The Royal Wager

by Kristi Gold

Her sigh echoed in the room. “Mitch, you’re making it hard for me to be a good girl.”

  “Tori, you’re just making me hard.”

  Mitch crouched before her and propped both her legs on his shoulder. He removed her shoes, one at a time, before reaching beneath her skirt to tug her panties up her legs slowly, then lifted her heels to completely pull them away.

  Tori stared at Mitch, mute, the rasp of her respiration the only sound disturbing the quiet. The power of his gaze, the soft strokes he breezed up and down her thighs with his callused palms, the anticipation, robbed her of any desire to protest anything he might attempt.

  For a fleeting moment, she questioned his goal when he lifted her bottom and pushed her skirt up until it bunched below her waist. All doubt dissolved, and so did she, when he dropped to his knees, nudged her legs apart with his shoulders and lowered his head.

  Tori wasn’t exactly a novice when it came to sex, definitely not a schoolgirl virgin. She had knowledge of the ways a man and woman could express themselves during lovemaking, but mostly through girl talk, not through practice.

  The gentle sweep of Mitch’s tongue, the unyielding tug of his lips, the caress of his fingertips went beyond her realm of experience. Beyond anything she had ever known before with a man, even her former lover.

  The tempting taboo of it all sent her into an abyss where nothing existed except pure feeling. Her head listed to one side as Mitch continued to assail her, using his mouth as a lovely weapon to daze and weaken her, leaving her helpless to do anything but stare in wonderment.

  When the climax claimed her, she tried to prolong it with every last bit of her strength. But she didn’t have the will to stop it any more than she had the will to stop Mitch from keeping her captive with his mouth.

  As Tori drifted back to reality and her heartbeat began to slow, she tipped her head back and closed her eyes, only mildly aware of the rasp of a zipper and the rattle of paper. She recognized then that Mitch was not quite done with her yet, and she wasn’t quite sure she could handle more of his sensual torture.

  But she was darn sure going try, she thought when he said, “Come here, Tori,” in a low, controlled voice

  She opened her eyes to see his jeans pushed to his knees, his shirttail doing little to conceal his erection. Like a boneless puppet, she didn’t resist when he clasped her waist and directed her onto his lap to straddle his thighs. While she watched, he released the buttons on his shirt, allowing it to fall open.

  Keeping his eyes locked on hers, Mitch lifted her up and guided her to his erection. Now it was Tori’s turn to level her own brand of torture on him. She moved her hips in a slow, teasing rhythm, taking him inside her in small increments. She watched his face as she quickened the tempo, his jaw clenched tight. The power she experienced was a little hedonistic, and well-deserved considering the power he’d held over her. She bent to kiss him, nipping at his lips as she moved in a wilder cadence. A groan escaped his lips and she leaned back, knowing that in a matter of moments, he would be exactly where she had been minutes before, where she was going again because of Mitch’s touch.

  This release hit her as hard as the first, sending shock waves through her body as she took Mitch completely inside. A long breath hissed out of his mouth and she felt the steady pulse of his climax.

  Tori collapsed against his bare chest, her palms curled over his solid shoulders as if she needed to hang on for dear life, her cheek resting over his strong heart. For such a reckless ride into oblivion, she felt incredibly content.

  After a time, Mitch pressed a kiss to her temple and said, “I could get used to this.”

  So could she, and that was dangerous. “Guess there’s something to be said for having outrageous sex in an office.”

  “It’s not just the lovemaking, Tori. I could get used to having you around for more than a few days.”

  She raised her head and met his solemn gaze. “Unfortunately, I have to go back to work.”

  He brushed her hair away from her shoulders. “I know, but I want to see you again after that.”

  A tiny glimmer of hope radiated from Tori’s heart. “That might be difficult since I live in Dallas and you live here.”

  “Maybe we could work something out.”

  “I’m open to suggestions.”

  He brushed a kiss across her lips. “Here’s a good suggestion. I want you in my bed until you leave. We’ll discuss the rest later.”

  That sounded more like a demand than a suggestion, but she didn’t have the strength or desire to refuse. “Okay, but what about Buck?”

  He grinned. “Three’s a crowd.”

  She playfully slapped at his arm. “You know what I mean. I wouldn’t want him to think badly of me.”

  “Don’t worry about Buck. He always minds his own business.”

  “I know it’s none of my business, but you’re heading for trouble.”

  Seated at the dinette in the kitchen, Mitch looked up from his beer and glared at his grandfather. “What are you talking about?”

  Buck turned a chair around, straddled it and rested his arms on the back. “You’re stringing that girl along, and I don’t like it one damn bit.”

  Mitch scratched at the label with a thumbnail. “In case you haven’t noticed, we’re both adults and well above the legal age.”

  “I know that. I also know that she’s got feelings for you and I don’t want to see them trampled.”

  “I don’t intend to do that.”

  “What you intend to do and what you will do are two different things.”

  Mitch continued to stare at the brown bottle, dotted with condensation that was no match for the beads of sweat on his forehead. “What makes you think I’m going to hurt her?”

  “Have you asked her to marry you?”

  That garnered Mitch’s full attention. “No.”

  “Why not?”

  Mitch felt as if he were being reprimanded for staying out past curfew, only this was a much more serious offense, apparent by Buck’s tone. “One, we barely know each other. Two, I have no plans to marry anyone and you know that.”

  Buck tipped his straw hat back from his brow. “Maybe you need to reconsider what you’re doing by keeping her in your bed. Tori’s a nice girl and she deserves a man who isn’t gun-shy when it comes to matrimony.”

  “You’re getting way ahead of the game, Buck. She’s got a career that’s important to her. As far as I know, she’s not interested in anything too serious, either.”

  “Are you sure?”

  Tori didn’t strike him as being the kind who wanted a husband and babies, but he’d been wrong about women before. “Tell you what. If you’ll stop grilling me about the women in my life, then I won’t ask where you’ve been the past few nights.”

  “I’ve been with Eula Jenkins if you hafta know.”

  “You’ve been bedding the town’s most proper widow?” Mitch shook his head. “Talk about trouble.”

  Buck snorted. “We’re both a little long in the tooth for you to be passing judgment.”

  Mitch couldn’t resist turning the tables on Buck. “Tell me something. Are you going to marry her?”

  “Stranger things have happened. And you’ll be the last to know if I propose.”

  Mitch barked out a laugh. “That’ll be the day, you getting married again.”

  “It’s a lot more possible than you going to the altar.” Buck rubbed a gnarled hand across his stubbled chin. “Just a little more advice, Gus. One of these days you’re going to have to let go of your anger over your daddy remarrying or it’s going to eat you up inside and ruin your chance at being happy.”

  Mitch didn’t think he would ever get over the betrayal, and he resented his grandfather for shoving it back in his face. “Don’t you have something to do?”

  Buck climbed from the chair with more agility than many twenty-year-olds. “Yeah. I gotta go get on the Internet. My chat buddies are expectin’ me.”

  “Have a good time.”


  “I will. And you have a care because if you break that little girl’s heart, you’re going to hear it from me.”

  As Buck strode away, Mitch took a swig of his beer and set it down hard on the table. Maybe his grandfather was making some sense. Maybe he should just let it be over after Tori left.

  But deep down, he couldn’t stomach the thought of letting her walk away without ever seeing her again. He’d just have to take that out and think about it later. Right now, he needed to get some work done.

  At least Tori had accomplished something besides having a little afternoon delight with Mitch Warner. She’d talked to several of the town’s more prosperous citizens, including the owner of the feed store, who’d been highly complimentary about Mitch’s community involvement, and Betty Galloway, the city secretary, who’d been forthright about Mitch’s commitment to the local school through his elected position on the board. Obviously he wasn’t so averse to politics after all, something Tori found somewhat amusing.

  Mentally and physically exhausted, Tori now sat in the corner booth of Moore’s Drug and Soda Fountain—the business that had been in Stella’s family for sixty years—waiting for her best friend to finish up at the grocer’s so they could head back to the ranch. Her thoughts continuously kept drifting back to the interlude in Mitch’s office, and his declaration that he wanted to see her again after she returned home. Maybe they could try it for a while. And maybe their relationship might progress into something solid. A girl could always play at optimism.

  Tori sipped at her cherry cola and almost choked when she heard the familiar feminine voice coming from the counter to her right. Her gaze zipped to the leggy blonde chatting away about the new house with Gracie, the waitress who’d worked at the fountain since Moses was in knickers.

  She wanted to slink down in the booth to avoid another confrontation with Mary Alice but instead remained upright, pretending to look out the window at the limited traffic on Main Street.

  “Is this seat taken?”

  Tori cursed Stella’s tardiness as she stared up at Mary Alice. “I’m expecting someone.”

  “Mitch?”

  It would be too easy for Tori to lie but she opted for the truth. “Actually, Stella. She should be along any time now.”

  Mary Alice slid into the booth across from Tori and rested her cheeks in her palms. “I’ll leave when she gets here, but first, I just wanted to say that you’re the talk of the town.”

  Tori internally cringed. “How so?”

  “It’s my understanding your doing some sort of story on Mitch. Is it true?”

  Relief relaxed Tori’s stiff shoulders. “Yes, I am.”

  “Is this for a newspaper?”

  “It’s for a magazine.”

  Mary Alice sat back and folded her arms across her middle. “Oh. One of those grocery store rags?”

  Tori quelled the urge to wipe the smug look off the bimbo’s face. “It’s a monthly magazine and very reputable. We do features on prominent Texas businesswomen. Every now and then, we cover successful men, the reason why I’m interviewing Mitch.”

  “Tell me something. Is making out with those men part of the interview process?”

  Stay calm, Victoria. “That was just a friendly kiss. Spontaneous. It didn’t mean anything.” A whopper of a lie. It had meant everything.

  “I take it this job of yours pays well?”

  “It’s a great job.”

  “I guess you live in one of those posh downtown apartments.”

  “It’s a nice apartment.” A small one bedroom apartment that happened to be in a Dallas suburb, the only thing she could afford until she paid off the medical bills, a fact Mary Alice did not need to know.

  Tori was surprised that Mary Alice actually looked interested, and wistful, when she continued her queries. “Is there a lot going on in Dallas? I mean, do you go to museums and that sort of thing?”

  “Sure. When I have time. Dallas has great opportunities in terms of culture. Haven’t you ever been there?”

  Mary Alice frowned. “Once, a long time ago. I considered moving to Houston to go to college right after high school.”

  “Why didn’t you?”

  “Well, because Daddy…” Her gaze faltered. “Because I decided to go to the community college in Halbert County. I studied business so I could help Daddy out at the mill.”

  Tori wasn’t buying any of her bull. “You could have done that in Houston.”

  She presented a fake smile. “I like living in Quail Run, close to my family.”

  As unlikely as it seemed, Tori actually felt sorry for her. “It’s never too late, Mary Alice. There’s a whole wide world out there. You shouldn’t settle.”

  Mary Alice looked totally incensed. “I’m not settling. I’m going to marry Brady and have a nice life.”

  “I’m sure you will,” Tori said, unconvinced that Mary Alice believed her own shtick. “But if you’re having second thoughts, it’s best to stop now before you find yourself stuck in a marriage you don’t really want.”

  Mary Alice slid from the booth, this time more quickly than she’d entered, her expression stony with anger. “Thanks for the advice, Tori. Now let me give you some about Mitch.”

  “I don’t need any advice about Mitch.”

  Ignoring Tori’s protest, Mary Alice set a palm on the table and leaned into it. “Has he taken you down to the creek yet? That’s his favorite place to make love.”

  “I assure you we have not been to the creek.”

  “But you have been in his bed.”

  Tori wondered if she had guilt scribbled all over her face. “What makes you think something intimate’s going on between us?”

  “Because Mitch Warner is a hypnotist, especially when it comes to sex. He’s good at everything he does, and he’s great at giving a woman what she needs, although I’m betting you already know that.”

  This time Tori looked away. “Mitch is only a friend.”

  “I hope that’s true, otherwise you’ll spend nine years of your life trying to convince him to settle down. He won’t do it, Tori. He’s not the marrying kind so you can get that out of your head.”

  “I don’t have that in my head.”

  “Good, because he’s a lost cause when it comes to commitment. I found that out the hard way.”

  The sadness in Mary Alice’s voice drew Tori’s gaze to her melancholy expression. “You’re still in love with him, aren’t you?”

  “Sure. He’s very easy to love. But I guess you know that. And if you don’t now, you will.”

  With that, Mary Alice walked away, leaving Tori alone with food for thought and shattered hope. She knew all too well that the advice Mitch’s former lover had bestowed on her was good counsel.

  It would be best to think of Mitch as only her friend and nothing more. She would physically accept what he offered for the rest of the week, then she would walk away while her heart was still relatively undamaged. Before she agreed to be his good-time good girl with no future in the offing.

  For the first time in ten years, Mitch had failed to attend the annual rodeo. Instead, he’d opted to spend the night with Tori—the night before she returned to Dallas, leaving him behind.

  As far as he was concerned, the week had passed too fast, although he couldn’t complain about the time they’d spent together, especially when they’d made love. And they’d made love a whole lot, at night and in the morning in his bed. During the day, in his office or behind the hay in the barn. She’d been willing to experiment, to try new positions, and they’d mastered quite a few. The only thing she’d refused was his offer to make love at his favorite fishing spot down by the creek.

  Right now she sat on the sofa in the den across from him, wearing only his shirt at his request, her feet propped in his lap so he could give them a rubdown. He planned to give her a rubdown all over her body as soon as she quit asking all the damn questions.

  She flipped through her notes, then tucked the pen
behind her ear and set the pad down beside her. “Okay, I have about everything I need here except for one thing. I need some sort of quote about your father.”

  Mitch paused with his hand on her instep. “I told you I don’t want to talk about him beyond the fact that I don’t want to inherit his kingdom.”

  “Can’t you think of anything nice to say about him?”

  “I respect his abilities as a national leader.”

  “That’s a start.”

  “That’s the end of it, Tori. I’m not budging on this issue.”

  She slid her feet off his lap and scooted forward on the sofa, studying him with intense dark eyes. “Do you want to say anything about your mother?”

  If he listed all her good points, that would take an entire page, maybe two. “She was a great lady and much more than my father deserved.”

  Tori slid the pencil from behind her ear and tapped it on the pad before gripping it in both hands. “A few nights ago, I went into the den while you were sleeping to do some more research on the computer. From everything I’ve read, it seems your parents were very much in love.”

  Although Mitch had never understood it, his mother had adored his father right to the end. “Don’t believe everything you read.”

  “I don’t, but I’ve seen pictures of them together. Stories that talked about how they were inseparable before she became ill. Are you telling me that wasn’t the case?”

  Mitch forked a hand through his hair. “When she was sick, he didn’t have time for her. In fact, he wasn’t even there when…” He let the declaration fade away because he didn’t want to get into that with Tori. Resurrecting those old memories, the bitterness, wouldn’t bode well for their last night together. And it could be their last night if he didn’t convince her to see him in the future, a subject she hadn’t wanted to broach to this point.

  She leaned forward and touched his knee. “Are you telling me your father wasn’t there when your mother died?”

  “I don’t want to talk about it.”

  “I think you need to talk about it. Maybe you’ll feel better.”

  He attempted a forced smile. “The only thing that would make me feel better is if you take off that shirt and come sit in my lap.”