Chapter One
There is nothing quite like Atlantic City in the summer time, streets were filled with tourists, the boardwalk had the unique smell of hotdogs, pretzels, cotton candy as well as the salty ocean air.. The casinos were packed with people looking to make or break the bank but everyone had a smile on their face, yes AC was the place to be..
The air conditioning chilled her skin as she walked, the red silk dress she wore clung to every curve in her body, accentuating all the right parts, she walked with a mission as all eyes went on her..The jealous stares of the other women and the near drooling of men, she smiled, it was good to be back..
"Can i get you a drink Mrs. Harris?" one of the wandering servers had asked as she made her way around, her eyes locked on his across the room and he smiled as he got up from the table he was sitting at, she brought her attention to the server at her side.."Your husband is doing quite well tonight" he smiled.
She nodded her head in agreement.."as always,...speak of the devil" she grinned as he neared her, dressed in a black armani suit, his tie now undone and a few buttons open gave a preview to what lied underneath..
The server looked in the mans direction as he came over, it was apparent he was nervous, why wouldnt he be, everyone knew who he was and how dangerous he was.."she's not giving you a hard time is she" his voice was smooth and deep as he spoke, putting a protective arm around her as she batted her eye lashes at him..
She answered before the man could.."now sweetheart dont embarass the young man" she smiled at him as he planted a soft kiss on her cheek..
"You gotta watch out for this one" he pulled her close..
"I think we will take those drinks now, maybe a bottle of your best wine to celebrate" she smiled to the server who quickly nodded his head and scurried off..
"You know dear if you keep spending like this then we might end up staying here awhile just so i can make back what i lost" he took her hand and began to lead her across the casino..
"well its a good thing you know how to play the game" she smiled as they walked hand in hand..
"well you know me i can never walk away from a challenge" he smirked as a man approached them.."Mr. Lawrence i am so glad you made an appearance tonight" he brought his attention to the grey haired man who wore an equally expensive suit and a forced smile on his face..
"how could i not, this is the third night in a row you have cleaned the bank Jonathon" the man said with a smile but there was nothing friendly behind it, and why would there be, he owned this casino and he was losing money to this man, alot of money, too much in fact.."You look lovely tonight Gabrielle" he said as he appreciated the view in front of him..
"Oh now now Mr. Lawrence you know i dont look kindly on those who oggle my wife" he said as he pulled her closer and the older man grinned..
"No disrespect of course but perhaps we could have a private conversation im sure your wife wouldnt mind mingling with the other wives" the older man said as he took another look at her..
Jonathon pulled a wad of bills from his pocket and handed it to her and she looked up at him.."why dont you go buy yourself something nice and i will meet you in the room"
She smiled as she put the money in her purse.."Ok dear but dont be too long, you know how i get when i have too much time on my hands" she grinned as she kissed his cheek and then nodded at the older man and walked away, he watched her the entire time..
"she is a beauty" Jonathon said with a grin..."but im sure thats not what you want to talk about" he looked back at the man who had watched her walk away, his eyes full of lust..
"actually i was trying to figure out a way i could feel better about you cleaning house here and well, i think i have something that would ease my mind" the older man said with a smile as he glanced across the room and then back at Jonathon..
"something tells me that this isnt open for much discussion" he smiled a bit sarcastically..
"Oh Jonathon i think you know me better then that, you have single handedly taken over two hundred thousand dollars from my casino, you didnt really think i would just let you leave" the man said with a smile as Jonathon watched from the corner of his eye as four men dressed in back slowly began walking over..
"I take it that they arent coming to congratulate me" he said as he looked at the man..
"I dont like it when someone goes back on their word and if i do remember correctly you had stated that last night would be your last night here and well it saddens me that you did not stay true to your word" the man said as the other four men neared them..
"i guess i really dont like being told what to do" Jonathon said a bit sarcastically as he looked at the older man whose lips became tightly pressed together..
"You dont look like a stupid man Mr. Harris and something tells me that you would like to continue to stay at my casino" the older man bit his tongue..
"I sense a huge but coming" he stared the man down..
"you know the rules here better then anyone Mr. Harris and i fully intend on collecting" he stared right back at him as the four men surrounded them..
"I have no intention of leaving Mr. Lawrence" he smiled..
"Oh but i do and well lets just say not alone" he smiled as he glanced in the direction of the woman who was causing quite a distraction, he straightened himself some and then looked back into blue eyes.."we can do this the easy way or the hard way" he looked at his men, so did Jonathon..
"you will need alot more men then this is you think i will let you anywhere near my wife" he said with a smile that held a threat..
"I figured as much" the older man grinned as a gun was pressed hard into Jonathons back..."i advise you to start walking, with a smile by all means" the older man grinned..
They began walking across the casino, the gun hidden somewhat as the men neared the red headed beauty..She turned as they neared her.."your husband and i have some things to discuss and your presence is greatly appreciated" Mr. Lawrence said as he looked at her, she looked at her husband, he nodded his head..
"Ok" she said a bit nervously as she took her husbands hand and began walking out of the casino, the older man lead them up a long winding staircase that lead to the suites above.."Jonathon?" she said with a nervous tone as he looked at her..
"dont worry yourself sweetheart, these men wont hurt us" he said as the older man stopped at a door and opened it, leading them inside.."come lets have a drink" he said as he walked to the small bar inside the room, the man with the gun nudged Jonathon as he walked towards the bar..
Lawrence began pouring drinks, the man with the gun pushed Jonathon slightly to the couch and he sat down as his wife sat down next to him, Lawrence came over and handed them each a drink.."so Jonathon would you like to explain to your wife the rules of my casino or should i?" the man grinned as he began to sip his own drink..
She looked at him confused.."Jonathon what is this about"
"I do believe this man is about to proposition us sweetheart" he said as he glared at the older man..
"Oh dont make it sound that harsh Jonathon" he began as he looked at the redhead and smiled.."when someone takes as much as your husband has from my place of business, well... i expect a favor in return for being so gratious with my money"
"I dont understand what your saying" she began and she looked at her husband, fear consuming her features as she looked at the man with the gun.."Jonathon?" she said again, her voice cracking some...
"what your husband is trying not to say is that i am going to fuck you as he watches" he said cooly as Jonthan went to jump up..
"i will kill you before you touch her!" he barked at the man as the gun got cocked back, Gabrielle gasped in shock..He stood still as the gun was aimed at his head..
"Oh god please dont" she cried out..
"Now jonathon you seriously dont want me to have to subdue you?" the older man said with a smile.."who knows you may enjoy watching this" he roughly grabbed Gabrielles arms as she winced..
"dont be stupid man, otherwise your blood will be painted on these walls" the man with the gun said as Jonathon went to jump at lawrence..
"come one sweetheart you may even like it, actually i can almost guarentee you will" he grinned as he roughly pulled her against him.." Now strip out of that dress and dont make me tell you twice" he snapped at her, she looked at her husband with tears in her eyes, he cast his eyes down..
"Jonathon please...please dont let them do this" she cried out..
"I said NOW!" the older man yelled as he shoved her some.."dont make me wait any longer" he began as she looked at her husband, his eyes staring at the floor, she looked at the men.."i will count to three"
"Please we will give you the money back" she said as she looked at her husband.."please tell him we will give it back" he didnt answer..
"Your husband isnt a stupid man" Lawrence said with a smile.."One"
"i cant do this..i wont" she cried..
"two" he was losing patience, the man with the gun pressed it up to Jonathons head.."do you really want to do this sweetheart?" she began to cry harder.."thr..." he began..
"ok ok...please just dont hurt him" she cried as she stood there shaking.."I will do it, ok" she said as she kicked off her shoes and began to lift up her dress slowly, her hands shaking as the men watched with wide eyes..
"FASTER i dont have time for this" the man yelled and her husband looked up now, she yanked the dress up more, their eyes got locked and then it happened, John spun, grabbing the gun within seconds and holding it on the man, the three other guys pulled out guns too as Gabrielle grabbed the one that was attached to her inner thigh, all guns pointed at Lawrence and his now unarmed man..He had a look of shock on his face..
"Now whose the stupid man, huh... hands behind your back Lawrence your under arrest" John barked at him..
The two men with guns took the unarmed man down as John walked over to Lawrence..He looked at Gabrielle..."You ok?"
"Oh im fine" she said as he walked up to the older man and smiled.."your gonna be quite the pretty prize in prison" she grinned as John quickly handcuffed him.."you have the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be used against you" she began.."do you understand?"
"fuck you" lawrence gritted his teeth as John yanked his arms back hard..
"you better respect the lady" John said warningly to him..
"we got him covered over here" detective Price said as John looked at him and his other officer..
"You know your lucky that douche bag didnt shoot you on the spot" she finally said to John with a shake of her head.."what happened to plan B huh"
"oh god here we go" John sighed as he rolled his eyes..
"Im just saying plan B was good" she grabbed her shoes and put them on..
"do you want to argue about this now Buchanan" he said with a sigh..
"back up is on the way, 2 minute ETA" Price said as they held onto the unarmed man who looked like he would literally shit himself..
"fine but plan B would of worked better" she said with a roll of her eyes..."but i did totally rock that, ruined my make up but" she smirked..
"come on lets get him out of here, i wanna get home" john said with a shake of his head and a grin on his face..
"Your making a big mistake detective" Lawrence said as John shoved the gun hard into his side..
"save it for the judge asshole" he snapped as they left the room..
About two hours later and a ton of paper work done, she tucked the towel around her body as she looked into the bathroom mirror of the hotel room .."You know for a second i thought that guy was going to shoot you, what happened to it just being our men" she said through a cracked door as he took off his shirt..
"since when has anything ever worked out as planned" he said sarcastically..
"yeah well Plan B would of worked just fine" she peeked her head out of the bathroom, he was shirtless now and looking over his chest for bruises, she would never get over how beautiful his body was, he was nearly 6 foot tall, muscular and yet lean, a few tattoos covering his chest, yes she had seen his body more then she would like to admit, not to mention she had felt it pressed up against her during numerous occassions..
"you and this Plan B, give it a rest, we got him didnt we" he said with a roll of his eyes..
"well yeah but" she began as he shook his head..
"Oh i forgot Miss Perfection" he said with a grin..
"dont you forget it" she smiled and looked back in the mirror.."so do you think we will be back in Lanview by 8" she began applying makeup..
"Oh thats right you have a hot date" he said with a sarcastic laugh..
"Um excuse me its not a date just drinks and Cris is a cool guy" she said as she put on eye liner..
"the guy is a starving artist" he said with a shake of his head and then grabbed a shirt from the bed and put it on..
John McBain and Natalie Buchanan had been working as partners since John had arrived in town almost two years ago. They had a unique relationship which started out very rocky in the beginning but over time they began to respect each other not to mention became quick friends.
They relied on each other, they had to, they worked well together and they had busted many criminals over the last two years, they were definitely a good team..
"by the way sweetheart im not coming to your rescue this time" he continued..
"Um for starters that was one time and seriously i should of never let Gi set me up on a blind date" she said with a roll of her eyes..
"One time huh...what about the mama's boy" he raised an eyebrow at her..
"oh god, ok so maybe two times but that was only cause he wanted to show me his comic book collection in his moms basement" she laughed..
"hey you pick em and this finger painter will be the same" he smiled..
"he is an artist and a damn good one maybe if you had some culture in your life" she scrunched her nose at him..
"are you gonna keep talking crap or are you gonna get dressed, i have somewhere i have to be tonight" he said as she rolled her eyes..
"Oh really what a surprise who is the lucky victim tonight" she laughed sarcastically.."another stripper, what was the last ones name, Bunny i think, right?" she said a shake of her head..
"her name was carol...i think and she was very educated" he began as Natalie laughed loud as she opened the bathroom door, standing in only a towel..
"educated in the pole" she laughed as he spun himself around on the bed, his back facing her as she began to get dressed..
"she was putting herself through school not everyone can be as fortunate as you princess" he laughed as the towel flew and hit him in the back of the head..
"Hey! Dont make me tackle your ass to the ground" he smirked as she finished getting dressed..
"bring it on McBain...you will lose everytime" she said as he finally turned and looked at her whisteling as she rolled her eyes..
"yep that outfit screams drinks" he said sarcastically as she stood there in a short denim skirt and a very low cut top that barely contained her breasts, he had to admit she was definitely easy on the eyes and one of the hottest partners he ever had not to mention he had a blast with her all the time..
"your just jealous cause you cant get none of this" she said as she fixed her hair..
"Ok princess why dont you finish up applying your face, i think you forgot a layer of makeup there" he grinned as she looked at him.."what? I dont know why you feel the need to put all that crap on, i say if he doesnt like you all natural then fuck em, oh wait you will do that tonight" he laughed..
"Your an idiot you know that right" she turned and faced him, her hands on her hips...
"Yeah but you love me" he grinned..
"Yeah yeah" she said as she grabbed her purse and went to the door.."come on your fake plastic girl awaits" she laughed as he got up and followed her out, admiring the view as he did..
Natalie sat at the table staring at her watch, the time was just ticking by and he was no where to be seen, where was he? The realization began to dawn on her as she sat there with her second beer on the table, she had been stood up, he had changed his mind and left her hanging, if she wasnt so annoyed she would probably cry, how the hell did her life get like this?
What irritated her more was that she really really liked him and he was really hot and she was sure that they probably would of kissed, hell maybe even something more but nope, he stood her up and now she was sitting at Rodi's like some sort of loser as she drank all by herself..This was truly one of the most pathetic days of her life..
"what are you doing here i thought you had a date" the sound of his voice made her want to run, of course it had to be him and of course he wasnt about to let her live this down, she looked to him as he stood at the edge of her very empty, too empty table..He glanced at her empty beers as a smirk formed on his face..
"dont... just dont John" she said as she stood..
"You got stood up" he said with amusement as she grabbed her unfinished beer and walked past him.."wow, i never thought i would see the day" he continued as he followed her over to the bar..
"I didnt get stood up ok, he is just running late" she lied as she ordered another beer..
"Oh you got stood up" he said and she looked at him and rolled her eyes..
"seriously dont i see you enough at work" she huffed, it was bad enough that they were partners at the station but did she really have to see him all the time, and at the worst times possible for that matter...She took out cash to pay for her drink but he pulled out money too and laid it on the bar..
"its on me" he grinned and she decided not to fight with him at this moment, she just wanted to have her beer and wallow in her self pity, she walked across the bar as he followed her.."you know i did kind of warn you about him"
"Oh great please spare me the whole i told you so talk" she sighed as she walked to the jukebox and looked at it as he leaned on the wall next to it..
"Listen Nat you should of taken my advise a long time ago, you only get one life so dont waste it on some douche bag" he began and she spun to face him now..
"But he wasnt a douche bag, he was a great guy, kind, decent" she huffed as she stood there and his face softened some..
"He did paint by numbers for a living" he said sarcastically as she looked at him..
"he is an artist, that is what they do, they paint" she huffed as she turned from him again, god she just couldnt catch a break, it happened like this all the time, it was always when she thought things were going so well, that she would be happy and then this, she was beginning to get a complex, i mean seriously what was wrong with her..
I mean she was twenty five years old, she wasnt bad looking and she worked out everyday to keep her body in tip top shape, she was kind, compassionate, she had a job, or better yet a career in law enforcement, she was the ideal catch but then why couldnt she seem to find anyone who thought that, why was she always alone, every night, the same thing, over and over again..
All of her friends were married by now, the majority of them had kids or were expecting kids, some even just making plans for kids and here she was, single, pathetic and absolutely going out of her mind, her internal clock was ticking, soon her time would be up, then what? Would she end up with a bunch of cats to keep her company?
"You know the saying there are plenty of fish in the sea" he began as she looked at him again..
"are you really going to do this right now John, dont you have someone to see or better yet some poor girls life to make miserable" she said sarcastically..
"You know i take offense to that" he smirked..
"i dont think anything offends you" she said as she walked over to the pool table and stared at it..
"true but that is only because i dont let anything get to me and thats including you broads" he began as she looked at him..
"Did you seriously just call me a broad?" she rolled her eyes..
"Ok...ladies and let me tell you from my stand point you are all crazy" he continued as he grabbed a pool stick and began to chalk it up..
"I am not crazy, and seriously you are one to talk, you bring home a different girl every night" she said with a huff as she grabbed a pool stick and began to chalk it up as well..
"Actually i dont bring anyone home but i have been known to venture over to the angel square motel a time or two" he smirked..
"Disgusting, the roach motel" she shivered at the thought as he grinned...
"hey dont knock it til you try it" he laughed.."Plus im upfront, they know what they are getting into and trust me i have many satisfied customers" he grinned as he lined up the balls..
"great so i should just be a whore then, thanks for the info" she said sarcastically as he finished setting up the balls and then walked around the table...
"who said anything about being a whore, im not, i just like variety, i owe a service to all the beautiful women out there" he smirked and she rolled her eyes..
"Giggilo then" she shook her head..
"hell sweetheart if i was a giggilo then i would be a millionaire by now, my services are free of charge" he smirked as he leaned down to make his shot.."take my advice babe, people like us dont settle down, we cant, its just the way life is" he said and then he looked back at the table and made his shot as balls went flying..A solid and striped went into the pocket and she huffed.."im calling solids" he said and she sighed, maybe he was right, maybe she was doomed to be single forever..
By the third game she was officially exhausted as she finished off her last beer and put her pool stick back on the wall.."thats three to nada, dont tell me your not going to try and defend your title" he said as she sighed..
"Im tired, im going to bed" she said with a yawn..
"Fine be that way" he huffed at her as he drank back his beer..
"You know you should do the same, we do have work tomorrow and Bo will be pissed if you show up late or hung over" she said seriously and he rolled his eyes..
"Thanks for the mom talk" he rolled his eyes and then eye balled a blonde that walked over to the bar.."It looks like my night has just begun" he grinned and she rolled her eyes at him as she walked over..
"Goodnight John" she said as she placed a kiss on his cheek..
"Night babe" he said as he walked from her and she rolled her eyes again, yep she was doomed..
