thug because that’s what he was. He didn’t show the heart underneath the exterior to anyone, even Flick lost sight of it from time to time.

  But she remembered this. She remembered how Rushe had looked after her in the shack full of rapists and murderers that wanted to get their hands on her. Part of the way he did it, part of the way he ensured her safety, was to ensure that no one doubted his resolve. He made it damn clear to everyone that he would do whatever it took to protect what was his, and to remain alpha-dog. It was the same thing here.

  Maybe the men in this room were richer, and portrayed class, but that didn’t mean they had it. An alpha was an alpha in whatever room he walked into, whether it was a room full of hounds or kings. Rushe could give these guys a run for their money financially, but that wasn’t why they feared him, why they resented him. They resented him because he didn’t need them. He wasn’t impressed, and he could take on any one of them and win. Somehow, other men knew it. Rushe was superior to them all because none of them impressed him, and he didn’t give a damn what they thought of him.

  Being so aloof came naturally to Rushe. While other men craved attention or adoration, Rushe just wanted to be left alone. He was a loner at heart. The only reason he stepped out of his coveted obscurity was to make sure that scum like this couldn’t take advantage of those who couldn’t protect themselves.

  Rushe protected women because in his primitive way, that’s what men did. Women weren’t to be disrespected, and no one should take control over those unable to defend themselves. It wasn’t the role
of a man to belittle or humiliate in order to display his masculinity, his machismo, his strength as a man. It was the role of a man to stand up for, to protect, and cherish what was real. That was the proof, the sign of a real man.

  After Rushe won a particularly large pot, a break was announced and several men went toward the bar, with their women scurrying after them. Rushe slid back in his seat, turning his body slightly toward her.

  ‘Come here,’ he said.

  Flick put her drink aside to comply with his request. Rushe took her arm and slung in around his neck as he drew her down to sit on one of his thighs, her legs nestled between his.

  ‘How you doing?’ he asked her, and Flick nodded. ‘Smile for me, Pretty.’ Flick let her lips curl up, and she had to resist the urge to coil closer.

  Rushe took care of that himself. His huge hand covered her waist and pulled her body tight into his. He skimmed his palm to her hip and upward until it met the side of her breast. ‘You’re a tiny, little thing, I’m gonna have to be careful with you.’

  ‘You don’t strike me as the careful type.’ Galante’s voice broke the verve between Rushe and herself.

  Rushe didn’t seem perturbed. ‘If I snap her in two, she won’t be slinging drinks in your Lounge no more, will she?’

  ‘Waitresses like her are a dime a dozen,’ Galante said, twisting a chip between his fingers.

  ‘We go through enough of them,’ Joey said, returning to his seat.

  Whyte was at this table too, but he was silent. Flick didn’t want to hunt him out, but on facing the rest of the group, she wasn’t surprised to see that Whyte was watching her.

  ‘You certainly do,’ Galante said to his son.

  ‘Didn’t get that one in the Lounge,’ Joey said, nodding his head backward, but he didn’t bother to turn or seek Laurie out.

  ‘Where’s Lisa?’ Flick asked, and all the bodies at the table altered posture.

  ‘Took off,’ Joey said.

  ‘Better for it,’ Galante said. ‘That girl couldn’t keep her mouth shut.’

  ‘Or her legs,’ Joey replied.

  ‘She cheated on you?’ Flick asked, with a sympathy that she hoped came off as genuine. ‘That’s terrible.’

  ‘You get through a good number of men yourself.’

  From the focus on the end of the table with her and Rushe, it moved to the opposite end when Whyte spoke.

  ‘I don’t think—‘

  ‘Hush,’ Rushe said, cutting off Flick’s words. But he wasn’t looking at her, he was glaring at Whyte. ‘This is my girl tonight, so if you have a problem you take it up with me.’

  ‘She was my girl this morning,’ Whyte said.

  ‘Way I hear it she wasn’t your girl at all.’

  ‘She sell you that virginity line too?’

  This was news of interest to the table, but Flick didn’t have time to blush. ‘You want to get personal?’ Rushe asked Whyte.

  Flick didn’t want Rushe fighting; luckily, Galante stepped in to keep the peace. ‘You both have an interest in the girl, but let us allow Flick her modesty, and let the cards talk for us.’

  ‘Whatever,’ Rushe said, still scowling at Whyte.

  ‘Perhaps I should retire for the evening,’ Flick said.

  ‘Yes,’ Galante said. ‘That would be a very good idea, let us dismiss all of the women.’

  None of the other men objected. ‘I’ll take you to your room,’ Rushe said, standing up and taking Flick to her feet.

  ‘Hiatus, fifteen minutes,’ Galante said, and all of the men summoned their women.

  Flick had things to say, questions to ask, but Rushe took her from the room so quickly that she was jogging by the time they got to the hotel elevator.

  This time it came on the first call, and Rushe bundled her into it.

  ‘Rushe—‘

  ‘In a minute.’

  Reasoning with Rushe was tough, so she stayed silent. They got to her floor and he dragged her to her room.

  ‘Key.’

  ‘If they see you coming into my room—‘

  ‘Key.’

  Flick didn’t resist this time, and when she handed it over, Rushe stuffed it in the slot. On the blink of green, he opened the door and shoved her inside.

  ‘Give me the details,’ he said, when the door clicked shut.

  ‘No.’

  ‘I didn’t ask you a question. Give me—‘

  ‘Why? If you go back downstairs angry, then you’ll be the one fouling up the job.’

  When she stood up to Rushe she felt no fear for herself. Even now, he barrelled toward her, took her off her feet and kept going until he had her against the opposite wall.

  ‘Calm, Lover,’ Flick soothed, sliding her hands from his chest to his face. ‘Calm.’

  ‘Did he kiss you? Touch you?’

  Flick let her head move side to side. ‘I fought him. No kissing, no groping, I fought and ran.’

  ‘Good girl,’ Rushe growled, baring his teeth. ‘I’ll hurt him. I swear to you, Kitten—‘

  ‘When the time is right. We find out the truth first... You cannot come to me tonight. But you’ll take me to dinner tomorrow, and on Sunday too. They have to see us together. But you cannot make enemies down there. Galante wants your money, but we need to know what they do with women. You have to talk about me, about sex. They have to think you’re willing to share me.’

  Rushe growled again and took grip of her hips. Mounting them higher, he anchored his weight to hers.

  ‘Think,’ she said, stroking her hands up and down. ‘You turn me on, Rushe. I trust you, I love you. Lover, I—‘

  Stealing her mouth, Rushe let actions speak instead of words. Strangling her arms around his neck, she tangled her tongue with his. Flick didn’t want to release him, and restraint hadn’t been their strong suit.

  ‘I want your cock.’

  Hurtling round Rushe literally threw her to the bed, and after a bouncy landing Flick tossed her hair out of the way and pushed up to her palms. Rushe was unbuttoning his jeans, bearing down upon her, but she clambered up to her knees.

  ‘We can’t,’ Flick said, knowing that she’d encouraged it. ‘I’m a virgin, and you have a game to get back to.’

  ‘Kitten—‘

  ‘I know, I know, but we’re here to do a job. Partners, remember?’

  ‘You wanted—‘

  ‘I’ll always want you, Rushe. Sex isn’t time sensitive for us. I want you when you’re not on a stopwatch.’

  He took a stride to the bed and clasped her chin to haul her attention in close. ‘Twice in one night.’

  Flick smiled. ‘You’re regretting the working partnership already, aren’t you?’

  ‘Never again,’ he snarled. ‘My access to you is restricted by nothing but your wishes.’

  ‘Get back to your game, Lover. I’ll be yours again when we have nothing but the night ahead of us.’

  Chapter Nineteen

  The idea of her Monday evening shift made Flick nervous. Being in her underwear in public was unsettling enough, but knowing that she may be expected to dance for strange men who would lust over her was scarier.

  Yet, neither of those things were her biggest worry. Her biggest worry was what had brought her here, to Rushe’s suite, only minutes before her shift was due to start.

  When the door opened, Rushe was revealed to be gulping down liquid from a sports bottle. He opened the door wide to let her in without question, or etiquette, as if he had expected her here all along.

  ‘Ok, I have two problems,’ she said, on stopping in the centre of Rushe’s living room. ‘I know I’m not supposed to be here, and my shift starts in a few minutes, but...’

  ‘But?’ he prompted, when she stopped talking.

  ‘I don’t think I can do this,’ she whispered. ‘My body is supposed to be for you. I know a lot of the dirty talk is for effect. It’s there in the moment because it’s sexy... But this just feels wrong. I feel dirty and violated, and I haven’t even done anything ye
t. It’s like I’m cheating on you, which is ridiculous because nothing physical is going to happen. There’s no way I’d consent to anything, with...’ In the midst of her rant, she’d scanned the room, but when her focus came to rest on Rushe, she was surprised to see him smiling.

  ‘Let me see it,’ he said, casting the bottle aside. Flick was still immobile. ‘I’m guessing problem number two is going to be my reaction to what you’re wearing, if I see the get-up in public.’

  ‘Yes,’ she said.

  ‘So let me see it.’

  Flick was wearing the knee-length wool coat again, so from here all Rushe could see were the shoes, stockings, hair and make-up, all of which he’d seen before, because they were the same as her original uniform.

  Forcing her dry lips to part, she curled her fingers around her lapels and opened the coat to reveal the hot pants and Wonderbra.

  ‘All the way off,’ Rushe said, gobbling her figure with his eyes. She slid the coat from her shoulders, letting it fall to the floor. ‘Turn around, all the way, three sixty.’

  Flick did as she was told but worried how this usual foreplay would progress, because she was due at work.

  ‘Don’t turn me on,’ Flick said. ‘I’m freaking out. If you try to shoehorn in sex before my shift I’ll—‘

  ‘Relax,’ Rushe said. ‘I have everything under control.’

  ‘With the job, yeah, sure,’ Flick said. ‘Other men are going to see me like this. My body, your sexual playground. Other men will—‘

  ‘Think about what you’re saying, Kitten. Does that sound like the kind of thing that I would let happen?’

  Now that he mentioned it, Flick thought deeper. ‘Well, no, but I got us into this mess. I got the job and dated Whyte, showed an interest in the Monday night shift, got myself—‘

  ‘All of that happened because we weren’t working together, you were right about that, and it won’t happen again.’

  ‘Ok, we’ve got that clear already, but look at me,’ she beseeched, holding her hands open and out. ‘Should I call in sick?’