Play For It E-Book

Mary E. Thompson

• Herausgeber: BluEyed Press
• Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2021

Beschreibung

Erika is sure Jared will never give her the time of day. After their one night stand on New Year’s Eve, Jared avoided her, a miraculous feat since they worked together. But Erika is sick of feeling like she isn’t good enough. So when Edward decides he wants to make Erika his, Erika figures she has nothing to lose.
Jared never thought Erika would actually go for the Player In Shining Cufflinks she always joked about. He was certain Erika wasn’t the type of woman who would want a man who would take care of her, unless she loved him, of course. Edward asks too many questions about Erika and when he flirts with her and then takes her out, Jared knows she’s trying to make him jealous. Because she wouldn’t seriously consider being with a guy like that. Right?
Edward asks Erika to go back to England with him, ready to sweep her off her feet and give her everything she always said she wanted. But when Jared throws out the ultimate challenge, Erika isn’t sure about anything anymore. She’s stuck between the man who can only offer his love and the man who can give her everything except love. The worst part is, Erika has no idea who she wants to win when they Play For It.

Leseprobe

Play For It

Better In Bed

Mary E Thompson

Play For It

Better In Bed, book four

Copyright © 2016 Mary E Thompson

Cover Copyright © 2020 Mary E Thompson

Cover Photo from Website, depositphotos © VGeorgiev

Published by BluEyed Press

All Rights Reserved

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

This is a work of fiction. All characters, businesses, locations, and events are either products of the author’s creative imagination or are used in a fictitious sense. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

ISBN: 978-1-944090-30-2

Created with Vellum

Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

About the Author

1

Erika Gray dropped her head to her steering wheel. She had only five minutes until her shift was supposed to start, but she still couldn’t work up the courage to go in. She hated it. She hated him. And yet she loved him.

Erika lifted her head and looked at herself in the mirror. She’d always thought she was a plain looking girl so when she went to college she reinvented herself in wild and crazy ways. She’d been dying her hair for years, going from pink streaks to purple to midnight blue then fire engine red. After so many years of being someone else, Erika barely knew who she was anymore. And she certainly didn’t know what her natural hair color looked like.

For all her changes, she still felt like the same old boring Erika. She wanted to be strong, confident, and passionate about something. She wanted to be someone else. She was starting to wonder if, at 23, she needed to invent herself all over again.

But it was just another way of hiding.

And she wasn’t going to hide anymore.

Erika met her own blue eyes in the mirror and nodded at the redhead staring back at her. She forced a smile on her coffee colored lips. She was going to make a change in her life. She was going to be the person she knew she could be. And she would find her Player In Shining Cufflinks.

If only to avoid ever feeling like this again.

Her friends laughed at her when she first told them she wanted to hook up with one of the regulars at Falling Water Casino. They thought it was just a joke. But the longer she talked about it the more they realized how serious she was.

If she was honest with herself it had actually started as a joke. The idea of marrying someone for money instead of love never appealed to her, but after having her heart ripped out she knew it was the best way to live. It was safe, it was easy, and it meant she’d never have to worry about anything again.

Especially her heart.

With faked guts, Erika opened the door to her beat up Ford Mustang and groaned with the door, hoping it wouldn’t fall off. She loved her Mustang, but she knew it wouldn’t last forever. It had started costing her more and more money over the last few months, and she wasn’t sure how much longer it would hold out.

Not that she had the money to replace it.

Erika was careful with her money but living on her own was expensive. Most of her friends assumed she wanted to be a kept woman because she was in debt or had financial issues and she wanted a Knight In Shining Armor, or Player In Shining Cufflinks, to rescue her. That wasn’t the case though. Yeah, extra money was hard to come by, but Erika got by. She’d worked hard through college to come out without student loans, mostly thanks to her parents, and she even had some savings.

Money wasn’t what drove her to find a loveless marriage. It wasn’t her finances she was protecting, it was her heart.

Erika breezed through the glass double doors into the casino and waved hello to Molly O’Neill, her closest friend at work. Molly was three years older than Erika’s 23 but they had a lot in common and had become close over the year and a half Erika had worked there. Molly was already out on the floor, her shift ending soon, so Erika kept going to the staff locker rooms at the back of the floor, keeping her eyes focused on the door instead of looking around.

Just in case.

She knew he was there. Knew he was watching her as she passed his table. But Erika forced herself not to look at him. She wasn’t going to let her eyes drift over to where her former best friend was working. She wouldn’t let him get to her.

He was the one she had to protect her heart from.

Safely in the locker room, Erika let out the breath she was holding. The space was empty and she took advantage of it, leaning against the wall of lockers to catch her breath. Erika knew he was working the overlapping shift with hers, but chances were she wouldn’t have to see him. Wouldn’t have to talk to him. He would be gone before she got off work and as long as she avoided the locker room around the time he was leaving, she could get through the night unscathed.

If only she could avoid thinking about him.

Jared Hudson tried to focus on the players in front of him as Erika walked by. He knew she wouldn’t look at him. She hadn’t since New Year’s Eve three months ago. If he could go back to that night he would do so many things differently. But he’d fucked it up. Royally.

He only wanted her to have the best, and he knew that wasn’t him. Erika deserved the world, and Jared knew she would find it one day. He wasn’t willing to stand in the way and risk her missing out on anything because of him.

When the door closed behind Erika, Jared smiled at the players in front of him. The men looked back with stoic expressions, of course. The first rule of any high-stakes game was never show emotion. Even though Jared knew he wasn’t really the enemy, he represented ‘The House’ which meant they were all trying to beat him.

Trying being the operative word.

Jared dealt a new hand to the players and looked at his own cards. He knew he had a good hand and wondered how the players would do. The first one on his right was a good player but had a few key tells that Jared picked up on, like he sniffed whenever he was bluffing, which he was doing then.

The second player was better and his only tell was raising his eyebrows when he first looked at his cards. So far all his hands had been good so Jared wasn’t sure if it was a tell that he had a good hand or just what he did with every hand.

The third player wasn’t that great, but it was obvious he was loaded. He played his money loosely and his cards even looser. He’d bluff against the others when he really needed to fold and he’d fold when he could have won.

The fourth one was Jared’s favorite. He was a talkative guy, friendly. He trash-talked the other players a bit and kept Jared on his toes. Jared thought the man got louder the better his cards were, but it could also have been he was drinking. Either way, he kept the night from being boring.

Well, him, and Erika.

She breezed back onto the floor, her long hair tied back into a neat bun, as Jared addressed the first player. He wanted another card. Jared dealt him a three as Erika drifted past, ignoring him as though he didn’t exist.

He wasn’t going to lie, it hurt.

Another card for Player One. A seven. The guy held, but didn’t turn his cards over so Jared was sure he didn’t have 21.

Player Two wanted one card and held when Jared dealt him a nine.

Player Three followed Jared’s gaze and watched Erika take her place at the roulette wheel a few stalls down and across the aisle from Jared. When he turned back to Jared he asked, “Who is that woman?”

He had an accent Jared hadn’t noticed in the few words he’d spoken so far, maybe British. Jared looked him over more closely. He was a little older than Jared at 26, maybe close to 30. He had thick dark hair that fell a little long but was obviously freshly cut. His expensive suit fit him like it was custom, and he was as cut as the suit with a physique that Erika would love.

Jared hated him.

“Her name is Erika.”

“Is she your girlfriend?” Player Three asked, his gaze drifting over Erika’s figure. Jared wanted to reach across the table and throttle the guy. He didn’t have to look at her, talk to her, but Jared knew the guy wouldn’t accept no once he set his sights on Erika.

Jared shook his head when the guy looked back at him, trying to figure out how to gain control again. The other three players were watching the two of them, their conversation more interesting than their cards at the moment.

“Is she seeing anyone?”

Jared shook his head again, clenching his teeth in the process. He wanted to lie to the guy. Tell him Erika was his girlfriend and they were fighting. Or tell him she was taken by… anyone but him.

Player Three rubbed his lightly stubbled chin and glanced over his shoulder at Erika again, his shoulders pressing into the fabric of his suit and showing the pure strength of him. “Well, gentlemen, I think it is time for me to fold. All of a sudden I have the desire to play some roulette.”

He flipped his cards, revealing a king to match his queen, the best hand he’d had all night. He picked up his chips and walked straight to Erika at the roulette table.

Jared clenched his jaw and stewed while he walked away. He tried to focus back on the game they were finishing, but his gaze kept traveling to Erika. She smiled as Player Three sat down, taking note of the stacks of chips he’d carried with him. She knew as well as he did that the gold chips were worth $1000 each. And he had a sizable stack of them.

Player Four cleared his throat, pulling Jared’s attention back to his table. Jared smiled at him before asking how many cards he wanted. Jared dealt him a five then a jack. He groaned and flipped his cards, showing 23. A bust.

Jared flipped his cards as he played out his own hand. He ended up with 19, which only served to piss him off. Three would have beaten him if he’d stayed.

Fuck, he did beat him. He was chatting up Erika while Jared watched. And Erika was smiling and flirting back.

Yep, Jared was a definite loser.

His voice was smooth and sophisticated. She recognized the British accent immediately and it drew her in. She’d always been a sucker for an accent. When he held his hand out to her she smiled coyly and slid her hand into his. “I am Edward. I understand your name is Erika?”

“Yes, I am. It’s nice to meet you Edward.”

Erika fought the urge to stick her tongue out at Jared. She’d seen Edward at his table when she walked by and knew he asked Jared her name and situation before he came over.

It stung a bit. He’d obviously handed her over to another man. A wealthy, good looking man. Just as well. Nothing was going to happen with Jared and Erika. He’d made that clear.

“What number are you going to spin next?”

Erika laughed, knowing he knew as well as she did that roulette was a perfect game of chance. She just happened to be the one in charge of the wheel, not where the ball landed. “If I told you that I just might lose my job,” Erika teased him.

“Well, then I would have to take care of you. I could not have you alone.”

Erika batted her eyes at him and wondered if he could be the man she’d been looking for, her Player In Shining Cufflinks. She felt no attraction to him, even though he had broad shoulders, a killer smile, and an accent that threatened to melt her panties. Not to mention he oozed money. From the chips he carried to the Armani suit he wore, Erika knew he was definitely in the tax bracket she hoped to find a husband in.

“It might be worth it then,” she said, leaning forward. She rested her hand on his arm and he looked down at her fingers, then let his gaze travel slowly back up over her body, pausing at her chest before meeting her eyes.

“I would make sure it was worth it.”

Erika smiled and called for last bets as she spun the wheel. She waited a few seconds then dropped the ball into the track and watched as they spun opposite each other.

The ball dropped into slot 25 and a chorus of cheers filled the space. Edward smiled at her, “I think you are my lucky charm. I did not beat your friend over there once, but with you I won on the first spin.”

Erika glanced at Jared as Edward spoke and found him staring at her. Anger heated his eyes and Erika fought the urge to wave him off, to make him feel better. But it didn’t matter. He was probably pissed that she stole his player. It had nothing to do with him hitting on her. After all, Jared sent him running straight to her.

“He’s a hard one to beat. Impossible to read. Over here it’s just luck, not really skill.”

“Then I think I need to stick to games of luck since I clearly have no skill.”

“I’m sure you have some skills. A man like you, you look very successful so you must be good at what you do.”

“Oh, there are things I am very good at Erika.” His bright green eyes heated as he looked her over. “Many, many things I am good at.”

Erika fanned herself, flirting even more with him. She knew it wouldn’t go anywhere, but it was fun to have a man treat her like she was a prize. Even if it was just for a little while.

Erika spun the wheel again, once again landing on Edward’s number, this time 11.

“How late are you working tonight, Erika?”

His question shocked her, more than she wanted to admit. In the year and a half she’d been working there she’d never been asked out by a player. “I just got here and it’s a four hour shift so I’ll get off at seven tonight.”

Edward nodded. “Excellent. I will meet you at seven for dinner. Out front.”

He stood and left before she could answer.

Or decide if she wanted to go.

2

Once her shift ended Erika pulled a green sweater over her black on black uniform then went out to meet Edward. She wasn’t even sure she wanted to go out with him. After all, there wasn’t that spark, that instant attraction that she felt with… oh, never mind.

The sad truth was Erika didn’t have any better offers. For the last three months she’d been moping around, not letting herself do anything since New Year’s Eve. She stood by and watched one of her best friends, Jenny Owens, fall in love with Jared’s friend, Logan. She was happy for them, truly, but it was hard to watch them. It was hard to be around such happiness when she was so completely miserable.

Erika knew what she should have done. She’d thought about it more times than she could count over the last three months. If she was smart she would have found another job. Avoided seeing Jared every day. She should have just left and never come back. Instead she faced him whenever she went to work.

She’d pulled back from the parties her coworkers liked to throw, just in case Jared was there. She’d avoided hanging around the casino after her shift was over. She’d reinvented herself, except this time she turned into a bitter old hag.

It was past time for her to change that. And step one was going out with Edward.

Part of her wondered if he’d actually be there, but when she walked out the door she wasn’t disappointed. A sleek, black town car was parked out front. Edward stepped out as soon as Erika pushed the casino door open.

“Erika, I am so glad you could join me. Shall we?” Edward held his hand out to her and she took it before sliding into the car. Edward slid in next to her in the backseat. Once the door was closed his driver pulled away from the casino, leaving the bright lights behind them.

Erika wondered where they were going. Edward had simply told her to meet him, not given away details. She knew men like him didn’t like to be questioned. Instead of offering a suggestion, she leaned back into the soft leather seats and smiled at the turn of events from how her day began.

Pissing off Jared was a bonus. She didn’t think he knew she was going out with Edward but he handed Edward over to her. The look he gave her earlier meant Jared wasn’t happy about it.

Too fucking bad.

He had his chance and told Erika it was a mistake. She promised herself she would never again put herself in a position where she could fall in love and get hurt. All she ever got from love was scars.