Nate continued to lick and nibble at her sensitive flesh as his hands slid down her back and cupped her rear. He guided the motions of her hips, sliding the length of him along her sex in such a way that coaxed her nerve endings to tingle from her fingertips to her toes and yet denied her the contact she craved.
Annie bit her bottom lip, struggling to catch enough friction, but he was stronger than she was. He was going to drag this out as long as he could.
“It’s just too much temptation for you,” he murmured against her breast.
Before Annie could respond, he took one nipple into his mouth and sucked hard. She cried out, her answer forgotten as the pleasure stabbed sharp through her. Her hips bucked against him, seeking out what she needed and failing once again.
In one fluid motion Nate stood, lifting her up out of the water and sending a wave over the side of the spa that soaked the surrounding concrete. She clamored quickly to wrap her arms around his neck, but he immediately sat her on the opposite edge of the Whirlpool.
He knelt in front of her, his mouth still tightly clamped onto her aching breast. Annie arched her back, clutching his damp blond curls and pressing against the hardened muscles of his stomach.
Nate let go of her breast at last, giving the tip of her nipple a quick flick with his tongue, then moving back to kiss her sternum, grazing down her stomach. He leaned into her then, forcing her backward until her shoulders met with the cool stone of the patio. His body nearly covered hers, and she pulled her legs up to cradle his body. She smiled, thinking perhaps she would finally get what she was after.
Instead, he pulled away, leaving a trail of kisses down her stomach. The muscles of her belly quivered with need, his mouth tickling and torturing her as he moved lower. She didn’t know if she could take much more of this. He would tease and taunt her with his hands and his mouth until she’d agree to nearly anything.
It was unfair. As many times as he’d had her since that first night, she’d hardly been given the opportunity to reciprocate. He was so intently focused on her and her pleasure, it was hard to complain. But he was the one who needed the attention today, not her.
“Nate?” Annie whimpered, her whole body trembling with wanting him. “Nate?” she said again with more force when he didn’t answer.
He paused, his lips hovering just above her dark, cropped curls, his hooded eyes watching her over the hills and valleys of her exposed body. “Yes?”
Annie took advantage of his hesitation to sit up and make a futile attempt to push his shoulders back. “I want my turn.” She gave him a sly grin and slid into the water. Her eyes stayed intently focused on him as her lips took their turn to run down his stomach, her hands gently caressing and kneading his tensed muscles.
Nate was so tall that when he was standing, his erection rose proudly above the waterline. It brushed against Annie’s breasts as she sank into the water, eliciting a shudder from him.
She took advantage, letting one hardened nipple run over the tip, then drag down the length of him. Annie smiled when she saw Nate’s fists curl tightly at his sides. This was the only way she knew of to get Nate to lose control. He was always so calculating, so in command of his world. Here, now, Annie was the one in charge.
Without giving him time to prepare, she dipped and took him into her mouth. Her tongue ran over every inch, her teeth grazing lightly. She moved faster, sensing the tension build through his entire body, and then slowed to an agonizing pace where every inch she moved prolonged the torture.
Apparently, it was too much for him. With a growl, Nate grabbed Annie by her forearms and tugged her up to stand with him. His gaze penetrated her, his jaw locked in a hopeless attempt to keep control.
When Annie gave him a smug grin, he erased it with his mouth, searing her lips in a desperate kiss.
She was almost unable to breathe for the force of it. After a moment, she pulled away to catch her breath and watched the passionate fire blaze in his dark eyes. He didn’t just want her. He wanted to possess her, consume her. Even after everything that had happened between them.
The weight of his desire was like an anvil pushing against her chest. Turning quickly in his arms, she pressed her bare back against him. In that moment, she needed to escape his intensity. It was almost frightening how much he wanted her. But even more so was how badly she wanted him. How much she craved not only the release, but the comfort and protection of being in his arms.
She’d always felt confined when she was held. It was never a comforting feeling for her but one that made her struggle for air. Nate’s embrace had become like no other before. It was a safe haven from the world. It was...
home.
Annie expected the panic to start welling in her chest, but it didn’t. Which was even more disconcerting. She took a deep breath and eased back to let his firm arousal nestle against her rear. A quick sway of her hips brought a low hiss to her ear and was an easy distraction from her thoughts.
Nate’s arms wrapped around her waist, tugging her back to sit in his lap as he plunged down into the spa. The buoyancy of the water made it easy for Annie to rise up and take all of him in with one quick thrust.
He groaned against her shoulder, holding her tight and still against him. After a moment, his hands glided across her skin to encircle her rib cage. They drifted higher until he cupped one breast in each palm. Annie’s nipples ached, tightening against his fingertips as they brushed across the hardened peaks.
Annie leaned back against his chest, straddling his muscled thighs. Nate rested his chin on her shoulder and moved slowly beneath her. It was an easy, rolling motion. Neither too quick nor too slow, but building.
He played her like an instrument. It wasn’t long before every muscle in Annie’s aching body was tensed and primed for release. But even as Annie raced to her climax with Nate quick on her heels, she could feel the last of her barriers coming down. The last thread that held her back snapped when she no longer had the desire to hold it tight.
Annie didn’t just desire Nate. She didn’t just care about him or find comfort in him. She was in love with him. And it scared the living daylights out of her.
Nine
A
nnie’s game ended late the next afternoon when she broke her table and there wasn’t enough time to bother regrouping. That done, she had some free time to kill. It was too early for dinner, too late to get involved in anything else. Nate was probably prowling around the tables, trying to keep his distance and not distract her. Gabe would want her to talk to some people and try to dig up some more information. For that very reason, she opted to do the opposite and watch a couple of games still in progress.
Annie was surprised to find Tessa playing at a table three down from her own. She honestly hadn’t expected her to still be in the tournament. There were five players at the table, including her sister. A quick glance showed that two didn’t have long left to play. Their chips were quite low, especially in comparison to Tessa and another player, Paul Stein.
The crowd applauded as Tessa won the hand. Annie bit her lip, watching her sister scoop the chips and restack them in front of her. She was doing extremely well, even against a former champion like Paul. That alone should’ve been her clue to turn and walk away. But she didn’t.
A few hands went by without much fanfare. Tessa and Paul went back and forth taking the pot until one of the other players went out. Then Annie noticed something odd. Tessa was fidgeting.
One of the first things Annie had taught her sister was not to fidget at the poker table. But she watched as her sister looked at her cards and started twisting a ring on her finger. One of the other players across the table folded his hand despite having quite a bit of money in the pot. Paul and the other player were both oblivious and focused on their game.
Fidgeting was not uncommon at the poker table because they sat for so long. But even then, something about Tessa’s movements seemed odd and deliberate. In the next hand, Tessa absentmindedly twirled a strand of hair around her finger. Only Annie would know it was something Tessa didn’t usually do. The other man raised, driving up the pot, then lost moments later, giving her sister a big boost in chips.
Maybe it was more obvious because Annie knew her sister and her tics, but Tessa and the other player were working together. She hadn’t spent much time with Tessa over the years, but childhood habits died hard. Every move she made felt deliberate or forced. Most people didn’t worry about partners working together at a tournament because the table assignments were random. You’d have to have someone on the inside to ensure you were placed together, and that was nearly impossible to do.
Annie’s throat started to close on her as surely as if she’d been stung by a bee. The flop went down and Tessa bet conservatively. The way you would if you were trying to lure other players into putting more money into the pot. At the moment, Paul was contemplating his bet. Every eye in the room was on him, even those of the security guard who was supposed to be watching Tessa play.
All except for Annie’s. Her gaze stayed glued on her sister as Tessa watched the other players and once again started curling a red strand of hair around her finger. It played out just as before, with her partner betting high. Tessa casually looked up and caught Annie watching her with a sad, disappointed expression.
Tessa froze for a moment in panic before smiling uneasily. She knew Annie had caught her but was confident her protective older sister was no threat to her scheme. She silently pleaded for Annie’s silence, mouthing the word
please
before turning back to her hand.
Suddenly the last gap in her throat closed and Annie couldn’t breathe.
From the moment she’d seen Tessa and Eddie together, this had been her secret fear. She’d been telling Nate the truth when she said she didn’t know anything. Worrying about her sister’s judgment and knowing for certain of her guilt were two very different things. Everything had just changed. She needed to get out of there. Now.
Without staying to see how the hand ended, Annie turned on her heel and began pushing her way through the crowd. She had no idea who was around her or who she knocked into on her way. All she knew was the panic and struggle for air. Her chest felt heavy, as though bricks were threatening to crush her rib cage.
She glanced at the entrance to the casino, but that wasn’t enough. She needed clean air. Air without taxicab smog, tourists and the deafening bustle of the Vegas Strip.
Annie wanted to go to the roof.
Nate’s private elevator didn’t go all the way to the hotel roof, but she knew which one did. Her access card would take her almost to the top, and then she could scale the last few stairs.
“Annie?”
Someone called her name, but she couldn’t stop to find out who it was. She darted down the hallway and into the secured area. The elevator was waiting when she arrived, and she slipped in her card to take her all the way to the top.
“Annie? Wait!”
It was Nate, she could tell now with the casino noises muffled by the doors. The voice was more urgent, his pounding footsteps echoing on the tile floor as he chased after her, but she ignored him. She needed to get away from everything, including Nate.
The doors closed and the car shot up from the ground floor at a dizzying speed. Annie closed her eyes. She was relieved to find the higher she climbed, the easier she could breathe. By the time she opened the door that led out to the roof, she felt infinitely better.
Annie took a deep breath and walked out onto the open expanse of the hotel roof. Her trembling hands gripped the railing as she stood, overlooking the twinkling lights of the Strip. The sun had already set, and the casino signs were growing more intense as the golden light faded from the sky.
She stood quietly listening to her surroundings, waiting for her heart to grow steadier in her chest. She strained to hear the deep boom of what could only be the Treasure Island cannons as the pirates battled out front.
She’d failed Tessa. If she’d been the sister she should’ve been, Tessa wouldn’t have fallen into this sort of situation, letting herself be manipulated by a man. And after all the grief her sister had given Annie over her marriage! Marrying Nate wouldn’t land her in jail.
What could she do now? Nate desperately wanted to secure the tournament contract. She had no doubt he would have Tessa arrested once he had enough evidence, and she’d told him she would turn the information over if she found it. The key was that she wouldn’t look for her sister’s guilt, but she’d just been slapped in the face with it.
How could she choose between her sister and the man that she loved?
She never should’ve come back to the Desert Sapphire. The tournament wasn’t worth it. Not even the divorce was worth it. Nothing justified the pain and drama that coming back had brought. In the end, everyone would get hurt, including Nate. She’d promised herself she wouldn’t hurt him again.
Alone in the rapidly deepening darkness, Annie let the last of the barriers go. The tears rushed down her cheeks in earnest, the first real tears she’d cried in years. Salty streaks ran down her flushed cheeks like a faucet had been turned on. She could only hold on to the wall for support as her body was racked with her emotional outburst.
When the sobs subsided and her face was impossibly red and swollen from her tears, she had to admit she felt better. Nothing had changed, but letting off the steam did wonders for her general outlook.
“Annie?”
At least she
was
feeling better. Nate’s voice called to her from across the roof, but she didn’t turn. Couldn’t turn. She didn’t want him to see her like this.
Nate’s warm hand rested on her shoulder. His firm fingertips pressed soft circles into her tensed muscles. “Are you okay?”
Annie nodded, afraid to speak out loud and give away her lie.
“Tell the truth, Annie. What’s the matter?”
“It’s nothing.” She sniffed, wiping at her cheeks in a dismissive way before turning to him. “Really.”
“You are a terrible liar, Mrs. Reed.”
Annie’s stomach sank with the way he said those words. His voice had so much concern and emotion in it that her chest tightened. She’d never had that with anyone else. Her mother didn’t tolerate weakness, and she had never really been outwardly affectionate. She loved her daughters, but sometimes it was hard to know it. Annie had learned early to keep her emotions on the inside. When she got older, poker seemed like the perfect career choice. But after years of holding it in, she didn’t know how to let it out and truly open up to Nate.
He slipped a hand under her chin and gently turned her face up to look at him. She couldn’t avoid eye contact now. The dark brown depths of his eyes pulled her into the comfortable warmth they offered. Standing there, she was almost able to forget the horrible mess she’d gotten into. At least until his hand glided around to her back and flipped the switch, turning off the recording device. At least he’d remembered before she lost her senses and started confessing to him while Gabe listened to every word.
“Do you need to get out of the hotel for a while?”
Annie’s gaze narrowed at his words. She expected him to sense her weakness and pounce on it, but he didn’t. Instead, he offered her an out and she would gratefully accept it. She wasn’t ready to admit she’d seen Tessa cheat with her own two eyes. Or to confess she was in love with him and scared to death that she would lose him in all this.
He accepted her silence as a yes and pulled her into his arms. Annie accepted his embrace, collapsing onto him. She buried her face in his chest, drying her tears and keeping her from saying the words on the tip of her tongue. That he was right to be suspicious of her and of Tessa. That she was torn between protecting her sister and losing the man she loved.
“I’ve booked dinner reservations for us at the Eiffel Tower restaurant tonight.” Nate took her hand and pressed a soft kiss on her fingertip. The loving gesture sent a warm surge through her that she wasn’t expecting. She was distraught, emotionally spent, and yet she still wanted him. She craved not only the sensations he coaxed, but the safety and comfort she found in his arms.
He planted a kiss to the palm of her hand, then her wrist, working his way up to tickle the inside of her elbow and nip the soft skin of her upper arm.
The effect was immediate and powerful. Annie pushed everything out of her mind and let her body take over. She leaned into him, arching her back to expose her neck as he moved higher. If she was about to lose everything, she was going to indulge in every minute she had with him and savor each touch as her last.
Nate curved an arm around her waist, tugging her tight against him as his lips danced across her skin.
“Nate?”
“Yes?” he breathed against her ear.
“What time are our dinner reservations?”
“Not for another two hours.”
“Good. Take me to the suite.”
* * *
Nate arranged for the hotel limo to pick them up and whisk them down the Strip for dinner reservations at the Paris Hotel. Their table at the Eiffel Tower restaurant had premium views of the Bellagio fountains across the street. It was a breathtakingly romantic setting, even more so than Carolina’s, she dared say.
He’d preordered the eight-course tasting menu with all the chef’s specialties, substituting the first course because he knew Annie didn’t care for caviar. As always, she was taken aback by Nate’s ability to remember the details and make someone feel special. It was a powerful aphrodisiac to have someone that focused on her needs and desires both in and out of the bedroom.
“You’re such a charmer,” she said, sipping sparkling water from a crystal flute. “Hard for a woman to resist when you’re in full-on Nate mode.”
“What is that, exactly?” He looked at her quizzically. Apparently no one had ever pointed it out to him before.
“When you focus on someone. You make sure every detail is perfect, that they have everything they could possibly desire. It’s an intense feeling.”
“Did the other men in your life not treat you like the jewel you are?”
Annie chuckled softly. “Most men don’t, actually.”
He seemed surprised. “Then they’re fools.”
“Tell me the truth,” she said, leaning across their second-course plates. “Are you like this with all women?”
Nate’s smile dimmed almost imperceptibly. “No. Just you.”
Annie swallowed her bite of food with difficulty, taking a large sip of water to try to force it down. She’d always told herself that Nate’s charm was part of a savvy business strategy, that he treated her just as well as he did any customer. Knowing that was not the case was exciting and unnerving.
Their situation was complicated, to say the least. They were sharing a bed, knowing they were days away from divorce if all went according to plan. And yet now, sitting in this beautiful restaurant and feeling her heart swell every time he smiled, she knew things had changed. The thought of walking away from Nate in just a few days’ time was almost painful.
But regardless of how she felt, divorce was still the smart choice. They wanted different things. That didn’t mean her heart understood. It only knew what it wanted, and that was Nate. She’d been denying her feelings for so long it had become second nature. But she didn’t want to suppress it anymore. She wanted to tell him that she loved him.
A shudder ran down her spine that she covered by slipping back into her sweater under the pretense of being cold. Just thinking the word
love
had given her chills. Saying it out loud seemed impossible. Especially with how things stood with Tessa. As much as her heart wanted to be free, it also needed to be protected. She couldn’t trust Nate with it yet. Could she?
The dinner continued with relaxed, casual conversation. They enjoyed every bite of their food, paying their bill in time to walk downstairs and experience the fountains in person.
They stood at the railing along the dark pool, Nate’s arm wrapped around her waist to hold her tight against him and keep her warm in the cooling desert air. “You’ll love this,” he whispered into her ear, planting a warm, affectionate kiss on her cheek. She’d told him she’d never seen the show, so he insisted they watch it here instead of from the restaurant.