Dancer in Lingerie (Lingerie 13)

Ronan didn’t have a rebuttal.

“I’ll take care of this if you can’t.” It was vital that this casino ran under my authority. I was known as a bloodthirsty psychopath—and that was how I liked it.

“I can—”

“I’ll be down there in ten minutes. He’s going in the ring. We’ve got another man waiting for his chance.”

“Bosco, the guy is in his fifties.”

“Again, does it sound like I care?” If men wanted to fuck with me, I would fuck with them back. He would die for his stupidity, and I wouldn’t lose any sleep over it. “No one gets a slap on the wrist. No one gets a warning. Stealing is punishable by death.” I hung up and ground my teeth together, annoyed Ronan didn’t have the balls of steel that I possessed. He was far more empathetic, especially when a guy had kids. Since we’d lost our mother, he’d been particularly sensitive to the matter.

But I didn’t give a shit.

Her beautiful voice broke the silence. “Everything alright?”

I turned to look at her, to see her standing in a t-shirt I’d left on the floor. Though the material was shapeless, it didn’t stop her from looking far sexier than she did in the lingerie she wore earlier. For a brief moment, I forgot how angry I was. “I have to go to the casino. I’ll be back in a few hours.” I tossed the phone on the table as I headed back toward the hallway.

“Is everything okay?” With sleepy eyes and a relaxed posture, she looked like she was ready to go right back to bed.

“No.” I picked her up on my way, wrapping her legs around my waist as I carried her back to the bedroom. I laid her on the sheets before I grabbed my jeans and long-sleeved shirt. “Go back to sleep. I’ll be back before you wake up.”

“You want me to stay here?” she asked with surprise.

“Yes.” I pulled the shirt over my head and then got my jeans on.

“What happened?” she asked, sitting up.

“An asshole crossed me. Ronan is too much of a pussy to do anything about it, so I have to take care of it.”

“What did he do?” she asked.

“He stole a chip from one of the tables. Now I have to put him in the ring.”

Her eyes widened with horror. “You’re going to make him fight to the death for stealing one chip?”

I wasn’t in the mood for her opinions. I stared her down with a formidable look, warning her now wasn’t the time for her attitude. “It doesn’t matter if it’s one chip or a thousand. He knows the law—and he broke it.”

“Are you sure it wasn’t an accident?”

“Yes.”

“So if I piss you off, are you going to throw me in the ring too?” she asked hesitantly.

“No, Beautiful. Women aren’t members of the casino.”

“That’s sexist.”

I gave her a dark look, giving her another warning.

This time, she went quiet.

“Go back to bed.” I turned away and headed down the hallway.

Her footsteps sounded behind me as she followed me.

I grabbed my jacket from the coatrack, along with my phone and wallet. I hit the button for the elevator and typed in the code so the gated doors would open.

“Bosco.”

I turned around, still wearing a scowl.

She moved into me and wrapped her arms around my neck. She rose on her tiptoes and kissed me goodbye, giving me the softest embrace with those full lips. It wasn’t a kiss intended to drag me back to bed, but it was a kiss that told me she was worried about me. “Be careful.”

All the rage I felt for the situation disappeared when I looked at her. A soft grin spread over my lips, seeing the way she was slowly becoming attached me, the way she wanted me to come back in the same condition I left. “Beautiful, are you worried about me?” My hand slid into her hair as I cradled her face, seeing a new side to her that she’d tried to keep hidden from me for so long.

She didn’t make a smartass comment to bury the truth. She finally dropped her bullshit attitude and gave it to me straight. “Don’t let it go to your head, alright?”

I grinned wider. “It already has.”

11

Carmen

I didn’t sleep well while he was gone. Normally, I was out like a light, the night passing within a heartbeat. But now, I tossed and turned, slightly conscious as I felt his cool sheets freezing my skin. The heater was on and it was at least twenty degrees warmer inside than it was outside, but I was still frozen to the bone.

I was starting to become dependent on his heat.

When his heavy footsteps pounded against the hardwood floor again, I finally felt comfortable for the first time since he’d left. I heard his clothes drop to the floor, and then his heavy weight hit the bed.