Betting On Love (8 page)
Authors: Cheris Hodges
Jade chewed her bottom lip, wanting to ask James if this was more than a weekend thing and if there was a chance that something more would develop between them. But she didn't say anything; she just smiled at him.
“Are you hungry? I can have room service bring you some breakfast,” James said.
“No, I'm fine. Hey, is the poker game still on for today?”
“Yes, but if you want to skip it ...”
“No, no, I need to get rid of some stress. Taking those dudes' money will help,” she said.
James stood up. “All right. What do you say we go get a massage? It's way too early to be stressed out.”
Jade rose to her feet and kissed James on the cheek. “I really like the way you think.”
James and Jade headed to the spa, and for the next three hours, they indulged in facials, full-body massages, manicures, and pedicures. Jade watched as the masseuse worked on James. As he lay on the table, she marveled at the shape of his shoulders. They looked strong enough for her to lean on, cry on, and cuddle up to every night.
What in the hell is wrong with you?
she thought as she forced herself to look away.
James has a life in another state. You can't get caught up in wanting something with him that has no chance. Besides, it's a weekend fling, and there's no need to read anything more into it.
she thought as she forced herself to look away.
James has a life in another state. You can't get caught up in wanting something with him that has no chance. Besides, it's a weekend fling, and there's no need to read anything more into it.
She turned back to him, this time focusing her gaze on his back as the masseuse moved her hands down his lean yet muscular torso. Jade already knew that his skin was smoother than silk, and touching him turned her on in every way. Part of her wanted to push the masseuse aside and finish the job herself.
“All done, sir,” the woman said.
“Umm, that was great,” James said as he sat up on the table.
The masseuse handed him a robe, then walked past Jade, with a smile on her face. “Do you want me to give you two some time alone in here?” she whispered, as if she felt the desire between them.
Jade nodded. “Thank you,” she replied.
As the masseuse headed out of the room, Jade followed her and locked the door.
“What are you doing?” James asked, with a sly smile on his face.
“The massage and everything was great, but I know the ultimate stress reliever,” she said as she crossed over to him.
“Do tell,” James said, wrapping his arms around her waist.
Jade shrugged her shoulders, causing the oversize terry cloth robe she was wearing to fall down, exposing her bare flesh. James stepped back from her and watched as she did a slow striptease for him. Jade untied the terry belt and twirled it as if it were a feather boa. James couldn't help but laugh.
“I'm guessing you don't have an exotic dancer's background,” he said as he walked over to her and slipped his hands underneath her robe.
“Are you saying you don't like my dancing?” she asked as she seductively rubbed her body against his. Jade rocked her hips back and forth until James's manhood sprang forward.
“Um,” he said. “I didn't say I didn't like it.” He thrust his pelvis into hers. “I think you can feel that.”
“Oh yes,” she said, then dropped her robe. James lifted her and sat her on the edge of one of the massage tables. He spread her legs apart and ran his index finger down her inner thigh. Next, he lifted Jade's legs onto his shoulders and buried his face in her wetness, kissing her most sensitive parts until her legs quaked. James treated her like a Georgia peach, slowly nibbling and sucking, all the while enjoying the sweet nectar that flowed from her. She closed her eyes and pressed her hips deeper into James's kiss.
Jade couldn't count the number of times that he made her climax as he tasted her. But her throat was sore from calling out his name. Shivering, she grabbed James's shoulders. “I want you inside of me,” she moaned.
He pulled back from her, looked into her eyes, and smiled. “You got me.”
James picked Jade up and wrapped her around his waist, using the edge of the table to keep them balanced. In one swift motion, he was inside her, swimming in her wetness. Jade screamed out in pleasure as he found her spot. Her fingernails bit into his shoulders as he pumped in and out, turning her on as no other man had ever done.
He repeated her name as if it were a mantra or a prayer, because she felt so good against him, so raw. Before he could stop his explosion, James had climaxed. It was at just that moment when they both realized that this time they weren't protected.
“I can't believe we just did that,” she said as she reached for a robe.
“We got carried away, and I know it's no excuse but ...”
“When's the last time you were tested for any sexually transmitted diseases, and what is your HIV status?” she asked in one breath.
“I had a complete physical about two months ago, and everything was fine.”
“But that was two months ago.”
“What about you?” he asked. “You know, it works both ways.”
“Well, about two weeks ago I thought I was going on a honeymoon overseas, and I had a battery of tests run and was given a clean bill of health.”
James ran his hand across his face. “Are you on any birth control?”
“Yes, I take the pill.” Jade sucked in her bottom lip nervously. She hadn't been taking it regularly, because she'd figured that once she and Stephen got married, the next step would be having a child or two.
“Okay, so we should be all right,” James said as he put his robe on. “Let's get out of here and get ready for the game. I'll buy you lunch.”
“Not really hungry, but I do hope that your cocky friends are ready to be eaten alive,” she said. But all the while, Jade wondered what the consequences of their irresponsible actions would be.
CHAPTER 9
Later that afternoon James and Jade headed to the players' suite, where Maurice and the rest of the crew had set up the poker game. They didn't say much to each other. Jade was worried that she'd done the one thing she'd always promised herself she wouldn't do. She was afraid that she had gotten pregnant without having a husband, a house with a white picket fence, and everything she needed to give a little one the stable family life she hadn't had as a child.
Though her parents had been married, she didn't have a traditional childhood. At an early age, Jade had seen how women and men used each other as pawns. Even in her parents' marriage, she'd seen how her mom would use her feminine wiles to get her father to do things that she wanted. And as she'd sat at her dad's feet underneath the poker table, she'd seen how he used his charm and good looks to get lonely women to bet more than they should in games that the house would win.
Jade wanted to give her child, if she ever had one, a normal life. If James had gotten her pregnant, there would be nothing normal about this child's life. They barely knew each other, and who was to say he wouldn't question the child's paternity?
“Baby girl,” Homer said, “are you in or out?”
“I'm in and the name is Jade. I'm not a baby, nor am I a girl.” Jade placed her bet and then glanced at James.
Will he just chalk this all up to a Vegas fling? He's probably never going to call me so ...
Will he just chalk this all up to a Vegas fling? He's probably never going to call me so ...
“Is your mind someplace else?” Maurice asked Jade.
“What?” she asked.
James walked over to her with a drink. “Leave the lady alone, fellas. Remember what happened last time.”
Maurice folded, and Homer was about to rake in the pot. “Not so fast, fat boy,” Jade said as she spread her cards across the table, revealing a royal flush. “You lose again.”
Homer's mouth fell open like a trap door. “How in the ...”
Jade reached over the table and raked the money up. “I'm just better than you, and the sooner you realize that, the more money you will have in your pocket.”
James and the others laughed and hooted as Homer rose from the table like a child who'd just been told that Santa Claus wasn't coming to his house.
“This is some straight-up bull,” he said and headed for the door.
“Dang, man, you're a sore loser,” Maurice called after his friend.
Jade took the deck of cards in her hands and began shuffling it. “Who's next?” she asked, with a sly smile on her face.
The other men in the room backed away from Jade as if she were the grim reaper.
“I think you've taken enough of our money,” Maurice said. “I'm going to order some food.”
When the room was cleared, James took a seat across from Jade. “If you weren't such a cardsharp, I'd take you on,” he said.
“Maybe I'd let you win a few hands,” she said as she shuffled the deck again. “Then again, if you've been getting beat by these guys, you must really suck at cards.”
“I don't really like to gamble. There aren't many sure things in life, so why willingly go into something with so much risk?”
We took a big risk earlier today,
she thought but didn't say anything.
she thought but didn't say anything.
“Are you hungry?” James asked. “Maurice is buying, so we may as well take advantage.”
“You and your brother are close, huh?”
“Yeah.”
“He seems like a nice guy for a professional athlete,” she said. “But I'm glad you're the one who found me in the casino a couple of days ago.”
James smiled tensely. “I have a question. What happens after we get on our planes and go home? I'm feeling a connection with you that I'd like to explore, but ...”
“I don't know how these things work. You read about people who skip off to Las Vegas and marry a stranger, or people who have weekend flings and move on. But you're a man that a woman would be a fool to let get away,” she said. “Still, you know what I'm dealing with, and I'm pretty sure your opinion of me trying to bury Stephen hasn't changed.”
James nodded. “You're right about that. Is it really worth it?”
“Can we not do this again?” she asked. “The last time we had this discussion, it turned into an argument, you left me standing at a bus stop, and then you had to buy a bottle of champagne and oysters. Do you really want to go there again?”
James reached across the table and grabbed her hands. “You are one feisty woman, and Stephen Carter is going to be in for the fight of his life. Just make sure this is about the money and that you don't want him back in your life.”
“I'm not your sister-in-law,” Jade said. “If a man cheats on me, it's a wrap. I'm not the forgiving type.”
“That's harsh.”
“And what do you call someone deliberately betraying you? If you love someone, why do you need to be with other people? What's the lure of other women, and why lie?”
James threw his hands up. “You're preaching to the choir over here.”
Jade smiled. “And that's why I like you. You're so different. An honest man. Who would've thought that you all still existed?”
“Come on. Let's get something to eat, and then we can figure out what to do with the rest of the afternoon, since I know the guys aren't going to play with you anymore.”
Jade chuckled softly. She was going to miss him when this Vegas excursion was over.
Well, Charlotte is only four hours away,
she thought as they headed into the sitting area of the suite, where a couple of hotel workers were setting up lunch.
Well, Charlotte is only four hours away,
she thought as they headed into the sitting area of the suite, where a couple of hotel workers were setting up lunch.
After Maurice and the other Panthers' players filed into the sitting area, James watched Jade as she fixed her plate and wondered why they couldn't continue to see each other after they left Vegas. She liked him and he liked her. But there was the whole Stephen thing and her nosy-ass girlfriends. Still, Atlanta wasn't that far away from Charlotte, and it was home. He turned away from her. These weren't the kinds of thoughts he was used to having about a woman. James was strictly about his business and not relationshipsâespecially a long-distance one with a woman who had baggage like Jade. It was one thing to have great sex with her for a few days while they were in Vegas, but what would happen when they returned to the real world?
“James,” Maurice said, breaking into his thoughts.
“Yeah,” James said, looking up at his brother.
“So, you and Ms. Jade are still kicking it, I see.”
“Don't start this,” James said.
Maurice shrugged his shoulders. “I'm just saying.”
“Saying what?” James asked.
“Nothing, because here she comes,” Maurice said as he stepped aside to let Jade join them. “Hello, Jade.”
“Hi,” she said as she took a seat beside James. “I hope you didn't lose too much money in the card game.”
Maurice smirked at her. “Right. Where did you learn to play poker like that, and can you teach me?”
“I'm the daughter of a riverboat dealer, so my card skills came naturally,” Jade said as she picked up a barbecue rib.
“All right,” Maurice said. Before he could continue, his cell phone rang.
“I bet that's your wife,” James said as Maurice opened the flip phone. His brother didn't have to respond, because the next words that came out of his mouth confirmed who was on the phone.
“Hey, sweetheart. I can't wait to come home, too. I miss you. Next time I go on a trip with these guys, we're going to have to make sure that you're not in court,” Maurice said as he walked away from Jade and James.
“He really loves his wife?” Jade asked.
“Yes,” James said. “Kenya and Maurice were made for each other.”
“Is their relationship the reason you think that I'm going to take Stephen back?” she asked, then bit into her rib.
“Maybe,” James said, then rose to his feet.
“But I'd rather not think about you being with Stephen, because for the next twenty-four hours, you're still mine.”
Before Jade could respond, her cell phone rang. She placed her rib on the plate, wiped her hands, and answered the phone, knowing full well who it was.
“Hello, Serena,” she said without looking at the caller ID.
“You've really done it this time,” her friend hissed. “What the hell was James Goings doing with you when you were talking to Christopher?”
Jade stood up and walked away from James and out of earshot of everyone else in the room. “Serena, as soon as you and his little flunky left, Christopher was all hands.”
“What? Are you serious? That slimy old ... I'm sorry, Jade. I had no idea he would try something like that. His bank came highly recommended.”
The men behind Jade erupted in laughter, causing Serena to inquire where she was.
“I just finished playing poker with some of James's friends, and his brother had a buffet set up.”
“What is it with you and this James guy? And he obviously doesn'tâ”
“Doesn't what?”
“Promise not to get mad,” Serena said.
“No.”
“Come on, Jade. We were just looking out for you.”
“We? What the hell did you and Alicia do?”
“And why couldn't it have been Kandace and Alicia?” Serena asked, with a nervous laugh.
“Because I know you and Alicia don't mind your business. So what did you do?”
Serena sighed. “We told James that maybe he should leave you alone because you have a lot going on and you don't need another man who doesn't have a future to offer you.”
“Oh my God! I can't believe you two would do that. Have I ever gotten involved in your relationships?” Jade said in a near whisper.
“So, you're in a relationship with a man you meet a couple of days ago? This is why we went over there,” Serena said.
“You know what I mean,” Jade said. “James and I aren't in a relationship, but whatever we're doing is none of your business.”
“The last time I heard you say something like this, you ended up losing fifty thousand dollars.”
“Good-bye, Serena,” Jade said, then snapped her phone shut. She turned around and saw James walking toward her.
“Is everything all right?” he asked.
“Not really. Why didn't you tell me that my friends gave you an order?”
James shook his head and snickered. “Obviously, I didn't listen to them, now did I? Besides, I can understand where they are coming from. Just didn't appreciate their tactics.”
“Tactics?”
“The double-team. When I saw Alicia and Serena at my door, my first thought was that you were in trouble. Something flowed through me that made me nervous. Then, when they got to the point of why they were there, it pissed me off.”
“You could've told me,” Jade said. “Then I could've told those heifers about themselves.”
James wrapped his arms around her. “It's all right,” he said. “Your friends love you, and they have your best interests at heart.”
“What about you?”
“What do you mean?”
“Do you have my best interests at heart?”
“Of course I do.”
“So, I guess asking you to get me another rib wouldn't be too much, huh?” she asked, with a smile on her face.
“Come on. We'll eat ribs together.”
After Jade and James had eaten and laughed long enough with the Panthers' players, they headed up to the pool on the roof to spend some time alone. Jade didn't want to deal with her girlfriends, and James was tired of hanging around Maurice's offensive line. James got them a bottle of chardonnay, and they settled into two lounge chairs near the pool.
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