"Pauvre bébé. Vous rendez les choses trop faciles."

--- Oh how she couldn't resist with the revelation that he wouldn't know what she said. So naturally Cereza took advantage of it by purposely speaking the words in a sultry manner adding a flick of her index finger under his chin, as she joined his side to leave the training facility. Her words were nothing romantic nor sinful but she sure made it seem like they were. In truth all she said was 'Poor baby. You make it so easy.' The previous statement she thought would've been easy to figure out with her gesture basically the physical manifestation of her foreign words. 'Lead the way, darling.' Now she had a tool at her disposal to toy around with him from time to time. She wondered if he knew Italian or Spanish being the other languages she knew fluently. She was gonna have to test that sometime.

--- As they walked down the corridors towards the quarters, she remained at his side keeping in perfect time with his steps. Only when they reached his door did she pause so he could step forward and open the door. Once it was and they stepped in, her instincts to examine took over. Any normal person would look around a room they just entered, this much was true. But they were usually admiring the decor. Her mind was wired to observe where things were, exits, advantages and so forth. It didn't really matter whether she felt danger or not, it was just the way she operated. Based on the choices of pictures he framed and displayed it was obvious family meant a lot to him. Based on everything else strewed about the room, it was a typical bachelors pad.

"Only in your wildest fantasy.. Tch, could you be anymore typical with the bachelor life?"

--- She snickered and nudged him back after his own and stepped more inside. She was hardly Amara's maid, she wasn't about to be his.And now that she thought about it, she gave him a sideways glance with a small squint like 'you better not be picturing a French's maid outfit'. Whether he was or wasn't she made a small 'hmph' noise and casually walked over towards the couch. She didn't want to be rude and just fling her bag anywhere so she placed it on the floor near the couch and took a seat opposite the socks and boxers.

"Surprise me, but not make it some weak, girly shit."

--- Cereza winked as she undid her ponytail, letting her chocolate toned locs fall. She ran a hand through to shake it a little, then started undoing the tape from her hands. Didn't need those anymore. She didn't need to be drinking strongly neither but hey she made the request and wasn't about to take it back. Though she knew her limit, there were times she went beyond it. Those times were often due to things too heavily weighing on her mind and it was her poison of choice to drown it. Once she finished unwrapping her hands she would place the balled up tape on the coffee table for now at least. With the wrappings gone her Ouroboros tattoo on the inner of her right wrist was more visible. Something she got in the time they hadn't seen each other. Her eyes went back to the hung pictures particularly the aged one.

"That's you and your dad huh? Nice bike. I miss mines. Miss working on them. Before leaving New York, a friends shop I frequented, we were last working on this Harley Dyna Super Glide Sport. I'm sure by now he has that baby up and running. I think you'd like it."

--- She was a bit of a grease monkey despite her appearance. And would you look at that she opened up a little. It wasn't completely super personal but it was close enough. Most she said about anything concerning herself. In turn she got herself more comfortable leaning back against the corner of the arm rest, but twisting her body towards where he would sit - should he join her. Her left leg resting on the couch with her foot hooking under her right knee - while her left elbow was propped up against the cushion and her head leaned on her fist.

--- He was right. It could've been a lot worse and if it had been more than likely she wouldn't have been sitting there. Shaking her head and rolling her eyes, she snickered at his ladies man comment - well aware it was a joke. Now about those bitch drinks.

"I don't know. You could've softened up on me a little. I would have to fix that if so."

--- She teased not seeing the bottle he pulled out. Once he came over with the glasses she reached out for hers, accepting with a mild nod. The smell was distinctive and something she could more than appreciate. She raised the glass to her lips taking a much desired sip. She felt the liquid slide down her throat and was satisfied for the moment. She kept it in right as he spoke about his missing his bike and how the one in the picture was such a model she mentioned. He didn't need to say much to indicate how much it meant to him. She understood the sentiment well. This cleared up her internal question about his relationship with his father at least. She had a feeling he got to know his father much longer than she had. She wasn't privileged to as much time with him as she would've liked. 

"You should've. We could've had some excitement. Watched people's lives flash before their eyes as they quickly move out the way. What's life without a little mischief?"

--- There was that princess title again. He always said it so snarky too. Cereza was far from some prissy little princess no matter how she dressed or carried herself. It didn't bother her she only found it laughable. But for him to throw in that he didn't think she ever laid a hand on a tool was even more laughable. So much that she indeed did chuckle, pushing herself off the couch as she downed the rest of her drink without a care and made her way to where he left the bottle of aged whiskey. 

"Tch, you'd be surprise mon cher."

--- Cer would scoop up the bottle pouring another glass for herself as she came back over, however instead of sitting on the couch she placed the bottle on the table and plopped herself on the floor directly across from him. Her right knee bent a little into herself so she could easily prop her arm to rest, while her left leg was outstretched under the table, poking out his side. She took another good sip, savoring it before speaking again with a smirk.

"Underestimating me is a poor man's mistake mister... Oh!"

--- Speaking of princesses she remembered she didn't get to show him a picture of Amara. Not that it was something of a top priority but since it popped back in her mind she might as well. She placed her drink on the top, got up and crouched next to him by the side of the couch since that's where her bag resided. This time she found her phone much easily than before. Typical. On the front screen she paused seeing a missed call and voicemail from the woman that birthed her.

~The fuck did she want?~

--- In the moment Cereza didn't care quickly swiping it away and going into her gallery to pull up a recent picture of Amara and turned the phone towards him. She was dressed in a sheriff's outfit - clearly nothing changed about her imagination and playfulness - but she was surely looking very closer to Cereza especially having the same colored eyes.

"She's gotten bigger but nothings changed otherwise."

--- When Cereza spoke she smirked just thinking about Amara's ever growing personality. She was a handful already, she could imagine in a few years how much more she'd be. Clicking the phone off she tossed it on the bag and quickly got up, making a clap with her hands, and went to retake the same position she had earlier opposite him.

"Now it's a real shame how dare you not have Uno. But I'll forgive you for this blasphemy this one time... How about 52 pick up? I'll time how fast you can pick them up."

--- Clearly she was joking as she grabbed her glass for another sip and winked his way.

"Any card game is only truly fun when stakes are involved.. So how about this? One time opportunity to hear this come from me, your room, your rules."

--- Basically she was leaving it all in his hands. In a small fashion surrendering control over. Like she said it was a one time deal.

--- Most girls would've blushed at a guy calling her beautiful, Cereza wasn't most girls. Didn't mean the compliment went unappreciated but she wasn't going to gush over it. Besides she wasn't about to let him distract her from focusing on the win. She wasn't one to take things laying down. She'd put up a fight first. Looking him over, she found herself smirking thinking about how much of a typical macho man he was. Maybe with some custom differences but still. Big and bad. That must be better at most things than others mindset. She could see it through his little ticks. Honestly it made him more likable for her taste at least. A man's machismo wasn't always the worst thing unless it was far too overbearing.

"Uno teaches you valuable life lessons, excuse you."

--- She stuck her tongue out childishly before taking another sip of her drink. Didn't he know there was no mercy in a game of Uno? People, especially children would have to learn such things the hard way. Either way she wasn't very serious about it. Though had she thrown the cards there would just be cards scattered about his room cause she wasn't gonna pick them up either. Seems like he was just gonna have a new decoration to his room. However one thing that was internally getting to her was the constant eye contact. It didn't seem like he meant to but every time his hazels found her grays it felt like they were staring into her. It was a little unsettling cause she had experienced it a few times before and she hated it. When Austin and her met at that bar back in Australia he did it then and that was why she had to move away and focus elsewhere at that time. Again a thing she wouldn't admit, that there was something about his eyes that drew one in. She didn't want to be drawn in. So she shrugged it all off and kept playing along.

"Heh, no I can't..Be gentle."

--- She chuckled with a playful pout, till he looked up and his damn eyes fixated directly on hers again. After a few seconds she would look down at her drink, taking a full swig to finish it again. She wasn't shocked at his demands. She expected nothing less. Besides if he didn't say it she probably would've. She kept her eyes away from him for a few more moments, looking and taking the bottle and pouring herself another glass. She snickered in kind as she raised her glass in a saluting manner towards him. Should he clink his glass with hers the deal would be officially completed.

"We have an accord. Though I don't really think there's a loser. That's a matter of perspective."

--- She would wink and take another sip, waiting for him to deal out the cards.

--- After the deal was made she changed her sitting position to fold her legs over each other, Native American style. Drink still in hand as he dealt out a card face down and one faced up for both of them. Even she had to raise a brow at the development. The hands weren't bad at all. Though seeing a Jack in front of him certainly gave a little pause into making a hasty decision. That was a pretty good start. Hit or naw. Yeah. She needed a moment on this one. She tossed her drink, shaking her head a little as she finished that glass too. Yeah it was starting to kick in and she wasn't minding the buzz at all. She placed her cup on the table and like a habit, poured a little more in both their cups. Settling the bottle down she shifted in her position, now leaning a little forward to rest her right elbow on the table. Her thumb found itself pressed a bit against her bottom lip as she mauled it over, shifting her sights from her cards, to his, to the deck and back. When she glanced up to his face his wiggling caused a smile and snicker as she returned his gesture by sticking out her tongue.

"You're gonna have to try harder than that."

--- She mused about his attempts to distract her. She indeed was a risk taker. Sometimes almost with reckless abandon at times. She was very tempted to take her chances challenging the house. Why not take the gamble? Where was the fun in playing it safe all the time right? Life was boring that way. Screw it. She'd give the tabletop a tap in response.

"Let's go. Hit."

--- There was some conviction behind that request. She wanted to win of course but one round lost wouldn't be such a bad take. It would only be a round. She reached out for her drink, taking a taste then putting it back down as she waited for her card and what he was planning on doing as his next move. Her eyes finally drifting back up to him after trying to avoid his eye contact for sometime. She never denied Austin was attractive, what she denied was the maybe. The maybe of something beyond the point of physical attraction. The first time they met she might've gotten a bit more tipsy than she should've but there was a genuine behavior from her still. She felt truly comfortable in his presence. Even with her antics and the almost that didn't happen - he did stay on her mind somewhere. Whether she purposely buried it or not. All he got then was a kiss and that was given on her own accord after the necklace - the alcohol could've been to blame but it was what it had been. The irony was how many times they had come together then shifted apart just to be pulled back once more. It was uncanny. Was the universe trying to tell them something and they were just missing it? She got lost glancing him over, not even realizing she had bit lightly on her lower lip, but caught herself eventually and changed her tune to tease.

"You gonna accept defeat and give me something or what?"

--- But all the same there was something else that was nagging at her which was part of the reason she kept drinking. That missed phone call and message from her so called mother. She was wondering what it said but she was choosing to continue ignoring it.

--- Was he running her game? Gray hues watched his devious nature take over clearly trying to toy with her. As leaned forward, she placed both arms crossed over on the table leaning on it with a smug look plastered on her face. Was he really using her own strategy against her? She let him get as close as he wished without flinching an inch. Two could play that game and she was not going to be bested in that category. No sir. As expected he did nothing but pull back, a silly little psyche out attempt on his part as he slapped a card on the table. His words mocked hers from before so she smirked and clicked her tongue.

"Touche.. But that was so pathetic. You really need to work on it, just saying."

--- Again two could play the game so she mocked back. Oh the trash talking was the best part of games like these, especially when people seemed so overly confident. Ya know they needed to be taken down a few notches and Cereza didn't mind being the one to do so. Cereza opted to play the suddenly dramatically innocent card. The sarcasm dripping so heavily in her voice.

"Oh no. What ever shall I do? Eight and three only make eleven that's not remotely enough. I guess I-"

--- She flipped over her faced down card revealing a Queen of hearts and flashed a grin his. Changing her voice back to normal to accept what she was sure was her victory. However the sarcasm would never leave.

"Oh would you look at thaaaaat.. I don't know I'm feeling pretty cool, but by all means if you're feeling a bit heated why don't you discard something to help?"

--- She would playfully bat her eyes, taking a sip once again after tipping the glass to him. She would then down it with a shake of her head after, putting the glass back down. Resting her right elbow on the table, she tipped her head against her fist speaking in a hint of a sultry tone.

"Come on baby, you might still get lucky."

--- That could be taken another way and she was going to leave it just like that. The alcohol was doing it work, but to be fair even without it she would have a good time with him. 

"Mmhm I agree. Completely overrated. "

--- Oh she seen how frustrated he was at losing that hand. A mans pride and ego was a fun thing to toy with in her eyes. The way they protected it was adorable. That machismo depending made her smirk or roll her eyes - in this case she was smirking if not almost grinning at his predicament. Her eyes trailed up while grabbing her drink for a sip as he stood and removed his shirt. With his back to her he showed off his newish body ink - a phoenix covering his back. True yes she hadn't seen it before, but she hadn't seen him shirtless period since he rose back from the dead. All the little markings that made him, that she remembered where gone. She was maybe a little envious of that. There was four particular scars she would've liked erased they all served as a reminder to a time she found hard to forget. Her tattoos though she would like to keep. The dreamcatcher that adorned her back. The Ouroborus on the inner of her right wrist and the array of music notes next to her navel had their purposes.

"I kinda like it, though I didn't peg you for the phoenix type. I mean I get the rise from the ashes meaning, but I don't know.. I figured you'd get something more fierce or tribal... I got these two."

--- She pointed to her inner right wrist and her abdomen. She gave a lackadaisical shrug as she downed her drink while he plopped back down on the couch. The way he eyeballed the deck made Cereza chuckle. Oh how he seemed like a child pouting, yet also like a father scolding his own child for being bad. It was kinda cute. As he dealt the cards, her hand was looking kinda meh but honestly she was in a good place to not really care so much. Like she said earlier, losing in this was a matter of perspective. She didn't a lose/win situation so her semi competitive nature was taking a backseat - besides the alcohol assisted. Her right hand that was holding up her head found its way on top of his own, with her fingers lightly graving his skin as she made a proposition.  

"Maybe, maybe not. But how about double or nothing? Two for the price of one hmm?"

--- She slid her hand away with a smile, tucking her hair behind her right ear. Her eyes fixated on his. She was dead serious about the stakes. Would he take the risk with her? Or had she given him that necklace for nothing? She made her choice on her cards.

"I'll stay."

--- The liquor was swimming through her veins by now, she was far beyond her limit in regards to hard liquor. However any other time she might've considered her judgment impaired, but with him being the opposite party she was well aware of her actions. She knew he would take the bait, she had very little doubt about it. Beyond the gamble, there was the tease. And pass the tease was the potential of something more. The forbidden. The sin. With her eyes fixated on his there was something brewing within and at this point she didn't really care what. It wasn't entirely foreign but it still felt as such. Something that was buried deep away that she rather not have had touched. Yet here it was being poked at somehow. She was drawn to him in some capacity yet for some reason they kept pulling a part but still like a boomerang always returning to its owner. Maybe there was something she missing because she wasn't really looking. There were things in life she didn't believe everyone deserved - whatever this was was one of them. At least for herself. But right now she was going to enjoy it while she could. Hell maybe if she just let herself she could enjoy it longer, if she would just give it a chance and not destroy it. But why think such negativity with all the positive that was before her. 

--- She eyed the cards as he flipped them and found her brows perking at the sight of a tie. Of all things, a tie. She shifted her gaze to his at the same time he did. What the hell indeed. What a predicament this was. Double or nothing and it was a tie. Technically speaking it would be considered a push and no one would win but Cereza saw that as no fun at all. She laughed as she took his cup after he poured and tipped her head back downing it with satisfaction, before clanking the glass on the table. She stood up with a small sway from standing too fast but still chuckled.

"Oops.. heh well I'm sure house always wins so."

--- Ever so playfully she used the toe of her right foot against the heel of her left and removed one sneaker. She gave him a little sultry eyebrow wiggle and removed the other.

"Tada!"

--- She stroke a pose with her arms out like she made some great achievement but was unable to hold her laugh at her own joke. With a genuine smile she winked his way and removed that white mid-drift tank top leaving the sports bra as her top. Still facing him she hooked the sides of her spandex pants with her thumbs and slid them down, more or less using her legs to kick it off the rest of the way. Technically she took off four articles rather than two but who was counting anymore? She gave a little spin before plopping back down on her knees on the floor, opposite the table of him. Something he would notice immediately was something he saw the first night they met, when her shorts hiked up a little at that time. It was those scars on the inner part of her thighs. One on each side. He never knew what that was about. She never spoke about it. However behind the band of her underwear unseen for now was the etched 'M' on her pelvic line. Normally she would've been really modest about the scars but the liquor helped the courage and well they've been here before so. Cereza would lean over the table just a bit and coax him closer with her index finger. Should he decide to lean in, she'd make sure their lips were just brushing as she spoke to him at the close proximity.  

"..How..about...all...in."

--- Towards the end she placed a small peck on his lips, before following up the tease.

"But we're totally missing some music!"

--- Purposely she quickly pulled away from him and swiftly crawled over to her dufflebag near him. She picked up her phone and pulled up some random music however despite being in the moment that damn voicemail that was sitting there and missed call from her so called mother was annoying the shit out of her. She didn't mean to but she just had to know what it was. The music would stop as she opted to listen to the message. Wrong move. She suddenly went rigid as the message played. Though most of her face was covered by her hair, her arm was visibly shaking slightly. She should've never listened to that message.