It started as a bristling at the back of his neck. It was a cool night, but not enough to create the chill he felt making its way along his spine. After spending so many years being ambushed, tracked, and hunted by all manner of dangerous men, he knew that chill all too well. The footsteps he heard upon the boardwalk behind him only sealed the deal.
Passing a narrow alley so the next one was a fair distance from him, Clint stopped and turned around. Compared to what he'd been expecting, the person following him was a very pleasant surprise.
“Oh,” the tall faro dealer said. “You startled me.”
Clint took in the sight of her with a quick up-and-down glance. She looked a bit taller from this distance, but also looked a whole lot prettier. Her long black hair had been hastily tied back, and several strands were loose and in her face as the wind blew. She'd wrapped a light shawl around herself to keep her shoulders warm, but wasn't holding it tightly enough to keep him from getting a good look at the generous amount of cleavage displayed by her low-cut dress. In the dim light of the moon and of the torches lining the street, her skin looked smooth and damn near flawless.
“I'm really sorry about all of that,” she said.
“Why?” Clint asked. “Did you make George into such a loud-mouthed asshole?”
She laughed in a way that allowed a beautiful smile to cross her face. “No, but I did put you in an awkward position. I don't know how many times I've told that man to keep his cards covered, but he never takes my advice.”
“Let me guess. He said he didn't want no advice from a woman.”
“Actually, he kept trying to get me into bed. Every time I spoke a word to him, he took it as an invitation for him to get under my skirts.”
Clint shook his head and chuckled. “That one's a real piece of work.”
“Yes, but we did sort of cheat him.”
“I know. That's why I gave back the money I won from the last couple of hands.”
She blinked and cocked her head in disbelief. “You did?”
“Yep. On my way out.”
“Let me guess. He told you to go to hell.”
“No,” Clint replied. “He tried to get twice as much out of me as I won during that whole game.”
“He is a piece of work.”
Both of them walked down the street. Since he could tell there wasn't anyone else lurking about or dogging their trail, Clint allowed himself to relax. “So, your name's Delilah?”
“How'd you know?”
“Surely you don't think a woman who looks like you could deal faro around so many men without being noticed.”
“I thought most of their interest ended once they stared at me for a few hours,” she replied.
“The men at my table knew more than that. Still,” he added, “we all did tend to watch you awfully close when we had the chance.”
Smiling again, she told him, “That's all right. Men tend to spend more time at my table when they've got a nice view. Also, I kind of enjoy it when some men like what they see.”
The glint in her eye and the way she moved a bit closer to Clint made it clear that she wasn't referring to any of the locals. Continuing along without acknowledging the way she brushed against him, Clint asked, “Who's that man working your table with you?”
“That'd be Carl. He keeps track of the cash and counts down the hands that are dealt. George doesn't have much good to say about him either.”
“He says Carl cheated him.”
“George says that about everyone,” Delilah pointed out. “He only gets it right some of the times. In Carl's case, he's dead wrong. I don't need the headaches that come along with having a cheat working at my table. The odds in faro are stacked in my favor well enough without that.”
“George was ready to tear his head off,” Clint said. “There has to be something behind that.”
Delilah shrugged and clasped her hands behind her back. That way, she could stroll beside Clint while also arching her back just enough for her chest to swell a bit more beneath her shawl. “Carl has to keep his head down in that place just because of his color. Most folks hardly seem to take notice of him since he's so quiet, but men like George will take a swing at anyone he thinks won't swing back.”
Clint didn't have any reason to doubt that. The wild look in George's eyes was more than enough to back up her explanation. “I'd hate to think our little indiscretion would bring any harm to an innocent man. Do you think Carl might need someone watching his back?”
“When I left, George was sitting in his chair, bragging about how he ran you out of there. Carl was in his seat and all was right with the world.” She glanced over at him and took a few minutes to study Clint in much the same way that he'd studied her earlier. “You could've kept George's money, you know. God only knows how many poor souls he's cheated over the years.”
“Is that why you helped me with all those nods and scowls?”
“He tried fixing my game a few times. Every time I caught him, he threw a bigger fit. Guess I saw the chance for some comeuppance and I took it.”
“Next time, just be sure your accomplice knows what's going on,” Clint told her.
Suddenly, Delilah stepped in front of him and stopped Clint by placing a hand flat upon his chest. Staring directly into his eyes, she slowly moved her hand down along his stomach. “If you've got a warm bed nearby, I'd like to make it up to you.”
“There now,” Clint replied with a grin. “All you had to do was ask.”
FIVE
While Clint and Delilah made it back to the room he was renting, they didn't quite make it to the bed. As soon as he'd let her in, she began peeling away her clothes, one layer at a time. Her shawl was the first to go, followed by her dress and the slips under her skirts. That left her wearing a black corset, black lacy panties, and boots that were laced up to just above her knees. Delilah turned on the balls of her feet and stopped Clint once more with a well-placed hand.
“You were watching me the whole time you were in Pace's,” she said.
Clint shrugged. “Not the whole time. I did need to glance at my cards every now and then.”
She shook her head while slipping her fingers between the buttons of his shirt. “You were watching me. How else would you see my signals?”
“Those weren't hard to miss.”
“Really? What about this one?” With that, she pulled her hand back and tore his shirt open. One of Clint's buttons even popped loose and skittered across the floor.
Taking hold of her hips and pulling her close, Clint said, “I believe I understood that signal just fine.” He then placed his lips upon her mouth and kissed her. It started off well enough, but the kiss gathered more heat with every second that passed. Before long, Delilah reached up to run her fingers through his hair while opening her lips to ease her tongue into his mouth.
Clint could feel the warmth from her body as if he were standing next to an open flame. He eased his hands along her sides, tracing a line up to her shoulder blades and then back down to the trim curve of her firm backside. Delilah purred in the back of her throat as she felt his hands caress her. Clint could even feel her smile as she continued to kiss him.
Without saying a word, she moved him back. All she needed to do was take a step forward to get Clint to take a step back. When he felt the backs of his legs knock against a chair, he dropped down onto the seat rather than kick it out of his way.
Delilah tugged at the buckle of his gun belt, but Clint was the one to remove it and set it down. All the while, she busied herself by getting his jeans down, and then knelt on the floor between his legs. In a matter of seconds, Clint felt her lips close around the tip of his cock.
“Jesus.” He sighed as she took every inch of him into her mouth. Clint placed his hands on the back of her head and had just enough time to catch his breath before her tongue went to work.
As she lowered her head, she slid her tongue forward to lick the bottom of his shaft. Then, as she eased up again, she flicked her tongue to tease him every inch of the way. Clint could only handle a small bit of that before he pulled her head up and away from him.
“You didn't like that?” she asked, knowing perfectly well how much he'd liked it.
Rather than play along with her question, Clint motioned for her to stand up, and then slid her panties off. Pulling her toward him, he felt her hips wriggle as she spread her legs and climbed onto his lap. Delilah looked down at him and placed her hands upon his shoulders while Clint reached down to position his rigid cock between her thighs. The moment she felt it slip between the moist lips of her pussy, she lowered her self onto it.
She let out a long sigh as Clint's erection drove deeper into her. When she finally reached its base, she slowly shifted her hips until he was hitting the right spot inside of her. “Oh my,” she said. “That'sâ”
Gripping her hips a little tighter, Clint pushed himself up into her a little more. It was just enough of a surprise to snap Delilah's eyes wide open and tighten her grip on his shoulders.
“Oh
my
,” she groaned.
She leaned forward and wrapped her arms around Clint's neck. Resting her head against his, Delilah rocked back and forth in time to Clint's rhythm. The chair creaked beneath them, but it wasn't supporting both of their weight. Delilah's legs were long enough for her to keep her body at the proper height and angle for Clint to slide easily in and out of her.
Just when he hit his stride, Clint felt her speed up. She cinched her arms around him a bit tighter and ground her hips in little circles every now and then. Soon, she was moaning softly in his ear and riding his cock until she climaxed. Before he could follow suit, Clint lost his grip on her completely.
“Where are you going?” he asked as she stood up and backed away from the chair. Clint was about to get up and chase her when Delilah stopped, turned around, and then climbed onto his lap again.
This time, she wasn't facing him. Clint admired the smooth line of her back after she unlaced her corset and pulled it off. Now that she was naked except for her boots, she arched her back and tousled her hair as if to fully enjoy the feeling of cool air on her bare skin. Delilah's long, wavy hair flowed all the way down to the uppermost curve of her buttocks. There was a pair of dimples there that brought an admiring grin to Clint's face.
Delilah leaned forward to take hold of his cock and guide it into her. Once it was inside, she leaned forward again, placed her hands upon Clint's knees, and started riding him. From his angle, Clint could only see the motion of Delilah's hair as she tossed it about. When he looked down, he could see her tight little ass bouncing in his lap. He placed his hands upon her hips to guide her, but that was like trying to steer a wild bronco with nothing but a thin set of reins. He could somewhat adjust her movements, but he sure as hell couldn't slow her down. Then again, she was doing just fine on her own.
Clint leaned back and let her go. Pretty soon, she leaned back a little as well, which allowed him to reach around and cup her breasts with both hands. Delilah pressed her hands on top of his and bounced straight up and down. Clint could feel her nipples becoming harder against his palms. When he felt a tide rising up within him, he grabbed her hips and held her tightly.
This time, she wasn't able to resist him. Delilah wriggled her hips some more, practically begging him to pump into her. Clint obliged with a series of straight trusts between her legs. She even stood up a bit to give him some room to thrust into her even harder.
When he felt his climax approaching, Clint pulled her down and drove all the way up into her. Both of them moaned loudly as he released inside of her. Delilah stood up, turned around, and then sat in his lap facing him. Rather than take him inside again, she rubbed her wet pussy against his cock and smiled hungrily.
“I've been wanting to do that all night long,” she said.
“Is that what all those grins were about?”
“That, and wanting you to take George for every cent he had.”
“Sorry to disappoint you,” Clint said as he got up and stretched his legs.
Delilah stood as well and pressed herself against his chest, wrapping her arms around him. When she lifted a leg to rub against Clint's thigh, he thought she might entangle him so he couldn't move. “Believe me,” she told him, “the last thing you did was disappoint.”
“You think I'll be able to enter that poker tournament?”
“Why don't you rest up and I'll make you forget there's anything else outside of this room?”
It wasn't exactly the cash prize he'd been after, but Clint felt awfully lucky to hear those words.
SIX
Clint went to bed at a decent time, but didn't actually get any sleep until the wee hours of the morning. Since he didn't have anything in particular to do that day, he stretched out and let Delilah apologize a few more times for getting him kicked out of Pace's. Since he'd played his own part in that debacle, Clint did a few favors for her in return. By the time she left his room, he could barely walk straight.
After throwing on some clothes, he went to the hotel's dining room and cleaned up the odds and ends left over from the regular breakfast service. He washed it down with some warm coffee and stepped outside for some fresh air. It was a brisk morning and the bright, cloudless sky did nothing to take away the chill. Even so, the breeze felt good on Clint's face and he took a moment to savor it.
The hotel was situated near a busy corner. As Clint looked in the direction of the stable where he'd left Eclipse, he thought it might be time to get moving. After all, he'd stayed in Trickle Creek for a lot longer than he'd expected, and Eclipse had surely gotten his fill of greens by now. If not, the Darley Arabian would have to toughen up and remember who carried the reins in that relationship. Clint smirked at the thought of having to teach Eclipse a lesson. Sometimes he thought that horse was smart enough to teach
him
a thing or two.