Back in Her Husband's Bed

Nate was quick to follow. “I mean it isn’t safe. You could step on something. Drunks break glasses in here all the time. We try to get it all up, but you never know. Besides, the floor could be filthy.”

“You are an old ninny, Nathan.” Annie turned to him and planted her hands on her hips. Her heels dangled helplessly at her side as she wrinkled her nose and actually stuck out her tongue at him.

He could barely trust his eyes. No one on the poker circuit would believe this story if he told it later. The Barracuda, drunk and acting like a fool, albeit a beautiful one. It was unheard of. Unprecedented. And hysterical.

The bubble of laughter rose up in his throat. He couldn’t contain it. The pent-up frustration and disappointment and confusion of the last three years all pooled together at once and exploded out of him in a roar of laughter. His whole body shook with the power of it. Nate actually bowed over, his hands braced on his knees as he chuckled until tears started gathering in the corners of his eyes.

He looked up to see the laughter had doubled Annie’s irritation. Her expression only made it harder for him to breathe. Nate stood up, attempting to calm himself and wiping his face with the back of his hand. It was incredibly therapeutic—more so than the glasses of scotch or hours angrily lifting weights in the hotel gym.

“That’s it, I’m leaving!” she announced, turning and marching away from the restricted area, shoes in hand.

“Annie, come back here.” Nate jogged after her, reaching out to grasp her wrist and jerk her to a stop.

“Let go of me,” she whined, her anger doused by the champagne and reducing her to childish behavior.

Nate tightened his grip. “I will not. You’re going the wrong way. The elevator upstairs is over there.” He pointed.

Annie looked around her, confused, and then recognized her mistake. She started walking in the correct direction but was once again tugged to a stop by Nate. “Would you please let go of me?” she asked, exasperated.

Nate shook his head. “Not until you put your shoes back on.”

“Are you going to make me?” Annie taunted, tugging away again.

That was the wrong thing to say. Nate couldn’t take any more of this. If she wanted to make a scene in his casino, so be it, but he wouldn’t be the one everyone whispered about tomorrow. In one quick motion, he bent and scooped Annie up, tossing her over his shoulder like a kicking, screaming sack of potatoes.

“What the...?” she cried in surprise, but it was already too late.

Nate marched through the casino, his arms tightly gripping her legs to his chest to keep her from kicking him. Her free fists were already pounding at his back, but that was easy to ignore.

“Put me down, Nathan Reed! Put me down this instant,” Annie wailed.

Nate chuckled and disregarded her, walking through the casino as though it were his dry cleaning over his shoulder instead of his wife. Eyes were glued to him from every side, but he didn’t care. He nodded politely to the staff as he passed, just as he did every day.

“Nathan!” she howled.

“You’re only drawing more attention to yourself by yelling, Annie.”

The squirming mass on his shoulder quieted at once, although she still attempted a kick every few feet for good measure. Nate looked up at one of the domed ceiling cameras. He had no doubt that Gabe was watching them and laughing hysterically in the security office. He’d have to remember to save this tape for posterity. Or future blackmail.

Nate swiped his badge and ducked through the doorway to the restricted area. Once safely enclosed, Annie began kicking and screaming anew.

“Put me down!”

“Nope.” Nate called his private elevator and ignored the stiletto heels being pummeled against him. Instead, he held her legs more tightly. He enjoyed the feel of her in his arms, even in the less than ideal circumstance. The warm scent of her perfume was instantly familiar, stirring a heat in his veins. He couldn’t resist letting his fingertips softly stroke the smooth skin of her legs. Her skirt was long enough to protect her virtue as he’d walked through the casino, but it still provided him an excellent view of the firm thighs he’d missed all these years.

When the doors opened, he stepped inside the elevator. Now that they were out of the public view, he could put her down, even though he didn’t want to. Nate wrapped one arm behind her legs and another across the small of her back, slowly easing her to the floor. She clung to him, their bodies in full contact as she slid, inch by inch, to the ground. The simple motion caused a delicious friction as he felt her every curve press into him.

When her feet finally touched the ground, Annie looked up at him, her eyes blazing with blue fire. But not from desire. The impact of the powerful moment was overshadowed by his stunt. Either that or it just made her angrier that she reacted to him.

“You jackass,” she screeched as she swung her purse to strike him. Nate reached out and grabbed hold of her wrist before she could make contact. It only fueled her irritation. “How dare you manhandle me like that? I...I am not one of your employees you can shuffle around at will! I—”

Nate interrupted her tirade by capturing her mouth with his. He wasn’t about to let her poisonous words ruin this moment. Annie fought it for only a moment before succumbing to her desires and wrapping her arms around his neck to tug him closer. The kiss was hard and almost desperate as they came together for their first real kiss in three years.

He backed her up until she was pinned against the brass doors of the elevator. With the heavy thud of their bodies against the cold metal, it was as though the floodgates had opened. Nate could feel the intensity of their touches start to build, their hands feverishly dancing over their bodies as their mouths threatened to devour each other. He’d waited three long years to touch her body again and at last, he could.

His palm cupped her breast through the silky fabric of her shirt. She moaned, her body arching to press against him. “Oh, Nate,” she whispered.

The elevator came to a stop. Nate pulled her to him as the doors slid open behind her. He knew that he should let her go. This was not part of his plan, but he just couldn’t make himself do it. It felt right to have Annie in his arms again, even if she’d done nothing but aggravate him all evening.

He let his thumb gently trace the line of her jaw and relished the feel of her soft skin. Her eyes closed and lips parted slightly with a soft intake of breath. Her whole body relaxed into him, her anger a distant memory.

Annie opened her eyes and looked up at him. There was an obvious invitation in her blue gaze. Despite her earlier protests, too much champagne and not enough kissing had changed her mind. It had changed his, too. No matter what happened after they married, the times they’d spent in one another’s arms had always been fantastic. Every nerve in his body urged him to indulge it. If he stepped off this elevator with her, he would have her naked and in his bed in minutes. Exactly what he’d told Gabe he wouldn’t do.

So what the hell was he doing?

Nate straightened up and gently grasped Annie’s shoulders. “Good night, Annie.”

She frowned for a moment before he gave her a firm but gentle push. The movement was enough to send her stumbling backward out of the elevator and into the foyer of his suite. He quickly hit the button, closing the doors and sending him back to the casino, leaving them both aroused and alone.

Four

Annie was awakened the next morning by the sound of the shower running. She pushed herself up in bed, eyeing the pristine blankets on Nate’s side. He must have slept on the couch.

She hoped he had a crick in his neck from it. After he’d wound her up then dropped her like a rock last night, he deserved it. When he’d kissed her so fiercely, she’d thought that perhaps he was as attracted to her as she still was to him. But when she stumbled back onto the landing and watched the cold, impassive expression on his face as the elevator doors closed, she’d known she was wrong.

Nate hated her. Anything and everything he could do to make her miserable—including turning her on and leaving her unsatisfied—was on the table for the next week. He’d lured her back to Las Vegas with this poker tournament just so he could slowly torture her. It was a devious plot, and a part of her knew she deserved it for leaving the way she had, but that didn’t mean she was just going to sit back and take it.

If Nate thought he could use their physical connection to manipulate her, he had another think coming. Two could play at that game. He’d desired her once; she could make him want her again. Silently seducing and manipulating men was at least half of her poker strategy. That’s why her sweaters were so low cut and her skirts were so tight. Poker required concentration, and she’d learned early on that being attractive was one of her biggest advantages in a game dominated by men.

The water turned off and Annie heard the glass door of the shower stall open and close. She quickly smoothed her hands over her hair and wished she was wearing pajamas with more seductive appeal. Her thin cotton shorts didn’t quite fit the bill, so she tugged up the sheets so only her skimpy matching tank top would show.

The door opened a moment later to reveal a wet and steamy Nate. He had a dark blue towel wrapped low on his hips that drew the eye down his hard belly to the line of darkening hair that disappeared beneath the terry cloth. His golden curls were damp, his face freshly shaved. Annie tried to focus on looking alluring, but it was hard when she was face-to-face with a body like his. Every inch was hard-carved muscle.

Nate paused in the doorway. His glance flicked briefly to the snug fit of her top over her breasts and returned to her eyes. “Good, you’re up. You need to get ready. Gabe will be here in about an hour to brief you on our strategy.”

Annie abandoned her attempt at alluring Nate and frowned. “Strategy?”

“For you snitching, as you’ve called it.”

Annie had been so distracted by last night’s events that she’d forgotten about the deal she’d made. She wasn’t just posing as his happy bride in public and feuding with him in private. She was supposed to be spying. Cracking the ring. Earning her freedom. The tournament officially started tomorrow, but everyone would be arriving today for the kickoff, registration and the cocktail party.