Read Online All In by Aleah Barley - Free Book Online Page B

finale. Unfortunately, she was sitting in a hotel room with Ryan.
    One hundred percent frog.
    No amount of kissing would help.
    “I’m not asking for forever, honey.” Hell, next week, he’d probably be assigned to a job somewhere in Alaska or the Arctic Circle. That would make his bosses happy.
    Or maybe Morelli would figure out that Ryan was still on his tail and he’d just be dead. The mob boss may be in jail, but he still had connections in the real world.
    His hand went up to cover the scar on his shoulder. Fingers pressed against the small star-shaped splintering of skin where the bullet had entered his body.
    Sometimes he wished it really had been a rhinoceros.
    “All I’m asking for is hot, sexy fun,” he continued.
    It probably wasn’t the smart thing to do, but, damn, it would feel good.
    He hadn’t had sex since the shooting. It had been eleven months, almost a year. People had started to notice.
    He’d been busy.
    Between physical therapy, helping out Jack, and getting back on the job, his last year had been jam-packed. The truth was, he hadn’t been interested in sex for a long time.
    Not until Daisy.
    He looked at his cards. The tiny numbers swam in front of his face. Five little clubs stared up at him. It was a natural flush. Perfect. He kept his expression calm.
    “No pressure,” he added. “Just two people playing a game.”
    They played a few more hands. Eventually Daisy lost her pants, revealing toned legs that would feel just right wrapped around his waist. Her panties were black boy-shorts that hugged her lush hips. Her face was clouded.
    It was Daisy’s turn to deal. Her hands fumbled with the cards.
    “You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to,” Ryan said.
    “It’s okay.” Her teeth worried at her bottom lip. “Let’s keep going.”
    She’d need to ante up in a minute, taking off her bra to reveal the juicy breasts Ryan had been fantasizing about for days.
    Now was not the time to have a sudden attack of chivalry.
    Ryan’s stomach churned. This didn’t feel right. “You really don’t have to,” he said.
    “And if I want to?” she said. “If I want some—how did you put it—hot, sexy fun?”
    His heart was pounding against his chest. He’d collected a nice pile of clothes on his side of the bed, but he hadn’t bothered to put on any of it. Sitting there in a pair of boxer briefs and nothing else, his arousal was obvious. He wasn’t about to turn her down but damn if he didn’t want to give her more.
    He was still a frog, but he could dream about being a prince.
    “Then why don’t we make things a little more interesting?” Ryan asked. “If you win this hand, you get your shirt back. If I win, I get a kiss.”
    Something glimmered in her deep blue eyes. “Yeah, that could work.”
    The woman was going to be the death of him.
    Ryan had finished his first beer. He started another one while she dealt. When Daisy gave a nod toward the drink, he opened one for her, too. She took a long pull, slicking the bottleneck with her saliva.
    Hair stood up on the back of Ryan’s neck. His skin suddenly felt like it was two sizes too small. The entire world contracted to the warm circle of Daisy’s mouth.
    This time, when he looked down at his cards, he didn’t bother hiding his reaction.
    Mistake. Apparently the tips he’d been offering had stuck because a few minutes later, he was handing over Daisy’s shirt. They kept playing. Daisy really was good at poker. Maybe there was something to the statistical approach.
    Ryan dealt another hand, determined to earn his kiss. Clothes passed back and forth between the two of them and no one bothered to put anything back on.
    Ryan was the first one to up his bets, kicking things up a notch when he threw in a second article of clothing after the draw. Daisy caught on quick enough, matching his wager.
    They played like that for a little while until Ryan was down to almost nothing—just the underwear he was sitting