Riskier Business (Crossing the Line 0.5)

Riskier Business (Crossing the Line 0.5)

Tessa Bailey



Chapter One


Ruby Elliott bent low over the pool table, lining up her shot on the six ball. She could feel the familiar, level gaze burning over her back, bottom, and thighs. Familiar, yes. But since the night all those months ago when she’d met her boyfriend, Troy Bennett, the power of that gaze had only strengthened, making it damn hard to concentrate on what she was doing. What game was he playing? He’d walked into Hildebrand’s, her old Brooklyn neighborhood’s local pool hall, twenty minutes ago, but instead of greeting her with a kiss as usual, he’d sat at the bar and ordered a beer. He’d been watching her ever since, steadily sipping from the bottle as though formulating a plan. Anticipation quivered in her belly, hot and liquid. Whatever he had planned, she needed him to hurry.

From day one, their relationship had never been anything less than exciting. Explosive. Often volatile. Could one expect anything less between a stubborn pool hustler and an NYPD detective who thrived on exercising control?

Their first week together had found them on opposite sides of the law. Troy had been investigating a local Brooklyn mobster, a man who just happened to be the father of her childhood best friend. Knowing the level of violence this man was capable of, she’d defected to Troy’s side in an effort to keep him alive—and it had very nearly ended with a bullet in her reckless backside. Troy had saved her, though. In more ways than one. Not only had she stopped putting herself in danger to make money by fleecing marks out of their cash on the felt, she’d opened her own custom pool cue factory, and the business had taken off.

Finally, finally, she was exactly where she wanted to be.

After banking the eight ball, Ruby set her stick aside to rerack. Just as she finished the familiar task, she felt Troy move up behind her, brushing against her slightly as he passed. Electricity raced across her skin, every nerve ending in her body waking up and paying attention.

“Looking for a game?” he murmured near her ear.

Ruby shrugged, trying to appear unaffected, yet knowing her red cheeks likely gave her away. Her body never failed to betray her to this man. “Can you afford to play with me?”

He rested his hands on either side of her on the table, bringing his chest flush against her back. Deep in his throat he made a humming sound when his lap fitted snugly against her bottom. Ruby barely held back the urge to shift her body, tempt him closer. “I don’t think I can afford not to,” he said. “What’s your name, little hustler?”

So this was his game. Pretend they didn’t know each other? She could play along. Troy never did anything without a purpose. And his purpose was always her pleasure. “Ruby.” She tilted her neck to the side, felt his gaze move lower to where her breasts strained against her tank top. “Why don’t you put your money where your mouth is, then?”

His chest rumbled with a growl, alerting her to the fact that she was now playing with fire. Troy’s dangerous fire. Her thighs squeezed together of their own accord. “I would worry about your own mouth if I was you. Before it gets you into trouble.”

“Maybe I like trouble,” she whispered.

“Well, you’ve definitely found it.” One hand traveled to her hip, fingers digging in, just hard enough to make her gasp. “My brand of trouble is so good it hurts. You want to hurt a little tonight, baby?”

A blast of desire ricocheted through her system. She felt stripped bare, unsuited for a public place. The raucous conversations taking place in the bar had faded into background noise, Hildebrand’s ceasing to exist around her. Troy frequently had this effect on her mind and body, leaving her struggling to contain her composure. “The only thing that’s going to hurt is your ego when I beat you.”

His laughter against her neck was filled with dark promises. “I think we know who’s going to win in the end.”

She swallowed hard. “You’re very confident.”

“Yeah. I am. Do you know why?” Troy pressed his hips close. She could feel his substantial erection, thick against her behind. “I have what makes you moan. What’s going to make those thighs open wide. I’ve got it right here and you’re f*cking dying for it.” He backed away and a whimper escaped Ruby before she could stop it. “Your break, hustler.”

“What do I get if I win?” Ruby asked with forced nonchalance, even as her pulse kicked into high gear. Watching Troy play pool always turned her on to a stunning degree. He’d never let on until recently exactly what an accomplished player he was. That is what made her so hot. He didn’t need to brag, nor did he pout like most men inevitably did when she won, which happened to be the majority of the time.

No. Troy took his victories elsewhere.

Ruby broke the rack, but divested of her concentration, sunk none of the balls. She narrowed her eyes at Troy’s smirk as he approached the table.

He stopped in front of her, chalking his cue slowly. When he set the blue cube aside, his stormy blue gaze found hers, voice dropping to a whisper. “If you win, I’ll stop tonight when you beg me to.”

Ruby inhaled shakily, resisting the urge to press a hand to her tightened belly. “And if you win?”

Troy laughed under his breath. “I don’t stop. We go another round. Harder. So much f*cking harder than the first one.” He leaned in and ran his lips up the side of her neck, scraped his teeth against her heated flesh on the way back down. “How does that sound?”