Page 18 of Betting Blind

As my eyes narrow in on the man that just emerged through the front entrance, I know that my storm has just blown in, and it looks like it’s shaping up to be a category five. His blue eyes dart back and forth through the crowded room before finally settling on me and his lips turn up into a playful smirk. I dip my head in acknowledgment as he makes his way to the chair I’m occupying at the blackjack table.

“ECP,” he greets me quietly and moves his hand to adjust the cufflink of his left arm. He towers over me, and I can’t help but notice the confidence that is emanating off him. He’s more in his element here than in the coffee shop earlier today.

“Hello, Silas,” I respond casually and take a heavy sip of my wine. “Care to join in on the fun?” My eyes shift from his expensive tailored burgundy suit to his blue eyes and then over to the dealer shuffling a new deck of cards.

“Absolutely.” He unbuttons his jacket and takes a seat beside me with the grace of someone who knows their way around a casino table. Silas produces a stack of chips and places them on the soft tabletop before turning his head to meet my eyes. “It seems like I need to catch up,” he says with a nod to my growing pile of chips.

I shrug but make no comment, eyes already focused on the cards as the dealer tosses them out and begins a new game. “Just have luck on my side tonight,” I mutter with a sly smile and tilt my chin up defiantly at the dealer as he looks from me to Silas.

Silas cuts his eyes to me and the corner of his mouth twitches as though he is fighting a grin. “I’m sure that’s it. Let’s see if lady luck still sides with you now that I’m here. I must admit.” He pauses and takes stock of his hand. “I’m usually her favorite.”

“Why does that not surprise me?” I mutter with an eye roll and toss a chip into the pot. We continue our quiet banter for a while. I win a few games and he comes out on top a few more, but we both try to keep it conspicuous. It is obvious that he knows exactly what I am doing because he is doing the exact same thing.

I brush my burgundy hair over my shoulder and tilt my glass back, finishing off my third glass. A small drop of wine slides down the corner of my mouth in my haste, but before I can catch it, Silas lifts his hand and brushes his thumb along my bottom lip, catching the liquid before it drips onto my dress. Heat flares in my cheeks, and I can feel the blush creeping up my neck at his intimate gesture. As I look away, my eyes catch on the dealer, who is scowling at us with narrowed eyes. Well fuck. This is not going to go well.

I turn back to Silas, who is also blushing and looking everywhere but my face. “I do believe it’s time to go,” I say and lean forward to grab his attention. He looks back at me and opens his mouth to speak, but then closes it again. His confidence from earlier is gone, and now I can see the shy man that I met in the coffee shop.

A shudder ripples through me as a firm finger presses into the middle of my back and drags up my spine. Double fuck. Busted. Silas stands and turns to face the bouncer behind us with a glare. I slowly get to my feet with my hands up, palms out.

“You need to go. Your games are over. Get out.” The bouncer’s deep timbre matches his macho appearance and I know that I don’t want to pick a fight here tonight.

“Of course,” Silas says smoothly and places his hand on my back. “I’ll meet you at the front,” he leans in to whisper in my ear before disappearing towards the restrooms.

I look back at the dealer and find him smirking at me with his arms folded across his chest. His smugness is almost enough to light the fire of my rage, but I force the emotion down and turn to collect my clutch. It isn’t until I hear his voice that I snap. A single statement hissed under his breath. “You’ll be counting your days soon, bitch, instead of just counting cards.”

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

My hands move without my permission and before I can even rationalize what I’m doing, I lean across the table and land a sucker punch right to his nose. I feel the cartilage give and warm liquid runs down my arm. There is a flurry of movement, and shouts ring out across the room as people scatter and bouncers close in. “Toodles!” I call and push myself off the table and under the arms of a security detail behind me. I weave through the commotion of people and disappear down the dark hallway towards the back door.

A door to my right opens and an arm clad in dark burgundy catches my wrist and pulls me into a small bathroom. My back crashes against the wall as Silas locks the door and barricades me in, his arms on either side of my head and his hard muscles against my chest. “The fuck happened?” he hisses and looks down at my bloody knuckles.

“I had a disagreement with the dealer,” I say nonchalantly, my British accent slipping slightly as rage and adrenaline stillcourse through my veins. He sighs but says nothing, just listening to the chaos on the other side of the door. “Thanks for the assist.” I wiggle my hips to adjust my dress and he drops his left hand to my right hip, stilling me.

His eyes close, and he lets out a sharp hiss. “Don’t,” he whispers, his voice jagged. My face breaks out into a wide grin as I press my body more firmly against his, feeling his erection against my stomach. “Fuck,” he breathes out a heavy sigh and his eyes close as I grind against him again.

“I owe you,” I state and without hesitation, I stand up on my tiptoes and press my lips to his. He tenses for a moment before the hand on my hip tightens and he pulls me impossibly closer. I can’t be sure if it’s the adrenaline, my unhealthy habit of delving into things that aren’t good for me, or just the electric atmosphere around us, but his kiss lights me on fire and I have never felt anything like it.

His lips are soft and yielding to mine as our mouths find a rhythm. My tongue darts out and he opens for me immediately with a muffled groan. I smile into the kiss and twist my hands through his dark hair, tugging at the roots and earning another moan from him. Silas pulls away first and stares down at me with an expression of uncertainty.

For a moment I’m caught in his stare, unable to move and feeling like I’m drowning but also taking my first breath at the same time. What an odd feeling bouncing around my insides. I’m not sure if I hate it or like it. I blink up at him once before dropping to my knees, careful not to hit the sink or toilet on my way down.

“No,” he says firmly and reaches for my arms to pull me back to my feet, but I shrug him off. “E,” he sighs. “I don’t… I can’t… Not here…” His confidence waivers. He’s fighting hismoral compass, that much is clear, but it appears that lust is winning out as his fingers tighten on my biceps. I can see the waging war behind his eyes.

My fingers deftly undo his belt and slide his pants and boxers down to his mid-thigh, allowing his cock to bob free. My grin only widens further when he hisses through his clenched teeth as I take him in my hand. “Let me do this,” I whisper and trace my tongue along the underside of his shaft, from base to tip. His hips jerk forward in response. “That’s sexy,” I murmur and repeat the motion.

Silas tips his head back and lets out another low groan, he moves one of his hands to the back of my head, fingers spread through my hair. “Fuck.”

I take him fully into my mouth and hollow my cheeks, applying a small amount of suction as I move my head forward and back. His hand on my head flexes and I feel his other hand come to rest on the other side of my face. My tongue flicks across his head and dips into the slit before pulling him back into my mouth.

With his hands cradling my face, he urges me to pick up the pace, pushing and pulling gently. His hips jerk forward every few seconds as I apply hard suction. My hands wrap around his bare thighs and my nails dig into his skin. Tears prick my eyes as he continues to urge me to a more brutal pace, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. This is my nirvana. I take the pleasure and the pain and marry them together for my own slice of paradise.

“Fuck. Just like that.” Silas lets out a low groan and his hips start jerking more erratically. He looks down at me and his blue eyes are molten as he watches his cock disappear between my lips. There’s a shift in his demeanor, a flash of somethingdark in his eyes and his lips quirk up. “I’m going to come in your gorgeous mouth, and you’re going to take every bit of it.” His voice is husky and rough, like he’d been asleep for several hours.

My pussy clenches at his deep timbre and the words only spur me on. I take him deeper, relaxing my throat and sucking hard. His sleek confidence is back, and I am one hundred percent here for this version of Silas. My lips turn up into a wicked smirk around his cock.

“Do you understand me?” His eyes narrow at my upturned lips. He punches his hips forward and I gag as he hits the back of my throat unexpectedly. “Every. Last. Drop.” He enunciates each word with a shallow thrust. I nod my head and close my eyes as more tears stream down my cheeks, ruining my black mascara.

My fingers dig into the backs of his thighs, and I pull off him with a pop. A thin stream of saliva connecting my lips to the head of his cock. “Give it to me then.” I rake my teeth along his hard flesh before dipping my head and biting the sensitive skin where his thigh meets his groin.

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