Total pages in book: 75
Estimated words: 73302 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 367(@200wpm)___ 293(@250wpm)___ 244(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 73302 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 367(@200wpm)___ 293(@250wpm)___ 244(@300wpm)
The man snarled at him. “Get security in here. He’s cheating.”
The dealer turned to me. “Sir?”
I held up my hands in surrender. “I don’t know what he’s talking about. I’m just lucky tonight.”
“Bullshit,” the man said. “He’s counting cards, I can tell.”
“I’m sorry, sir. I’m going to have to ask you to step away.”
“No, I’m playing fair. I’m winning. Why would I leave?”
“Sir—”
“You can’t make me leave just because this guy says I’m cheating. He’s mad because he’s playing like shit.”
“Sir, I have the discretion to send anyone away from my table who’s disrupting the play.”
“I’m not disrupting anything. The man is the one being disruptive.”
Two security guards arrived at the table. The red-faced man kept yelling about how I was cheating, and the guards questioned me before ultimately telling both of us to leave. The man was livid, and I was ridiculously pleased with myself. I’d gotten exactly what I wanted. I was on security’s radar, and now I could come back and get myself taken for questioning. That was when I’d be able to meet Rafael.
The guards walked us both out, knowing the older guy was spoiling for a fight.
“I’m telling you I didn’t do anything,” I protested once more for show.
“Sir, your night’s over. Keep arguing and you’ll be put on our banned list. For now, we’re only asking you to go home.”
The security guard walked me to the cage, where I cashed out my winnings, and then followed me to my car. He stood watching me until I began to back out, and then he turned to head inside.
I couldn’t keep myself from smiling. I was damn proud of my performance. I’d managed to cause a stir, but not to be banned.
It was going to kill me to wait a couple of days to return, but I knew that’s what I needed to do. I’d go on Saturday because that was when some of the high-stakes games happened, and Rafael was sure to be there.
4
RAFE
“That’s him, sir. The man who was accused of cheating the other night.” The man had been sent home along with his accuser before a fight broke out. “We noticed him on the floor again about half an hour ago.”
As I studied the view of the casino floor, my instincts told me there was more here than there seemed to be. “Did you review the footage of his play that night?”
“No, sir. It was an isolated incident, and—”
“Pull it up for me.”
I stepped closer to the screen and studied the man, who stood at a poker table. I’d heard about the incident and hadn’t taken it all that seriously, but something about this guy set my radar off. Something set my dick off too. The guy was fucking hot.
I guessed he was probably in his early thirties, seven or eight years older than me. He was wearing jeans, a black T-shirt, and a brown leather jacket. Somehow, I knew he would smell divine. His dark hair was curly, and he was tall and lean, but the more I watched him, the more sure I became that he was powerful like a big cat. I wanted to make him purr. But I was supposed to be doing my job, not fantasizing about a man I might need to ban from here or threaten or… what if…
A chill ran over me as I thought about Remington’s warning. Until now, no one had stood out to me; no one’s actions had seemed strange. I’d had my security watching more closely than usual.
“I’ve got the footage pulled up, boss.” My guard’s voice startled me out of my thoughts.
I worked to keep my face neutral as I turned to a different screen. I no longer wanted to watch the incident from the night before. I didn’t want this guy to be working for Ivanov. I wanted him to be the next treat in my bed.
But one way or another, it looked like we were going to meet tonight.
I watched his play from several nights ago, enjoying the way his hands moved, the way he seemed to caress the cards. How could he make standing at a blackjack table so fucking sexy? I wanted this man badly. But it didn’t take long for me to see he was counting cards. He was right in front of a camera. Did he think we wouldn’t notice? Probably. He was subtler than most cheaters we caught.
I rolled the footage back further, watching him earlier in the evening and seeing the same pattern at other tables. He’d gotten more confident as the hours passed, and as I’d expected, I needed to have a little talk with him. We didn’t allow cheaters here, though maybe he’d like to make a deal. I had plenty of ideas of ways he could avoid being banned from the casino, and they all involved him on his knees.