“I don’t even know what to say.” Jordan held her hand tighter and tried to smile even though she felt like she failed miserably. “You haven’t tried again? Sometimes so much time goes by that neither party feels they can make the first move. Maybe it would be worth it to give them another call.”
“No, I won’t beg for them to talk to me. If they’re okay with not having a daughter, then I’m okay with not having parents. Besides, I have new friends and family here now.”
“That’s pretty harsh, don’t you think?”
“Not after the things they said to me, no.” Ash pulled her hand away and sat back in her chair. She grabbed the deck of cards and started shuffling. Without looking at Jordan she said, “Let’s play some more, because I really don’t want to talk about this anymore tonight.”
Jordan nodded and put her ante in the pot. She would never force Ash to talk about anything she didn’t want to, so if she wanted to change the subject that was fine with Jordan. She just wished she could have ten minutes alone with the three people who had hurt Ash the most. She mentally stepped back for a moment, wondering where the need to protect Ash had come from. She hadn’t felt that since…well, since Ash.
Keeping her at arm’s length was going to be much harder than Jordan had originally thought.
Chapter Thirteen
Ash woke up the next morning feeling decidedly unrested. It was probably because she hadn’t been able to sleep very well knowing Jordan was on her couch downstairs. She was now on her back, one arm above her head, staring at the ceiling. Her breathing was a little erratic thanks to the erotic dream she’d had right before waking this last time. She absently scratched Trixie’s chin as she thought about how she’d made a fool of herself the night before.
“She’s probably already left. Couldn’t bear to face me after I told her I still loved her,” she said to the empty room. Trixie stopped purring and meowed at her. Ash looked over at the cat by her side. “You’d probably leave me too if you could, wouldn’t you?”
The response was more purring and a surprisingly strong head butt to the chin. Ash kissed the cat on the top of the head before getting up to shower and brush her teeth. At least she wouldn’t let Jordan see her in her sleeping T-shirt and shorts. That would probably scare her away if she’d decided to hang out to see her this morning.
Fifteen minutes later, she was headed down the stairs, and the smell of bacon frying wafted up to greet her. She watched in wonder as Trixie trotted ahead of her and went right into the kitchen, her tail straight up in the air. Ash called out when she saw Jordan bending down to pet the cat.
“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”
“And why would that be?” Jordan stopped mid-stoop and straightened before looking toward the stairway.
“She doesn’t like people.”
“Neither do I, so we should get along just fine.” Jordan smiled and reached down to give Trixie a scratch under the chin before turning back to tend the bacon. “Besides, she slept with me for most of the night, curled right up on my chest with her head resting on my neck.”
“Really,” Ash said. She looked at Trixie in wonder. She never liked anyone the first time she met them. Hell, it had taken Trixie months to warm up to her when she’d first brought her home.
“I hope it was okay to make you breakfast. There wasn’t really a lot to choose from so you’re getting a cheese omelet, some bacon, and one piece of toast. You do know what grocery stores are for, right?”
“It’s perfectly okay. Thank you.” Ash decided to ignore the remark about the grocery store. Had she known Jordan would be cooking her breakfast, she would have made a point of stocking up on some things. She pulled a chair out from the table and sat so she could watch her cook. “You don’t really hate people, do you?”
“Not all people.” Jordan glanced at her and winked, which caused a stirring in Ash’s center. “Just the vast majority. Some of them are okay.”
“You seem to be in a pretty good mood this morning.” No doubt it wasn’t because of anything Ash had said the night before.
“I am in a good mood, Ms. Noble. My first tourney starts tomorrow, and I’m excited to take everyone’s chips. If I win, I’m buying a seat at the Main Event.”
“You’re counting on the money to enter?”
“No,” Jordan said as she finished buttering the toast and brought their plates to the table. “I just figured there’d be no reason to enter the Main Event if I get embarrassed in my first tournament. Do you think I could afford to stay indefinitely at the Rio if I didn’t have money?”
“No, I just wasn’t sure why’d you be waiting on the outcome of one tournament before registering for the Main Event.” Ash sprinkled some salt and pepper on her omelet before grabbing a slice of bacon and devouring it. She stopped chewing when she heard Jordan laugh.
“What?” she asked, her cheeks burning.
“Hungry?”
“I love breakfast,” she admitted sheepishly. “What can I say? I could eat breakfast three times a day every day. Especially when there’s bacon involved.”
“Superman has kryptonite, and Ashley Noble has bacon?” Jordan arched one eyebrow and Ash almost choked on her food. How could she be so damned sexy and be seemingly unaware of the effect she was having on Ash’s hormones?
“Pretty much, yeah.”
“Good to know.”
Ash was quiet as she concentrated on eating her breakfast and not staring at Jordan. She waited until they were done and the dishes were in the sink before trying to gather her thoughts, but Jordan squeezed her hand gently before walking past her into the living room. When Ash was able to make her feet cooperate so she could follow her, she saw Jordan was tying her shoes.
“Thanks for letting me crash on your couch last night.”
“No problem.”
“I should probably go since I’m sure you’re working today.”
“I don’t have to go in until three if you want to just hang out for a bit.” Ash didn’t want her to go, but she wasn’t sure how to convey the fact without sounding needy.
“No, I really should try to get my head into the reason I came here in the first place. Don’t worry about giving me a ride though. I called and ordered a cab earlier. It should be here in a few minutes.”
“You didn’t have to do that.”
Ash watched as Jordan checked her pockets to make sure she had everything. When their eyes met, it was as though all the air had been sucked out of the room. Ash took a step toward her, but Jordan shook her head once and looked away.
“I should wait outside,” Jordan said, her voice sounding strained even to her own ears. All she had to do was walk past Ash and out the front door. Why did it sound so easy when walking away from her was the most difficult thing she could imagine? What she really wanted was to take Ash in her arms and kiss her until they were both breathless. In fact, it’s what she’d wanted to do from the moment she’d seen Ash on the casino floor three nights earlier. She forced herself to walk past Ash without looking at her.
“Jordan,” Ash said as she put a hand around Jordan’s wrist. Jordan closed her eyes briefly before turning to face her. “I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable last night. I just wanted you to know how I felt.”
“No worries. It’s fine. I’m glad you told me.” Jordan didn’t try to pull away, and Ash tightened her hold. Jordan didn’t even think about what she was doing as she pressed Ash against the wall and slid a thigh between her legs. Before she could stop herself, she covered Ash’s mouth with her own and moaned when Ash began a slow thrust against her leg.
Ash threaded her fingers through Jordan’s hair and held her there as though she thought Jordan might pull away. There was no need though, because all rational thought escaped her, and Jordan had no intention of stopping something that felt so right . She pressed her body against her as Ash rode her thigh in a rhythm meant to gradually bring her to orgasm.
Jordan gasped when she felt Ash’s h
and move to her ass before going under her shirt and then up her torso and brushing lightly over her nipple. Ash smiled against her mouth and pinched the nipple between her thumb and forefinger.
“Jesus, Ash. You feel so fucking good,” Jordan whispered when she pulled away from the kiss, her breath ragged. She tried her best to ignore the nagging voice in the back of her mind telling her this was a bad idea. With her body pressed tight against Ash’s, she had a hard time remembering why this could possibly be anything but a good idea.
“Don’t stop,” Ash pleaded.
Jordan didn’t make her ask again. She felt a rush of liquid heat between her legs when Ash slid her tongue between her lips. She whimpered. Or had it been Ash? Did it really matter? All that seemed to matter was the feel of Ash in her arms, in her mouth, and rubbing frantically against her thigh. It would have been so easy to ignore the horn honking from the driveway. The taxi. The thought of it snapped Jordan back to reality and she pulled away, not able to hide the rapid rise and fall of her chest.
“Please, baby, send the cab away. I’ll take you to town when I go to work.”
Jordan shook her head but never broke their eye contact.
“What do you want from me, Ash?”
“I just want you.” She reached for Jordan’s hand, but Jordan took a step backward. “Underneath me. Or on top of me. I don’t really care as long as we’re both naked.”
“No,” Jordan said. Saying it confused her, because she wanted to say yes. She really wanted to just throw caution to the wind and drag Ash up the stairs to her bedroom. But then what would happen when the fire was extinguished? Could it ever really be extinguished with Ash? Jordan had her doubts. She turned toward the door. “I need to go.”
“Jordan.” Ash was pleading again, and Jordan couldn’t help herself. She looked at her. “I need you.”
“What happens when I’m done playing poker and go back home?”
“I don’t know. All I know is right now. We can just have fun while you’re here, if that’s all you want.”
“Really? You’d be happy with that?” Jordan knew she could never be, and she wasn’t convinced Ash could be either.
“If that’s all you can give me, yes. We were good together once, Jordan. You know we could be again. Just think about it.”
Jordan didn’t need to think about it. Leaving Ash fifteen years ago had shattered her heart. If they started sleeping together now and she had to leave her again, it might just kill her.
Chapter Fourteen
“Promise me you’ll think about it.” Ash couldn’t believe she was begging. She never had to beg anyone for anything. But Jordan was different, and deep down, Ash had always known it. She pushed away from the wall and closed the distance between them. “I get off work tonight at midnight. Can we get together for a drink?”
“I’ll call you,” Jordan said, but Ash could see in her eyes she was only telling her that to placate her. The cabbie honked his horn again, a little longer than the first time. Apparently, he was impatient. Jordan looked toward the door and Ash brushed past her into the kitchen.
“See you later,” she said. She could feel tears threatening to fall, but she had no intention of letting Jordan see her cry. She stood at the sink with her back to Jordan. It was almost a full minute before she heard the front door open. When it closed again, the tears finally began to fall. Three days ago, she’d been in complete control of her life. What the hell happened between then and now? When Jordan walked into her life the first time, it had changed Ashley forever. Now she was back, and Ash felt like her whole world was off its axis all over again.
She roughly wiped the tears off her face and picked up Trixie, who was meowing and rubbing against her legs. She held the cat as Trixie nuzzled her neck and Ash smiled at the loud purring. When everything was falling apart, she could always count on Trixie to be there with the unconditional love only animals were capable of.
“I’ve got to start thinking about getting ready for work, baby girl,” she said quietly. Trixie didn’t seem to care though. She continued nuzzling Ash until she finally set her back down. “Maybe if I don’t think about her it will all miraculously go away.”
*
“What’s wrong with you today?” Jan asked around six that evening when they ran into each other at the cashier cage. “You don’t seem like yourself.”
“Who else would I be?” Ash asked with a weak smile. She shrugged in an attempt to downplay her morose mood. She’d tried calling Jordan three times, but it always went straight to voicemail. She was having a difficult time not feeling desperate. “It’s just hard coming back to work after a couple of days off sometimes, you know? Especially with this damn poker tournament going on. Things aren’t going to get back to normal around here for almost three more weeks.”
“No, I’ve seen your beginning of the work week moods. That’s not what this is, Ash.” Jan surveyed the casino floor while Ash assumed she was waiting for a response. “You know you can talk to me, right?”
“I do know that, but this isn’t the time, Jan.” Ash hated that she couldn’t keep her gaze from wandering to the poker room. She’d been through there five times in the past two hours looking for Jordan, but she wasn’t anywhere to be found. She forced herself to meet Jan’s eyes. “And besides, there’s nothing to talk about.”
“Is it Jordan?”
“Excuse me?” She tried to keep her expression neutral, but she could tell by Jan’s smile she’d failed.
“I thought you were going to do everything you could to steer clear of her.”
Ash was saved from answering by a voice in her ear.
“Hey, boss, you there?” It was one of the employees tasked with keeping an eye on all the security monitors. Ash didn’t envy them the job. She’d go crazy if she had to sit and watch those feeds day in and day out.
“Go ahead, Bobby,” she said into the small microphone attached to her wrist.
“We’ve got what looks like a card counter on blackjack table nine. Older bald man wearing blue jeans and the ugliest Hawaiian shirt I’ve ever seen, bar none.”
“Roger that,” she said before motioning for Jan to follow her to the pit. She knew Jan heard their conversation through her own earpiece so there was no need to fill her in. It didn’t take Ash long to find the guy Bobby described. The shirt was indeed ugly, and she doubted he’d gotten it in Hawaii. It was covered with orange pineapples and purple coconuts. She shook her head as she walked to the table and placed a hand on the dealer’s shoulder. She smiled at the guests seated around the table. “Excuse us for just a moment, folks.”
“He’s won like eight hands in a row,” the dealer said when they were a few feet away. “He stays with cards most people would either split or double-down on, and he takes more cards when any rational person would stay.”
Ash glanced at the young man’s nametag and nodded, being careful not to look at the guy they were talking about. She liked to know all the casino employees by name, but there were new people coming in all the time, and with the number of employees, she was pretty sure it was impossible for anyone to know all of them.
“All right, Ryan, I’m going to be standing back watching for a few minutes. Just keep doing what you’re doing like nothing’s out of the ordinary.” She waited for him to nod his understanding and then sent him back to the table. Ash went and stood next to Jan.
“New dealer?” Jan asked.
“Yeah, but he did the right thing to signal the camera when he suspected a counter.” Ash was relieved. A lot of the new dealers just let things like that go because they weren’t confident in their abilities to pick out a card counter.
“So what’s the plan?” Jan asked as she turned her head away from both Ash and table nine.
“Observe for now,” Ash answered. The key was to not let the guy know they were watching him. She glanced to her right and thought she saw Jordan heading for the elevators going up to the hotel rooms. She fought the urge to go after her.
Once she was done with this guy maybe she’d try to call her again.
Ten minutes went by and Ash heard Bobby in her ear telling her to make her move because it looked like he was getting ready to pack it in. The guy had won six more hands in a row to the tune of five grand. She motioned for Jan to go around one way and she went the other so they were both standing behind him.
“Excuse me, sir, could you please come with me?” Ash asked as she leaned in close to his ear. He jerked his head around to look at her and when he realized she was casino security, he tried to get away in the other direction only to be met with Jan’s smiling face. “We can do this quietly, or I can call in a few more people and we’ll all accompany you out the front doors. Completely up to you, sir.”
“What’s this all about?” he asked looking back and forth between them. “I haven’t done anything wrong.”
“On the contrary, counting cards may not be illegal, but it can get you thrown out and banned from playing blackjack in this casino ever again.” Ash could tell he wasn’t going to go quietly so she raised her wrist to her mouth. “I need Lars, Bobby, and Mike at table nine to assist in escorting someone outside.”
“You got it, boss,” Bobby’s voice said in her ear.
Ash heard Jan chuckle, but ignored her. They both knew nobody was coming to help, but the guy counting cards didn’t know it. But if she knew Lars, he’d be standing somewhere not too far away in case they really did need backup. Hawaiian shirt guy sighed loudly and his shoulders drooped before he reached out to pick up his chips.
It irked Ash that she couldn’t take his money but she stood patiently as she watched him shove the chips in his pockets. When he was finished, he finally got to his feet and went with them as everyone in the vicinity was pointing and whispering.
“The front doors are that way,” he said as they walked him toward the cashier booth. “I thought you were throwing me out.”
Up The Ante Page 8
