Page 30 of Gambler's Conceit

That same nasty stab of jealousy emerges, and I scowl at him. “You should have better taste.” Something occurs to me, and I look down at the floor. “Where’s the fucking condom? You shouldn’t leave that for the cleaning crew. Bad enough they have to deal with all this shit.”

Seven snorts. “What condom?”

What condom?

The jealousy gives way to rage, and I grab him by the shoulders, shaking him hard. “You didn’t use a fucking condom?” I ask. “Are you fucking serious, Seven? You don’t know what kind of diseases he has.”

Seven gives me a hard look. “Yeah? And you don’t know what kind ofdiseasesI have either. At least Havoc didn’t judge me for that.”

I shake him again. “You need to fucking think before you act! You don’t know who Caleb Spade actually is, and if you think a spanking is the least of what he can do to you?—”

“I know what he can do,” Seven snaps back at me, trying to squirm out of my grasp.

I don’t let him. I grab him by the back of his neck and force him over to the wall, pinning him against it. “So do you have a death wish? You didn’t seem to want him to put out the word that you’re in town, but you should be afraid of Caleb, too.”

“Should I be afraid ofyou?” Seven asks directly, staring up at me.

I want to tell him I’m not the threat here, but I know he won’t believe me. I slide my hand up from the back of his neck to the back of his head, holding him in place as I kiss him.

He doesn’t seem surprised. His lips part to allow my tongue to plunge past them, and I kiss him hard and fast and deep right there against the wall like I’m not bleeding all over the place andhe doesn’t have another man’s cum potentially dripping out of his ass.

That thought is enough to make me pull back, and I grab Seven again.

“Come on,” I say grimly. I grab his arm, and he stays alongside me as I march him toward the door. “Let’s get you cleaned up.” I need to clean up, too, but I’m more focused on Seven and making sure that he’s clean—inside and out.

I don’t often use my room at the Roi de Pique’s hotel, but I’m glad I have it now. I slide my hand down and twine Seven’s fingers in mine like we’re holding hands and he’s willingly following me to my room.

He’s not fighting me, at least, and I glance at his face to try to get a read on him.

I can’t.

I grunt, continuing to lead him toward the employee area of the casino. The guards there glance at Seven, then at me, but neither of them tries to stop me as we walk down the hallway. When we reach the rooms set aside for security, I lead Seven to the one I always use when I need to stay a night, swiping my key card and nudging the door open with my shoulder.

“Go on,” I tell him.

He steps inside, glancing around us, but it’s only a standard hotel room like any other.

“Into the bathroom,” I prompt. “Get undressed and get into the shower.”

I don’t know who the fuck I think I am for just taking the boss’s pet and doing all of this to him, but I feel like a man possessed.

Seven is surprisingly quiet as he strips and gets into the bathtub, turning the water on before I can reach it. As he starts to clean himself off, I glance in the mirror, grimacing at what I see. I’m all bruised up, and there’s a cut on my face that’s stillsluggishly oozing blood. It’s easy enough to take care of, though, and I use the first aid kit on hand to attach a little butterfly bandage to it.

When I’m done, I glance back to see Seven, who’s still scrubbing himself behind the white shower curtain.

“Hurry up,” I tell him, anxious and on edge and knowing I need to get him back upstairs so I can get back to my job—assuming I can even function.

The water cuts off, and Seven pulls the curtain aside. He wrings out his wet hair and stares at me, his eyes still dark and almost cold as they assess me.

“What?” I finally ask, shoving a towel at his chest.

“Is that what you think of me? That I’m just… filthy because I had unprotected sex? Like you’ve never done it before?” he asks me as he starts to towel himself off.

“No, I don’t think you’re dirty,” I say, gritting my teeth. “I just…”

“But you said it back there, that he was filthy. So doesn’t that make me filthy, too?” Seven sneers at me. “According to you, anyway.”

I don’t feel like anything I say is going to make this better, so I turn and grab a fluffy white bathrobe for him. He takes it and wraps it around his body.