Authors: Anne Rainey
Tempting Grace (7 page)
“Everything in Vegas is outrageous,” he said. “Answer me.” She dropped the menu and frowned. “No, it’s not a crime. Happy now?” He stayed silent, watchful and mysterious. Grace wished she had the ability to read Jackson’s moods, but the only time she knew what went through his ornery mind was when he was turned on. In those heated moments when he teased, challenging her to take him up on his offer to push their relationship into more intimate territory, Jackson dropped his armor. Only then could she see into his soul. And what she observed made her nervous as hell. He wasn’t an easy man. Jackson was hard, inside and out. He played hard, worked hard, and he expected everyone to do the same. Grace was very much afraid that he wanted things from her she didn’t know how to give. The X-rated things he’d whispered to her on the plane had sent her straight to a cold shower. Well, a cold shower after she’d answered several phone calls from her family asking if she’d landed safely. Not just her mother, like normal people, but nearly the entire Vaughn bunch had called to make sure she hadn’t crashed. She loved them, but there were times she was tempted to move to Alaska just to escape their coddling.
Crap. Three days in Vegas. Three days of denying Jackson and the needs he brought out in her. As if she was that strong.! She’d be lucky to last one night before she came begging for him to fuck her.
When their waitress came around and started her spiel about the house specials, Grace glanced across the table. The wicked look Jackson shot her way told her two things really quick. He knew exactly what
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she’d been thinking, and she’d be lucky if she could still walk by the time he finished with her. Excitement had her heart beating faster. Fear had her pretending an unusual interest in the menu.
40
Chapter Six
Jackson gritted his teeth in frustration. They’d long since finished their meals. Grace had eaten a damned grilled chicken Caesar salad, probably because it was the cheapest thing on the menu, while he’d devoured a succulent filet mignon. After the waitress had brought out the dessert cart, Jackson nearly came in his slacks as he watched Grace’s deep blue eyes glaze over. She’d stared at the selection of rich culinary delights and licked her lips. He’d wanted to pull her out of her chair, slam her down on the table and have her pussy for dessert. But her refusal to pick anything from the cart was causing him to fast lose his patience.
“Get dessert,” he ordered.
Grace played with her water glass and eyed the cart as if she wanted to steal away with the whole thing. “No, I can’t. It’s all just too expensive.”
Christ, her cousin was the owner of the company she worked for and she still refused a simple slice of cake? “Merrick doesn’t mind if we indulge ourselves a little when we’re on business trips. He would insist if he were here, and you know it.”
“I would feel like I was taking advantage of him. Just because we can turn in our expenses doesn’t mean we should go hog wild.”
Was she for real? Anyone else would be racking up the bill if they knew their boss was footing it.
Damned irritant. “A slice of cake is not going hog wild. Having the entire cart would be hog wild.” She shook her head and looked away. “Fine, then I’ll pay for it. Just get the damned chocolate cake, Gracie.” Her lips thinned in anger. “I’m not poor. I don’t need you buying me cake, Jackson Hill. I just don’t want it. Let it go.”
Jackson looked at the waitress and growled, “We’ll take two slices of chocolate cake. Put it on my bill.”
“Yes, sir,” the waitress squeaked before rushing off.
He watched as Grace’s nostrils flared with anger. “You did not just do that.”
“Why do you refuse such a simple thing? There’s no point, Gracie. And don’t ever lie to me again.
You want the fucking cake. Hell, you were damned near drooling over it.”
“I decide what I want and don’t want, Jackson, not you.”
Anne Rainey
As the waitress came back carrying a tray filled with their cake, he was forced to silence. After she placed the decadent treats on the table then left, his gaze snagged on Grace. She licked her lips, but still didn’t pick up her fork.
Jackson had had enough of her stubbornness to last a lifetime. He leaned across the table and whispered, “Baby, we can eat the cake here with forks and napkins like civilized adults, or we can lick it off each other back in my room. Your choice.”
Grace didn’t speak, but merely sat there, as if warring with herself. Was she imagining what he wanted her to imagine? Jackson desperately wanted an answer to that question. She shocked him when she picked up the fork and took a chunk out of the dark dessert. Her eyes were trained on him as she brought it to her mouth. The fork disappeared between her plump, ruby lips. She closed her eyes and moaned deep in her throat. When she went back for a second bite, Jackson spread his legs and sat back, content to watch Grace seduce him with chocolate. By the time she’d devoured the entire slice, his cock was hammer hard and ready to be buried deep inside Grace’s pretty cunt. Tight and hot, right where he belonged for the next fifty years.
Grace sat back, dabbed her lips with the white linen napkin and murmured, “You’re right. I did want the cake, but you were wrong about the other.”
Jackson cleared his throat. “What other?” Hallelujah, he really could speak.
This time it was Grace’s turn to lean across the table. “I never mix my two favorite vices. Chocolate is orgasmic all on its own. When I have sex, I prefer to leave the food out of it.”
And again, Grace Vaughn takes the lead
. Their verbal sparring matches were wearing him down.
Jackson couldn’t figure out why he didn’t just forfeit, lay himself at her feet and beg her to put him out of his horny misery. He sure as hell wasn’t getting anywhere by hoping she’d come to him on her own.
She smiled as the waitress brought their checks. Jackson could only sit there, staring like a horny teenager with his first nudie magazine. By the time they were headed out of the restaurant he had his voice back and his cock was only semi-erect. As they reached the elevator, he took her arm and turned her toward him. “Come up to my room for a drink.”
“You aren’t going to molest me, are you?”
Her soft smile as she looked up at him caused his gut to clench. Her sweet innocence was intoxicating. He could well understand why her family wanted to wrap her in cotton and set her on a shelf.
On the other hand, he wanted nothing more than to show her all the dirty sex acts he’d learned over the years. Things that would leave them both gasping for air. The elevator dinged and opened. Another couple stood inside waiting for them to get on.
“Come on,” he urged as he pulled her along beside him. The doors slid shut, sealing them in with the other two. The walls of the elevator were mirrored, and he was able to see the other couple behind them, kissing. Christ, that was all he needed, a visual aid.
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Grace rose on her toes and whispered, “You’re blushing.” Jackson’s patience snapped. He cupped her chin and ground out, “Keep pushing me and you’ll get more than a drink when we reach my room.”
She tried to step away from him, but he had his hand wrapped around her forearm, preventing her escape. “I know better than that, Jackson. The other night is proof I have nothing to fear from you.” She just wouldn’t let it go that he’d left her. Couldn’t she see he’d done it for her own good? He could have stayed and made love to her the entire night. Hell, the entire weekend. He’d tried to give her time to accept him, to accept a relationship with him. All he’d done was make it worse. One step forward, ten steps back.
Jackson’s gaze took in the tight black dress that accentuated her small breasts and slender hips. He imagined slipping her out of it. Inch by delicious inch. Would she be wearing panties this time? “We’ll see,” he murmured.
As the elevator stopped on their floor, he looked in the mirrored wall again. The couple had practically climbed each other. The woman’s head was thrown back in rapture, and the man was in the process of nibbling his way down to the brunette’s cleavage. Jackson peeked over at Grace, gauging her reaction to the pair of exhibitionists. Her eyes were round as quarters, but she wasn’t looking away. He noticed her nipples were hard little pebbles beneath the black silk. She liked watching. Interesting.
He tugged on her arm to indicate the elevator had stopped. She cleared her throat and walked through the open doors, completely ignoring him. He ended up getting dragged along in her wake. Jackson couldn’t tell if she’d decided to go to his room for a drink or not. He’d never seen her act so damned mysterious.
When she turned right down the hall, which would take her to his room instead of left toward her own, he let out a breath, thankful he wasn’t going to have to toss her over his shoulder and haul her cute ass to his suite by force. He was just desperate enough to do it.
He moved alongside her and let her pull her arm away. As they approached his suite, she stopped and adjusted her purse higher on her shoulder. “Drinks. Nothing more.” He moved to close the gap between them and let his fingers trail down her check. “Unless you want more.”
“I don’t.”
Her voice wasn’t quite as steady as it had been in the restaurant. Jackson had to hold back a triumphant grin. “Little liar.”
She was about to say something more, something caustic, no doubt, but he took his keycard out of his pocket and slid it through the slot. He pushed the door open before stepping aside. “After you, Gracie.” Her nose shot in the air as she walked past him. He took in the sway of her hips and her tight, slightly rounded ass. God in heaven, the woman was a gift. Her body made his every instinct kick in. He wanted to slam the door shut and fuck her into submission. Force her to accept him as her lover—her only lover.
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Soon, he promised his overeager cock. Even in his lusty fog, he noticed there weren’t any panty lines, but that wasn’t enough proof. The only way he’d know for sure if she had anything on under the sexy dress was to get her out of it.
Jackson stepped inside the room and closed the door behind him, then flipped the security lock into place. As he hit the switch, illuminating the room, and moved toward her, Grace licked her lips, her posture stiff as a board. He could see the war going on inside her pretty head so clearly. She wanted him, but she wasn’t happy about it. By the time they went back to Ohio, she would belong to him. The only other option was just too damned depressing to consider.
He went to the desk at the far side of the room and picked up the phone. “Champagne or wine?”
“Wine.”
Jackson ordered a bottle of Merlot, then looked at Grace as an idea struck. “We’re also going to need a deck of cards.” He watched her frown at him from across the room. When he hung up, he said, “You’ve never played poker with me. Since we’re in Vegas and all, I thought it seemed appropriate.”
“Be warned. I’ve been playing poker since I was big enough to walk. My dad taught me. I’m not bragging when I say I’m good. In fact, poker helped pay for books and gas when I was in college.”
“I know. I’ve seen you play with Blade and Merrick. You’re very good. But so am I. What do you say to a few hands of five card stud?”
Grace went to the couch and sat. “Sure, why not? But you’d better not be a sore loser. I hate sore losers.”
“Ditto, Gracie,” he said. A knock on the door indicated room service. After taking the wine and cards, he tipped the guy and went to the chair next to the couch. He poured a glass of wine and held it out to Grace. When she took it, he poured another glass for himself. They were silent as they each took a sip. He set his on the coffee table and opened the box of cards. As he shuffled, he explained the rules. “Five card stud, nothing wild.”
“Easy enough. Are we playing for money?”
“No, not money. Information.”
“Huh?”
“If I win, you have to tell me three things about yourself. Good things, not like ‘I like the color red.’.
If you win, I have to tell you three things about myself. What do you say?” She grinned. “You’re going to be doing a lot of talking.” He didn’t speak as he dealt. He waited for her to look at her hand. When she discarded two, he slid two new cards across the coffee table. She picked them up, but Jackson couldn’t tell if she was happy or not. She was good at not giving herself away. He looked at his own cards and discarded one, then waited for her to show her hand. She had two pair, kings and deuces. All he’d ended up with was a pair of nines.
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He placed his own hand face up on the table and watched her expression change from blank to pure wickedness.
“Start talking,” she demanded.
Shit, he’d wanted to find out more about
her
. He’d been sure he could beat her. Next time, he vowed.
“Let’s see… I have a fondness for motorcycles. I always have. I have two that I keep at my brother’s place. I can’t stand movies with sad endings. They’re a complete waste of time to me. Also, my mom has always wanted to go to Ireland, so my brother and I are pitching in and sending my parents there for their wedding anniversary next year.”
“Ah, that’s so sweet,” she said, her face softening. “I bet she’ll be thrilled.”
“She’ll probably get on us for spending so much money, but, yeah, she’ll be pleased as hell too.”
“Okay, my turn to deal.” Grace scooped up the cards and started to shuffle. He’d seen her at work before, but her skill with a deck never failed to impress him. She dealt five cards each, then placed the deck in the center. He looked at his hand and had to stifle a grin. “I’ll stay.” No expression from Grace as she picked up her cards and tossed one down and picked a new one up from the deck. She looked at him, and he laid his cards out face up. “Three aces.” Grace showed her hand. “That beats my lousy pair of fours.”
