Fallen William (5 page)

“I
think that’s too simple a solution. We’ve all fallen in love many times in the
centuries since we fell. I think we’re here to do more than learn how to love
but I don’t know what it is though. I can’t say that I’ve really thought about
it much.” He sat down across the table from the other fallen.

Dominic
looked up and their eyes met. “I’ve thought about a lot of things during the
nights when the dreams get so bad, I’m scared to go back to sleep. You’re
right. He must have another purpose for us but I long for love to be the true
reason we’re still here. How do you do it?”

“Do
what?” He rubbed his chest where the cross brand burned.

“How do
you become strong enough to lay your heart on the line? When does the joy of
loving her overwhelm the risk of losing her?”

“I
guess when you get to the point where you know that it would be hell to be
without her even though you know that when she dies, you’re going to go
insane.” He found himself listening to the advice he was giving to Dominic. He
smiled ruefully. “I believe I just gave myself some good advice. I hope you
listen to it like I’m going to.” He stood up and headed to the shower.

Dominic smiled. There might be a
happy ending after all or as happy an ending as a fallen might get. He brushed
his thumb over the serious face of his best friend. He would tell her the truth
when he got back to New Orleans. Life was too long to go without taking the
chance on love. He wished William good luck.

*
* * *

Picking
up the phone, William realized his hands were shaking. When had the thought of
asking a woman for a date turned him into a wimp? Just do it, Bradford, he
ordered. Without thinking about it anymore, he dialed Abby’s number.

“Hello?”

“Hi,
Abby, this is William Bradford.”

“Mr.
Bradford … how did you get my number?”

“Unlike
Thompson, I didn’t buy it off of anyone, Abby, so don’t worry about that. I
simply looked it up in the telephone book.”

“I
forgot that it’s listed. I’ll have to change that.”

“I was
going to suggest that. Having it listed makes it too easy for stalkers to get a
hold of it. Not that I’m a stalker of course.” He wanted to slap his own face.
Could he sound any dumber?

“Of
course you’re not, but wouldn’t any self-respecting stalker try to convince me
that he’s safe?”

Maybe
making a complete idiot of himself was helping her feel better about his call.
He could only hope so. “That’s true. I guess you’ll have to use your good
judgment to decide for yourself whether I mean you any harm. Would you honor me
with a date?”

He
could feel her surprise through the phone line. “Um…”

“You
don’t have to answer right now. Just think about it and I’ll call you in a day
or two. I’ll give you my number in case you want to put me out of my misery
earlier.” He rattled off his number and then said good-bye. After hanging up,
he wiped the sweat from his forehead. He felt like a teenager asking a girl out
for the first time and he had screwed up. Maybe he should have approached her
in the casino while she was dealing. Not a good idea, he thought, if he didn’t
want to remind her of the main reason why she should say no. He was just going
to have to sweat out the next couple of days and hope to hear from her sooner.

CHAPTER SIX

Abby
dealt the next hand but she wasn’t really thinking about the cards or the bets.
She was still in shock over the phone call she had earlier that day. William
Bradford, one of the most notorious gamblers in Nevada, had asked her out. He
was a man used to the finer things in life. She didn’t count herself good
enough for his taste and yet he chose to ask her out. She could tell he was
nervous about it as he babbled on about stalkers. Why would a man like Bradford
be nervous about asking her out? She couldn’t figure that out.

“Maybe
he isn’t as confident as you would assume,” a quiet voice said from across the
table.

She
looked up to see an impeccably dressed man with unusual silver eyes staring at
her. She could tell he was a high roller by the tailored Armani suit he wore
and the expensive watch flashing from beneath his cuff. He wasn’t typically
handsome but his strong features and sad eyes made a compelling portrait for
any woman to study. His smile seemed to tell her that he knew all of her
secrets and that he still liked her despite them.

“Maybe
who isn’t as confident as I think?” she asked as she dealt out the next hand.

“The
man you were thinking so fiercely about.” He bet and then leaned back.

“How do
you know it was a man?” She waited for the other players to make their bets.

“When I
see a frown on a pretty woman’s face, I just naturally assume that a man has
put it there.” He won the hand and without taking his eyes off of her, he
gathered his chips. “You’re trying to decide something about him. Maybe some
advice from a stranger would be helpful.”

“I
don’t take advice from strangers.” She didn’t look at him. She wondered why she
didn’t feel uneasy around him. Usually when one of the players paid too much
attention to her, she got nervous but she had a strange feeling of safety.

“I
would never hurt you. Indeed, I can’t hurt you without severe punishment and
I’m not willing to face that.” He didn’t even pretend to be playing his cards.
“William wouldn’t hurt you either, not like your father did. All of this means
nothing to him.” His gesture encompassed the entire casino. “He gambles because
he’s good at it and it gives him something to do. Bradford has seen a great
deal in his life and not all of it has been good. He’s had his heart broken
many times but he’s still willing to reach out and get it broken again. Do you
have the courage to do the same?”

She
shook her head. She didn’t know why she was listening to him but his deep voice
seemed to force her to pay attention. “I won’t risk my heart on a gambling man.
I won’t be like my mother.”

The stranger
laughed. “You could never be like your mother. You’re not weak. She never had
the backbone to stand up to the charming monster your father was, but William
isn’t a monster that will steal your heart and break it. He would be there for
you if you would let him, as he has been since he learned about Thompson’s
obsession with you. Don’t let your fear cause you to lose a wonderful chance
like this. Even if you don’t trust me, trust your instincts and what they are
telling you.” He picked up his chips and stood up. “Trust in your dreams as
well because they’re telling you something different than your mind.”

Abby
couldn’t get the conversation out of her mind. She knew what her dreams and
instincts were telling her. Her body was more than willing to accept William as
a lover, but her heart wasn’t sure she would be able to survive if he ever
broke it. She thought about the thousands of tears she had seen her mother cry
when her father had broken his latest promise not to gamble. Could she be
strong enough to take William as her lover but not allow him into her heart?
She shook her head. Living life was a risk but it wasn’t worth much without
knowing how to enjoy it. She was sure that William could show her how to do
that.

She would call him when she got
home. She knew she was agreeing to more than just a date but she was more than
ready to take that step. Her breasts felt heavy and her nipples were hard as
she thought of William’s rough hands on them. Her underwear got damp as her
pussy readied itself for his cock and she knew waiting was going to be
difficult.

*
* * *

William
snatched the phone up on the first ring. Please let it be Abby, he thought.
“Hello?”

“Mr.
Bradford?” Abby’s voice flowed over the phone.

“I had
hoped you would call me William if you were calling to accept my proposal for a
date.” William felt a rush of disappointment. She was going to turn him down
and he would die from a permanent hard-on.

“I’m
sorry. I’ll try to do better when you come to pick me up.”

“You’re
saying yes?”

“You
can pick me up around seven tomorrow night. I’d like to go someplace nice.”

“Okay,
I know just the spot. I’ll be there at seven. Wear something sexy. Hell,
anything you wear will be sexy. I don’t think I’m going to be able to wait.” He
knew he sounded desperate but he couldn’t believe she just agreed to go out
with him.

“Maybe
I’ll see you in my dreams tonight.”

“I doubt it,” he said to the
silence after the phone call ended. He couldn’t visit her or he would go crazy
anticipating the next night and he wasn’t going to have sex with her until she
knew for sure it was real. A dream man was nice but the real thing was going to
blow her mind. He made reservations.

*
* * *

William
wiped his palms on his pants. Why was he so nervous? He was just picking her up
for a date. Having taken women out for hundreds of years, it shouldn’t be
anything new. He laughed. Who was he trying to kid? She had been different from
the moment she had stomped into his life. His cock was achingly hard every
second she was around him and all he could think about was crawling between her
thighs and riding her to paradise. As he knocked on her door, he wondered if
she would ever let him.

He knew
it was going to be a long night when she greeted him. A pair of slim black
pants hugged her hips. Her breasts were barely covered by a gold halter-top
that bared her belly button ring to glitter in the light. High-heeled sandals
brought her closer to his height.

He
groaned. Reaching out, he pulled her to him. “Slap me later,” he growled as he
crushed his lips to hers. It wasn’t just a kiss. He devoured her and thrust his
tongue into her warm moist mouth. With one hand tilting her head back, he
plunged deeper into her. His other hand cupped her ass to bring her closer to
him. He rocked his hips against hers.

He came
to his senses as his hand slid down between her legs to stroke her. Setting her
down, he rested his forehead against hers, trying to calm his breathing. “I
wasn’t going to kiss you. I swore I’d keep my hands to myself.”

Abby
laughed. “I wasn’t fighting you off.”

“You
would tempt a saint, love, and I’ll never be mistaken for one.”

“Let me
grab my purse and we can go. I don’t want you to get any ideas.”

“My
head is already filled. I don’t want to miss our reservations, so I guess I
should get my mind out of your bed.”

She
whistled softly as they headed to his car. “Nice.”

He
skimmed his hand over the hood of the BMW Z3 convertible. “I only bring her out
to impress my dates.”

“She
must get a lot of work.” She slid in and let him shut the door. Running her hand
over the leather, she savored the silken feel of the fine fabric.

“Lately
she’s been feeling kind of lonely.”

She
wasn’t sure she believed he hadn’t had some kind of date in the last couple of
weeks. “Do you really think I’m gullible enough to believe you haven’t been on
a date lately?”

His
smile flashed. “I’ve been busy. I was in Detroit last week helping an old
friend. Before that I was getting bored with the usual bunch of women I date.”
He pulled from the curb and blended into traffic.

“What
was wrong with them?”

“Too
much of the same thing, I guess. They were nice women with beautiful bodies who
knew how to flatter a guy to make him feel important and the sex was great.” A
frown marred his forehead.

“And
yet?”

“There
was something missing. I finally figured out what. These women could stimulate
my cock into wanting them, which isn’t very discriminating, but my mind is
another story. None of them had anything to talk about, so I tended to be the
topic of conversation. They wanted to know how much money I made, what kind of
car I drove and how many houses I had.”

She
could picture the women he went out with. They would be the ones who grew up
with silver spoons and blue blood pedigrees. All they were looking for was
money and if it came attached to a good-looking package, it wouldn’t be easy
for them to let go. She laughed softly. She wasn’t interested in his money but
she had a feeling it would still be hard for her to let go when he chose to
leave.

“You’re
different. I’ve wanted you since I first saw you. You sparkled and you weren’t
afraid to tell me what you really thought of me. It isn’t a pretty picture you
have of me but I can understand why. Your father wasn’t a shining example of
men. I want to prove to you that not all men who gamble are like him.”

She
felt uncomfortable. She knew she tended to judge people quickly and not give
them a second chance. She wondered if there was the slightest chance he would
be different than the other men she had known. Maybe that was why she had
decided to go out with him. Something about him touched her deep inside her
heart.

“What
made you decide to go out with me tonight?” His voice caused her thighs to
clench.

“Part
of my decision had to do with these dreams I’ve been having of you.” Her cheeks
flushed as he gave her a satisfied smile. Her pussy was starting to get damp.
“I want to see if the reality can live up to them.”