“You want to talk?”
He didn’t move, didn’t breathe. I think he finally got that she was serious.
Reese started tracing down his chest again. This time pressing hard enough that the blade made a scraping noise on his skin. Every few inches she dug a little deeper so a bead of blood would emerge from his chest. It was freaky. I would have thought her cruel except for the eyes. This was killing her. She wasn’t going to last long. As she approached the waistband of his slacks, he started to grind his teeth.
“You want to tell us now?” I asked Gino. Reese seemed relieved to have me take over.
Gino glanced up from the knife on his beer belly. His entire face had gone slack.
“How did you find us?” Reese asked.
“We got a tip,” Gino gasped. “A pit boss at one of the casinos on the Strip. Don’t know who. This guy told one of our contacts. I don’t know anything else.”
“Thank you. Now get in the trunk.”
Reluctantly, Gino climbed in with his buddy. Reese slammed the trunk shut on their surprised faces. Methodically, she picked up the guns, wiped off any fingerprints with the bottom on her T-shirt, and tossed them into the front seat. She repeated the process with the knife. She took the keys from me and tossed them in a nearby trashcan.
“Are you okay?” Her hand trembled when I brushed my fingertips over it.
Reese nodded curtly. “Are you?”
“Yeah. Just a little beat up.”
“All right. Good.” She was fighting to keep her composure. I could tell.
Chapter Fourteen
At the hotel, I shed my clothes, grabbed clean ones, and went into the bathroom. I checked out my face in the mirror. One side was covered in scratches from the small peaks of cement. I was glad Reese held a knife to that dude’s junk.
My shirt was a bitch to get off because my shoulders and ribs were hurting pretty bad. Other than that, I was fine. It was Reese I was worried about. She hadn’t looked at me or talked to me the whole way back.
The steam and hot water felt damn good. As soon as I was under the spray, the tension in my back eased up a bit. My face stung a little, but if that was the worst of my problems then I was doing pretty well.
As I walked out of the bathroom in my boxer briefs and T-shirt, I looked around for Reese. She wasn’t there. Not in her room either.
“Reese?” I tried not to panic.
“I’m right here,” came her voice from the couch.
“Hey.” I crossed the room in a few long strides to kneel in front of her.
She slowly sat up. Dark hair fell forward covering her face. I reached up and carefully brushed it back. There were tear tracks on her cheeks.
“Are you okay?” I asked softly.
She didn’t seem to hear me. “I wanted to hurt them.” Another tear fell. “When I saw that guy pushing you into the wall, I wanted to kill him.”
“I wanted to kill Christopher when this happened.” I brushed my thumb over the fading mark beneath her eye.
“Why?”
“I don’t like seeing you hurt.” I’d thought that was obvious.
“But you hate me,” Reese said. Seemingly unaware, she slid her hands over mine. Her fingers drew patterns on my palms and wrists. My hands started to tremble.
“I’ve tried that, but I’m no good at follow through.” My attempt at humor was lost when my voice shook.
“I don’t hate you either.” She wouldn’t look at me.
“Good, I was real worried.” I tilted her chin up so I could see her eyes.
“Shut up,” she said when she saw that I was teasing her. We grinned at each other like idiots. “Does it hurt?” Her warm fingers traced over the scratches on my face. My spine started to tingle, the sensation rolling languidly down my back and into my limbs.
“Not really.” I couldn’t even feel the pain anymore. The more she touched me, the less I felt anything except really good.
“Take off your shirt so I can see.”
I let go of her hands. “I don’t think I should.” Normally, taking off my shirt wouldn’t have been a problem. Reese had bandaged me up a million times.
“Why not?”
“Because I can’t be objective anymore.” Either one of us naked equated to one thing for me now.
“So?” Her eyes went from brown to gray. The change was instantaneous.
I prayed that I was reading the invitation correctly and kissed her. Reese groaned and pulled me into her. We were in serious trouble.
*
“I was starting to think you were dead,” Ryan said the second I came out of my room the next afternoon. I was glad I’d left Reese’s bed in the small hours of the morning.
“Not yet. When did you get back?”
“Couple hours ago.” He finally looked at me. “Shit. What happened to your face?”
“Long story.” I didn’t elaborate.
“Well?”
“Where’s Reese?”
“She’s sleeping. Your face?”
“Seriously, it’s a long story. I’m going to get Reese and we’ll tell you the whole thing.” I started for Reese’s closed door. “You want to order some coffee?”
“Anything else, princess?” Ryan poured himself a scotch. How late was it?
“Breakfast. Eggs and potatoes and sausage. Chicken sausage.” As if he didn’t know. “Double order of the potatoes and sausage. Oh, and see if I can eat the biscuits and gravy.” I’d exerted myself a lot recently. There was a lot to make up for.
“Damn.” He raised his eyebrows. “That all?”
“Maybe order something for Reese,” I said before going into Reese’s room. I accidentally on purpose let the door close behind me.
Reese was asleep wrapped up in an ill placed sheet. The curve of her naked ass was visible under the cover and a very sexy foot hung off the bed. I started with the foot. Gradually, I kissed my way up her calf to that spot at the back of her knee, up to her very sexy thigh. Reese moaned softly. Her back was exposed so I kissed that too. She tasted sweet like Reese and skin and sleep. She didn’t wake up until I kissed the curve of her neck, up behind her ear.
She smiled first then whispered, “Hi.”
“Hi.” I rubbed my palm down her back to rest under the sheet on her ass. She lifted her hips slightly. I couldn’t stop myself. I moved my hand the rest of the way until it was cupped between her thighs. I slid a finger on either side of her clit.
“We were at it until four this morning and you already want more?” She gasped.
“You’re so wet.” As if that explained my behavior.
“You’re insatiable,” Reese murmured appreciatively.
“I know.” I pulled my hand away playing with the silky strands of wetness covering my fingers. “Your brother’s here. We can’t do anything.”
“I hate you.” She grinned and turned to kiss me. “What does he think you’re doing in here?”
“Waking you up so we can explain my face.”
“How about we lock the door and…” She kissed me again. Her tongue pushed inside my mouth and made me forget almost everything.
I stopped kissing her long enough to say, “I would if I didn’t think he would come in here and shoot me when he heard you screaming.”
“Hey.” Reese pushed me away. “I’m not the screamer. You are.”
“Right, babe.” I grinned. “Whatever you want to think.”
“You are so annoying.” Her criticism was sort of lacking because she couldn’t stop touching me.
“Let’s go eat breakfast while I can still walk, okay?”
“You ordered breakfast?”
“Ryan did. I had to give him something to do to distract him.”
“Got it.” Reese started pushing me away again. “All right, go. Let me get dressed. I’ll be right out.”
“I’m okay with you being naked.”
“Go,” she ordered. I decided to do the intelligent thing and leave.
Over break
fast, Reese and I took turns updating Ryan on everything that had happened while he was gone. We forgot to mention the whole hooking up thing.
“So is anyone going to tell me who the hell Vito is?” I pushed Reese’s fork away from my plate for the second time. She kept trying to eat my food when hers was perfectly good. “Stop it. Eat yours.”
“I want biscuits and gravy.” She stole another bite.
“Hey, guys, pay attention,” Ryan demanded.
“Oh, yeah. Uncle Vito?” I asked again.
“I think he worked for Mom. And he was like her distant cousin or something,” Ryan mumbled.
“You’re related to that guy?”
“Not really.” Reese wouldn’t look at me. “Kind of. But it’s like through marriage or something.”
“Well, maybe he’ll help us.” If this guy was their uncle or whatever, he would probably be happy to help.
“Not likely. I think he works with Christopher now,” Ryan said.
“What about those guys from last night?” I asked Reese. “Do you know them?” Yes, I was pissed.
“No.” She scooted away from me a little. “Okay. I recognized them, but I don’t know them. I don’t even know their names.” I was pretty sure she was lying.
“Vic and Gino,” I supplied.
“What?” Ryan’s eyes got real big. “Vic, big guy? Smokes a lot of cigars? And Gino? Fat little fucker with squinty eyes?”
“That’s them.” I was going to kick some ass. Reese never mentioned that she knew them. Not that I gave her a chance.
“Shit,” muttered Ryan.
“I really didn’t know.” Reese sounded a little pissed too. “There wasn’t time to ask if they were working for my asshole stepfather. Sorry.” The apology was totally insincere.
“How about after we left? You couldn’t have mentioned it then?”
“Guys,” Ryan yelled. “I can’t take it. No fighting today.” When in doubt, he just shouted louder than us.
“Sorry,” Reese said.
“Yeah, sorry,” I said to my plate.
“Now. Did anything fun happen while I was gone? You win big or anything?” As usual, Ryan tried to distract us with a new subject as if it were a shiny toy.
“I didn’t. Reese did pretty well.”
“How much did you win?” Ryan asked her.
“No idea. Haven’t counted it.” Reese dug into her breakfast with renewed fervor.
“Where is it? Let’s count it.” He was totally excited. Reese nodded in the direction of the bar. There was a heavy glass bowl filled to the brim. The clouded glass distorted the outline of the chips, but the color shone through.
“Knock yourself out. I’m going to shower.” Reese abandoned her seat.
“You want to help me count it, Coop? It looks like a couple thousand bucks.” Only Ryan could get excited about a couple thousand dollars when he was sitting on thirty-four million. It was the clay chips. Color excited him.
“Sure. Why not?” I snagged the last piece of sausage and followed him to the bar.
“Damn.” Ryan was already dipping his hands into the bowl. “There are some five hundred dollar chips in here.”
“No way.” I peered inside. Damn. “Dude, like half of these are five hundred dollar chips. I told you Reese was good.”
We proceeded to stack the chips, first according to denomination, then according to casino. Reese was pushing twenty grand. Not bad for a couple hours.
“That’s a lot for one night, right?” Ryan asked me.
“I’d say so.”
“She’s been before though,” he attempted for an explanation.
“Once.” Beginner’s luck didn’t go that far.
“What?” Ryan looked at me like I was crazy. “You’re thinking something weird. I know it.”
I had to tell him. “I kind of accidentally overheard Reese talking to the valet downstairs. They knew each other.”
“I don’t follow.”
“I think Reese has been here more than once. A lot more.” There. I’d finally said it. I didn’t have the balls to say it to Reese, and besides, we’d been busy, but at least I’d said it.
“What do you mean?” Ryan rubbed his face and covered his eyes. A sure sign he knew what I was talking about.
“I think she comes here to play poker.” Duh, Ryan. Get the picture.
“You think she’s some kind of high roller?” The water shut off and we both looked at the closed door.
“Not exactly. She doesn’t have the capital.” Reese wasn’t the type to flaunt it anyway. She would intentionally be discreet.
“You want to ask her?” He appeared a bit nauseous at the prospect.
“No, I want you to.” The door opened before he could answer.
“Hey, Reese.” Ryan sounded all guilty.
“Hi.” So did I.
“You guys are weird.” She disappeared into her room and took long enough to get dressed for us to excitedly gesture at each other. I won.
“So, Reese,” Ryan began nonchalantly when she came back out. “You’ve got almost twenty thousand dollars.”
“Damn. Good for me.” She went over and gazed out the window.
“That’s a lot for one night.”
“I guess it is.”
“Have you played poker before?” He sounded idiotic. I should have just asked her.
“Yes, Ryan.”
“I knew it,” he shouted. What a liar.
“You did not.” I smacked him and looked back at Reese. “I knew it.” Great, we sounded like a bad movie. “You come here all the time, don’t you? That’s why everyone at this fuckin’ hotel knows you. The waitress on my birthday, the valet.” Jumping to conclusions was my forte.
Reese turned from the window, her face totally blank. “What do you mean they know me?”
“When you went to ask about selling gold bars I thought you were crazy, but the valet knew you by name and ten fuckin’ minutes later, he called up here with everything all arranged.” I walked closer until I was standing directly in front of her.
“You followed me downstairs.”
“And it was a damn good thing. What else are you not telling us?” Okay, I was acting a little irrational.
“You fucking followed me?” Now Reese was yelling. “Are you my keeper now? You have no right. What the hell were you thinking?”
“Don’t make this about me. You’re the one who’s been lying.”
“Hey, hey. Everyone just shut the fuck up.” Ryan moved between us. “Reese, you should have told us. Cooper, you shouldn’t have followed her. Let’s just talk like adults. For once, please?”
“What should I have told you?” Reese wanted to know.
“That you’ve come here before like a billion times and you’re a liar,” I suggested.
“Coop.” Ryan put up a hand to silence me. “Let her explain.”
“All right. During school, I come about once a month,” she confessed.
“Once a month?” Ryan stared at her like she’d gone crazy. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I don’t know.” Reese slumped back against the glass. “I just like it I guess.”
“Vegas?” he asked.
“Poker. And I can’t stand Atlantic City so I guess I like Vegas too.”
“The whole time we’ve been here. You never said a thing.” The fight had gone out of my tone even though I was still pissed. I was feeling a little defeated. And deceived. “Why didn’t you tell me?” I couldn’t even see Ryan anymore, just her gorgeous, slightly apologetic face.
“Why didn’t you ask?” Reese was quieter too and looking straight at me. Something passed between us, a sort of pain. Like we both knew she was lying. But she didn’t trust me enough to give me the whole story. And I didn’t trust her enough to ask.
“Maybe this is a good thing,” Ryan said. He was always trying to be positive. He also had no idea what was going on. We didn’t respond, so he continued. “Those guys might not know I’m here.”
“Good for you, but where does that leave me and Reese?”
“Apparently, it’s normal for her to be here. So she can start dropping hints that her asshole brother took off for Canada with a shitload of cash.”
“What about you guys?” Reese wanted to know.
“You can just call us Justin”—Ryan pointed at me—“and Heather.” He pointed at himself.
“Only if I get credit for the idea,” I said.
“Which was totally Coop’s idea.”
“Thank you.”
“So we’re in the clear,” Ryan said.
“We also might want to change hotels,” I said. They’d already followed us once.
“Oh, yeah. Good call. Classic move.” Ryan threw up his hand for a high five. I ignored it.
“Or not,” Reese said.
“Why?” I asked.
“I think we should make it look like we changed hotels, you know, pack our bags, load the car, whatever. And then put you two in drag and come back here. They’ll think we changed hotels, but we will just get another room here. Maybe ditch our cars and get rentals.”
“Oh, yeah. Double back. Classic-er.” Ryan attempted another high five. Reese ignored it.
“You in?” she asked me.
“Totally.”
*
Reese and I left the hotel first. We piled our bags in the small backseat just high enough to be visible out the window. A dark sedan started following us after half a block. We let them. Reese made a couple half-assed attempts to lose the tail. The dark sedan dropped away and was replaced by a slightly different sedan.
These dudes needed to broaden their taste in cars. Fucking boring.
Ryan texted twenty minutes later. He’d left the hotel in his own car. No one seemed to be following him.
Reese got on a freeway. Merged onto another freeway. Went south, then south again. The dark sedan was back.
“These guys must think we are really fucking stupid,” I said. Reese glared at me. “Okay, we are sort of stupid. But you never told me that some Goodfellas reject might be following us. Where does Christopher get these tools from?”
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