if Wagner doesn’t show tomorrow? What if he doesn't go back to play again at Bulldog's?”
I’m back at Carter’s office in the Grand River, slumped on the couch, utterly exhausted. “Will you calm down?” I snap at him, my own voice rising. “I was winning and he left in the middle of a hand. It would have looked crazy suspicious if I’d followed him. But he'll be back.”
“How can you be sure, Gabby?” Dominic sounds calmer than Carter, and he's prepared to listen. He hands me a glass of red wine, and I accept it gratefully, taking a sip. It’s been a long day. Right now, I just want to sleep.
That’s a lie. It’s two in the morning and I should rest, but I can’t stop thinking about my threesome with Dominic and Carter. I can’t stop wondering what would have happened at the restaurant if Bulldog’s text hadn’t interrupted us.
“Because he's working for Bulldog.” I describe the Wall Street guy. “That scene with Ed yelling was absolutely staged for the Wall Street guy’s benefit. Bulldog wanted that guy to come back and lose big the next day, so he made Ed seem unstable. The dealer on our table was in on it too.” I give them an earnest look. “I’m absolutely sure. I was there. Trust me. ”
“That is Bulldog's modus operandi.” Dominic’s voice is thoughtful. He sits next to me on the couch and pulls me towards him. His hands clasp my neck and his fingers massage the knots of stress out. I whimper slightly in pleasure. This feels amazing.
Carter drops to the couch on the other side of me. He burrows his head in his hands. For a few moments, he doesn’t say anything, but I can feel the tension rolling off him in waves. “It’s going to be fine, Carter,” I say softly, resting my hand on his thigh. “Bulldog told me there’s another game tomorrow. I’ll get to Ed then.”
He sighs finally. “Yeah,” he says. His hand covers mine, enveloping me with warmth. “I’m sorry I yelled at you.”
“That’s okay,” I soothe him. “You are under a lot of pressure.”
He gives me a small smile.
“Where are you sleeping tonight?” Dominic’s voice is a low, seductive murmur in my ear. “Will you stay here?”
“Here?”
Carter looks up, and his look of tension has receded, replaced by an expression that sends the butterflies fluttering in my stomach. “As you pointed out to me just a minute ago, Ed’ll be back tomorrow to play at Bulldog’s. We have people looking for him right now. There’s absolutely nothing I can do.” His lips twitch. “That’s not strictly true. There’s one thing I can do.”
“ We can do,” Dominic corrects with a lazy smile. I feel my tiredness evaporate looking at that smile. “If you are interested, Gabby?”
I have a rule, one instituted after Vinny, the boyfriend that cheated on me. If I must sleep with someone, it can only be one night. Anything more and my heart’s on the line. Anything more and I will get hurt.
“What do you think, little spitfire?” Carter runs a large, callused hand up my bare ankle, and each nerve ending in my body sparks to life. “Stay with us tonight?” His lips twitch. “The whole night.”
My rule has been set in place to protect my heart and mind, but I’ve always been reckless. I’m a gambler, after all.
“Yes.”
7
Gabriella:
O h god oh god oh god oh god.
Dominic tangles my fingers in his, and sucks my forefinger into his mouth, his eyes shimmering with the same lust that’s rampaging through my body like a herd of wild elephants in the Serengeti. Carter, on the other side of the couch, covers my left hand in his own, much larger hands, and leans in to kiss my neck.
Shivers wrack my body at that kiss, at the raspy whisper of his stubble against my tender skin. Dominic groans at my reaction. “I’d forgotten how responsive you are,” he says, his voice hoarse.
Carter grins. “I hadn’t,” he says smugly. He presses another kiss on my neck, right at that spot that seems to be a