Love's Wager

by J. M. Jeffries

  Slowly he pushed the dark curtain of her hair aside. His fingers caressed the sensitive skin on her neck and slowly moved down to a taut nipple. Her skin was flawless, smooth as silk, broken only by the tiny pink triangle of silk that covered her core. She was sublime, she was perfect.

  Scott trailed kisses down her stomach to the silk triangle. He hooked his thumbs over the strings keeping it in place. Sighing, she raised her hips and he gently pulled the triangle away from her body and down her long smooth legs.

  He sat back and smiled at the sight of her open and exposed to him. He ran his hands up her supple body, stopping at the juncture of her thighs to ease his fingers inside her again.

  She cried out and he gently kissed her nub. She smelled like sin. She was the nectar of the gods.

  He planted a kiss on her stomach. Her whole body trembled.

  She started to take off her shoes, but he stopped her. The sight of a woman who wore nothing but a pair of decadent high heels did things to a man’s head and another area on his body. Goose bumps rose on her skin and he could smell desire, feel her heat. If he didn’t get inside her soon he was going to die.

  Slowly he worked his mouth up her body, the quivering stomach, and her silky skin, back to her breasts. He stood and put his hands on her wrist and stared into her brown eyes. “I need you.”

  Nina nodded and her body relaxed. Her eyes clouded over with the depth of her passion and need.

  Her breasts were round, high and firm, perfection of the highest order. The dusky nipples, hardened to chocolate peaks, were an invitation to suckle. He took first one nipple and then the other, sucking gently until her stomach clenched and she moaned.

  Nina’s breath shuddered as he tugged harder on her nipples. She dug her nails into his shoulders. He nipped each tip and she giggled. “Don’t you want me to take off my shoes?”

  “Hell, no.” He ran a hand down the long, slender calf of one leg.

  Nina giggled again. “I’ve never left my shoes on before.”

  He smiled. “There’s always a first.”

  She bit her bottom lip. He lay next to her and took her hand and guided it to his hardness. She stroked his penis, teasing the tip. He sucked in a deep breath and suddenly grinned at the teasing look at her face.

  “Enjoying yourself?” he asked.

  “Oh, yes.”

  He reached into the nightstand for a condom, tore it open and put it on. He couldn’t wait any longer to bury himself inside her.

  Slowly he spread her legs and eased himself between them. The wetness on her inner lips told him she was more than ready. Gently he eased inside her feeling her tightness. He was lost in her softness.

  He kissed her until she was as breathless as he. “You are so beautiful.”

  She touched his lips with her fingertips. “You make me feel beautiful.”

  He sucked first one finger and then a second into his mouth, his tongue twirling around each once. He kneaded her hard nipples, tweaking each one until she gasped.

  She tasted so sweet. Her skin was so soft, he could barely contain himself.

  “Scott!” she cried.

  The way she said his name turned him on even more.

  She clutched at him, her hands grabbing his bottom and pulling him down hard inside her. He licked and suckled until he felt her inner muscles clench tightly. She was just seconds from the edge. She thrust harder against him, her hips grinding against his, her core hot and demanding. Her eyes filled with such passion, tears leaked from the sides.

  Her inner muscles contracted, clenching and unclenching, creating just the right amount of friction to force his own orgasm. He felt suspended between life and death.

  A low moan escaped her lips. She clutched his shoulders. Her orgasm surrounded his penis.

  The French called an orgasm le petit mort—the little death. And for the first time in his life, he understood why.

  “You are incredible,” she murmured when her body relaxed.

  “You’re welcome.” He kissed her long and hard. “We are so not done.”

  “Thank God for that.” She kissed him, her tongue twirling around his.

  He grew hard again. Her legs gripped his waist. He felt her next orgasm, the muscles tightening, the friction building again.

  He couldn’t get enough of her. He kissed her lush mouth, her breasts, her neck, he wanted to taste every inch of her. He wanted to mark her, to make her his.

  His thrusts increased in speed and force. His heart raced as her heat engulfed him. “Sweet.”

  “Kiss me.”

  “Yes,” he whispered then took her mouth.

  He thrust harder and deeper, carrying her higher. Again, her muscles contracted around him, her back arched and he heard her say his name over and over again, and he let go, spilling himself inside her a second time.

  Her arms wrapped around him. “Scott.” Her lips trembled and her eyes were passion-glazed.

  “Thank you,” he said.

  She gently touched her mouth to his, her kiss as tender as it had been fierce before. He wanted more of her. He wanted more than her body. He wanted her soul.

  Chapter 8

  Carl slipped into the booth across from Nina. Nina, fork poised over her cheese omelet, waited. She wasn’t certain she wanted Carl disturbing her so early in the morning. She wanted to think about Scott and what had happened between them. Being in his bed had felt so right to her, and she was almost afraid because their lovemaking had been so perfect. Her head still whirled with the depth of her emotions, the complexity of her passion.

  Everything about Scott made her whole body tingle with excitement and passion. Their evening had been almost magical. With Carl sitting in front of her, she found herself comparing the two men and realized she shouldn’t do that now.

  But did she want to get involved with Scott? She’d changed her life, compromised on so many levels for Carl because she had believed in his vision. She wasn’t going to do that again. Carl had always been a bit intimidated by her, even as he accepted her for who she was and not for whom he wanted her to be.

  Looking back on her marriage to Carl, she always felt that he had an agenda and she was just an item on his to-do list. Everything revolved around him. He was okay with her job, as long as everything came back to him. She’d never noticed this during their marriage, only later when she had time to dissect what had gone wrong.

  “Well,” Carl said.

  “Well, what?”

  “Have you talked to Jack Reston, yet?”

  “No. I haven’t.”

  A look of disappointment spread over his face. “But...”

  “Now is not the time to bother him. His wife just had a baby and you need to find a nice gift to send to them. The baby’s name is Milo.”

  “What should I get a baby?”

  “My advice is something personal, but not I’m stalking you personal.”

  “Just tell me what I should buy.” Carl looked irritated.

  “Check out Tiffany’s website. That should give you some ideas.”

  Carl whipped out his iPhone and started looking.

  Nina went back to her breakfast. The waitress brought her another pot of hot water for tea and Nina smiled her thanks. Carl scrolled busily through whatever he’d found.

  “Do you think a $28,000 sterling-silver-and-sapphire box is too much?”

  “Tone it down, Carl. That’s a desperation gift.”

  He stared at her in surprise. “You’re thinking about babies. I’d make a great father.”

  She shook her head firmly. “No.”

  “But, Nina...”

  “No,” she repeated. “I don’t want to be married to you anymore, much less have a baby with you.”

  “But I’d be a gr
eat...”

  “No, you wouldn’t. Do you know why we never had children? Because you wouldn’t be the baby anymore. Carl, you’re a full-time job.”

  He looked offended. “Nina, that isn’t fair.”

  “I’m not saying it’s fair, but it is true.”

  He glanced back at his phone. “How about a hand-painted Limoges china alphabet box. Only $215.”

  “That will work,” Nina said. “You can have the baby’s name and birthdate painted on the bottom.”

  “That’s it?”

  “First of all, they haven’t announced the baby’s name yet and probably won’t for several weeks. The fact that you’re having the name painted on means you’re on the inside.”

  “How did you find out the baby’s name?”

  “Sandra Canfield is going to be the godmother. We talked. So keep it under your hat until the official announcement. She knew I’d be making booties, so she gave me the details.”

  Carl scrolled across his phone, tapped at it for several minutes, took out a credit card and added that to the order. When he was done he looked up and smiled. “Done.” He grinned and put his iPhone away. “I’m glad you’re not mad at me anymore.”

  “Carl, the world doesn’t revolve around you.”

  “I can change. You and I together are better than being apart.”

  Nina sighed. “I don’t want that anymore. It’s not important.”

  Carl looked deflated. “Can’t you just give me another chance?”

  “You cheated on me, Carl. I don’t give second chances on something like that. I said I’d call Jack Reston and I will.”

  Carl slid out of the booth and came over to hug and kiss her. “Thanks. You’re a trouper, Nina. I’m sorry I screwed up.”

  Nina simply nodded. She just wanted him to go. She had other things she wanted to think about, like reliving her night with Scott.

  She watched Carl leave the dining room and closed her eyes. Why did life have to have so many complications?

  * * *

  Scott didn’t expect to see Nina’s ex-husband kissing and hugging her when he walked into the dining room. A possessive need to let Carl know Nina was no longer his filled him, but he decided not to intrude. Everything about his relationship with Nina was so new, so tender, that the spark of jealousy that reared up inside him startled him. He backed away and bumped into Hunter.

  “You don’t look happy,” Hunter said.

  “I don’t want to talk about it.”

  Hunter just grinned. “Yes, we are.” He took Scott by the arm and led him toward the café off the lobby.

  Scott ordered coffee and oatmeal. Hunter went for a heartier breakfast of eggs, bacon and toast.

  “Why are you here? I thought Lydia’s moving into her new house today.”

  “She is, but I have time for a quick breakfast before I have to collect Maya for the day. Lydia wants her out from underfoot. So what was that face all about?”

  “We don’t talk about our love lives.”

  “There’s always a first time,” Hunter said. “When did you and Nina get a love life?”

  The waitress brought mugs and poured coffee into them.

  “What makes you think we have a love life?”

  “You cooked for her. A man doesn’t cook for a woman unless he’s serious.”

  “The problem is I don’t know how she feels and just now she was kissing her ex-husband.” How could she after last night? He wanted to tell the ex to pack up and go back to LA.

  “That ex-husband is a piece of work, but kissing is the Hollywood equivalent of a handshake,” Hunter said.

  “Why do you say Carl is a piece of work?” Scott hadn’t really had a chance to get to know Carl.

  “He’s demanding, though not in a mean way. He is polite about it, but still he has the staff hopping to make him comfortable. He acts like he’s five years old.”

  “Emotionally, I think he is. I don’t know what she saw in him.” Scott had been wondering that for a while, but didn’t have the courage to ask.

  “Lydia told me once her first husband considered her a project. I think maybe that’s how Nina viewed Carl, at least according to Kenzie.”

  “You talked to Kenzie about Nina!” His family was so nosy. How come they never talked to him about stuff?

  The waitress brought their food. Scott dug into his oatmeal while Hunter waited for his food to cool.

  “Kenzie talked to me about Nina.”

  “Why?” Scott asked. Kenzie was the youngest and had always confided in him or Donovan. With Donovan so far away, and Scott and Kenzie both on the East Coast only a couple hours away from each other, she’d gotten into the habit of talking to him. Why was she talking to Hunter?

  “Honestly, I think Kenzie had a fantasy about you and Nina getting together.”

  “Tell Kenzie to stay out of my love life,” Scott growled.

  “Like that’s going to happen. Kenzie won’t stop until she feels you’re settled.”

  Scott abruptly changed the subject. “What are you and Maya doing today?”

  “I’m taking her to the zoo.”

  “I didn’t know Reno had a zoo.”

  “It’s not a big zoo, but I think Maya will enjoy it. She’s really into animals. The other day she tried to talk Nina out of her dog.”

  “That’s not going to happen. Nina loves that dog.” Scott wasn’t sure he did.

  Scott glanced at the lobby and saw Carl strolling toward the casino. Carl wasn’t a big gambler, but he did enjoy blackjack. A few minutes later, Nina headed toward the elevators. She stopped at the narrow pond that bisected the lobby and part of the casino. She watched the koi wriggle toward her. No one was supposed to feed the fish, except their keeper, but she tossed crumbs into the water and the koi fought each other for the food. She turned and continued to the elevators.

  “I have to get going.” Hunter finished his coffee in one gulp. “I’ll see you later, bro.”

  “See ya,” Scott replied. He finished his oatmeal and lingered over another cup of coffee before deciding it was time to get to work.

  * * *

  Belle Sampson walked down the path toward Scott. He’d set up an interview with her away from his office as she requested. He wouldn’t put it past Gary White or any of his cronies to eavesdrop.

  She sat on the bench next to him. Hammering filled the air. The exterior of the spa was up and inside men walked back and forth working on walls and floors.

  “That is going to be one nice spa,” Belle said.

  “Like I would know.”

  She paused and studied him. “What did you want to talk about? Are you having a problem with my job?”

  “Not you. Let me ask you a question. What are the positives of our security department?”

  “Um...I...” She sighed.

  “I need you to be brutal,” Scott said.

  She considered his question. “Okay. Cards on the table, no retaliation.”

  “Yep,” Scott replied.

  “The visible people have nice uniforms.” Despite his urging, her tone was still tentative. “The undercover people blend in nicely.”

  Scott nodded. “Those are pluses?”

  “We have good benefits,” she continued, though her gaze wouldn’t meet his. “And this place pays pretty well and I have more confidence in management than I used to. Not that Jasper was a negligent owner, but he liked to play and didn’t always pay attention to the details.”

  “By management, do you mean my grandmother or me?”

  She paused again as though choosing her words carefully. “Both. You care.”

  Scott leaned back. “What about things that aren’t working?”

  “You have a handful of employees who fee
l entitled and do whatever they want to do.”

  “Like Gary White and his group.”

  “They are the ringleaders. They aren’t happy because you notice everything.”

  “That’s sort of the point of being an effective security force.”

  She turned to the side to watch him. “You said brutal and honest.”

  “Yes.”

  She took a deep breath. “Gary White has allowed certain...criminal elements to operate in the casino as long as he and his buddies get a kickback.”

  “Like the pickpockets, the hookers in the bars and the unregistered bookie.”

  Belle bit the corner of her mouth, worry plain in her eyes. Scott could see she was struggling with what she wanted to say. “The bookie is Gary’s uncle.”

  “Why didn’t you do anything about it?”

  “I did. I tried to explain to Jasper what was going on. Jasper talked to Gary, Gary talked to me and I need my job. I have two children and a house payment. And jobs right now aren’t exactly easy to find. And things weren’t completely intolerable. Mitchel Richards, who headed the security department before you arrived, was a good man. He tried to get the bad ones out. Gary did something and the next thing I knew, Mitch was fired and discredited and he’s been looking for a job for the last fourteen months.”

  “He can’t discredit me,” Scott said quietly. And he made a note to call the man. Maybe Richards would like a consulting job.

  Silence fell between them for a minute and then she said, “So why are we having this conversation?”

  “I’m creating a new position, Assistant Director of Security, and you’re it.”

  Surprised, she stared at him, her mouth slightly open. “No. No. I don’t believe you. You can’t do that, can you?”

  “I can do anything I need to do to get security back up to par. And the first thing we’re going to do is have everyone recertified on firearms, self-defense classes, and the Secret Service is going to set up workshops because I want to train everyone in the casino on cash handling. Everyone needs to know how to spot counterfeit money, counterfeit debit and credit cards. What about you? Do you have any ideas on areas you’d like to improve?” He knew he was the expert, but he wanted her to feel as though her voice were important.