“Well…” she said. “It’s your choice. But the oddsarein your favor.”
My heart was beating out of my chest. I’d literally die if I had to bang Cole in front of all these people. Would it be better to fold and blow him instead? At least then I’d get to keep my lingerie on…
“I…” My mouth was too dry to speak. Which would be really bad for a blowjob. And I’d much rather feel him deep inside of me…
“Play!” yelled one of the spectators. Then another guy joined in. And another. Soon the whole casino was chanting for me to play.
I looked around for some sort of sign. And there he was again.Tanner. Standing by the slot machines staring daggers at Cole. I tried to catch his gaze, but someone walked in front of him. And then he was gone.
Was I hallucinating? The stress of all this was messing with my head. It wouldn’t be the first time I’d seen a ghost. Three years ago when my sister had disappeared, I’d kept catching glimpses of her face in crowded places. At restaurants, on buses, on the sidewalk. My therapist had said it was just wishful thinking. I had desperately wanted to see her, so I had.
Chastity tapped my shoulder. “You have to decide.”
I stared at Cole. He raised his eyebrow at me and then his eyes scanned down my body like it already belonged to him. Whata cocky asshole. There was no way I was gonna give him the satisfaction of scaring me into folding. Raven Black didn’t fold.
“Play,” I said.
Everyone cheered.
Oh God, oh God, oh God.I could feel my heart in my throat. Sweat poured down my sides.
“Let the lady do the honors,” said Cole.
The dealer slid the top card off the deck and put it in the center of the table face down. He motioned for me to flip it over.
I took a big gulp of my drink to stall for time. I could still fold. I could still get away with just a blowjob. But Chastity had said the odds were in my favor…
I put my hand on the card.Anything but a diamond. Please be anything but a diamond.I pulled one corner up ever so slightly so that I was the only one in the room who could see.
First I saw that it was a queen. But what mattered was the suit. If it was a heart, spade, or club, I won. But if it was a diamond…well, I didn’t want to think about that.
Anything but a diamond,I repeated in my head as I peeled the card up a bit more to see the suit. And it was the queen of…diamonds.
Fuck.
Fuckity fuck fuck shit!
I went into total panic mode. Rather than flip the card, I slammed my hand on top of it and pinned it to the table. If no one saw it, then my body was still safe.
But it was only a matter of time until Cole would force me to flip it.
And then what? Would Cole tear my lingerie off? Or would he make me get on the table and strip? The thought was horrifying, and I hadn’t even gotten to the really crazy part. I pictured myself lying on the table, the chips digging into my flesh as Cole thrust into me. Would the crowd cheer when he claimed me? Would Chastity watch? And how big was he? Because he looked like he was packing.
I shifted in my chair and tried to look for an escape. But there was none. The crowd around us was too thick. I’d never be able to push my way through them. I was trapped.
“What’s wrong?” asked Cole. “Didn’t like what you saw on that card?”
“Can I still fold?” I asked. My voice squeaked as I said it.
Cole laughed. “I’m afraid it’s too late for that. Flip the card.”
Chastity gave my shoulder another sympathetic squeeze.
“Flip the card!” chanted the crowd. The crowd that was about to watch Cole ravish me.
Could I just refuse? Rape was strictly forbidden in the Society. So if I said no, he’d have to honor that. Or did the dice challenge trump that? It had been very clear that my body would belong to him if I lost.
And I’d lost.
