One Night Gamble (Jokers Wild)

by Katherine Garbera

  That should have made him run, so he tucked it away to analyze later, knowing full well he wasn’t going anywhere while Talia was looking at him like he was the main feast and she was starving.

  “I thought so, too, but I want to make sure you weren’t… Did you mean what you said earlier?” she asked.

  The vulnerability in her voice made his heart ache. She had made him feel stronger and he wanted to do the same thing for her.

  “I did. I’m not playing you, Talia. And tonight has shown me that the investment our company made in hiring you was a good one. But what happens between us, that’s for you and me. It has nothing to do with your role there.”

  She nodded.

  “Sorry I had to ask. I’m just…you make me feel wild and alive in a way I never have before and honestly, it would be easier if you were just playing me. Then I could turn and walk away and never have to admit that you…well, how much you mean to me.”

  He opened his arms, beckoning her to him with his hand and she hesitated for only a second before she walked to him. He met her halfway, wrapping his arms around her and holding her as close as he could.

  “The truth is you do the same to me. I’ve never trusted anyone to not be out for themselves. I always keep my guard up,” he said.

  “Why?” she asked.

  “Life has taught me that when I let it down, things don’t go well,” he said. “What about you?”

  “I trust too easily,” she admitted. “I have been known to fall for a good line.”

  He rubbed his hands up and down her spine before tipping her head back so he could meet her gaze. “I’m not giving you a line.”

  “A part of me wants to believe it,” she said. “The woman who locked the door and turned to find you watching her, she wants this. She wants to be free of the shackles of the past and able to enjoy you. I’ve never met a man like you, Casey. I don’t want you to be my biggest regret.”

  Everything inside of him froze and something that he’d never felt before shifted and settled in his soul. He leaned down to kiss her, trying to show her with his embrace what he couldn’t say out loud. But in that moment, he knew that she was worth the risk. She was worth putting it all on the line and he wouldn’t regret this.

  He felt her hands fall to his waist and she pulled him closer. An electric pulse of need and desire went through him, but he felt some tenderness, too. An emotion too strong to deny.

  Talia Spencer was his. And he didn’t want to make love to her in the game room of Nicholas’s house. He wanted his big bed and the entire night to explore and uncover every detail of this woman who was making him believe that he could be the man he’d always pretended to be.

  Chapter Ten

  “Let’s get out of here,” Casey had said, and she’d been helpless to come up with a reason why she shouldn’t follow him back into Las Vegas and up to his penthouse apartment.

  Once they were in the privacy of his place, he hadn’t said a word, just dropped his keys on the table in front of the mirror where he’d fingered her until she’d come so hard, she’d almost forgotten her name.

  She moaned at the memory and he just put his arms around her waist and hefted her up over his shoulder.

  “Hey,” she said.

  “You bring out the caveman in me,” he admitted, carrying her up the stairs, which he took two at a time. He walked over to his bed and she felt the shift of his shoulders underneath her body as he placed her on her feet next to it.

  “I’m pretty sure we wouldn’t have made it up the stairs if I didn’t carry you. And I want you naked and spread out on my bed as soon as possible.”

  “What about what I want?” she asked.

  “Oh, love, I’m going to give you everything you want,” he promised.

  His words and the look in his eyes sent a shaft of hot, molten need through her that pooled between her legs. He reached for his tie and took it off with one hand, tossing it to the side. As his fingers went to the studs of his shirt, she sat on the edge of the bed and spread her legs, reaching up under her dress and drawing her panties down her legs.

  She wondered if he would deliver everything she wanted. Their one night together had proven he had stamina, but that had surely just been the newness of it. The illicit thrill of hooking up with a guy whose last name she didn’t even know. This was different.

  She knew him now. Knew that when he took off his shirt, he’d have that winning hand tattoo on his chest and this time…could she ignore it? The gambler was so much a part of who Casey was, it seemed ridiculous to pretend it wasn’t there.

  “I’m going to take you so many times, you’re not going to be able to move in the morning,” he said.

  Pushing her doubts away, she just licked her lips and drew the hem of her dress up higher until he could see her pussy. She reached between her legs, using two fingers to part herself and then glanced up to look at Casey, who stood stock still, his eyes glued to the flesh between her legs as she lightly rubbed her finger in a circular motion over her clit.

  “Hurry up,” she said.

  He groaned. “I like the view from here.”

  “Do you?” she asked. “I’d like it better if you took your shirt off.”

  “How’s this?” he asked, shrugging out of it and tossing it to the side.

  “Better,” she admitted. “Now the pants.”

  He had his pants off so fast she almost laughed, but she was hot and horny for him and needed him now.

  He walked over to her. His cock thrust out from his body, showing her how much he wanted her. She was helpless to do anything but reach out and touch him. She stroked her hand up and down his shaft while she kept her fingers moving between her legs.

  He pushed her back on the bed and then came down next to her, his hand going to the bodice of her dress, pulling it away from her breasts. As soon as they were exposed, his hand was plucking the nipple of her left breast while his mouth was attached to her other one.

  It feels so good, she thought. His free hand brushed her hand away from her clit and his fingers were firmer, more concentrated, as he touched her. Whereas she had been lazily touching herself, Casey did it with intent. He kept it up until she was arching underneath him.

  “I need more,” she whispered, drawing her hands up his back, using her nails to trace a delicate pattern on his skin.

  He lowered his head and nibbled at the skin of her stomach, his tongue tracing the indentation of her belly button, and it felt like each time he dipped his tongue into her, her clit tingled. She shifted her hips to rub against him and he answered her with a thrust of his own hips.

  His mouth moved lower on her, his hands moving to her waist and holding her down so that she was at his mercy. She felt the warmth of his breath on her lower belly and then the edge of his tongue as he traced the skin revealed.

  The feel of his lips against her was soft and smooth. She moaned a little, afraid to say his name out loud. Afraid he’d hear how much she needed him, wanted him…was starting to care for him.

  “Is that what you needed?” he asked, shifting around on the bed until he was looking up the length of her body at her.

  She shook her head. “I want more.”

  He gave it to her. First, he parted her with his fingers, his forefinger rubbing over her aroused flesh, and then she felt his breath moments before he caught her clit between his lips, sucking on it. His hands caressed over her abdomen and the tops of her legs until she was writhing underneath and crying out, making sounds she had never issued before.

  He lifted his head and she felt the brush of his stubble against her inner thighs as he parted her with his thumb, teasing her with just the tiniest of brushes of his finger against her before his nibbled his way back to her clit. His tongue was addictive. She wanted more of it. It was so soft and wet and she squirmed, wanting—no, needing—more from him.

  He scraped his teeth over her and she almost came right then but he lifted his head and smiled up at her. Her first time
with Casey had made her realize that he liked giving her pleasure and making her come at least once before he entered her.

  The higher he drove her, the harder it was for her to keep her orgasm at bay. She dug her nails into his biceps, holding on to his thickly muscled arms as he continued to torment her with his tongue. She lifted her hips and he groaned against her, the vibration of the sound on her most intimate flesh sending spasms through her.

  She felt one of his fingers moving lower, tracing the opening of her pussy and then farther down to tease her ass. She shifted against him, not sure she wanted to go there, and he moved back to her pussy and pushed one finger up inside her.

  The first ripples of her orgasm started to pulse through her. She tried to pull on his shoulders to bring him over her but he was stubborn, determined to taste every pulse of her climax. So she held his head to her body and arched underneath him, pushing her heels unto the mattress and opening herself wider for him.

  Finally, her orgasm started to wane and her limbs fell to her sides. He wiped his hand over his mouth and then rested his chin against the top of her feminine mound, looking up at her. “I do like appetizers.”

  She shook her head. “I’m ready for the main course.”

  He donned the condom quickly then leaned over her, covering her body with his larger one.

  “You feel so good,” she said.

  “Do I?” he asked, shifting his hips so that the tip of his cock was at the entrance of her body.

  “Yes, you do. But I bet you’ll feel even better inside of me,” she said.

  She reached between their bodies and cupped his sac, fondling his balls as he drew back. He wasn’t sure he could make this last. He wanted to drive himself into her again and again until he came, but he knew if he did that, she wouldn’t enjoy it as much and he wanted her pleasure to come with his.

  “Don’t you want that?” she asked, shifting up so that her breasts brushed against his chest and she could speak right into his ear.

  “Hell.”

  He had to have her. Immediately. He cupped both of her breasts in his hands, plucking at her aroused nipples. Then he entered her with one long, hard stroke.

  “Hell yes,” she said, her head falling back, leaving the curve of her neck open and vulnerable to him. He bit softly at her neck and felt the reaction all the way to his toes when she squirmed in his arms and thrust her hips back toward him.

  A tingling started in the base of his spine and he knew his climax was close. But he wasn’t going to allow it until Talia came again. He wanted her to be so thoroughly exhausted when he was done having her, she wouldn’t think of anything but their bodies twined together. Sweeping his hands up and down her back, he found her butt cheeks and ran his finger along the crack. He whispered words against her neck and into her ears. Told her how good she felt, how she made him want to take her again and again and how he’d never have enough of her.

  She writhed more feverishly in his arms and he drove deeper into her body with each thrust. Exhaling, he closed his eyes, trying to draw out the moment when he came but all he could smell was sex and Talia. That wasn’t helping.

  He had to make her come again. Slipping his hand between them, he slid it down her abdomen, through the slick folds of her sex, finding her center. He rubbed the aroused flesh with an up and down movement as she continued to twist in his arms.

  He circled that aroused bit of flesh between her legs with his forefinger, then scraped it very carefully with his nail. She screamed his name and tightened around his cock. Casey pulled one hand from her body and held her closer to him as he drove himself into her again and again until he went as deep as he could and then felt himself start to climax.

  He was home…

  …

  Talia curled herself against Casey as he came back to bed after dealing with the condom. She had shifted on the bed so that she was on his right side and could put her head on his tattoo, so she wouldn’t have to see it.

  He held her close to him, his hand moving up and down her back. He didn’t say anything but she knew he was still awake.

  “Thank you.”

  She lifted herself up to look at him. “For what?”

  “For agreeing to date me,” he said at last. “I know that you have history with men who make their living gambling and it can’t be easy for you. But I’m not like them.”

  “I know,” she said, but she didn’t. Not really. She hoped he was different and for tonight, for this moment in their relationship, it was enough. She put her hand on his pec and then lowered her head. “I never really understood why someone would risk what you have for what you might get.”

  He laughed. “I think either you get it or you don’t.”

  “And you do?” she asked, trying to understand what made this man tick. He fascinated her. Of course, a big part of it was the way he watched her and made her feel like the most desirable woman in the world, but there was more to it than that.

  “Yes. To be honest I never had anything so there wasn’t a lot of risk involved at first,” he said.

  “How did you get started?”

  He rolled to his side, curling his arm under his head so that they faced each other. The light from the hallway provided just the right amount of illumination in the room.

  “It’s not pretty.”

  “It’s okay. I’m not going to judge you,” she said.

  “I was a street kid and learned to hustle, usually with the ‘watch the rock’ trick. It’s a form of three-card monte. I would get people to bet they could find the rock. I did pretty good, but the cops were often one step ahead of us. I got sent to juvie and that’s where I met Darien, who was in for graffiti, and Nicholas, who was in because his dad was a hard-ass and wouldn’t bail him out.”

  “That’s crazy. So how did you turn street hustling into gambling?” she asked.

  “We got sent to a halfway house instead of back home,” he said. “I didn’t have a home to go back to, but the foster family I’d been with said they didn’t want me back. Anyway, at the halfway house, there was a huge library with all these old books on Vegas and gambling. I just read them all and each night, I’d try my skills out on Nick and Dare. Those two don’t let anyone win and eventually I was beating them every night. I watched the cards that were played and from reading, I knew the odds of getting certain cards.”

  He touched her arm again. She realized he liked touching her and had to admit she liked it, too.

  “So, when we got out of the halfway house, Darien staked me at an underground poker game. I won and split the winnings with him. I kept playing in those games until I was old enough to enter the legit ones. And I always took half my winnings and put it in savings.”

  She reached over and squeezed his bicep, then ran her hand down his arm. He flexed his muscles and she smiled.

  “Why did you do that?”

  “Because when you grow up poor, money means something,” he said. “I never wanted to be at anyone’s mercy again.”

  “I get that. Dad talked a loan shark into giving him the value of Gran’s house to gamble. When he lost, Paulie came to collect and Dad was in the wind. So I had to make a deal with him to pay it back. He’s a nice guy.”

  “Paul Castiletti?”

  “Yeah, you know him?”

  “Only by reputation. He’s a dangerous man,” Casey said.

  “I know. But if you keep your word, he keeps his. I was still in high school at the time. I told him how much I made each week and promised to give him half. He took the deal. Each year, as I made more money, I paid him back more of the loan. I’ve been working two jobs for most of my life. The job at Jokers Wild is the best paying one I’ve had in a long time, so I should be able to make the last payment to Paulie this month. Then Gran’s house will be hers again. And now that Dad’s gone, we don’t have to worry.”

  “Ah, babe, I’m sorry you had to do that,” he said, pulling her into his arms and holding her close.

  He made love
to her again and she drifted off to sleep, feeling certain that Casey wasn’t like her father. He’d never gamble away something that mattered to him.

  Chapter Eleven

  Casey moved around his kitchen as if he was a guest in his own home. It was clear to Talia that the man had no clue where the coffee was. But he looked good in a pair of basketball shorts that clung to his hips and no shirt. She’d give him that.

  “Um…I usually order something from the casino,” he said, turning to face her. “I want to be like a regular guy…”

  She had to smile at the way he said that. It reminded her that everyone was fighting their own battles when it came to daily life. “You’re you. I like that you’re not like everyone else. Also, I love the mocha latte that the café makes, so I’ll have that if you’re ordering.”

  “I am. Also, I seem to be pretty limited in the food department, except for martini olives and snacks, so what do you want for breakfast?”

  Normally she wasn’t a huge fan of breakfast, but she had seldom seen Casey looking like this. He had something in mind for this morning, like he was trying to create some perfect image. And she didn’t want to disappoint him. “What are you having?”

  “The works.”

  “I’ll have scrambled eggs, sliced avocado, and maybe some toast.”

  “Perfect. Why don’t you go shower? I’ll have everything ready on the balcony when you come back down. I had some clothes put in the closet in your size,” he said.

  “When did you do that?”

  “When you accepted the job,” he said. “I’m not going to apologize. If nothing happened between us, you’d never know about it, and since something did, you have some clean clothes to wear here. I was hedging my bets.”

  Of course he was. Casey was a gambler at his core. He looked at the odds of everything before he made a decision and she’d be a fool to forget it.

  Her joy in the morning dimmed. The way he stood, she had a full-on view of that tattoo of his—as if she needed a reminder of what he was. It had been staring her in the face all night long. But she’d ignored it.