BURN WITH ME

DEXTER LACROIX 29 | Canadian native - earned a bachelors in mathematics at Cornell - owner & operator of The Coral Casino - resident of Northshore in Eastcliff, MA

[herhmione]

[a-torms-deactivated20210521]

Her eyes meticulously trailed over him. She wanted to catch a glimpse beneath the surface, a crack within his facade that could be used to unravel him all together. She wanted the control. At the end, when all was said and done, they were both aware that they fought for control. They clashed, tore at each other in an attempt to watch the other falter. A game that had grown between the two of them that neither would admit to. When she strutted inside the casino with a date on her arm, her sole attention was to be focused on them, rather, she found herself wanting to find him. The taunts, cat and mouse game, it ignited something inside of her that she could not thoroughly comprehend or describe. In that moment, everything else; her preoccupations and tasks were placed at the back of her mind. He had a way of stealing her attention, of controlling her without even realizing it. She hated it. God, she hated him. 

He unhooked her finger, and she stayed still. Her eyes trailing after him until he shifted to stand behind her. Shoulders lifted as a shiver ran down her spine when his fingers moved upon her frame. Though there was a barrier of clothing between their skin, she swore she could feel the heat of his hand leaving trails of searing heat along her flesh. His breath tickled her neck and her eyes only narrowed, fighting for control over her own emotions in order to regain her composure. Her legs threatened to give way beneath her – god forbid, she had to count on him to hold her up. Diem’s back pressed against his chest as she turned head head to peer at him over her shoulder. “Promise me so I know you’re telling the truth.” she whispered then, daring him. 

[dexlacroix-blog]

     Dexter saw her. The way she moved against his touch, he noticed that. If this was some sort of game they were playing, who could get to who first, he’d consider that a point in his favor. It was almost as if her body had a mind of its own, reacting normally to those sorts of sensations, disregarding the man that was causing them. Unless, she wasn’t. That thought confused Dexter, refusing to dwell on the idea that he got to her just as much as she got to him. If that were true, walking away from her would be only that much harder, despite the fact that he had to do it anyway. Regardless, Dexter was going to escape the hold she had on him and get out of this spiraling situation before he dug himself into a hole. Wrapped around her finger? In her dreams. 

     Determined, he went to speak, words caught in his throat at her response. She was really testing him, and he wasn’t about to crack. Daring him to feed into her seductive commentary, he avoided it, pretending she hadn’t insinuated anything. Besides, he was professional. This was a professional business. He was at work. And she was out of line. “None of my checks bounce, sweetheart,” He replied subtly, allowing her to take that in whatever way she wanted.

[queensleigher]

[a-torms-deactivated20210521]

Dex was surprisingly resilient to her advances, even though she believed it was a matter of time before he’d be reduced to just another person wrapped around her finger. Nevertheless, the time it spent, how often he turned her down and scoffed at her advances, frustrated her to no end. Diem had rarely been refused something or couldn’t get what she wanted. Her determined personality, mixture of charms and good look always won other’s over. Dex was either unfazed or a good actor. She would bet on the latter. Her finger slid down the front of his shirt, hooked around a belt loop before she tugged on it ever so lightly. She felt him stiffen, could have sworn he’d gasped when her mouth met his. But the moment she pulled back, he had seemed to regain his composure. She hated him. The way he pissed her the fuck off as he stood there, his facade unbreakable. 

The comment made her smirk, even warranted a little snort as she eyed him incredulously. While he referred to the law, it was far too easy for her to turn it into something sexual. Her finger unravelled from it’s grasp on his trousers, moving forward when he pulled back, one hand coiled around his tie while the other ran down the lapel of his suit. “Handcuffs,” she hummed now, her smirk had since turned into a mischievous grin, azure gaze lifted until they met his darker one. A slight bite of her lip before she arched her neck, allowing her blonde curls to fall down her back and expose her cleavage. 

“I do love handcuffs, they’re always fun. But there’s something about a tie wrapped around a bedpost that always gets to me.” She tugged at his tie now, sliding it between her fingers. “Wouldn’t you agree?”

[dexlacroix-blog]

     Dexter stiffened, breath filling his lungs to harden his chest up when her delicate little hand, marked with claws, ran down his torso. There was a constant battle between different ways he felt about Diem, both always strong, never ceasing, like a standstill. On one end of the spectrum, Dexter hated her. She was incessantly bothering him for no reason other than her own enjoyment, constantly ruining his nights with her foolishness. This end affected his business, a fact he didn’t enjoy. She paraded around his casino like she owned the place, and that was his joy to have, not her’s. It irritated him that she just got around all of his rules, all of his obstacles, to do what she wanted to do all along, no matter what. Not being able to control her set a fire in him. On the other end, Diem drove him crazy in the best way. This, too, affected his business, considering he’d been focused on her piercing ice blue eyes for way too long now, but he couldn’t seem to peel away.

     “Please,” Dexter scoffed, reaching up to pluck Diem’s fingers from his tie, releasing him from her grasp. Before he did anything stupid, he had to get away from her. Some part of him didn’t even want to throw her out, which was a fucking problem. Get a hold of yourself, Dexter. Walking around her, his fingers splayed to slowly land on her lower back, following the curvature of her body to roll up to her shoulder. The tips of his fingers trailed across her collarbone, a smug smile surfacing on his face. “You have five minutes to quietly exit my casino. Unless you’d rather me make an even bigger scene in front of your already jealous boyfriend? Because that can be arranged.”

[a-torms-deactivated20210521]

Now Diem laughed. The fact that he would go as far as to change his entire security staff for her sake was both flattering and ridiculous. If it were up to her, she’d befriend them only to ruin Dex’s day and prove a point. Not that she was in any hurry to tell him that. If anything, she wouldn’t put it past him to pay them extra not to blink twice whenever she attempted to befriend them. “You hate me so much. It’s cute.” The blonde purred as her finger glided down the front of his shirt. “Surely I’m not the first girl to cause a little trouble inside your casino, so what is it, Dex? Do I make you uncomfortable? Maybe it’s because you’re threatened by me? Better yet, is it because I have no interest in you?” 

Whether the last statement was a lie or truth, she kept her face neutral while she looked up at him. He was good, a little too good for her taste. For a brief moment, half a beat, she practically fell for the act he’d put on. Her heart speeding up as he approached, lips parted when he glanced down, shiver coursed down her spine upon hearing his words. A snort managed to escape as she heard the last part, grin forming on her lips. Now, it was her turn to inch as close to him as she could, pushing herself into his person until she could taste his breath on her tongue and felt his lips brush against hers. “I want you.…” she whispered, nipping at his lip now, a little roughly, until she could have sworn she’d drawn blood. “to make me.” Diem had taken a leaf out of his page as she pulled back, wicked grin on her lip. “Don’t miss me.”

[dexlacroix-blog]

     Ugh. That’s all he could even think about this woman. She was infuriating beyond belief, and no woman had ever gotten under his skin in the way she could. It seemed so easy to her, effortless, like she was born to aggravate him. And for some reason, as much as his blood boiled when he was around her, it thrilled him. Every time Dexter saw her, he felt exhilarated. He fueled their communication by making this about his business, which it only partially was. Yeah, she disturbed the peace around here. And it annoyed him, it irked him constantly, how she could just get around everything like a fucking snake. And yet, he understood it, because she was Medusa, and he, a stone statue, where Dexter once stood. He understood why she was so good at what she did, he could get that because he too, was entranced by her. But was he going to tell her that? Never. 

     Fuck. The gape of air sucking between their half-open mouths was hard to hide, however. Dexter played it off as disgust, almost like a gasp turned into an ugh. Believable enough, he hoped. Why was this woman so good? He was a literal pool of melted Dexter in front of her, soaking into the carpet around her feet. Well, that’s how he felt, at least. In an attempt to regain his composure, Dexter furrowed his brows to further his act of discontent with her unwarranted affection, pulling his neck back to retract from how close she was.

     “Are you interested in leaving in handcuffs this evening, Miss Marshall?” Dexter asked, his voice as professional as humanly possible. Weak. Fuck her for making him weak.

[thewandress]

“I intend to have a step up. Not difficult to do, really.” She did hate people prying into her life. But it was far easier to overshare just enough, that nobody was going to ask her anything. Kept a lovely distance. Ella tipped her head to the side, still watching the woman in the red dress. 

“I don’t know, she looks a little tipsy. She just might. Anyway, nothing sounds more entertaining at the moment. I just want to know how subtle I have to make it, because my first thought is to go and just dump my drink on her and say oops. But that’s going to be pretty obviously not an accident.” She shrugged, voice dry. 

[dexlacroix-blog]

     Dexter was really confused as to why this woman cared what happened after she spilled her drink on the one in the red dress, considering they didn’t know one another, nor did he plan on informing her on why he needed this to happen to begin with. She was weirdly inquisitive, or maybe she was just trying to prevent a huge scene? Either way, it didn’t matter, because he was positive the one in the dress wasn’t going to do anything to her, so long as she didn’t do it on purpose.

     “You can do it however you’d like, but at your own risk. Most women don’t take purposeful attacks kindly, as I’m assuming you wouldn’t. But by all means, get creative. As long as there’s a drink on her dress, I could care less how it got there.” He informed the woman, a smug look on his face.

[a-torms-deactivated20210521]

Diem, whether he admitted to it or not, knew that she could easily sneak her way beneath dex’s skin. Perhaps a little easier than he liked to think. He lacked confidence in her and the skills she had, or how easily she could convince someone to do as she pleased. If he fired the man that had let her in, there was always another behind him who would willingly wrap himself around her little finger to get even a speck of her attention. Men were simple … but mostly stupid.

Her eyed rolled when he spoke. “You’re going to fire the guy? You don’t think that I could seduce any of your men with a simple promise of a good night? Darling, it’s probably because you haven’t seen what I’ve had to offer. More so since I’ve never had any interest in putting my moves on you.” Her arms folded above her chest as she tilted her head and watched him curiously. “On my knees? Do you often think of me on my knees, Dex?” A quirk of her lips reflected her amusement as she stepped a little closer to him. “You think that you’re running a tight ship here, but you don’t know how many holes there are in your precious casino. You can change what you want but i’ll always manage to slide by because you don’t have as much control as you believe. And you sure as hell don’t have any on me.” Her hand moved up towards his face, fingers running along his jaw line before she tapped his cheek in a patronizing way. “What’s in it for you? I know you well enough to know that you already have an idea of what you want. How about you spit it out.”

[dexlacroix-blog]

     Dexter couldn’t help but to laugh at how cocky this woman was, the look on his face evident that he didn’t believe her. In truth, he did... a little. But he would never tell her that. Yeah, whatever, she was attractive. But being spineless was less than sexy, and she was a jellyfish. “I’m not stupid, Diem. But you can’t seduce a man who prefers other men over you.” It’s the small things in life, really, and undermining someone as confident as Diem just seemed to lighten his mood ever so slightly, even if it meant hiring an all-homosexual security staff just to do so.

     His jaw locked, his bones clenching visibly on the frame of his sculpted face when she mentioned him not having any control. Well, his good mood didn’t last for very long. To be expected with Diem around. He chose not to argue, avoiding letting her win that small battle by getting to him. Instead, he fed into her bullshit, allowing his mouth to fall open, eyes seemingly mesmerized by her. Dexter was good at pretending he was just suddenly overcome with lust for the woman, moving closer to her and leaning into her touch. When she smacked his cheek, he let out a small breath, his eyes flashing to her mouth as he spoke, like they did in the movies when one had the desire to kiss the other. “I want you,” he paused, speaking very slowly, in an almost sensual whisper, “-to leave.”

[thewandress]

She looked at the new person approaching, quickly asking for the strongest coffee they had and after about twelve seconds of grimacing in silence, she added that it needed to be decaff. Because her life wasn’t already hellish enough, she had to cut out her caffeine as well. She eyed the first man, shrugging and not feeling like she cared to filter herself at the moment. “First time it just took about two five dollar drinks, so fifty would be a step up.” She pointed out dryly, running a hand through her hair. A little too honest for most people, but that was something she liked, it kept people away from her. 

She looked over at the woman in question, nearly giving a snort of laughter at the sight. “I don’t know that I would do that, she might just take the dress off. And just how ‘accidental’ does it have to be?”

[dexlacroix-blog]

     Dexter cocked his eyebrow up, his lips pursing as he held back any commentary he would normally say, were he not at his own casino. “A step up is just what you need, then.” He chose his words wisely, offering her a small smile. There’s nothing less interesting than delving into a woman’s pile of baggage, especially when she keeps bringing it up in conversation, as if she were begging you to say something. Dexter didn’t play that game, so he metaphorically stepped over the pile to continue to his point. 

     “She’s not going to take the dress off in public, and she doesn’t have a change of clothes. I can always find someone else if you’re not interested?”

[thewandress]

Casino’s for the most part were dark and smoky, and most people in them were pretentious douchebags. She typically avoided them at all cost, had done that even while she was in her brief party phase, right before coming to Eastcliff. Now though, now this casino happened to have ads for a seafood buffet that she had tried to ignore, until she started craving it so badly she was pretty sure she lost all reason. Oh the joys of being pregnant and all the cravings that came along with it. The worst part was possibly that she wasn’t even showing at the moment, she was just fat. Fat and still eating even more than she had before, if that were even possible.

She was in the middle of shamelessly stuffing her face with a crab cake, when her little party of self-loathing and eating was interrupted, and she turned around, mouth full of food. Yet at the offer of money, she quickly nodded. “So long as that doesn’t involve sex, yes. That’s already gotten me in enough trouble lately.”

[dexlacroix-blog]

     Not realizing he’d interrupted her meal, Dexter made an effort to immediately apologize, calling one of his waiters over to get her a beverage of her choice, on the house, for his mistake. His eyes widened at the girl’s response, not at all expecting that sort of reaction from a stranger. It caught him off guard, and all he could do was laugh. “Fifty dollars is a little cheap for that, isn’t it?” The joke rolled right off his tongue, no precursor or filter there to soften the words. Reminding himself he was at work, Dexter chose to switch the topic of conversation back to its origin, taking an empty seat next to the woman so he could easily make eye contact with her.

     “Do you see the woman in the red dress over there?” Dexter asked, subtly nodding in the woman’s direction and giving her time to look. “I’d really appreciate it if you bumped into her holding a drink, spilling it on her accidentally.”

[carolinacollado]

She never understood the appeal of a casino.

She definitely never understood the appeal of one in Eastcliff.

Sure, it made sense economically. Tourist season. The best of both worlds: the beach, the bars. People wanted to have a good time 24/7. Maybe it was the fact that Lina didn’t understand gambling, or addiction. But it was a curiosity – everything was. She wanted to know, she wanted to understand. Molly’s pre-bachelorette night (Friday. Saturday night was the clubs out of town, where they’d sorted out the male strippers. Wedding next Sunday.) seemed to lead the group of them here – Coral Casino. Lina tried her hand at a few slot machines, watched from afar at the Blackjack table. Cheered her friends on as they lost and won plays. Money was an issue – especially as of late, so she gave herself a limit. Fifty dollars and she was done for the night. Most of this, she decided, was alcohol money.

Lina had been watching a table when a man encroached her space, claiming to be the owner of the casino. “Good evening,” she replied, courteous, before trying to hide her confusion. Caution. Why was he offering her money? Was this a ploy so she’d spend more? She wasn’t sure. “Uh, yeah. That’d be– that’d be nice. But I don’t… I don’t understand?”

[dexlacroix-blog]

     This woman’s lack of eagerness to assist him wasn’t off-putting in the slightest. If anything, it made him almost automatically trust her, because she didn’t immediately believe him. Reading people was something Dexter had learned to be fantastic at, and he could tell this girl was apprehensive at best. Her reaction to him offering her money was telling of her character, willing to listen but afraid of what she was signing up for. The idea made Dexter snicker, a warm genuine smile stretching on his face, breaking up his typically hard exterior.

     “It’s nothing too terrible, I can assure you of that. I’d just like for you to go spill this alcoholic beverage-” Dexter paused, bringing attention to the small cocktail in his hand, “-on that woman’s dress, and make it look like an accident.” Before explaining any further, he waited for her response, guessing she wouldn’t just agree without question.

[a-torms-deactivated20210521]

Diem glanced at her date and lifted a finger, telling him to wait one more minute until she handled this situation. If she could somehow, by some miracle, convince him to let her stay, then her night would go swimmingly, not that she had any expectation for that to happen. On the other hand, what she believed would happen was that she’d have to spend the better part of her night dodging both Dex and his bouncers in an attempt not to get kicked out. Diem instantly crossed her arms above her chest and eyed him for a moment as he spoke, before she rolled her eyes and glanced elsewhere so he knew just how little she cared about him or anything he had to say. 

“I don’t underestimate you at all. I just know how far your obsession goes with me. It’s a little disturbing, you know.” Her head tilted to the side, brows lifted as if to say she dared him to say otherwise. “The devil? Watch out when you give me compliments, I just get needier. You can put it on his tab all you want, but I’m not leaving and I’m afraid it’ll take more than your staff to get me out. It’s not like they’re doing a good job at keeping me out to begin with. So, who’s underestimating who now. –Just make this easier on yourself, I’m willing to play nice if you are. I also won’t go out of my way to cause trouble within the casino, but we both know I can make this very difficult for you.”

[dexlacroix-blog]

     Dealing with this girl was going to give him a headache and eventually lead to his young death, he was sure of it. Dexter Lacroix, died at the age of twenty-nine. A very unfortunate tragedy, caused by the terrible, awful Diem Marshall and her terrible, awful ways. He will surely be missed. In his will, he states that Diem Marshall is still banned from his casino, from now until the end of time.

     The thought made him laugh, but didn’t improve his mood enough to have the sudden change of heart she was hoping for. Dexter rolled his eyes in mockery of her proposal, scoffing. “Diem, please. The only way you got in was bribing the security guard who thought you were attractive, but I already know where the weak link is, so he’ll be removed from my staff. The next time you try and weasel your way into The Coral, it won’t go your way so smoothly, so you should probably learn how to crawl through vents if you plan on this mistake happening twice. That shouldn’t be too hard for you, seeing how often you’re on your knees.” Dexter commented, eyebrows raising as his eyes gestured over to the man she was with. “And one more thing, honey, I don’t play nice. What’s really in it for me? Make it good.” 

[a-torms-deactivated20210521]

Diem had begun to make a game of it. The various times she could sneak inside without raising suspicious from both the bouncers at the front door and her ‘date’. That look of disbelief and defeat in Dex’s eyes was well worth the possible risk of getting kicked out. Even now, as she entered in a red dress that had been bought for her ( probably a few sizes too small ), she sauntered over to him after she’d excused herself briefly. She heard a sliver of the conversation before she stepped in and plucked the fifty dollars from his fingers. “I’m the one who he wants to get rid of,” she told the stranger he’d attempted to hire for the job, before she turned towards him next. “This person, really? That’s almost an insult.”

The blonde scoffed, folding the fifty dollar bill and tucking it inside of her dress as she smiled at him now, her eyes over his person. “I just wanted to come and tell you that you’ll be losing a lot of money if you even go forth with what you’re thinking. Not only because you’re stupid enough to think someone could get rid of me by paying them, but also because the man I’m with is willing to spend a lot of money here. So, how about you be a good boy and play nice, hm?” Diem inched closer as she fixed his tie, tugging on it until it tightened. “Deal?”

[dexlacroix-blog]

     The minute Dexter heard that all too familiar voice interrupt his conversation, his eyes rolled the furthest they could go in the back of his head, making it clear how he felt about her. Seeing Diem was never a pleasant surprise for Dexter, and essentially always ensured his night was going to be stressful. “Excuse me for a moment,” he said rather politely, offering a smile to one of his customers before excusing himself to follow the spawn of Satan in a red dress.

     “What makes you think I was paying them to get you out? You underestimate me, Marshall.” Dexter flattened the back of his hand against her lower back, escorting her aside him as he attempted to guide her into a less populated area of his casino floor. “I don’t make deals with the devil, you should know that about me already. You are not allowed in my casino. Not now, not because you’ve sleased your way into a little bit of money today. Not ever. And I’m charging that stolen $50 to your boyfriend’s account. Do I make myself clear?”

[edwestwickers]

[dexlacroix-blog]

TASK 001. Home - 

     DEXTER never really understood the idea behind the meaning of the word ‘home’. To him, it was just a big lonely house in Quebec, filled with maids and drivers that cared more about him than his actual family. Even though that sounds very pessimistic, his life wasn’t entirely terrible. Most people just told him to ‘get over it’ because he had ‘rich boy problems’, but to him, the money wasn’t the issue. His parents were very successful, yes, but their eyes were green with greed instead of warm with love for their son, a need any growing child would desire. To say it simply, Dexter has never known a real home - until landing in the United States.

       NEW YORK and MASSACHUSETTS really changed Dexter’s life. Although he will always consider Montreal his birthplace, Ithica, New York is where he was first established as an accomplished human being, a place close to his heart. His real home is Eastcliff, much to Dexter’s surprise. He’s never felt closer to a town than to this quaint little coastal miracle, and even if his casino has flourished here, it hasn’t taken away from Eastcliff’s serenity. Home is where your heart is, he’s always heard, and if he had to place it somewhere, it’d be here. 

[dexlacroix-blog]

     Dexter was on the floor tonight at The Coral Casino, and his plan for the night was just to circle, show face, and ensure everyone was doing their job. Being suited up was probably his favorite, so Dexter walked around with his head held high, making sure the night ran smoothly. A few hours into the evening, he noticed this woman in the crowd, dressed to the nine’s in a red cocktail dress, so short she was having trouble moving without giving everyone a show. He’d seen her once before in his casino, and the last time, she was kicked out immediately. Baffled how she’d managed her way inside once more, Dexter was determined to take a different route this time, not really enjoying that an escort got past security again. 

     Approaching the first customer he saw in his casino, he leaned in to them, politely introducing himself without much room for being interrupted. “Good evening, I’m Dexter Lacroix, the owner of Coral Casino,” he paused to smile, his French-Canadian accent whipped up thick in his words. “How would you like to make a quick $50?” 

[dexlacroix-blog]

@violacostello​

     Dexter would be lying if he didn’t have a motive when strolling into the Salty Dog that evening. Yeah, he knew it was where Viola worked, but he wasn’t planning on telling her that. That would blow his cool, and that was the opposite of his usual way of doing things. Besides, Dex could easily play it off as him being way too intoxicated to remember that information, which wouldn’t necessarily be a lie. He was way too intoxicated, but to his surprise, he hadn’t forgotten. Even if what they’d technically had was a one night stand, it didn’t have to be. Today, the day after those events, this was the day that determined how their night would be categorized. If Dex chose to never contact her again, and possibly avoid her at all costs? A one night stand, absolutely. But... as he walked up to the bar Viola worked at, it was pretty apparent that’s not what it was. At least, not to him.

     There was just something about her, and he was willing to figure out what that something was. “Maker’s, neat,” Dexter said to Viola’s back, clearly busy with someone else’s drink and unaware who was even speaking to her. Slipping up into the bar stool, arms flat against the top, he half-smiled while waiting for her reaction. 

[ewestwickdaily]