Hazard Play (11 page)

“Brother, dear, it’s so nice of you to be concerned. But remember, it’s not me who takes medication, is it?” She smiled sweetly and chucked him under the chin.

“Mm-medication?” Lucius stammered and stepped back a pace.

“A little something for an old war injury, Thomas. Nothing to be worried about.”

Tess mentally sketched a “score one to Tess” in the air. The pitying way the two men were looking at him delighted her.

“What kind of medication?” Lucius repeated.

Tess smiled. “I hardly think this is the time to revisit old wounds. I’m sure that even without his prescription, my brother could rise to any occasion.”

She saw that, try as he might, Bailey couldn’t prevent flushing when neither man would look him in the eye. Her innuendo could have meant anything, but she had a feeling her remark had led Joe and Lucius right where she’d wanted them. She was having a blast, but was exhausted by the long day.

“Sorry to break this up, guys, I’m going up to my room. Good night.” 

“The night’s young, Sis. I’m not ready to go to bed.” Bailey must want to keep talking to Monroe.

“I'll escort you to your room, Tess.” Joe looked more than happy to oblige her. “We can discuss our plans for tomorrow.”

“Excellent.” She leaned next to Bailey, pretending to kiss his cheek, and whispered, “Payback’s a bitch.” She straightened and left with Joe.

* * *

Tess laughed as she and Joe walked out of the casino. Bailey noted she’d laughed more with this joker than the whole time she’d known him. Not that they’d started off on the right track, but he didn’t like the fact that she seemed to be enjoying that guy’s company so much.

Bailey managed to talk Lucius into another drink although he could tell the little man didn’t like him. He toned down his “good old boy” routine. He didn’t want Monroe refusing to associate with him before he had the information he needed. Thirty minutes later, he was on his way to his hotel room. 

He paused outside Tess’s room for a moment before entering his own. He didn’t know what to say to her anyway. “Tess, even though I’m not the settling down type, that doesn’t mean you can play around.” “Tess, do not smile or laugh when you’re with other men.” Those industrial strength drinks the casinos served to help lighten the pockets of gamblers must be getting to him.

His feelings for Tess meant trouble and he didn’t know what to do about it. He walked the few steps to his door and entered.

Standing under the shower for five minutes, he willed his proprietary thoughts about Tess to be washed away. He put on the complimentary bathrobe and sat down at his laptop to record his case progress and check his messages.

That done, he looked at the door adjoining his room to hers. He hadn’t heard any sounds from in there, not that he’d expected to. Tess wasn’t the sort of woman to jump into the sack with a man she just met.

So, what is the problem?
He paced. He didn’t
want
to be jealous. He didn’t
want
to want Tess to reserve her smiles and laughter for him alone. He’d never felt like that about anyone. Not his first love in college. Not Rand.
Damn it.

He forced himself to think about the case and the urgency of finding the money before his competition. At the least, he could order Tess to put her personal life on hold until this case was over and she was a free agent. He shrugged out of the robe and pulled on a pair of sweats.

He opened the adjoining door and stepped into the small anteroom. He tapped lightly on Tess’s door. No answer. He knocked louder and heard a muffled “Hmm?” 

“Tess, we need to talk. Open up.” Then, she stood in the entry and he stopped breathing.

He drank in her bed-tousled sun-kissed hair and her eyes—those great blue eyes—heavy-lidded with sleep. She wore a short, red satin nightgown with spaghetti straps, one of which was falling off her shoulder. She looked
like every man’s dream—strike that—she looked like his dream. Now he had to figure out what to do about it.

Tess leaned against the doorjamb and looked up at him, “What is it you want, Bailey?” She knew she looked like twelve miles of bad road, but she didn’t care. She wasn’t used to getting to bed at two o’clock in the morning. Maybe she should’ve put a clause in her deal that there wouldn’t be any late night meetings.

“May I come in?” At her nod, Bailey surged into her room and began pacing. Watching his unconcealed energy made her wonder how he did it. She could barely keep her eyes open.

“I don’t see what couldn’t wait until tomorrow. Has something happened? I need to sit down if this is going to take a while.” Tess yawned and he followed her to the small settee in the corner of the room. Sitting down, she leaned her head against the back cushion.

“No, it couldn’t wait. We might not have the chance to talk alone tomorrow.” He stared at her so long Tess thought she really must look bad.

She flushed and combed her fingers through her hair. “I should run a brush through this mess.” 

Bailey reached over and took her hand down. “Don’t. I like it.” He touched one errant curl and tucked it behind her ear. “Love it.”

“Umm...” Tess slowly let her breath out.

“I need you to be focused from here on out. I know it’s tempting, but I hired you to work, not play with muscle-bound cabana boys.” Bailey used his best boss-man voice.

Tess opened her eyes wider. “You woke me up at two forty-five in the morning for this? You’ve got to be kidding! And ‘muscle bound cabana boy?’ I hardly think the fitness center manager at Harrah’s could be called a cabana boy. What are you really trying to say?”

“I don’t want you distracted.” He looked down.

“At least, look at me while you’re lying. It’s more sincere.” Tess didn’t know whether to be amused at this ridiculous conversation or not. She was wide-awake now and the implications were beginning to dawn on her. No-strings Bailey was jealous. And he didn’t like it.

“If you want me to look at you, maybe you should get more clothes on,” he muttered.

Tess laughed lightly. “Or maybe I should take more off. It seems to be getting too warm in here.” She put her fingertips against his cheek.

Bailey covered her hand with his, turned his head and placed a hard kiss into her palm. He looked at her, his eyes almost black. Hot. Intense.

She met his fire with her own. “Bailey, Bailey, what am I going to do with you?”

“Make love with me, Contessa.”

* * *

Tess breathed a sigh of acceptance and trailed her hand down Bailey’s cheek.

“Contessa—”

“Shh,” Tess whispered. “There’s only one thing I want from your mouth.”

He gathered her into his arms. “Your wish is my...pleasure.” His mouth covered hers and the fit was perfect. She murmured her protest when he released her lips. Until he kissed aside her nightgown strap.

God, her skin was soft. He pushed the other strap from her shoulder. She trembled as he traced kisses across her collarbone. She pulled him to the bed and sank beneath him. He breathed deeply of her unique scent. He felt like he’d waited to make love with Tess since the first night he’d kissed her and wanted more.

“Remind me.” He punctuated his words with a kiss above the neckline of her nightgown.

“Of what?” Her voice was faint.

“That lilacs became my favorite flower when I met you.” He proceeded to prove it by tasting her skin. “Yes, my very favorite.”

She reached behind his head, pulled free the elastic securing his hair and tossed it away. “I’ve been wanting to do that since I met you.”

“This is what I’ve wanted to do.” His hands worshipped her body, learning her curves and secrets.

She moved restlessly beneath his explorations, her hips cradling his erection. She pushed him away long enough to open the drawer in the nightstand. She took out a condom and put the packet on the stand. “Hmm, I’ll ask you about the scar,” she said as she kissed the whitened skin above his ribcage. “Later. Much later.” She inched his sweats over his hips helping him take them off and dropping them on the floor.

Her touch undid him. He shuddered as she used her hands to bring his body to the breaking point. With a swift motion, he pulled off her nightgown and tossed it aside. Trapping her hands over her head, he took a deep, ragged breath. “If you keep that up, Contessa, I’m not going to be of any use to either of us.” 

He was nestled between her thighs, his erection, hot and heavy, pushing against her stomach. Her breasts were flattened against his chest and so he lifted himself up enough to take one hardened peak in his mouth.

She surged beneath him and he released her hands to caress her other breast. “No fair,” Tess gasped. “Two can play this game.” She writhed, her body rubbing against his arousal in a way calculated to make a man forget what day it was. Hell, he didn’t even know what month it was. 

She guided him up to her mouth. Her tongue began a rhythm of slow invasion and withdrawal, over and over, seeking an answer from him. Bailey ended the kiss. There was only one answer. Pausing only to tear open the foil packet and put on the condom, he covered her with his body.

He shifted his hips and Tess opened to receive him, her eyes never leaving his. He slowly entered her, going deeper into her hot moistness until they were completely joined. For a moment, they were still, his lips resting against her forehead. 

Then, he lowered his mouth to hers and kissed her once, twice. He felt like they had all the time in the world. In fact, it felt like a private world. Just the two of them. Together in this room.

“Hey, where did you go?” Tess spoke softly.

“Nowhere, Contessa. I’m here with you. Only you,” he whispered.

She kissed him and he felt her muscles tighten around him. He groaned, pushed further into her and then withdrew, only to reenter. She matched his movements perfectly with her own, contracting and releasing. 

The building heat engulfed his body; all his feelings focused on this woman in his arms. Equal to his every thrust, she gave all of herself without holding back. Their gasps and murmurs punctuated the silence of the night as they kissed and caressed each other. Finally, when Bailey could no longer control his need to make this moment last, he shuddered and went over the edge, taking her with him in a shattering climax.

* * *

Showtime.

Rand knocked on the door of room 437 and reminded herself to look helpless.

The door cracked open. “Yes?” Lucius Monroe’s spectacled eyes looked out at her.

“Mr. Elliott?”

“Er, yes?”

“I’m so sorry to disturb you, but I really need help.” She’d stayed out of sight until Bailey and Monroe had parted company. Fifty bucks later, she’d bought Monroe’s assumed name from the dealer. His room number cost her another twenty dollars.

His eyes widened. “I’m sorry, Miss. I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“A mutual friend pointed you out.” She flashed her pure-as-the-driven-snow best smile and Monroe rewarded her by opening the door wider.

“A friend? I don’t know anyone here.”

“May I come in? I promise I’m not dangerous.” She added a little wholesomeness to her expression.

He frowned. “What friend?”

“Well, actually I just met her.” A girlish giggle ought to sound harmless. “Her name is Tess and she’s so nice!”

Monroe smiled. “Miss Wycliff, a totally delightful young woman.” He opened the door and stood in the entry. “I couldn’t possibly let you in my room. It wouldn’t be proper.”

Lord help her. An old school gentleman. “Well, could we go downstairs then and get some coffee? I’ll buy.”

“I’ll pay for my own, Miss—?”

“Devere. Miranda.”

“Pleased to meet you, Miss Devere.” He held out his hand and they shook. “I’ll meet you in the coffee shop.” He closed the door and she heard him secure the safety latch.

“You’d think I was a serial killer,” she muttered.

She took the stairs, aware she needed to work off the excess energy that surfaced when she was on a case. It would’ve been easier if she could’ve played femme fatale. She’d figured out in ten seconds that he wasn’t the type to be seduced by blatant sexuality. Damsel in distress would work.

* * *

Tess awoke in a warm tangle of limbs with Bailey’s arm firmly around her. She moved slightly and he tightened his hold, murmuring incoherently. Well, this was interesting. She’d have thought a man of his obvious experience would’ve left her room while she was sleeping. Given the “no strings attached” scenario, she’d expected it.

She turned her head and looked at him. It was easier to stare at him when his eyes weren’t opened to make her lose track of what she was doing. Tess noted the tiny white laugh lines at the corner of his eyes. 

He was so seldom in repose that she felt like an intruder. It didn’t stop her from studying him as if he were her personal gallery of art. She loved the angular planes of his face and his strong chin. She resisted the temptation to trace the outline of his mouth. That mouth should be registered as a sexual phenomenon.

It’d been a long time since she’d been held. It felt good, unfortunately. She didn’t like being dependent on such feelings. If you started to need or expect them, you’d end up with a broken heart. She knew it was too late. She was already in big, big trouble.

He stirred and Tess combed a stray lock of hair off of his forehead. He opened his eyes and smiled lazily. “Don’t wake me. I’m dreaming about an angel.” He kissed her lightly and pulled her even closer.

This gentle lover was a whole new Bailey to her. No wisecracks or put-downs and the dangerous edge she saw in him had disappeared. He was rumpled and altogether adorable. Damn him! 

“An angel, you say? Well, from what I recall, you were a bit of a devil last night.” She scored her nails lightly down his chest. “I bet you’ve flung that leather band around dozens of hotel rooms.”

“As I recall, I didn’t do the flinging.” He grabbed her hand and pressed a kiss into her palm. “Hm, don’t get me started. I won’t let you out of this bed at all today.”

“And that would be a bad thing?” She punctuated her words with a light nip on his ear, followed by a kiss to make it better.             

Bailey sighed. “I’m having trouble remembering why we came to Tahoe in the first place and you’re not making it any easier when you’re driving me crazy by doing that.”

“What? A little kiss? That’s ‘good morning.’ This is what I do when I’m serious.” She swept her hand over his chest and down his stomach until she held him. “You’re more awake than I thought.”

“I surrender, Contessa.” He rolled over, trapping her under him. “You never give up, do you?” He returned her caress with one equally thorough.

“Only when I’m absolutely forced to.” She stretched beneath him, their bodies already heating up. “And I don’t want your surrender, I want you to make me forget everything, the time, the place, the year. Take me away again.”

* * *

This time, when Tess awoke, she was alone. She smiled and burrowed further under the covers. Bailey obviously was not going to chance a recurrence of the last time they woke up together. She wasn’t sure she didn’t agree. They were a dangerous combination under those circumstances. She needed some time without his distracting presence so she knew she was thinking clearly about the new development in their relationship...if that’s what it was becoming. 

However much she disagreed with what he was doing, there was something very real between them. She’d had affairs based on sexual attraction and little else. This was different. 

It meant she stood a chance of getting hurt. Bailey had made it clear he had no interest in anything long-term. Did he feel the connection between them? Or was she deluding herself and hoping he did? 

Tess sighed and got out of bed. It was too much to dwell on now. She would do what she was paid for. Whatever came next would happen whether she wanted it to or not. Some things were out of her control. Heading for the shower, she wondered what that future held.

There was a message from Bailey on her phone when she came out of the bathroom. She dressed and went downstairs to the breakfast cafe where he already had a table for them.

“Morning. Did you sleep well?” His eyes were twinkling and he was impossibly cheerful.

Tess was feeling a bit playful, too. “Sleep. That’s a pretty overrated concept, yes? I got out of bed feeling very...refreshed. Must be the elevation. And you?” She sat down across from him and touched his foot with the tip of her shoe.

“That velvety stuff your blouse is made of doesn’t hold a candle to your soft skin. Now, I’ll be thinking of touching you all day.” He shook his head. “It was hard to wake up and face reality this morning.”

She colored slightly from his compliment. She’d be thinking about him wanting to touch
her
. “Reality? Sounds like the slave-driver boss is back.” Tess was willing to take it slow. She wasn’t sure she wanted this thing to go any faster, either.

“Well, I’m not so sure who’s the slave and who’s the master, but for now, we’ll pretend that I’m still the boss. Deal?” Bailey extended his hand to her. They shook.