Gamine and Gambler

"A stroll on the deck, take some air."

Tracy adored his English accent. "Will you buy me something to drink first?" she asked in her best purr. "I'm a tad thirsty."

"I never met a southern belle who wasn't," he remarked. "But I ought to make you pay after all the money you won from me. Your purse is bulging at its seams."

Good, she thought, he was going to be a challenge!

She said coyly, "I can afford to, but how would that look? Me paying for our refreshments? It's simply not done."

"Fine," Nick conceded, "I'll buy then."

His answer disappointed her, but he walked right up to the bar not six feet away from where Lee stared a hole through him. Nick acted like the big man wasn't even there. Tracy was impressed. In a fair fistfight Nick could probably handle her daddy, but no man could handle Lee. Not even the black bucks on the plantation.

When the man made a move toward them Tracy stopped him with a dirty look. "Relax, Lee, have a drink. Nick and I are going to take a stroll around the boat."

"You know I don't drink, Miss Somerset, and I don't think you should have another drink either."

"I forgot you're a good Baptist. But it really doesn't matter to me what you think. Stay in here and sulk for all I care."

"The colonel told me not to let you out of my sight."

"Daddy always says that, Lee,' she whined. "Where can Nick and I go, for God's sake? We're on a boat in the middle of a big ole river. You know this isn't some upriver journey, it's a gambling cruise; we pull back into New Orleans at dawn." She stood in front of Nick with her back to Lee to act as a barrier between them. Her forefinger suggestively traced the row of black pearl buttons on his ruffled shirtfront. "Nick, you don't plan to throw me overboard, do you?"

"Farthest thing from my mind, love," he said before ordering two whiskey and sodas from the barkeep.

Lee rumbled in that deep voice of his: "I'll follow along behind to make sure this foreigner doesn't get up to any tricks. I won't eavesdrop on ya'll's conversation. I'll be like a . . what are they called . . . like a chaperone."

"No, you won't!" she snapped. "You stay here and don't embarrass me in front of this gentleman."

"He don't look like no gentleman to me."

"Lee, do as I say!" Tracy raised her voice. "Stay put. We'll be back in just a little while."

Lee didn't say yes or no, but she felt his eyes burning against her back as Nick and she walked away. She carried her purse and drink in one hand so they could link arms again. Outside they unlinked and he put his arm around her possessively even though the early February night air wasn't cool, if anything it was humid. They walked down the outer promenade deck that wound like a porch all the way around the paddlewheeler. They were not the only couple out for a romantic stroll along the walkway. As the two of them lingered at the railing to sip at their whiskies she wondered if he had a stateroom on the Texas deck above them. How convenient that would be!

Nick said idly, "Your chaperone is following us."

"That fucker," she snarled shooting a glance past Nick. Lee stopped in his tracks when he saw her, propped himself against the rail pretending to gaze at the lights on the shoreline a mile or so in the distance.

"My, my," said Nick.

"What?" she asked, deliberately making cow eyes at him.

"Such language from a little girl," he grinned.

She chided him to see how he'd react. "In case you haven't noticed, mister, I'm not a little girl."

"To me you are."

Good, she thought, he didn't apologize, just took a pull from his glass. "And what exactly do you mean by that?" She bent forward enough to make sure her bodice hung away from her breasts so he could see them, nipples and all. Now more juice leaked between her thighs in a big way; few men affected her that way.

"I mean I'm more than twice your age."

"Age doesn't mean anything to me. I've been with a man older than you before," she fibbed.

He chuckled. "I thought you might be a virgin."

She punched his arm. "What gave you that idea?"

He nodded Lee's way. "Colonel Somerset apparently has you watched like a hawk. Do you ever get any time alone to yourself?"

"Are you worried about Lee?"

"Not in the slightest."

"Then why don't you kiss me then?"

"Would you like that?"

"Why don't you try it and see for yourself."

"Maybe this isn't the time and the place," he said smoothly.

"We're under a lovely moon and it is Saint Valentine's Day. It doesn't get much more romantic than this."

"Who said I'm after romance, as you call it?"

"Then what are you after? Do you want your fucking money back?"

Every man she knew would've backed down then; tiptoed around her attitude in hopes of making love to her. But Nick smiled instead, earning more points on her mental scorecard. He said easily, "If I couldn't afford to lose it shooting dice I wouldn't have brought it aboard."

"Then why don't you kiss me? I'll be damned if I'm going to pay you to."

Nick's smile changed to a grin. "Let me ask you a question first, I'm curious about something."

"And what would that be, kind sir."

He chuckled and took another drink of his whiskey. "I may not be as kind as you think I am once you get to know me."

"That sounds exciting."

"Maybe. What I wanted to ask you is why do you cheat at craps?"

"That's a dangerous assumption."

"What am I assuming? You do cheat, admit it."

"Oh, I admit that. Don't assume because my father's a rich landowner that he lavishes money and gifts on me. That's very much not true. He's very stingy, in fact. I didn't speak to him for three days until he agreed to buy me this dress to wear on this all night jaunt." She paused to wet her lips with her tongue. "And allowing me to take this short little cruise, well, let me just say that was another battle altogether."

"But you won it."

"I told you I play to win."

Nick grinned, "Yes, you did tell me that, didn't you?"

"Uh huh. So that leaves the question: are you going to kiss me or not?"

"Now you're speaking my language." He stooped down to set his glass on the deck and took her in his arms.

"Wait a second, Nick," she said.

"Are you trying to tease me, Tracy? Stop leading me on."

"I'm not leading you on."

Nick flirted well.

He asked: "What do you call it then?"

"Suspense," she said in her best coquette voice. Nick and the whiskey were having quite an effect on her about then. She drained the contents of her glass and hurled it into the river, looped her arms around his neck. "Now I'm ready for that kiss."

"I can tell," he said and kissed her deeply.

His hands slid down to her ass and squeezed her body against his. She sighed. Nick's physical reaction to her was everything she hoped for.

"You're hard as a railroad spike." Big as one too! "Do you have to pee or something?"

He laughed out loud at her remark. "The answer to that, little missy, would be 'or something,'" he said and kissed her again.

She'd been right, he kissed well.

He gripped her behind even tighter during the kiss and grinded against her. She ground back. My God, she thought, I'm getting a tad dizzy. When he broke the kiss she saw Lee heading their way. "Shit!" she groaned.

"What?"

"Take one guess, Romeo."

"Does thou bodyguard approacheth, Juliet?"

"Thou arth correct," she giggled drunkenly, mashing her chest against him and grinding against his top notch crotch again.

"What do you want to do?" asked Nick peering back over his shoulder.

She nibbled at his ear saying, "I want to be alone is what I want to do, darling, and Sergeant Strict himself is fifteen feet away."

"And on today of all days," Nick said whimsically.

"Get away from Miss Somerset, you mountebank," barked Lee.

Tracy disengaged herself and took a step toward the big man.

"I told you not to follow us, you louse. Go back in the casino and wait like I told you to!"

"I can't."

"And why not?"

"Just following orders, Miss Somerset."

"Well, I'm ordering you to get the hell away from me."

"I take orders from the colonel," said Lee. "He wouldn't want this for you."

Tracy showed him the rough side of her tongue. "I'm an adult now in case you've forgotten."

Lee stopped and started to speak, but couldn't find any words.

Tracy continued, "We're hardly alone, you fool, there are other people walking around, for Christ's sake!"

"You're drunk, Miss Somerset, and you're not thinking straight. You need to come with me. Your father would disapprove."

"Daddy doesn't want me to die an old maid!"

Lee put out one of his ham-sized hands, indicating she needed to accompany him back into the casino.

"I said leave us alone!" Tracy shouted. With her pearl-sewn handbag she angrily slapped Lee's face using all her strength. She whipped the bag backhanded in a blind fury, pelting him on the other side of his jaw. That heavy purse had to have hurt, but the blows didn't faze him; a fly might've landed on his cheek for all the emotion in Lee's eyes. People stopped their strolling and watched the scene, but nobody challenged Lee. Tracy spun on her heel and took Nick by the hand. "Come on," she said vehemently and began to drag him away.

Lee stayed where he was, unsure of how to respond, surrounded by onlookers. Tracy searched Nick's eyes and didn't like what she saw. The man wore a nervous grimace on his face. She snapped at him, "What are you? Afraid?"

"A little, the chap's as big as a house, he's going to spoil--" Nick stopped speaking and Tracy stopped in mid-stride.

"Go ahead, Nick, finish what you were going to say."

For the first time since they'd met she saw him uncertain, hesitant, but he regained his composure in a flash. "That fellow's going to spoil your evening."

"Why didn't you say something back there then, or do something?"

"What would you have me do? Shoot him?"

His words startled her. "Are you carrying a gun?"

"A derringer. It would take more than two bullets to kill him."

Tracy muttered fuck under her breath. Slapping her father's right hand man was one thing, but getting him shot was another altogether. "Things are getting too serious and out of control, Nick. Maybe I should go back."

She studied the planks of the deck till he put a finger under her chin and tilted her head up. He still looked nervous to her and that disappointed her. Any man of hers needed to stand up for her, even against a man the size of house. He tugged at her hand and she didn't budge.

"Come with me," said Nick brusquely, but masterfully.

She followed him.

~~~

Holy shit, thought Kane, what a close call. The girl's bodyguard had nearly queered the deal. He needed to put some distance between them and the colonel's goon or fail his assignment. Plus not getting to fuck Tracy senseless and getting his neck broken in the bloody bargain. Now the big son of a bitch pushed his way through the onlookers and stalked after them again. The walkway curved around the stern of the riverboat. Kane veered left to cross the wide aft deck of the steamship to where he'd been leading Tracy all along, before she wanted to get kissed. Her cockeyed notions of romance and moonlit strolls bordered on the absurd.

The gigantic paddlewheel thundered below, throwing a mist into the air as it churned the waters of the Mississippi. He felt the spray on his face and the backs of his hands before going left again to head up the narrower starboard promenade walkway toward the bow, dragging Tracy along behind him before she decided to change her mind and return to the casino.

"Off we go, young lady, the night is too young to end just yet," he said in a feeble attempt to sound both cheerful and debonair.

But she grumbled, "What do you intend to do, run from Lee all night?"

"We're not running, we're hiding."

"What do you mean hide, Nick? He'll find us no matter where we go."

"Not where I have in mind he won't," he promised her.

Kane thought he heard heavy running footsteps behind them above the roar of the paddlewheel, but knew it was just paranoia. Lee lost sight of them when they crossed the stern deck yet doubtless hurried to catch up. Not that it would do him any good. Kane had chosen the stern of the ship for his purposes because of the paddlewheel's proximity. Its constant threshing made it nearly impossible to hear anything. To Kane's immediate left a ladder led up to the third level of the riverboat, the Texas deck. He hurried Tracy up the wooden stairway ahead of him.

"Where in the hell are we going, Nick?"

"You'll see. I think you'll like it." He knew she wouldn't, once she got there and found out what she was in for. In the last few minutes Colonel Somerset's daughter had transformed into an absolute handful.

"Are we going to huddle in the crow's nest?"

"Don't be silly, girl, riverboats don't have crow's nests. But I swear we are going to huddle, actually cuddle is the better choice of words," he lied.

"That sounds intriguing." Tracy sounded like she'd gotten back in the spirit of things, at least her mood seemed improved.

"Then let us go," he said with more levity than he felt. They walked a short way then trundled back down another ladder, once more enveloped by the noise of the paddlewheel. When they reached the promenade deck Kane paused to kiss Tracy to reassure her before taking yet another ladder below to the main deck. She loved kissing and before the kiss ended he sprouted another erection to replace the one he'd lost evading Lee. Kane hunched his pelvis against hers and, to his relief, Tracy reciprocated.

What a good little slut, jolly good.

On the lower main deck she had to yell to be heard above the roar of the wheel and water. "Why are you taking me down here?"

He said loudly close to her ear, "We're going up and down these ladders to confound Lee. Doubling back ought to disorient him."

"Ladders?" wondered Tracy.

"Stairways in landlubber talk. Let's get a move on, love."

He cupped a cheek of her ass to guide her along. They passed several doorways until Kane came to a halt at one without a porthole, produced a key and let them inside a surprisingly roomy compartment. When he closed and locked the door behind him, Kane could hear himself think again, the paddlewheel's racket muffled like a constant but distant rolling thunder. Oil lamps set in the bulkheads provided a hazy illumination. He figured Tracy would find dim lighting romantic, at least until she realized what he'd got up to. When she spied the stacked barrels, coils of tarred rope littering the deck and shelves of sundry boiler room tools, she hesitated.

"For a minute I thought you might have a stateroom, Nick. Let's go back outside; it's more romantic under the moon and stars."

Kane asked, "Would you have gone with me if I'd said let's go up to my cabin so we can be alone?"

"Well, maybe," the deceptive tart said slowly, indecisive like so many women Kane encountered during a checkered lifetime. "You said you knew a place where we could cuddle. I don't see anywhere to cuddle in here, not in comfort at any rate. What is this place anyhow, a storeroom or something?"

"On the other side of these barrels is a couch. See for yourself."

He'd not lied. An old castoff couch with a tall tattered back and two oversized scrolled arms had long ago been pushed into a corner, its fabric threadbare and ripped in places. The dilapidated sofa was late for the rubbish heap but suited Kane's purpose. He clasped Tracy's upper arm, hauled her over to it then sat down and pulled her onto his lap. When he palmed one of her splendid tits, she recoiled.

"This isn't very romantic, Nick, I said let's get out of here."

Kane gave the bodice of her gown a yank to bare her breasts. The silk settled around her waist and he admired the belly button in her flat stomach and the ribcage outlined under her alabaster skin. Those tits bobbed quite nicely, stood high and firm without a hint of sag like a very young girl's full breasts will, far more lovely than he'd previously imagined. Kane tongued one of the nipples and she tried to push away from him.

"Behave yourself, or I'll scream."

"Go right ahead," he told her, raising the hem of her party dress up until the material bunched around her waistline like a wide belt. He ran a hand high on one of her legs to reach her pussy. She immediately got his fingers wet. Then Tracy began to squirm, setting her breasts into delicious motion. Mesmerized, Kane began sucking on a stiff nipple.

"Stop I said or I'll scream."

"Be my guest, no one will hear you, not in here."

Kane smelled her slightly fishy scent even before he sunk a finger deep between her labial lips with such ease it should've shamed Tracy, but didn't. She was like a ripe berry overflowing with juice, ready and in need of a good drubbing. She struggled in his arms, but just a little. Like many women she put up a token resistance for nothing other than to soothe her conscience tomorrow morning. Her squirming just excited him more. She wriggled about less and less the more he fingerfucked her. Ardor overtook her, her breathing becoming heavy and uneven. Panting, she grabbed him by the hair to move his face in close, kissing him with great passion, tongue roving inside his mouth with a mounting hunger. Her legs parted more to permit Kane access to fondle her more easily. Before long he introduced a second finger inside her and she groaned loudly, moving her hips in concert with his skillful probing to ratchet up the degrees of her pleasure. When she came the first time Tracy kissed him with a fiercer intensity. Wet smacking noises sounded, the source of them between her legs. Her lips left his and she whimpered into his ear, gasping and moaning in unbridled joy, her breath heated.

Suddenly she clamped her thighs together to trap his hand and voiced a loud unembarrassed cry signaling a powerful orgasm.

"Oh, darling Nick, don't stop, please keep doing that. I want you to love me so bad. I want you, don't deny me. Please!"

Seconds later Kane sensed a growing wet spot on his trouser leg where she perched in his lap. He slipped his slick digits out of her liquid core and thrust them into her mouth.

"Suck them clean, you naughty girl, you've gotten cream all over them."

She obeyed him and sucked for a minute before pushing his hand away. Then the fickle bitch declared, "That's disgusting. I want to go."

"You liked it. Besides, you know what today is. I thought you wanted to fuck."

"Stop using that coarse language and take me back to the casino."

"You hypocrite. It's all right for you to say fuck, but not me."

"I'm ordering you to stop touching me and take me back."

"What makes you think you can give me orders, love? From this point forward you'll be taking orders instead of giving them."

"Who do you think you are?"

"I might ask you the same exact question," he replied. "You think now that you've gotten your jollies it's time to go and my satisfaction means little or nothing to you."

She got contrite, or as contrite as a self righteous spoiled bitch like she would ever get. "Didn't I make you happy, darling?"

"I'm happy alright," he agreed, "but I'm about to be even happier!"

"What do you mean, Nick?"

"Don't ask," he said in a growl, "you understand me just fine."

His wicked grin came back into place.

He rolled her over his knee and pulled the hem of her dress back up above her ass where it had slid down. Kane discovered her bottom to be on an equally fabulous par as her languidly swaying breasts. After a short spell of admiring the smooth halved flesh of her buttocks he brought the flat of his hand down hard to deliver a ferocious smack to her left cheek. The flesh of her bottom leapt under the impact and a charming red handprint appeared as if it had been there all along. The mark looked right, like it belonged there. In fact he found it appealing enough to apply his hand again to smack her other buttcheek. Perfect! So perfect that Kane did not stop and commenced paddling her fat young ass for minutes on end. He ceased only long enough to grip her slim wrists together in one fist before the resumption of spanking her behind continuously with his other hand. Tracy wailed, calling him every name in her vast vocabulary. Not that she could've checked his determined pummeling with words alone. The sight of her ass dancing under the rhythm of his hand almost dizzied him.