Dedication
For the first time, but not the last…to my wife, youare my forever.
Prologue
Twenty-one Years Earlier
“What are we waiting for? Let’s get started.” Jacqueline Knightsplit the deck of cards into two stacks. Then, bracing them against the table,she shuffled them back together. After a full week of exams, she’d jumped onboard when her roommate, Kendra, suggested this gathering. She needed a nightof stress relief before she headed home for the holidays.
“I have one more coming.” Kendra took a bowl of onion dip fromthe fridge and set it out next to the bag of chips on the counter. None oftheir guests cared about the sparse snack offerings, since they had plenty ofbeer, and everyone had already put a big chunk of their allowance for the weekinto the pot for tonight’s poker game.
“I can see that.” Jacqueline glanced pointedly at the empty chairdirectly across from her. “How long are we planning to wait?”
“Chill, Knight. You’re stressing me out.” Kendra dismissedJacqueline’s irritation in her typical laid-back manner. Kendra had become theone exception to Jacqueline’s desire to keep her life organized and orderly.Jacqueline liked schedules and clear expectations, but Kendra, a music major,abhorred those restrictions.
“She’s one of your free-spirit friends, isn’t she?” Jacquelineignored several offended looks from around the table. The rest of their guests,mostly Kendra’s friends, fit in the same category.
“She’s great. I only met her a couple of weeks ago, but I thinkyou’ll like her.”
“That’s not an answer to my question.”
“She’s an art major.”
“I knew it.”
“She’s a photographer and actually quite brilliant with acamera.”
“But not with a watch, huh?”
Before Kendra had a chance to answer, another voice answered fromthe doorway behind Jacqueline. “I can handle the digital ones easily enough.It’s the ones with the little symbols where the numbers should be that reallyconfuse me.”
Jacqueline closed her eyes, embarrassed at having been caughtdogging a girl she hadn’t even met yet. Suddenly, she wished they hadn’t leftthe door open to the hallway. But crowding eight people into the living area oftheir dorm suite tended to make the place feel stuffy.
“Hey, Casey.” Kendra laughed and tossed Jacqueline a smug look.
“Sorry I’m late.” Casey rounded the table. When she smiled,something clutched in Jacqueline’s chest. The expression transformed Casey’sface, bringing light and warmth into features that just a moment ago hadappeared almost haughty.
“No worries.” Kendra pulled her into a one-armed hug. “You lookamazing. Girl, you didn’t have to dress up for us.”
Casey swept her hand down the front of her light-gray blouse andblack slacks. A maroon paisley scarf added a pop of color around her neck. Hergolden hair had been pulled back from her face, but several wavy tendrils fellfree and brushed the sides of her neck. “I promised a friend I’d hit up herstudent exhibit tonight and didn’t have time to go back to my room and change.”
As Kendra reeled off the introductions, Casey made eye contactaround the table until she reached Jacqueline. Good God, this girl had thebluest eyes Jacqueline had ever seen, andnow that smile was focused on her. Jacqueline would have to be madeof stone not to melt a little. “Casey Meadows. It’s nice to meet you.”
“You, too. Now sit. We’re ready to start.” Caught off guard bythe way her heartbeat accelerated under Casey’s gaze, Jacqueline’s words cameout gruffer than she intended. Casey’s smile faded as she dropped into thechair, but, to her credit, she didn’t take her eyes off Jacqueline.
“You could have started without me.”
“Yeah, I wanted to. But Kendra’s too nice.” Jacqueline dealtcards to each of the eight players at the table.
“If you’re really as good at poker as you’re trying to make methink, then you should thank her for inviting me.” Casey slapped several billsdown on the table in front of her. “Here’s more money for you to win. And sinceyou’re so warm and welcoming, I’m more likely to come back and play next time,too.”
Two hours later, Jacqueline was certain she’d been hustled.Everyone but her, Kendra, and Casey had busted out, leaving all of the chipsstacked neatly in front of them. She’d expected competition from Kendra but nowsuspected Casey could outplay both of them. Yet Casey had stayed conservative,betting small even when she clearly had the upper hand. Was she strategizing?Or did she think it might be rude to clear out the hostesses quite so handily?Jacqueline’s curiosity regarding Casey’s style of play nearly outweighed herfrustration at getting beat.
Jacqueline picked up the cards she’d just been dealt, careful notto give anything away in her expression. She glanced down at a pair of queens,then flicked her eyes across the table. She hadn’t had much success readingCasey during previous hands but found that she enjoyed just looking at her.
Casey rested her elbows on the table in front of her and leanedforward as she organized her cards. The motion caused her shirt to gap againsther chest, but that damn scarf blocked Jacqueline’s chance to glimpse a sliverof cleavage. When Jacqueline forced her attention back to Casey’s face, Caseynarrowed her eyes. Caught, and seeing no reason to deny her interest,Jacqueline put on her most flirtatious smile. Casey lifted her chin and gave asexy little wink, and judging by the jolt of arousal that had Jacquelinesqueezing her knees together in response, she’d been outplayed again.
“Do you want to make this interesting?” Casey’s grin hinted thatshe understood exactly what she’d just done to Jacqueline.
“What did you have in mind?”
Casey gestured to her chips, then to Jacqueline’s smaller pile.“I’ve got you covered. I’ll put my entire stack against yours, even up, but ifI win, you also have to give me your phone number.”
Several dramatic gasps sounded around the table, and Jacquelinerolled her eyes. Damn artmajors.
Kendra shrugged and threw her cards into the center of the table.“Well, I don’t have shit, and I already have your phone number. So, I’m out.”
Jacqueline didn’t hesitate. “I call.”
Casey laid two kings on the table in front of her and threw threecards facedown on
