by Moxie North
Although most people would get lost inside the long corridors of a casino’s inner workings, Everett easily mapped it out in his brain and his cat liked the idea of being in a giant rat maze.
He found the security office that had a very large man standing in a uniform next to the door marked Private. He smelled shifter, but Everett couldn’t remember ever meeting a cougar shifter that big. Bears yes, cats no. He had to tilt his head back just to look at the man. His name tag said, Bruce.
Everett watched as Bruce took in a lungful of air, clearly marking him as another shifter. His cat was on the defensive waiting to see what this huge man was going to do. He was no sissy, he might not be able to take this guy if he decided to test him, but he’d go down fighting for sure.
“Everett Hayes,” he said up to the huge man.
“Bruce,” was all the big man offered. Deciding Everett was no threat, the man turned and swiped his key card and entered a code. He stepped back to let Everett in. The room was like a giant candy store. Computers and servers lined behind long glass walls, humming away with terabytes of data flowing through them. The room was icy cold to manage the heat from the massive machines. The sealed doors to the servers were in case of fire. The room would seal off and Halon gas would pour into the room snuffing out any fire, but preserving the equipment. It was awesome.
“Ahh Mr. Hayes, if you’ll come this way,” a voice said distracting him from his ogling. Turning he saw another man with a security badge. Everett followed him to a terminal where they did a facial scan, he entered a new password and they even took his fingerprint just to run criminal checks on him.
Once he’d cleared through the security clearances he was introduced to the staff. There were a few workers from the security staff still installing the new systems. Everyone in the room outside of Bruce was human. Everett stood and watched. He saw everyone working separately, clearly focused on their tasks. Nothing seemed out of place. The head of security handed him a number of binders with technical schematics of the system. They’d make for fun reading later.
Thanking everyone for their help, he left the secure area. He nodded to Bruce, the mountain, and made his way back to the main lobby without ever looking up from the paperwork he was reading.
Somehow he made it to the elevator, hit the right button, and managed to not bump into any tourists. Walking out he turned and then almost bumped into his door since he was trying to swipe the keycard without looking. Inside the arctic air hit him in the face. Housekeeping had been there and turned the room into an icebox again. Adjusting the thermostat, he spied a computer set up on a desk that now took up a corner of the living room. Going over to investigate, he found a top of the line system with two twenty-four inch monitors.
“That will do,” he murmured and sat down, entered his security clearance, then lost track of time.
His stomach rumbling and his cat’s mental grousing made him finally take note of the time and he realized he’d been hunched over the computer for hours. The sky outside was dark, the twinkling lights of the strip giving everything a hazy glow.
Reaching for the phone strategically placed on his desk he noticed the message light blinking. He was so engrossed before he missed it. Hitting the button he waited and heard a few beeps then he heard the voice of an angel.
“Hello Everett, this is Layla Klein, Will’s sister. I just wanted to touch base and welcome you to Las Vegas and The Platinum. I’m sorry I haven’t had a chance to meet you. I spend most of my time in the hotel or the club blend. If you need anything that the staff can’t accommodate, please contact me. I was told you have my number. We appreciate your help and hope you enjoy your stay.”
The message ended and Everett didn’t even pretend to resist the urge to hit the replay on the phone. He listened to it two more times. Her voice was soft but incredibly strong and confident. It made his cat happy. Pulling up her security profile he saw her picture and it was like he knew her already.
There was something about her, his cat sat up and paid attention when the lovely picture, not like a normal security photo, of course, pop up on the screen. This looked like a professional headshot even though clearly it was on the same ugly backdrop as everyone else’s. She was beautiful. Her smooth skin glowed and was softly tanned. She had lips that were full and smiling sweetly in the picture.
Her hair was golden and long from what he could tell. Her eyes, her eyes were green, very unusual for a cougar shifter. They usually ranged from brown to even yellow, but hers were bright green. He liked them a lot, he couldn’t look away, they were mesmerizing. Everett felt his pants get tight in the region of his expanding cock.
Jesus, I must need a date. Getting ramped up over a picture of a beautiful woman wasn’t unheard of. But come on, it was William Klein’s baby sister for fuck sake.
Knowing he and his cat wouldn’t be able to focus, he picked up his phone and dialed her number. It rang three times then her voicemail picked up.
“Ms. Klein, Layla,” he started. He liked her name, it rolled over his tongue like honey. “Thank you for leaving me a message. The staff here is taking very good care of me. I wish I could think of something I need from you, but I can’t think of anything.” He was stammering and rambling, this was not like him. “So, thank you again. I hope to see you at your family’s house this weekend.”
He hung up before he could say anything else random. He sat for a while and stared at her photo. He might have listened to her message a few more times.
Deciding he needed to stop looking at the photo, because clearly his cat was stupidly content doing so, he stood up and grabbed his workout clothes. He changed quickly and put in an order for dinner, telling them to just leave it in the room since he’d be in the gym.
Maybe an hour or two of hard cardio and lifting would refocus him on the job at hand. Great, now he was thinking about Layla Klein and hand-jobs. Damn, he was a pervert.
Chapter 7
Layla was sitting at the last stool on the edge of the packed bar against the wall. She was going over the receipts even though the club was packed to rafters with writhing, drunk, and sweaty people trying very hard to make a memory. Usually one that after they checked their phones in the morning or their social media, they’d hope they could forget. The adage what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas only works if you don’t out yourself to your family and friends back home that you were half naked on a bar top having a stranger do shots out of your belly button.
Her numbers were looking on point, the alcohol counts were on track to. She’d been doing it so long and her staff were so trustworthy, Layla could tally the dollar amount per empty bottle in her inventory. She knew Paolo was already ensconced in the VIP lounge. He was on his second magnum of Grey Goose and Dom Rose. There were enough barely dressed women back there to ensure he was going to keep the alcohol flowing until they closed.
That’s okay with her, his money was good and nothing made other partiers more likely to show off and order more drinks than trying to catch a glimpse of someone they think is a celebrity.
Nodding to her bartender because she hated yelling over the noise, she took another scan around the room, took in the vibe and decided the music and lighting was perfect for another few hours. It was like her orchestra and she loved making it move to the flick of her wrist. Deciding an hour long nap in her office sounded like an excellent plan, she gathered up her phone and tablet and worked her way through the throbbing crowd.
She turned at the entrance to speak to the bouncer, who was pack, when she caught the aroma of another shifter. Her eyes scanned the lobby and saw the back of a very tall, very sweaty, but delicious smelling shifter waiting for the elevator.
The man’s head was pitched down as he used a towel to wipe the sweat off the back of his neck. Layla’s cat was purring in her head, the horny little thing. Her cougar was all efficiency and work, but she still loved a good tumble. This cougar smelled like sex and syrup. Yup, he was a giant stack of buttery, maple-flavor
ed goodness.
Her stare lasted until he stepped onto the elevator. The air conditioning was just right so she could smell him but not the other way around. Taking a deep breath and trying to calm not only her greedy cougar but her greedy pussy she turned back to Charles her bouncer. He had a huge stupid grin on his face. Not only had she got caught staring at another shifter, but she knew that her pack mate could smell her interest. Great that would be the talk of the run tomorrow night.
“Looks like Mr. Hayes is making use of the gym. Gotta keep fit to keep those females happy,” Charles said with a smirk.
“Oh shut up,” she said to him and clipped away on her heels.
“Whatever you say, Ms. Klein,” he called back laughing.
Damn, she was never going to hear the end of this. But there was also a chance she could get to Everett Hayes and negotiate some mutual encounters while he was here. Layla didn’t sleep around, in fact, she’d only ever dated humans because she didn’t want to have any relationships get uncomfortable inside the pack. They all knew no matter who you were sleeping with, the moment you found The One, the others didn’t exist anymore. It was a harsh reality, but it was one that everyone understood.
Layla kept her encounters to fun weekends with out-of-towners. Granted, it had been a while since she’d done that. Her brain started ticking away at the numbers, shit okay, it had been a few years. She was a busy woman! There wasn’t time to play the field when you had work to do.
Her cougar gave her opinion on the lack of sex and Layla tried to ignore her. It’s not like it had grown over or anything. Her battery operated boyfriend was very reliable. Her cat was just being picky.
Walking quickly through the lobby to her office, the scent of the other shifter lingered. It was nice. Once she was safely behind her office door, she flicked the lock, and turned down the lights. Flopping down on the couch, she threw an arm over her eyes. She just needed about an hour of rest. Just a recharge to take the edge off to push her through the rest of the night.
Still holding her phone in her hand, she checked the time to see how long she could nap and saw her voicemail icon. Not being able to sleep until she found out who it was, she dialed in her password. A warm sexy voice started stumbling over his hello, it was Everett. His voice was growly, low and made her pussy twitch. Yup, his voice made her clit start to freaking tingle. The message ended and she hit replay instantly. Her body was being a total traitor. Her cat was no help, she was purring loudly in her head.
“Okay, one more time,” she whispered to herself and hit the button again to replay.
“Oh, damn. That’s sexy,” she moaned.
Her cat was laughing at her in her head. She knew that the sweet smell of Everett Hayes was still swirling around in their brains. Hell, her nipples were still puckered under her La Perla bra.
She was alone, who would know? Sliding her hand down into her skirt and tucking it under her satin panties, she rolled her middle finger over her rigid clit. Mmm, that was nice. Her brain kept flashing back to the sweaty man in the lobby. Her keen eyes had taken in each drop of sweat that was clinging to his tan muscles. She’d only caught the side of his head and had seen dark stubble across his jaw that matched the dark hair on his head.
Layla added a little more pressure over her nub, bringing another finger over the top of it to increase her speed. Her other hand slid up her shirt and flicked her nipple through the sheer mesh of her bra. Rolling it between in fingers she squeezed it just like she liked it. She thought about his smell, it was so sweet and savory. It made her want to lick him from top to bottom. Her cat agreed, even she knew he’d taste like he smelled.
A gush of fluid coated Layla on the inside, her pussy was contracting as her hand moved faster. In her mind, the handsome man’s head turned and all she saw was golden yellow eyes.
Fuck, she wished she’d seen his eyes. The tangy smell of him worked her brain into a tizzy. The man was a perfect specimen of a shifter. She usually could appreciate a good looking man, she saw them all the time. Something about him was different. Her normally laid back cat wanted to investigate.
Layla slid her hand farther down her soaked slit and pushed a finger into her tight channel. She dragged her finger along the top finding a sweet spot. The palm of her hand pressing down on her clit, adding more pressure, working her into a thrashing arch. His smell alone would carry her for a month of self-gratification.
“Oh, god!” she called out quietly as her body bucked as a sweet sharp wave of pleasure flowed over her. Her legs were twitching and her pussy was clenching around her finger as she tried to drag out the pleasure.
Panting she let the last tingles trickle over her as she pulled her hand out of her skirt. Sighing, she let herself think of those eyes, not sure if they were real or not. But it would make for a nice dream.
Chapter 8
Everett woke up on the couch in his suite. There were technical manuals strewn about the room. The computer was in the background running diagnostic programs as he slept. There wasn’t much he could do while they were running, so he blew through a Sudoku puzzle book that he’d picked up in the lobby just to get his brain to go to sleep. Just the difficult level ones, of course. It was like his lullaby. He thought about logging on and shooting some bad guys. But that would have had him up all night.
Sadly, even in his sleep his brain had him dreaming about coding and string theory. He should be exhausted, but it was his brain’s way of going on autopilot.
Standing, he stretched, easing his muscles from his workout last night. He’d run five miles before going through a full lifting set. He felt good, but his muscles were hungry. He picked up the phone and called in a huge breakfast order.
While he waited he checked the computer, everything was still running and nothing worrisome had come up. There were a few clouds out the window when he glanced up and it was such a rarity, it drew him outside. Swinging the doors open wasn’t the furnace in the face effect he was expecting. It was too early in the morning, the concrete and steel hadn’t had time to heat up.
Taking a deep breath, his cougar had a mental stretch and let Everett know he appreciated the fresh air. Going on the pack run tonight was a good idea. A dark romp through the desert would have lots of things for his cougar to track and explore.
Plus he was living large in the hotel, it would be good to introduce himself to the Kleins and firm up the pack connections.
Hearing a knock on the door and he reluctantly moved away from the balcony, but left the doors open to let some fresh air in.
Thanking the waiter, he performed his uncover and dump maneuver on the omelet, hash browns, and pancakes like he did with his dinner and sat on the couch as he scarfed down his meal.
Everett had managed after his workout to not pull up Layla Klein’s picture again. He was actually quite proud of his self-control. He could even feel the surprise from his cat.
He’d be lying though if the idea of seeing her at the run tonight wasn’t part of his reason for going. Finding out why she was so appealing was a puzzle he wanted to solve. It could just be he found her attractive, he was a man after all. He usually didn’t venture into shifter territory to find sexual partners, but maybe he could make an exception.
Finishing up his food, he left the dishes on the cart knowing it would be gone when he got back. He had a long day ahead of him with the security company. He was looking forward to it, all day long in the server room, heaven.
“Ms. Klein, delivery for you.”
Layla looked up and saw a huge arrangement of flowers being held by an employee. There was a smirk around the edges of the woman’s face as she struggled to hold up the giant vase. She was leaning to the side in order to see Layla around the garish display. Every color of the rainbow, and some she didn’t think were found in nature, were represented. It looked liked something you would send to a clown’s funeral.
“Wow, just wow,” she said, shaking her head.
“I know right!” the wo
man said with a laugh.
She didn’t even need to look at the card to know exactly who it was from. Vincent usually sent bouquets of flowers, but this one was over the top.
“Would you mind having one of the delivery drivers run that over to the hospital? I’m sure someone could use a pick me up. Hell, that should cheer up a whole floor.”
“Yes, Ms. Klein.” The poor woman managed to turn and make her way down the hallway peeking through the stems.
Clearly her innuendo that her parents were arranging a marriage for her wasn’t enough to dissuade Vincent from continuing his perusal of her. She really wished she could just scratch him once to show him she really wasn’t interested.
Her phone started ringing and she could see it was Vincent calling. Not today, she was not talking to him today. She had already checked in at the club, they were set for tonight and she had an appointment. Hair and nails and a little pampering were just the thing to keep her mind off of creepy Vincent and yummy Everett.
Everett was finishing up going over the facial recognition software. It was state of the art, top of the line, and wicked cool. The same software they used to scan the casino floors for criminals and people on the hot list, those that had gotten caught cheating before, was the same they were going to use for employees. If your face does not match the login information for the computer you are sitting in front of then you don’t get in. Then security will be standing behind you in the blink of an eye.
He was having such a great time. Awesome room, sweet view, and all the toys he could play with. Checking the time, he saw that it was almost time to change before he headed out to the Kleins for dinner before the run. Will had called him and asked him if he would like to eat with his parents. They were thrilled he was here and they loved to have houseguests. Everett was happy to oblige. Thanking the workers, he headed up to his room for a quick shower and a change into a clean pair of shorts. He figured they were going to be getting naked after dinner, so why dress up?