24. A Gamble Worth Taking #2
His hands tighten around the wheel, just slightly, but his voice is steady when he responds. “Not for a second.”
The answer should be enough.
But something lingers beneath his words, something unspoken.
He takes another turn, the road stretching ahead of us, dark and empty, save for the occasional glow of passing headlights. “This isn’t going to be easy, Nichole.”
I let out a quiet laugh, shaking my head. “Nothing in life ever is.”
His jaw tightens. I can see it in the way his grip on the wheel shifts, the way his gaze flickers, sharp and calculating. “Antonio will never allow this.”
I knew it was coming. I knew it the second I let him touch me, the second I let myself fall headfirst into something I can’t take back.
I exhale slowly, glancing out the window. “I know.”
Damian doesn’t respond right away, and when he does, his voice is lower, heavier. “That doesn’t scare you?”
I smirk, shifting in my seat to face him fully. “Should it?”
His eyes flick toward me, and for the first time since we left the casino, there’s no amusement in them. Just something dark, something deadly.
“You’re not hearing me, princess.” His voice is slow, deliberate, edged with something I can’t quite place. “He won’t allow it. That doesn’t just mean he’ll disapprove.”
I let the words settle, let the meaning curl around me like smoke.
Antonio doesn’t do warnings. He doesn’t give second chances.
If he finds out, if he decides this—us—is a problem…
He’ll eliminate it.
The thought should send a chill through me, should make me stop, pull back, reconsider.
But it doesn’t.
Because if I were afraid of Antonio, I never would have walked into that casino with Damian in the first place.
I meet his gaze, steady and unflinching. “Then we don’t give him the chance.”
Damian exhales a sharp breath, his smirk returning, but this time, it’s different. There’s something almost dangerous about it.
“Goddamn it,” he mutters, shaking his head before giving me a side eye. “You really don’t know when to fold, do you?”
I smirk, reaching over to trace my fingers along the inside of his wrist, teasing, light. Testing him. “You’re the one who said you don’t lose.”
His chuckle is dark, low. Knowing.
“Yeah,” he murmurs, pulling up to the casino, the hum of the tires against the pavement the only sound between us.
“But this time, I think I just might.”
The car slows as Damian pulls up next to my parked vehicle, the headlights washing over its sleek frame. The moment feels suspended, stretched tight between us, as if stepping out of this car means stepping back into reality.
And I’m not sure I want to.
Damian shifts the car into park, resting his arm on the wheel as he turns toward me. “Dinner,” he says, as if it’s already decided.
I raise a brow, smirking. “That an order?”
His smirk matches mine, but there’s an edge of something deeper beneath it. “More of a promise.”
I hum in amusement, trailing a finger over my thigh as I pretend to think about it. “And where exactly are you planning on taking me?”
He tilts his head, watching me the way he always does—like he already knows the answer. “You’ll find out soon enough.”
I pretend to roll my eyes, but the truth is, I like that he’s not telling me. I like that he’s already planning the next move.
His expression shifts slightly, turning more serious. “But until then…” His fingers graze my knee, slow and deliberate. “You need to be careful.”
I lean back against the seat, exhaling through my nose. “I know.”
Damian shakes his head. “I don’t think you do.” His thumb presses against my skin, a subtle anchor. “I need you to pay attention while you’re at the estate. Feel the room. See if anything feels off.”
A slow chill trickles down my spine, but I refuse to let it show. “You think they already suspect something?”
His jaw tightens slightly. “I think Antonio’s always five steps ahead of everyone. If he doesn’t already know, he will soon.”
I swallow, shifting slightly in my seat. “And if he does?”
Damian’s grip tightens slightly. “Then I can guarantee one thing—you’ll be watched.”
His words settle into me, deep and unshakable, but I don’t let them linger too long. This isn’t new to me. I’ve lived under the weight of surveillance my whole life.
Still, knowing it’s different now—knowing it’s because of him—because of us…
That’s new.
Damian watches me carefully, as if waiting to see if I’ll hesitate. I don’t.
I smirk, lifting a brow. “Guess I’ll just have to be on my best behavior, then.”
His lips twitch, amused but unconvinced. “Somehow, I doubt that.”
I exhale a quiet laugh, but before I can respond, he reaches into his jacket pocket, pulling out his phone. “Here,” he says, unlocking it and handing it to me. “Put your number in.”
I do, handing it back as he types something quickly. Then he holds my phone out to me.
I glance down at the screen, seeing a new contact under ‘Valentia.’
I blink, looking up at him.
His expression is unreadable, but his voice is firm. “If anyone goes through your phone, they won’t think twice about you texting your friend.”
Understanding clicks into place. A layer of protection. A hidden connection.
I nod, changing Valentina’s name to something else before locking my screen. “Smart.”
He smirks. “I try.”
The air shifts again, charged in a different way now. A slow, simmering undercurrent replacing the tension from before.
Neither of us move right away.
Neither of us want to.
Damian watches me, his expression unreadable, but there’s something undeniably certain in his eyes. Like he already knows how this ends.
Like he already knows I’m not walking away.
I reach for the door handle, but before I can open it, his hand closes around my wrist.
And then—he kisses me.
Not teasing, not testing.
Deep. Consuming. Possessive.
I melt into it, into him, into the way he tilts my chin up, his fingers tangling in my hair, his other hand gripping my waist, pulling me back into him one last time.
It’s a warning. A promise. A claim.
And God help me, I want to be claimed.
By the time we break apart, I’m breathless.
He smirks, brushing his thumb over my lower lip. “Goodnight, princess.”
I exhale, swallowing hard before reaching for the handle again. “Goodnight, Damian.”
I step out of the car, feeling the cool air hit my skin, the warmth of his touch still lingering.
As I slide into my own car and start the engine, I glance at my phone one last time.
‘Valentina’— his name sitting safely between my contacts.
All I can do is smirk as I pull off.