Her lips pressed together for a moment, but then she narrowed her eyes, the picture of determination. “Very well, then. I have a proposition for you.”
Kell gave her a measuring look. “Why would I be interested in any proposition of yours?”
“Because you are a gamester, and you can’t resist a wager. I will gamble with you for your agreement, Kell. A few throws of the dice. If I can roll seven or eleven three times in a row, you will allow Wolverton to help you.”
“And if not?”
“Then I will never bother you about the subject again. I will stand back and let your good name be ruined and your club destroyed with my blessing.”
Kell eyed her in speculation, wondering what she was up to.
“Are you afraid I might win?” Raven taunted, a bright challenge in her eyes.
He wanted to tell her to go to the devil, but curiosity got the better of him. He pushed the dice box toward her, then leaned indolently against the table, crossing his arms over his chest. “Go ahead then, roll.”
Shaking her head, she opened her fist, showing a pair of dice. With a smug look, she juggled them a time or two and tossed the bits of ivory on the table, rolling a combination of eleven.
When Kell raised an eyebrow, Raven smiled serenely.
The second throw was just as successful. A seven. She gathered the dice and started to throw again.
His hand reached out to close over hers, staying her. Prying open her fingers, Kell captured the dice, hefting them in his hand.
Understanding dawned, as did anger. “These are weighted,” he said harshly.
“I never claimed they weren’t,” Raven responded, her own tone dulcet. “You merely assumed I would use your dice.”
Kell took a step toward her, reaching up to wrap his fingers around her throat in a gentle vise. “I don’t tolerate cheating in my establishment.”
A fleeting smile wreathed her mouth. “I never doubted it for a moment. But we must make everyone else see that.”
Praying for patience, Kell shut his eyes. “I’ve been gulled like the veriest greenhorn, haven’t I?”
“I’m afraid so.” Pulling his fingers from her throat, Raven eased from his grasp. “But I cheated for a good cause.”
Seeing the mirth trembling on her lips, Kell choked back his own bark of laughter and cursed instead. “Where in hell did you get a pair of loaded dice? No, don’t tell me. O’Malley.”
“Yes. He taught me to play cards and shoot dice.”
“And pistols as well,” Kell said darkly, remembering.
“Well, yes. He contributed a great deal to my education.”
“Your education was damned peculiar for a young lady.”
“I won’t argue with you on that point. My mother would have been appalled had she known.”
She took the dice from him and threw again. Another seven. “I believe I just won,” she said, her tone unwisely triumphant.
But Kell wasn’t willing to let her escape so easily. Grasping her arm, he turned Raven to face him and, with his body, crowded her against the hazard table, bracing his arms on either side of her to prevent her escape.
“Do you know what I do to cheats?” he asked, his voice a silken menace.
“No, what?” she said breathlessly.
His gaze dropped to her mouth. He wanted to shake her. He wanted to kiss her and wipe that knowing gleam from her incredible blue eyes. “I throw them out on their ears.”
“Would you really be so cruel to me?”