Chapter 6
RAFE
Ishould send G away, not just for tonight, for good. This was a dangerous game and a terrible way to go about investigating his real motives. I needed to call Remington and tell him about G. I should’ve done that the first time we caught him cheating.
Why hadn’t I?
Because you’re interested in him. You don’t want him to be a plant from Ivanov.
I sure as hell didn’t. There were things I wanted from him though. Money was the least of those, but money was always nice.
The more profit the casino made, the happier I made the family.
And since I rarely did anything else to make them happy, I’d worked hard to keep things going well here.
I didn’t want to screw that up, but… Was G offering what I thought?
And since when did I wonder about men wanting me.
I was the one in charge. Whatever I wanted, I got.
But don’t you really want him to take your control away?
Fuck. I couldn’t think about that.
I could seduce him if I wanted to. I could wrap him around my finger. I could make him spill all his secrets. Except I wasn’t sure I wanted to hear them.
Normally, with any other man, I would have him half-undressed by now. But for some reason, G made me feel uncertain. I hated that I was questioning myself. At least I knew how to fake the confidence I wanted to be feeling.
“What exactly are you offering, Gilbert?”
“Not my name, and do you really have to ask?” He moved closer to me, and I hitched myself up onto the desk. He stepped closer and pushed my legs apart so he could fit between them. My heart was pounding, and my cock was half-hard already.
“What do you want?” he asked.
For you not to be working with Ivanov. For me not to be a fool. “What could you possibly have that I need?”
“Besides money to gamble with and skill?”
“I have plenty of patrons, and I was running tonight’s game successfully before I ever saw you.”
“But you can be even more successful with me. You have to admit I did a good job tonight.”
His hands lingered on my thighs, squeezing gently. I tried to ignore the warm pressure as I held his gaze. “You’re acceptable.”
He raised a brow. “Really?”
“I caught you.”
“I wanted to be caught.”
“What game are you playing?”
He shrugged. “I’m making money and having fun.”
There was no way it was that simple.
“I told you I don’t work for anyone but myself,” he said, anticipating my question.
“You’re lying.”
“You just want to be right.”
“Is that what you think I want?” I ask, shifting closer to the edge of the desk, bringing myself so close I could feel the heat of his body.
“I think you want a lot of things. I think you’re a very greedy man.”
I forced myself to smile. “So what if I am?”
“That’s not a criticism. Just an observation.”
“So what are you greedy for?”
He rubbed his thumb over my bottom lip. I forced myself to stay still.
I didn’t want him to guess the intensity of the reaction I was having inside.
Heat and need raced through me. I wanted to haul him against me.
I wanted to kiss him hard, like I was punishing him for taunting me.
I wanted to shove him to his knees and make him suck me off.
Do you really?
No, dammit. What I really wanted was for him to flip me over, lay me out across the desk, and fuck me. That kind of dominance was what I often wanted with men, but I very rarely asked for it, and even then, I made sure I was in control.
“Do you want this?” he asked.
I nodded. “Say it.”
“Yes.”
His lips brushed mine. It was too gentle, too soft.
I needed more. I slid my tongue along the seam of his lips, and he groaned as he deepened the kiss, opening for me.
He cupped my face in his hands, holding me still so he could assault my mouth, and I took it willingly.
I grabbed his belt loops and yanked him in closer, desperate for more.
When he pulled away from me, I couldn’t stifle a whimper. A fucking whimper.
His smirk told me everything. He was so fucking pleased with him. He winked at me as he took another step back. “I’ll see you next week.”
Fuck. Was he really going to walk away now? The bastard was leaving it up to me to make a move or to let him go. No way in hell was I going to beg for his attention. “I’ll see you then, Gordon.”
“Not my name.” He strode through the door and closed it behind him. I should be more concerned that he was on his own back here, but I was sure my security guards would notice him wandering and escort him to the parking lot.
I dropped into the chair he’d sat in the last time he’d been in my office and let my head fall into my hands as I drew in a few shaky breaths. My heart was pounding so hard, I worried it might give out.
What the hell had just happened? How had he gotten the upper hand?
If he’d been sent by Ivanov to worm his way in, find ways to punish my family, and get his revenge, why would he have walked away? Why would he be playing a long game when I showed him how easy I was? Wouldn’t he want to pump me for information after he’d fucked me senseless?
That didn’t make sense, right? Or was I trying to make things the way I wanted them to be?
No. I didn’t want anything from G. I didn’t play games with men. They either wanted to fuck, or they didn’t. I didn’t have time for that nonsense.
But damn, I wanted him. There was something about him, the way he moved, the way he challenged me.
He’s not afraid of you. He’s ready to put you in your place.
I ignored the voice in my head. I didn’t want to think about things like that. I needed to investigate him further, but to do that thoroughly, I’d have to tell Remington about him. I didn’t want to do that. I wanted to handle this myself.
Are you going to kill him yourself when you find out he’s from Ivanov?
Fucking intrusive thoughts! I would though. I would do anything to protect my family and to protect innocent children who would be hurt by Ivanov. It didn’t matter how much I liked G. It didn’t matter how my body responded to him; I would do what I had to do.
But the fastest way to learn who he really was would be to use my family’s resources.
They could also help me learn more about the other players in tonight’s game. They’d all been in the game for months though. How new was this threat Remington had told me about?
I’d done basic background checks on the players, but we could go far deeper.
That’s what I should’ve done with George before letting him join the game.
I had no idea who he was. I didn’t even have a fake name, much less a real one.
Jesus Christ, what was I doing? Remington was going to fucking kill me.
I needed to get out of there. I nearly ran out of the office, surprising my security guards.
I waved them off as I rushed out to my car.
As I sank into the driver’s seat, I reached for my mother’s necklace that hung from the rearview mirror.
I ran my fingers over the simple silver cross she’d always worn.
What would it be like if she were still here?
Would I tell her about G? Maybe. My memories of her were hazy, but I knew she’d been a good listener.
I started the car, then pulled my phone from my pocket and called my brother Dante.
“Do you have any idea what time it is?” he yelled when he answered.
“Dante, who is it?” That was his husband, Alex’s, voice. He sounded very close. They must be in bed. At least it sounded like they had been sleeping.
“I need to talk to you,” I said. “I’ve got a problem.”
“It’s Rafe. He needs to talk. Go on back to sleep.”
I heard sheets rustling, then a door closing.
“I hope this is worth waking me up for,” Dante said.
“Yeah, it is.”
“What’s wrong?” I could hear the concern in his voice. I knew that while he might be mad that I woke him up, and he might be willing to make fun of me for any number of small problems, he would do anything to help me.
“A few weeks ago, Remington called me with an assignment.”
“And you didn’t bother to share that then? Does Lorenzo know?”
“No, I wanted to deal with it myself. Remington was trusting me.”
Dante huffed. “What’s the job?”
I explained to him that one of Remington’s informants let him know that someone associated with Ivanov might attempt to infiltrate the casino. We didn’t know whether they would be a player, an employee, or what, but I was supposed to be on the lookout. “What happened?”
“Nothing yet, at least not anything significant or at least nothing bad.”
“Rafael, spill it.”
“Security caught a man counting cards. He’d been accused of cheating once, and he and the accuser were asked to leave after causing a disturbance.
The guy came back. We caught him again, and I had him come to my office.
I suspected he was trying to get caught, and I was right. He wanted my attention.”
“Rafe, tell me you didn’t ignore how significant that is.”
“I didn’t. He wanted to be part of one of my high rollers’ games.”
“And you let him?”
“We made a deal where the house gets half his winnings. I figured this gave me a good chance to watch him without him knowing what I suspected while bringing in some extra money so Remington’s happy. Trust me, I’ve got my eyes on the guy.”
“What did Remington say?”
“That’s the problem. I didn’t tell him.”
“What the fuck, Rafe? Remington told you to look for anything unusual. Then a guy comes to you after cheating and starts making propositions.”
It sounded so much worse when Dante spelled it out. “I wanted to handle it myself.”
“There’s something you’re not telling me.”
How did he always know? I should just confess. There was no reason for me to bother calling him if I wasn’t going to tell him everything. Otherwise, I might as well have called Remington. “I like him. I don’t want him to be Ivanov’s man, and my gut tells me he’s not.”
“Your gut or your dick?”
“If I only wanted a hot fuck with him, I could take it, then turn him in.”
Dante sucked in his breath. “You wouldn’t fuck him if you really thought—”
“No, I wouldn’t. I’d cut his dick off if I thought he was working with Ivanov, but I’d still need to tell Remington about him. I can’t make these decisions on my own.”
“Damn, Rafe. You’re really growing up.”
“Shut up, asshole.”
“How much do you know about this man?”
Heat rushed to my face. I really didn’t want to fuck up again. “Not nearly as much as I should to have let him into this game.”
“Right.”
“My guys are following him tonight. They should at least find out where he lives, and we can work from there.”
“Remington could find out a whole lot more.”
“And then he’d realize I let the guy in without knowing shit.”
“Dammit, Rafe. What do you want me to do?”
“Tell me what’s right. Help me investigate him or just listen.”
He hummed. “You really are growing up.”
“I’ve been telling you and Lorenzo to stop treating me like a fucking child. I’m doing a damn good job with this casino. Remington came to me, not to Lorenzo, and not to you.”
“So call him and tell him. Don’t break his trust.”
“I thought maybe if I had him investigate everyone in the game, then it wouldn’t be as pointed toward the new guy.”
Dante hesitated before answering. “No, it wouldn’t. Do you suspect any of the rest of them?”
“No, they wouldn’t be in there if I did. If I thought any of them were involved, I would’ve told Remington. We would’ve set them up, and they’d be in our custody now, spilling everything.”
“Call him, Rafe. I know it sucks, but you’re doing the right thing. And don’t get involved with this guy.”
“I don’t get involved with people. That’s for you and Lorenzo.”
“Rafe, just leave him alone. Talk to him for business only.”
“You don’t usually give a damn. It’s not like we have some kind of office rule.”
“True, but there’s something in your voice. I’m worried about you.”
“I’ll be fine, but isn’t there any other option than telling Remington?”
Dante was silent for a few moments, and then he said, “Maybe. Give me a little while. I’ve got an idea, but if it works out, you’ll owe.”
“What kind of idea?”
“Just let me try, and then I’ll explain.”
I didn’t like how secretive he was being, and I had no idea what he meant. Either I told Remington, or I didn’t. What else was there to do? “Okay, but don’t leave me hanging for too long.”
“I won’t.” He ended the call.
I poured myself a drink and threw it back in one go. I considered another one, but I needed to be sober if I was going to talk with Remington.
He was an early riser, which meant I could potentially call him in a few hours. I prayed Dante would call me before then.