What Happens in Vegas
Page 1
Copyright © 2018 Shana Gray
Cover illustration © De-V/Shutterstock (woman); Shirley Ren/Shutterstock (woman’s head); krkt/Shutterstock (skyline); Alexander Ryabinstev/Shutterstock (suitcase); Kostenko Maxim/Shutterstock (stars).
Cover design www.lucybennett.design
The right of Shana Gray to be identified as the Author of the Work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
This Ebook edition first published in 2018
by HEADLINE ETERNAL
An imprint of HEADLINE PUBLISHING GROUP
Apart from any use permitted under UK copyright law, this publication may only be reproduced, stored, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means, with prior permission in writing of the publishers or, in the case of reprographic production, in accordance with the terms of licences issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency.
All characters in this publication are fictitious and any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
Cataloguing in Publication Data is available from the British Library
eISBN 978 1 4722 6000 0
HEADLINE PUBLISHING GROUP
An Hachette UK Company
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Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
About the Author
About the Book
Dedication
Acknowledgments
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
An extract from Working Girl
Find Out More About Headline Eternal
About the Author
Shana Gray is a hybrid author who was first published in 2010. She has written contemporary erotic romances for multiple publishers, including Harlequin Blaze, Random House, and Headline, and is also an indie author. Her stories range from scorching quickie-length to longer full-length novels. Shana’s passion is to enjoy life! She lives in Ontario, but loves to travel and see the world, be with family and friends, and experience the beauty that surrounds us. Many of her experiences find their way into her books.
Visit Shana online at www.shanagray.com and connect with her on Twitter @ShanaGray_ or via Facebook www.facebook.com/authorshanagray.
About the Book
When the cop . . .
Tough-as-nails detective Bonni Connolly is on a girls’ getaway in Vegas when Lady Luck shines on her. Seizing the chance to treat them all, Bonni splurges on a little luxury including a VIP booth in an exclusive club. That’s when she sees him.
Meets the gambler . . .
Professional poker player Quinn Bryant is in town for one of the largest tournaments of the year. Fortune smiles on him when he spots Bonni across the dance floor. But what starts as a holiday fling soon turns into something more, as Bonni learns to see the man behind the poker face.
The stakes have never been higher.
Even though Bonni’s trip has an end date and there is another tournament calling Quinn’s name, their strong connection surprises them both. And by the end of the weekend they start to wonder if what happens in Vegas doesn’t have to stay there . . .
Look for the next escapist Girls Weekend Away novel, coming soon!
I went to London, England, this past February for a reader conference. One of the highlights was meeting my UK editor Kate Bryne. For the past two years, and during Working Girl, all our communication has been by email. So, finally being able to meet in person was fantastic. She and Emily Gowers made me feel like a superstar with books and stickers to sign in the Headline office. That was so cool!
We have a rather unique connection too – Swansea, Wales, and one day perhaps we can walk along the Mumbles. Kate, you’ve been so amazingly supportive, and spending time with you in London was simply wonderful. Thank you for believing in me and GWA. This book is for you. xo
Acknowledgments
The idea for this series came to me in the summer of 2017. I was inspired to create a fun Girls’ Weekend Away story, where girlfriends reunite for some crazy-good times, bonding, and shenanigans. Of course, meeting a man along the way to complicate things was a MUST.
Helping me bring this story to life are three very important people and I send out my thanks and a full heart to you all – Louise – you are the BEST! You always know what to say to keep me sane, Kristin – I love your sparkly unicorn, and Kate – if you hadn’t fallen in love with my idea, well there would be no Girls’ Weekend Away series. Behind the scenes are so many people that all deserve a shout out, the cover designers, marketers, copy editors, and everyone else that touched this book . . . my heartfelt thanks.
So, off we go to Vegas and begin the stories of Bonni, Celia, Ava and Fredi. Let the Shenanigans begin! xo
Chapter 1
From: Bonni Connolly
Date: Thu, Jan 11, 2018 at 16:09
Subject: Fwd: Check Out This Great Offer!
To: Ava, Celia, Fredi
See below. My latest case has been kicking my ass and I could use some downtime. And who better to tackle Sin City with than my girls? VEGAS, BABY! Who’s in?
Bons
---------- Forwarded message ----------
To: Bonni Connolly
From: Gladiators Casino & Resort Hotel
Date: Wed, Jan 10, 2018 at 9:17
Subject: Check Out This Great Offer!
Promotional pricing for the newest hotel on the Vegas Strip
Book a room now for $49 a night (minimum 3-night stay) and get $100 worth of chips absolutely FREE
Clink LINK to book!
From: Ava Trent
Date: Thu, Jan 11, 2018 at 16:16
Subject: Re: Fwd: Check Out This Great Offer!
To: Bonni, Celia, Fredi
Oh my God! I’m in. Just tell me when and I’ll clear my calendar. What’s more overtime? I basically already sleep here! Looking forward to seeing you ladies!!! <3
Ava XO
Ava Trent, MBA, BComm
Director
Edbridge Group
Cell: 555.447.3200
e-mail: Ava.Trent@edbridgegroup.com
From: Fredi Cannon
Date: Thu, Jan 11, 2018 at 16:20
Subject: Re: Fwd: Check Out This Great Offer!
To: Bonni, Celia, Ava
I’m free 1st Mar wknd – only avail time. The bridezillas will come after me otherwise. Gladiators, huh? After spending all my time with emotional women, I’m ready for some beefcake. xxxxxx
Best,
Fredi
It’s Your Day!
Head Designer, Delight Wedding Dresses
From: Celia
Date: Thu, Jan 11, 2018 at 16:22
Subject: Re: F
wd: Check Out This Great Offer!
To: Bonni, Ava, Fredi
Yaaaas!!!! I love my kids, but, God, do I need a weekend away. First weekend in March works for me. That’s supposed to be Dickhead’s week with the kids, but I’ll line up my mother as back-up.
I’m up for anything, so long as we avoid the wedding chapels! Haha, j/k. #notreally #bringonthetequila
C
From: Bonni Connolly
Date: Thu, Jan 11, 2018 at 16:26
Subject: Re: Fwd: Check Out This Great Offer!
To: Celia, Ava, Fredi
Fantastic! I’ll book two rooms. That gives us a month to save up our coins for the slot machines! Woohoo, big spenders!
We’ll figure out a full itinerary later, but since we need to get Celia tequila stat, let’s meet in the lobby bar, say, noon? Although it will really be 3 pm for me and Fredi . . .
So pumped! It’ll be our own little college reunion, complete with copious amounts of alcohol and Celia probably puking in a bush again . . .
Bons
From: Fredi Cannon
Date: Thu, Jan 11, 2018 at 16:29
Subject: Re: Fwd: Check Out This Great Offer!
To: Bonni, Celia, Ava
Ugh, yeah, time change is going to take some getting used to. Maybe I’ll find a guy who will volunteer to help me over my jet lag, wink wink.
Oh, Lord, I remember the bush. The best, though, was when she puked in the back seat of that fraternity bro’s brand-new Beamer. We should start a pool. Where will Celia drunkenly puke on our girls’ weekend? xxxxx
Best,
Fredi
It’s Your Day!
Head Designer, Delight Wedding Dresses
From: Ava
Date: Thu, Jan 11, 2018 at 16:31
Subject: Re: Fwd: Check Out This Great Offer!
To: Fredi, Celia, Bonni
You guys are too much! This is going to be epic and I can’t wait! But Celia’s a mom now! And Bonni’s a cop! It’ll be tons of fun, but surely it won’t get as crazy as it did in college.
XO
Ava Trent, MBA, BComm
Director
Edbridge Group
Cell: 555.447.3200
e-mail: Ava.Trent@edbridgegroup.com
From: Celia Fox
Date: Thu, Jan 11, 2018 at 16:32
Subject: Re: Fwd: Check out This Great Offer!
To: Bonni, Ava, Fredi
Leave the badge at home, Bon-Bon, and put me down for $20 on some blonde bimbo’s stupid designer shoes.
#fml
C
From: Bonni Connolly
Date: Thu, Jan 11, 2018 at 16:45
Subject: Re: Fwd: Check Out This Great Offer!
To: Ava, Celia, Fredi
This is going to be the best trip ever . . .
Bons
Chapter 2
Bonni found a perfect spot in the bar. She was early, of course, to scope things out and get the lay of the land. Situated in the center of the casino, it was up three steps and gave a good vantage point. She settled in the chair with her back to the decorative wall behind her. A lawman never put his back to the door. It had been ingrained into her; first by her dad when she was a kid and then by her training officer in the police academy. Always be aware of your surroundings, have a backup plan, and know your escape route.
Bonni crossed her jean-clad legs and bobbed her booted toe, carefully scanning the crowd on the casino floor. She drew in a deep sigh and closed her eyes as the stress tightening her muscles began to seep out of her. It was a good plan to come to Vegas with her girls. She needed the break after the last few months. Being in Frauds for so long, Bonni would have thought she’d seen it all, and yet . . . How people think they can get away with shit never failed to surprise Bonni. It had taken months to build the case, get enough intel in order to file charges. But enough of work. She was done for the next few days and excited to begin the shenanigans. Bonni leaned back and draped her arms along the cushioned backs of the chairs next to her. Now all she needed was a drink.
The bar wasn’t crowded yet, but then it was what . . . she looked at her Apple watch, just about noon here and 3 p.m. at home. A very hunky waiter, decked out in gladiator garb, complete with a gold warrior skirt slung low on his hips, approached her. My, my, my, so there were gladiators here, after all.
‘Can I get you anything?’ he asked. His voice was low, syrupy with a slight accent, and Bonni suspected he put it on for more tips, or similar ‘aren’t I dreamy?’ scenarios. No, knock it off. She was determined to do her best not to look beyond the surface of things while she was on vacation. She needed to rein in her tendency to be suspicious.
She returned his smile. ‘An Old-fashioned would be great, thank you very much.’
The view of his leaving was just as nice as the view of his arrival. Bonni let her gaze linger on his powerful back. It had been far too long since she’d run her fingers over a man’s muscles.
Maybe she could talk the girls into getting tickets for the Thunder Down Under show, and made a mental note to suggest it. Sometimes a feast for the eyes could be almost as satisfying as . . . nope, who was she kidding? Physical and visual were a chasm apart.
Female voices and happy squeals rose above the sounds of the casino. Bonni bolted to her feet, knowing it had to be her crew. Her three friends exploded up the steps into the circular Coliseum bar, and Bonni’s face split with a wide smile.
‘God! I can’t believe we’re all finally together again!’ Fredi tossed her handbag on to a chair.
Celia opened her arms and Bonni fell into her hug.
‘Come on, girls, I need hugs. Hugs, hugs, hugs – it’s been way too long.’
Bonni heard the emotion in Celia’s voice and it struck a chord deep inside her. She had to fight back the gush of sentimentality that came rushing.
‘Oh, it has been soooo long!’ Ava cried. She and Fredi smooshed into the group hug.
Bonni felt like she’d come home. Home to her girls. Home to the safety of her soul sisters. The group had been inseparable through college and then they had been separated by life, but they had kept in touch religiously through the years. This was the first time they’d all been together since Celia’s wedding, together once again in a big, sloppy, emotional reunion smack dab in the middle of the bar. Ava had tears in her eyes, and Bonni smoothed her hand over Ava’s silky, dark hair. ‘Honey, it’s all good. We’re here together.’
‘I know,’ Ava sniffed – she was the romantic and the most sentimental of the bunch. ‘I’m just so happy. You know me and happy tears.’
Fredi was the first to disengage. She was like that, not normally a big fan of public displays of affection, although every now and then you might get a bit of a squishy hug out of her. ‘Okay, girls, have you checked out the dudes in this place? There is some seriously hot eye candy around here. We are going to have some fun.’ She ran from one sentence to another in a rush. Sometimes it was hard keeping her on track. Her eyes were full of enthusiasm and her dramatic eye make-up made the crystal blue of her irises seem almost translucent.
Celia waggled her finger at her. ‘Come on now. This is a girls’ weekend. It’s not for boys. Well, you guys might want to have a quick fling or a one-night stand or something, but not me.’ She threw her hands in the air. ‘I’m done with that.’
Ava rubbed Celia’s back as they followed Bonni to the group of chairs she’d claimed. ‘Now listen to me,’ she said, ‘there is hope for you yet. Don’t be a man-hater. Just because you met a dick who put two babies in your belly before walking away, it doesn’t mean all men are assholes.’
Celia flopped down on one of the low chairs and crossed her long, elegant legs. You wouldn’t know she had two kids and was a stay-at-home mom, who struggled to keep things afloat by writing greeting cards and magazine articles. She was classy, cool and looked like she had it all t
ogether. Bonni always wondered how Celia managed to stay sane.
‘Well,’ Celia said, and lifted a delicate shoulder. ‘I’m just here for the drinks and you girls. I’m sworn off men for life, and I don’t care what any of you say.’
Bonni snorted, and the rest of the girls burst out laughing. ‘Likely! We know you have needs, like the rest of us. You just like to hide it and pretend it’s a secret.’
Celia raised her nose in the air and tried not to laugh. She leaned forward and crooked her finger. The women leaned in. ‘A wise old bird once told me all a girl needs are fresh batteries and good lube,’ she whispered, like it was a leaked government secret on WikiLeaks.
They burst into gales of laughter, which attracted glances from the other bar patrons.
‘Well, true,’ Bonni said. ‘But you know we’re right.’
‘No comment, Ms Cop. I’m not here to be interrogated by you. I know what I know.’ Celia flicked a long California-blonde strand of hair over her shoulder and turned her sea-green eyes on Bonni.
Fredi stood and walked to the faux stone half-wall that ringed the bar. She was the stunning one. She was a Carrie Bradshaw lookalike: petite, beautiful, with classic features, killer legs and body, and long, flowing, curly locks she could do whatever she liked with. Only she was way more gorgeous than Carrie Bradshaw. She was a fashionista too, and not afraid to experiment with her clothes. Bonni envied that. She glanced down at her ordinary jeans, her leather ankle boots, and rubbed her palms on her thighs. She was not the kind of person to sacrifice comfort for fashion, especially after traveling for more than half a day!
Fredi spun around, her hair bouncing in a chaos of curls and her green eyes sparkling, then loped back to the seats and flopped down, announcing, ‘We are going to have some fun! This place is rocking. How amazingly cool we’re here during its opening. There’ll be all kinds of specials.’
She and Bonni were the thrifty ones.
Celia scooted forward on her seat as if she had some great secret to tell. ‘So, how wild do we want to get this weekend?’
Bonni smiled and Fredi jumped in her seat. Ava gave Celia a quizzical look. ‘What exactly do you have in mind?’ she asked. ‘Don’t forget, you’re a mom and sworn off men.’