by Sarah Curtis
Time to rein in the hormones.
She saw him scanning the room. Looking for her? She didn't know. He was surrounded by a crowd, unable to progress farther in.
"Yum, now that's someone I would want to do more than go head-to-head with, if you get my drift."
River cut her eyes to Sally whose full attention was on Alec. "Yes, I think I do," she deadpanned, her sarcasm completely missing its mark as Sally only nodded while keeping her eyes trained on Alec.
The line inched forward, and River moved her attention from Sally's ogling to the guy in front of her so she wouldn't crash into his back. She'd had enough of running into people this trip. She still hadn't recovered from her first accidental bump.
"I think he's coming over here." Sally whisper-hissed in an excited voice.
River turned and sure enough, Alec was headed their way, his gaze trained on her.
She felt Sally's hand wrap around her upper arm, her long nails digging into her flesh. "Holy shit, I think he's really coming over here." In her excitement, she'd plastered herself to River's side. "I knew my lucky jeans would do the trick, I just hadn't realized they'd land such a big catch."
River looked over at her, confused. What the heck was she talking about? She tried to scoot away to gain some personal space back, but she was already too close to the guy standing in front of her. She had nowhere to go.
"Please tell me I don't have lipstick on my teeth."
River couldn't help but laugh. "What are you going on about?" Her new "friend" was either insane or overly excitable.
She gave River an exasperated look, her tone clearly indicating she didn't think River was the sharpest tool in the shed. "Alec Throne is headed this way. He took one look at me, liked what he saw, and is now coming over here to introduce himself." Her grip on River's arm tightened a fraction in her giddiness. "Really, River, I don't see what the confusion is."
Oh, for goodness sake.
"God, he can't take his eyes off me. And that look! It's like he's stripping me bare."
River mentally rolled her eyes. The woman was unbelievable. And clearly she was insane—the delusional kind.
When Alec drew near, Sally took a step out of line, blocking his path. "Mr. Throne, it's a pleasure to meet you." River raised a brow in amazement. How did she get her normally high-pitched voice so low and sultry? Must be the same talent that allowed her to wiggle into her too-tight jeans. "I'm one of your biggest fans." She placed a hand on his chest, her bright red nails a sharp contrast to the dark-navy of his suit jacket.
Alec stopped mid-stride. His eyes that had been boring into River's over the top of Sally's head shifted down at the sudden impediment.
Alec's face flickered with annoyance when meeting Sally's before he masked it. "It's nice to meet you, too..." He waited for her to fill in the blank.
"Sally, Sally Rodgers. And I must say, you're even more handsome in real life than on TV."
River quickly covered her mouth, preventing a giggle from escaping.
Her sudden move must have caught Alec's attention because his eyes darted to hers again. Taking hold of Sally's wrist, he removed her hand from his chest while stepping around her. "Thank you, Ms. Rodgers, for the compliment, but if you'll excuse me..." He let his words trail off as he made his way to River's side.
Placing his hand on the back of her neck, he leaned in to gruffly whisper in her ear. "I can still taste you on my tongue."
River felt her cheeks heat and glanced around nervously at the people closest to them, making sure no one overheard. Alec was grinning down at her, and Sally had a slight frown on her face.
"Wait, do you two know each other?" Her face reddened as the implications set in. "You could have said something," she mumbled under her breath before pulling out her phone and promptly ignoring both her and Alec.
River mentally sighed, knowing that's why she didn't have any girlfriends. Realizing, too late, she could have saved Sally some embarrassment. She'd grown up surrounded by boys and men in makeshift poker rooms in the back of restaurants and bars. She seriously lacked girly social skills.
Alec's question drew her attention. "Did you get any sleep after I left? I was tempted to text but feared waking you."
Her heart squeezed at his words, and she looked down at her feet to hide her happily relieved expression. That it had crossed his mind to contact her stirred emotions inside her best left unexplored.
His hand at her nape trailed down her back to squeeze her waist. "Not that you need beauty sleep, but I wanted you well rested for the game today."
"I got a few hours." She looked back up when she felt she had her emotions under control, but Alec's attention was no longer on her.
"Thanks, darlin'." Chris took his place back in line, crowding everyone further.
Alec maneuvered River to his front, wrapping an arm around her chest, with his hand resting on her shoulder in a possessive hold.
"Sorry for the delay, though I see we haven't moved up much." Chris chuckled. "There's a line for everything in this place."
River had to agree. The line for coffee had been long and as she'd awoken so late, she hadn't had time to stand in it. Her body was feeling the effects of only drinking her measly one cup of room coffee, and a sluggish brain did not bode well for a good game of poker.
"Sorry, but I don't think we've met." River elbowed Alec in the stomach at his surly tone, but if he felt the jab, he didn't show it, not even by emitting a small whoosh of breath.
She flattened her lips and crossed her arms over her chest not letting Alec in on the fact that his caveman antics were a wasted effort as she barely knew Chris herself.
With his boyish grin in place, Chris held out a hand. "Chris Porter. No introductions needed for me. You're Alec Throne."
She felt Alec's arm come over her shoulder before his hand came into view, clasping Chris's. "And how do you know River?"
Chris's smile dimmed and his brow furrowed. "River?" He sounded confused.
River uncrossed her arms and held up a hand, wiggling her fingers. "That would be me." She turned amused eyes to Alec. "Chris and I just met a few minutes ago when he asked me to hold his place in line while he used the restroom."
To his credit, Alec did give her a rueful smirk before whispering in her ear so only she could hear. "I'll apologize for my jealous idiocy later when we're alone, and I can do so properly."
Wanting to play peacemaker to all parties concerned and make up for her earlier faux pas with Sally, River said, "Chris, have you met Sally?"
At the sound of her name, Sally picked her head up from her phone. Dazzling smile met boyish dimples. It was love at first sight. Or at least so far as River was concerned it was. And with the two now conveniently occupied, the awkward situation had been diverted.
Speaking low, River said, "I'm not exactly sure what's going on in that brain of yours, Throne, but it appears your higher than average IQ level has dropped a few points. What's with the Neanderthal display?"
Inching closer, he put his hands on her waist, pulling her flush against him. "My only excuse is since walking into this room and seeing you in this sexy-as-fuck dress, my dick has been running the show, and it's not nearly as intelligent as I am." He gave her a thoughtful look, his eyes growing heated. "Or, maybe, it's the smarter of my two brains. Seems it has the right idea about keeping you close so no one else can intrude on its property."
"Pardon me, Mr. Throne." An older gentleman in a tux worn to signify he was one of the tournament directors interrupted before River had a chance to reply to such an outlandish statement. "Please follow me to check in. No need for you to wait in line."
"C
ome on, sweetheart." Alec placed his hand at the small of her back to steer her out of line.
"Oh, I don't—" the director started to say, but Alec cut him off.
"She's with me."
The director raised his brows at Alec's commanding tone. "Yes, of course. Right this way."
It didn't take them long to sign in and collect their chips, so with time on her hands, River decided it would be a good opportunity to grab some desperately needed coffee and voiced her intentions to Alec.
"You go find your seat, and I'll get you a cup." Handing her his bag of poker chips, he kissed her on the forehead before making his way from the room.
She watched his retreating back, pondering his recent behavior. She wasn't sure what to make of his sudden show of jealousy which seemed, from everything she'd ever read, completely out of character for him. Add that to the fact he'd basically said she was his property, well, she honestly didn't know what to make of that.
Although she wasn't as worldly as Alec, she also wasn't naive. He wasn't acting like a man who considered her a vacation fling. Which left her in a state of confusion, as she'd never read of Alec being in a meaningful relationship.
River shook her head trying to clear her thoughts, disgusted with herself. She had a habit of overthinking and analyzing a situation to death. It came from the responsibility piled on her shoulders at such a young age, afraid of making bad decisions that could affect her whole family.
She decided she was going to just live in the moment, or to use a poker analogy, let the chips fall where they may. She wouldn't try to analyze Alec's actions, she would just enjoy their time together and stop stressing if enjoying a vacation fling made her a bad person. Besides, she had more important things than her love life to worry about. Chiefly, the upcoming tournament and winning enough money to keep her brother of sound body.
She looked at her bag of chips that had her name and table number stamped on it. Twenty-two. On a whim, she looked at Alec's. Three. Not the same table, but that was probably for the best. She really didn't want to go up against one of the best players right off the bat.
She looked carefully and saw each table had a tiny, gold plaque with a number etched on it and moved around the room until she found twenty-two. The table was empty except for the dealer.
She gave River a polite smile. "Name?"
"River Kingston."
She glanced down at a list and indicating a chair to the left said, "You're in seat five."
River took her seat. She wouldn't know if it was a good spot until after the others arrived and she saw who she'd be sitting between. River set Alec's bag on her lap then opened hers, pulling out chips and stacking them in easy to count bundles. Everyone started with fifty grand in chips and by the tournament's end, with the one hundred entrants, the winner will have amassed five-million.
She felt a hand on her shoulder then got a strong whiff of coffee as a lidded cup materialized in front of her. She looked up, a smile already curving her lips when she said, "Have I told you how much I love you?"
"Not in so many words," Alec smirked. "But I do believe, 'Oh god, yes right there, don't stop' was pretty damn close."
River grabbed the coffee cup rolling her eyes. "It was a figure of speech and don't flatter yourself. I say that to all the boys."
The amusement left his face in a blink. Anger flashed through his eyes and his jaw tensed before he got himself under control, throwing his blank mask over his face. It had happened so quickly, if she hadn't been paying close attention, she would've missed it.
Her stomach twisted at the thought her flippant words may have hurt him. Setting the coffee on the table, she stood from her seat, "I was kidding." She spoke softly but made sure sincerity rang through her words.
She saw his shoulders relax, and his eyes closed briefly as he took in then released a deep breath. His hands reached for her, grabbing her waist and pulling her in close so he could bury his face in her neck. "I know. Don't mind me. I was being an ass again. Jealousy is a new emotion for me, and I'm still learning how to control it."
Several thoughts drifted through her mind at his declaration, but one stood out. Didn't one have to have strong emotions to feel jealousy?
Chapter Thirteen
"Shuffle up and deal!"
The microphoned announcement carried through the large room. Nerves unlike any River had ever felt before rolled through her stomach. The dynamic was so different from a small cash game or playing online. And as comfortable with the game as she was, the tournament atmosphere, the energy emanating from the people surrounding her, and her own adrenaline, left her hands shaking.
She assessed her fellow players sitting around the table. Five in total, excluding herself. They were an eclectic bunch. Short hair, long hair, brown, black, blond. Varying nationalities denoted by the array of mixed accents. A few wore baseball caps. A couple concealed their eyes with sunglasses. All looked eager to start.
After antes had been placed and the big and small blinds were added by the players at seats three and four, the dealer passed out the first two cards to each player. Like a balm, as soon as River touched her cards, her nerves dissipated and a soothing calm took over. Her brain made the connection and knew exactly what it was supposed to do.
Her cards were crap, and she mucked them when play progressed to her. Waiting for the hand to complete, she took a more careful study of her fellow players. Two she had known on sight, Jim Franks and Tommy Trung. Both had been around for as long as she could remember. Two she'd recognized by name, Philipp Grunwald and Rio Soliz, both only around for a handful of years, she now had a face to associate them with. The last player she hadn't known at all. Andre Moreau, new to the game, a multimillion dollar businessman who hit it big with some high-tech gadget and now gambled with his money in a new way.
River mucked her next hand and the hand after that. She sat back and took a sip of her coffee. Poker could be slow, especially if not dealt playable cards. It could take ten or even twenty hands before getting anything good. But there were also times when it was exciting—hot streaks, perfect cards dealt at the perfect time, hand after hand. Players lived for streaks like that.
The next deal, her cards were decent—king and queen of diamonds—and she was the big blind, so already had money invested in the pot. Four players had folded and one had just limped in only betting the cost of the big blind. If she raised the bet, she'd probably take the pot.
Shuffling a few of her chips, her fingers as active as her mind, she contemplated her next move. She looked over at Philipp, the guy who called, playing with his own chips. His head was downcast as he stared at his fingers in hopes of giving nothing away. His eye twitched and that was all River needed to reach for six fifty-dollar chips, tossing them on the table in front of her.
"Raise to four hundred," Leslie, the dealer said, after making an organized stack of River's one-hundred dollar big blind and three-hundred dollar bet.
After a tense minute, Philipp shoved his cards toward the dealer, folding, and River collected her winnings with a smile on her face for her first win of the tournament.
A fresh dealer arrived at their table while River and the other players got up to stretch and walk around. Tournaments were played in levels with the antes and blinds increasing with each new level reached. Each level was an hour long with a break awarded at the conclusion of every two levels.
Her eyes fell on table three. They were still finishing their last hand. From where she was standing, she couldn't tell whether Alec was in the hand or not. He seemed relaxed, but that didn't mean anything. She was sure he always appeared relaxed while playing. That he still sat while other seats at the table were already empty was her only clue he was still in.
River casually made her way to Alec's table. His back was to her, but almost as if he could sense her presence, he looked over his shoulder, giving her a sexy smirk and a wink before turning his attention back to the game.
She drew a little closer, close enough to see the tabletop but far enough away not to be viewed as a distraction. The pot was large. Just by sight, she could tell it was more than four grand. A flop laid spread on the table—king of hearts, two of diamonds, and six of spades—but was no help in determining who was in the lead without knowing their hold cards.
Alec's opponent, a middle-aged gentleman whom River didn't recognize, checked, passing action to Alec who, without a moment's hesitation, bet one thousand.
His opponent took longer to reach a decision but eventually called.
Their dealer swiped at the chips adding the new to the already hefty pot before patting the table twice, discarding the top card, and then flipping over the next, revealing the turn—another king but this one spades.
Alec's opponent checked again.
With the same fast reaction, Alec carelessly tossed two grand on the table in front of him.
River could visibly see the other man's Adam's apple bob as he swallowed. River looked back at the cards on the table, wondering if Alec had a king in his hand thereby giving him a set.
After a long few minutes, Alec's opponent tossed away his cards, folding.