Chapter 17
Alex
I’m feeling almost giddy as I walk into Sophie’s apartment. It’s stupid. Tension is what I should be feeling. I slept over at Leon’s place, and his bodyguard showed me exactly how he feels about me, once again.
But when I remember the amount of care that Leon put into our date last night, the way I felt comfortable watching a movie with him, it’s hard to stop the butterflies from swarming my belly.
He hasn’t even made a move. Not a sexual one, at least. I’m hardly against having sex with him, but yesterday was deeper than that.
No matter how much I told myself that opening up to someone would be daunting, with him, it feels logical.
My stomach rumbles with hunger, and I realize my fridge is empty. Grabbing a quick shower and throwing on some comfy clothes, I head to the store.
As always, I’m hyperaware of my surroundings and all the people passing me by.
The butterflies soon turn to unease as I try my best to be invisible to others.
The feeling is less pronounced when I’m in a different city, easing with the time I spend in it, before reappearing.
But here, in the place where he still lives, it’s hard to escape it.
There’s no way I’d be sticking around for so long if I wasn’t looking for Sophie.
I started strong, searching the neighborhood for her, but these days, I only leave home for the casino and the occasional trip to the store.
Sophie would be proud to hear I’m turning into her.
That familiar pang starts in my chest, the ache of missing her hitting me deep.
I pass by a brunch place I notice every time I go to the store and stop in my tracks.
I gave Sophie so much shit for avoiding life because of fear, and here I am, doing the same thing. On a deep inhale, I walk my ass through the door of the bistro.
It smells as good as I’d imagined. Like overpriced avocado toast and iced mochas.
It’s also adorable, with mismatched chairs and solid wood tables.
I order an avocado toast and an iced mocha and find a seat at the table furthest from the windows.
Robbie is a cop, so I spent quite some time terrified of him using his job to find me.
It took Sophie almost a month to assure me there’s no way for him to set an alert that lets him know if a CCTV in the city recognizes my face.
I wouldn’t have believed her either if she hadn’t hacked into the city’s security system and tried to do the same thing, just to show me it was impossible.
If she couldn’t do it, Robbie definitely couldn’t.
My shoulders relax at the memory. The city has two million people in it and I’m miles away from both his precinct and his home. Our previous home.
My food arrives, and I dig into it. I haven’t had a proper breakfast meal since I left Vegas, and there, I mostly lived off room service.
Hotels were closer to the casinos I frequented, and renting an apartment would only make it easier for someone to find me.
It’s not like I couldn’t afford to live in hotels; I was racking up money night after night.
Unfortunately, more money meant more attention on me, so I had to be resourceful and change hotels more often than not.
It’s funny. A caged bird will feel free if she gets let out inside an apartment, and this is similar.
My freedom has a steep price, but I would never go back.
I’d never go back to roaming the streets and shops and restaurants with a fake smile on my face and coming home with dread weighing my body down.
I eat my meal and pay for it, checking my phone for the time.
There’s still plenty of time until it’s appropriate for me to be at a casino. Maybe I can go buy some clothes? Or a new crystal? One to bring me some clarity?
Eight hours later, I’m walking into the Petrovic Casino feeling like a million bucks. Today’s shopping spree cost me almost a week’s worth of poker winnings, but I don’t regret it for a second.
Excitement dances on my skin as I greet the familiar guards and make my way onto the lavish casino floor. It’s truly a stunning place. My gaze tracks the cameras, conveniently hidden on the vaulted ceilings, and my lips turn up. Is he looking at me now?
Get a grip, Alex. He’s a serious man with a lot of work to do. I doubt he has the time to stare at the security feed, waiting for you to arrive. My mind reasons with my heart, bumming it out.
But as I reach the bar to order a drink, a large palm lands on my shoulder. I suck in a breath, my body recognizing his touch.
“Mr. Petrovic,” I say with a smirk, and his eyes darken.
He clears his throat. “Maybe you should call me that more often.”
“Maybe you should earn it.” My tongue darts out to wet my lips, and his eyes follow it.
With a slight shake of his head, he turns to the server. “A cranberry vodka for her, the usual for me.” I fight a smile when I sense him close, whispering under my ear. “With how the back of this dress looks on you, I’m afraid to see the front.”
This time, my smile is inevitable. I take my sweet time turning around, and his eyes trace my form hungrily.
They stop on the low V showcasing my breasts and fabric snatching my waist. They trail over the golden fabric as if they’re trying to get me naked by sheer force of will.
It took me three stores to find it, but it was worth the time and the money. The dress fits me like a glove.
“Let me apologize in advance,” he says, and my brows furrow.
“What do you mean?”
“For ruining this dress. There’s no way I’ll be able to go slow.”
I gasp. “You wouldn’t dare.”
“Wanna bet?”
I grab the drink the bartender placed on the bar and take a long sip of it. “You know what? I might just be in the mood for a good bet.” I wink at him and head to a poker table.
His palm brushes my shoulder blade, turning me toward the back rooms.
“Sorry, sweetheart,” he whispers again, his voice now lower and more strained. “You can’t walk in here looking like that and expect to be left to the prying eyes of the vultures out there.”
“But…I came here to play poker,” I protest, though I counted on making him feral with this dress.
“We can still play. But I’m the only one who gets to see you in this dress.” He practically growls the last few words, and the vibrations harden my nipples.
Within seconds, we enter his office, which he promptly locks behind us.
“Not feeling risky today?” I tease, alluding to the time he ate me out while the door was unlocked.
“Nope,” he responds, opening and closing the drawers of his desk. At last, he extracts a pack of cards, drops it on the coffee table in front of me and, unbuttoning his suit jacket, drops into a seat. “Let’s play.”
“No offense, but I’m not sure if this is challenging enough.” I’m playing with fire, but I want to see how far I can push him.
“Sit.” His tone doesn’t leave space to complain, so I do as he says. “We can up the stakes. I’m guessing there’s only so much money you can take from me before it gets boring.”
A chuckle breaks free. “You’re guessing correctly. Dare I ask how you plan to up the stakes?”
“Strip poker.”
“Strip poker?” My eyebrows shoot up.
“Yes.” He shuffles the deck of cards in his hands before dealing them.
“Strip poker it is.” Heat pools low in my core, the promise of what’s to come wreaking havoc on my hormones. “But we should play Five Card Draw.” The simple variant makes more sense than Texas Hold’em. He agrees, dealing us each five cards.
I win the first hand, and he slips the suit jacket off his shoulders, placing it neatly onto the couch.
He’s still fully dressed, but the crisp white shirt hugs his arms and chest in a way that’s distracting.
It’s probably what makes me lose the second hand.
Other than my shoes, I have only one piece of clothing on me, so I need to play it smart.
With slow and painful precision, I slip one strap of my dress down my arm.
Nothing’s showing, but from Leon’s sharp intake of breath, it had the outcome I wanted.
Drunk with power, I win the next two hands.
Leon loses his belt, slipping it out of its loops.
The sound sends shivers down my body. Next up are the buttons on his shirt.
He unbuttons them one by one, revealing planes of tan skin, smattered with dark hair. My mouth waters.
Distracted once again, I lose the next hand and drop the other strap, holding my dress up with my upper arms. Incidentally, it also pushes my breasts out, right in the line of Leon’s vision. His eyes are hooded, practically hypnotized as I watch him swallow.
“We playing?” I ask, leaning forward to torture him some more.
He snaps out of his trance, glancing up. His pupils are blown wide, the hunger in them evident. “Want to make a bet?”
A thrill runs through me, and I nod.
“If I win the next hand, I get you for the night. One night of me owning your body. Of me doing anything I want to you.”
His dominating tone shoots straight to my core. I shift in my seat, trying to find some release, unsuccessfully. “And if I win?” I croak out, my voice shaky with desire.
“You get whatever you want.”
I wet my bottom lip, giving it some thought. “Whatever I want? What if I want your credit card for a day? No limits and no questions asked.”
On a low chuckle, he extracts his wallet and drops a card on the small table, right next to the cards. “Keep it.”
My eyes widen as I stare at the black card in front of me. It seems silly that this little piece of plastic could buy you a luxury car. “It was a joke.”
“No, it’s a bet.” With his drink in his hand, he leans back in his chair. “Besides, do you have any idea how hard it makes me to imagine you spending my money?”