Two Can Play (Celeste and Dominic) novel Chapter 492

We stayed there a long moment breathing each other's air.

Then he set me down gently and reality came rushing back.

I wiped myself, straightened my dress, smoothed my hair, and checked myself in the mirror. Flushed and thoroughly fucked, but presentable. Blaze tucked himself back into his trousers and watched me with those dark eyes, a satisfied smile on his face.

I let out a breathless laugh. "That was incredible." And I meant it.

He reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. "Anytime you want more, you know where to find me."

I kissed him, soft and quick, promised we would do this again some other time, and walked out of the room like nothing had happened.

The club had grown even louder while I was gone. I made my way back to where I had left Cara, but she was not there. I scanned the crowd, weaving through the dancers, looking for her dark hair. The music was so loud that calling her would have been useless, so I just kept moving, peering into faces, until I noticed an open door near the back of the gambling hall.

Light spilled out of it, along with voices and laughter and the clink of chips. I stepped closer, and through the gap I saw Cara sitting at a green felt table with a group of men and women while a dealer in a black vest dealt cards from a shoe.

I slipped inside and stood at the edge of the room, watching. The chips on that table were stacked so high they made my eyes water. Purple chips, black chips. Money everywhere.

Cara caught my eye and smiled, gesturing for me to come closer. I went to her side just as she won another hand, pulling a small mountain of chips toward her.

"What are you playing?" I asked, leaning close.

Cara studied me for a long moment, then sighed and slid her chair back. "Sit down. But I told you not to play."

I sat in her seat and placed my first bet on the banker. The dealer dealt. The banker won. I collected my winnings and bet again. I won again. The chips piled up in front of me and the room seemed to glow, and I felt like I had been born for this. Winning, always winning, the money multiplying like I had finally found the one thing in the world that could never hurt me.

Eight million. In less than an hour I had turned nothing into eight million dollars, and my head was spinning with it.

"Told you not to play," Cara murmured behind me, but she was smiling.

I was not done. Eight million was pocket change. I had come here to win real money, and now that I knew the game I wanted more. I doubled my bet and won. I doubled it again and lost. And then I made the mistake that would haunt me.