Poker Posse 1: Looking at Rose (11 page)

He rubbed his thumb over her lips, the temptation to kiss her, to drag her to his bed, and make love to her for the next week was very strong, but it wasn’t right. “I want you to think about it.”

When she would have protested, Ibraham shook his head. “I mean it, Rose. You’ve never had sex, vanilla or kink, so don’t let need override common sense. Think this over very carefully. Without the desires of your body tipping the scales. Talk to your friends. The ones who have been to the Omen. If you have questions they can’t answer, you can ask me or I can tell you some books that would have more information in them.”

“But I want—”

He smiled at the pout of her lips. “So do I, honey. I want to bury my cock inside that snug little pussy of yours until neither one of us can walk for a week. But, what I don’t want is for you to pitch a fit and go storming off the first time I paddle your ass for breaking one of my rules.”

Something in her expression told him he’d gotten his point across. Too many times he’d seen wannabe subs sashay into clubs thinking they knew what they were getting into only to find out that what they thought was sexy scared the crap out of them. He’d rather Rose take a long hard look at the lifestyle he lived and tell him no than to have her jump in without thinking only to turn tail the moment she stepped out of her comfort zone.

Despite the disgruntled look on her face, Ibraham was sure his Rose was taking him seriously. “How long?” she asked, her arms crossed over her chest.

Ibraham marveled at how she seemed oblivious to her nudity while he remained fully clothed. Perhaps it could work. “As long as you need.”

His answer seemed to cheer her up. “Okay. Twenty-four hours. I can—”

Ibraham shook his head. “No. I want you to consider this very seriously, Rose. Think it through. Twenty-four hours isn’t enough time.”

She propped her hands on her hips. “Okay, two days.”

Again he shook his head. “No. At least five days.”

“But—”

“Five days.” He cupped her face in his hands and held her gaze. “I want you to think about this, Rose.” He pressed his fingers over her lips, stilling her protest. “You’ve never had a lover, and I would be honored to be your first, but I want more than sex. I don’t want a quick fuck. I can have that with the right negotiations at the club. I want your submission. We are already friends, and we will always be friends. But I think there can be more, Rose. Much, much more.” It was as close as he was willing to get to confessing the growing feelings he had for this woman.

“Don’t think this means I’m not going to be around.” Ibraham grinned down at her. He pulled her close, letting her feel how much he wanted her, then gave her a slow, breath-stealing kiss. When he lifted his head, he assured her, “If you’re going to make a decision, I want you to understand what I want. You’ve done well tonight, and I’m very pleased. Tomorrow night, after you close, come upstairs. I’ll fix you dinner. We’ll talk.”

Rose finally seemed to realize that she stood naked before him. Without making too big a deal about it, he helped her re-dress before turning her to face the mirror again. His hands holding hers at her sides, he set his chin on her shoulder and grinned. “So pretty, my Rose.”

And she smiled.

Neither of them spoke as he led her out of his apartment and followed her home. He waited until she’d waved and closed the door behind her before pulling away from the curb. As it was now, he could handle the gnawing ache to claim her as his own. If she said yes, Ibraham would do everything in his power to bind her to him first physically, then emotionally.

Should Rose choose not to step into his world, he would find a way to remain her friend, but he didn’t doubt that friendship would have to be conducted over long distances. At least until he’d hardened his heart to wanting and not having her. Ever.

Ibraham entered his office, a warm cup of coffee at his lips and a fresh pastry from Rose’s shop in his hand. Inside the door he stopped, surprised at the man lounging behind his desk, scuffed black biker boots propped on the polished oak and green eyes focused on him.

It took a moment for him to put a name to the man’s face. “Boudreaux, right?”

The man gave a nod but didn’t move. “Correct.”

It wasn’t the black leather the man wore or the deep, rumbling voice that carried the same Southern drawl Ibraham had grown used to over the last year that made him ease the door shut and take his time approaching the desk. It was the air of menace that surrounded Boudreaux. Ibraham had sensed it in other doms over the years, the ones who skirted the edge not only in the lifestyle but in life itself. He might have a few inches on the man, but he didn’t doubt Jake Boudreaux had no qualms about fighting dirty.

Ibraham took a bite of his danish, then washed it down with a sip of his coffee before asking, “Was there something you needed from me?”

“Tell me what you want with Rose.”

The tension tightening Ibraham’s muscles was instantaneous. It was clear the other man saw it, if the slight smirk on Jake’s lips was any indication. “None of your business.”

Jake’s expression held no amusement as he swung his feet off Ibraham’s desk and rose from the chair. “Now that’s where you’d be wrong, Juice Man.” He kept his arms crossed over his chest as he stepped in front of Ibraham and looked up at him. “If you’re messin’ with Rose, it’s my business. You may not realize it, but Rose, she’s special. And there’s quite a few marines that wouldn’t take kindly to you dallyin’ with her affections.”

“I was under the impression your interests lay in the direction of a particular strawberry blonde.”

Jake’s eyes narrowed, and his knuckles went white. “Norah has nothing to do with this. Rose deserves the best.”

“And I’m not the best?”

Jake shrugged and moved past him. He pulled the door open before turning back to look at Ibraham. Something in his gaze held a warning that was followed up by his parting words. “Jury’s still out. But know this, you hurt her, and I won’t be the only one ready to take your hide.”

Ibraham watched him leave the room and exit the winery before he left his office. First Rose’s mother, and now Boudreaux. Ibraham chuckled at the attention he’d garnered because of his sexy sweets maker. On the sidewalk outside Rose’s shop, Jake paused to make a phone call. After he finished and tucked the phone inside his jacket, he stepped into Rose’s shop.

Instinct told Ibraham, on the heels of last night, he had nothing to worry about when it came to his Rose and Boudreaux. All the same, it didn’t sit well that the man was inside her shop. There had to be some history between the two, even if they weren’t lovers. A man didn’t get protective without a reason, and Ibraham intended to find out what that reason was. He tossed the last of his pastry into the trash and finished his coffee before exiting his shop and heading for Sweet Rose Treats.

* * * *

It took everything Rose had not to dump the samples of cakes over Darla Ann’s bleached-blonde head.

“I have to say, the cake is delicious, but I am watching my figure, Rose. Stella Lee and I were just talking about you the other day, and I was telling her how I worry about you. Poor Rose, all alone with her cakes. Why, I can see you’ve had a hard time resisting all these sweets of yours. I could give you some diet tips, or the name of my personal trainer. I’d hate it if you never experienced the bliss I have with my Henry. Men like my Henry aren’t interested in plump women, you know. You’d look real pretty, and you might even have half a chance with the man I saw leaving earlier if you dropped a few pounds. I swear you’re twice as big as you were in high school.” Darla Ann tittered as she smiled across the counter at Rose.

“Oh, I think you’re wrong, Darla Ann. Rosie hasn’t changed a bit since high school, whereas you…”

Rose ignored decorum and squealed with delight. “Jake!” She climbed over the counter and pounced, wrapping her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist.

He easily took her weight, holding her tight and hugging her back just like he had when she was little and first started tagging around after him and his friends, Nick and Harlen. A low, rumbling laugh vibrated against her chest. “Hey, Rosie. Missed me, huh?”

Darla Ann’s face pinched up, her eyes narrowed, and her lips pursed as she glared at the pair. “Rose Whittman, you should be ashamed. It’s disgraceful throwin’ yourself at a man like a common tart. Why, big as you are, you could have hurt him jumpin’ on him like that.”

Aware of the attention, Rose started to pull away, but Jake squeezed her close, one hand under her bottom and the other on her back as he grinned over her shoulder at the other woman. “Rosie’s not big, Darla Ann; she’s lush. A man likes to know he’s holdin’ a woman in his arms not a bumpy swizzle stick.” He pressed a kiss to Rose’s cheek and added, “Why, I bet if you’d greeted your first two husbands as enthusiastically, then maybe you wouldn’t be walkin’ down the aisle with groom number three.”

Darla Ann drew herself up and stuck her nose in the air. “I never—”

Jake’s smile turned wicked, knowing, “Oh, I know you have, Darla Ann.”

The blonde didn’t stick around. With a huff, she pushed past the pair and hurried out the door.

Rose relinquished her hold on Jake with a chuckle. He let her. “That was mean.”

“Darla Ann’s a bitch, Rosie. She doesn’t need to be taking her spite out on you.”

Rose leaned against him, enjoying the warmth and affection she always felt when around him. “You’ve been gone way too long, Jake.”

Something flickered in his eyes, but it was gone too quickly for her to interpret it. “Workin’, hon. But I got every one of your packages.”

She grinned and moved back around the counter to cut a sample of one of the cakes and put it on a small china plate for him. Passing it over, Rose watched as he quickly devoured the vanilla cake with lemon-lime custard filling and whipped-cream icing. “And I appreciate all the orders it generated.” She leaned on the counter and grew serious for a moment. “I promise to pay you back.”

Jake shook his head and held the plate out for another slice.

Rose refused to be silenced. She cut a larger slice and handed it to him. “I will, Jake. Every penny. If it hadn’t been for you—”

The bell over the shop door tinkled, interrupting her.

Ibraham stepped inside looking just as handsome and lickable as he had when he stopped by for coffee and danish less than an hour earlier. When he didn’t move toward the counter, Rose stepped past Jake and approached him.

She could feel the heat in her cheeks as images from last night filled her head. Her body was quick to respond to his proximity, her nipples aching, bunching up into two tight beads, the warmth between her thighs ratcheting up until her cream slicked her pussy and wet her panties. “Hello again.”

Ibraham motioned her closer with the crook of his finger until barely a breath of air could move between them. “Dinner tonight.”

The rub of his thumb over her chin sent chills through her body as Rose gazed up at Ibraham and nodded. “Okay.”

Leaning down, he smiled against her lips before whispering in her ear, “Tonight you learn how to please me.”

Then he kissed her. His lips covered hers, coaxing them open so his tongue could delve inside. The warm taste of coffee and pastry filled her mouth along with the unique flavor she’d grown to recognize as his. The smell of grapes and leather and linen filled her nose as she lifted her arms to circle his neck and sank against his body.

He tightened his arms around her, letting her feel the steady rise of his erection press against her belly. In slow increments, he released her. First easing her away from his body, then his lips lifting from hers, and last, smoothing her arms down from his neck so her hands were clasped in his between them.

One last brush of his lips over hers before he repeated, “Tonight.” Then he looked over her head and offered a nod to Jake before he turned and left.

She didn’t realize Jake had called her name until he spoke it louder a second time.

“Rose.” The sharp command in his tone startled her from her wistful thoughts, and she jumped, spinning to face him.

“Oh. Sorry. Did you say something?”

He seemed to notice the heat in her cheeks at the same time Rose realized she was blushing again.

“You like him, Runt?”

Rose nodded, sure the smile on her face made her look goofy. “Very much, Jake.”

“You know what he is, right? You saw him at the Omen.”

The heat in her face increased as she recalled the sexy lesson Ibraham had taught her last night. And he’d be teaching her more tonight, if she played her cards right. To Jake, she nodded. “Yes. I know Ibraham is a dominant and he frequents the Omen. Just like you.” She added the last and waited for Jake’s reaction.

He studied her for long, silent moments before grunting. “Just be careful. Okay?”

Rose moved closer and wrapped her arms around his waist. Squeezing tight, she assured him, “Always, Jake.”

* * * *

The view was amazing, Rose decided as she tried to catch her breath and gazed up at the mirror above Ibraham’s bed. The sight of her body sprawled in the white silk sheets, her hair tousled and spread over the pillows was one thing, but the better image was the long length of Ibraham’s naked form settled between her legs, his hands tucked out of sight but very active in their movement over her pussy. The ink-colored silk of his hair gleamed in the subdued light and tickled her belly and hips as his mouth trailed fiery kisses around her navel and across her pelvis.

A shiver moved through her as he slid one finger inside, finding all the spots that made her squirm. “I—
oh, umm. Yes!
I thought I was supposed to—
oh yes, there, right there
—please you.” The thoughts in her head were as incoherent as her words as she arched against him.

He grinned up at her, his chin applying the slightest pressure to the flesh above her mound. He waited to answer until he’d pulled his finger free and carefully began to fill her with two. “You did please me, Rose. The feel of your mouth sucking my cock, how well you used your tongue.”