by Sage Nyx
If anything.
“Promise me you won’t laugh,” I say after a moment.
“I won’t laugh at whatever you tell me, I swear.”
“Okay, but you might think it’s stupid.” I take a deep breath and blow it out. “I couldn’t bear to see your expression when you woke up and realized I was still there in your room. I was afraid you might regret asking me to stay.”
His mouth drops open at my answer.
“It was easier to sneak out and leave than to stay,” I explain.
“Easier than what? What did you think would happen when I woke up?”
“Nothing specific. I knew you’d be nice and polite, when all you’d really want would be for me to get the hell out. You might’ve even offered me coffee or breakfast while you were frantically trying to figure out a way to get rid of me.”
He reaches over and tilts up my chin, so I’m forced to gaze into his eyes.
“You had it all wrong,” he says. “I wanted you to be there when I woke up.” The tone of his voice sounds sincere. Or maybe I’m only hearing what I want to hear. “After the night we spent together, I never dreamed you wouldn’t be there the next morning. When you weren’t, I turned my place upside down hoping to find a note with your phone number. You left me nothing. I don’t even know your real name.”
I open my mouth to tell him that Jade is my real name.
The lie catches in my throat.
He touches my lips with his fingertips. “Don’t,” he says, stopping me. “When you’re ready, you can tell me the truth. In the meantime, can you at least give me your cell phone number? Call mine and then I’ll have it.”
I hesitate, then reach into my backpack to pull out my cell. What’s the harm in giving it to him? It’s not as if it’s a landline phone number that can be traced to my real identity.
“Okay, give me your number.”
I punch in the numbers as he calls them out. His answering phone rings in his pocket. He pulls it out and breaks into a smile when he sees my number on the screen.
“We’re making real progress here,” he says in awe. “Can you feel it too?”
Oh yeah, I feel it.
Sugar
I’m shocked Jade willingly gave me her phone number. It’s better this way. Otherwise I would need to steal the number.
Letting her disappear again without a trace won’t happen a second time around.
Not if I can help it.
When she dropped out of sight before, I realized it would be impossible to find someone without knowing their real name.
Before our date ends today, I’m determined to find out who she really is and why she’s in town. Digging up the information will be easy if she’s carrying identification on her.
I glance over at her faded blue backpack with its many zippered sections. Somewhere inside one of those pockets is a driver’s license or a credit card with her real name. All I need to do is take a quick peek without her noticing.
One of the many things Dad taught me over the years was how to be a smooth pickpocket. I can lift anything without detection.
Jewelry, money, watches, cell phones.
We lived for years from what I could swipe off people in crowds. Since I was a minor, it was always safer for me to do the petty crimes, while Dad watched my back.
We never got caught.
Not once.
I perfected my skills and worked tirelessly on them, becoming faster and smoother. I learned how to maintain eye contact with my targets while I lifted whatever I wanted from their pockets.
If they were looking directly into my eyes, they couldn’t see what my nimble fingers were doing.
I never stopped trying to perfect my skills.
How could I when overwhelming fear was my driving force?
Nothing scared me more than the thought of being caught and separated from the only parent I had left. Dad never knew how terrified I was.
I always hid my fear from him and tried to act as confident as he was in my abilities. After a while, the act slowly became a reality and one day I stopped being afraid.
It’s been years since I’ve used my pickpocketing skills for anything other than to entertain people. A twinge of guilt stings me at the thought of using them on Jade. If she wasn’t hiding something, I wouldn’t need to.
“Are we almost to our destination?” she asks. “I can’t believe you’re not giving me a hint about what we’re doing. Tell me.”
“You don’t enjoy surprises? I thought every girl loved surprises.”
She lets out a small laugh. “Not always. I prefer knowing what’s happening and when. I’m a tad obsessive-compulsive about schedules. I’m a planner.”
“Oh…let me guess. You keep a notebook in your backpack with every time slot penciled in? Or maybe you use those cute little colorful Japanese markers?”
“Guilty as charged. How did you know that?”
“Lucky guess. You need to loosen up a little. It’ll do you a world of good. Sometimes it’s fun to be impulsive and go with the flow. Everything in life doesn’t need to be planned out down to the last second. The best things in life happen when you least expect them to.”
“I know,” she says. “Believe me, I’m aware that I’m the typical stereotype of a math nerd. Boring, predictable and reliable to a fault.”
“I wouldn’t agree with that statement.” I remember the red-hot fiery passion lying right beneath the surface of her cool exterior. “You’re a lot of things, not only a numbers nerd. And definitely not boring.”
She glances out the window and points to the barren desert on both sides of the highway. “Why are we driving way out here?” she asks. “Are you kidnapping me? Should I be worried?”
“Maybe,” I reply, giving her leg a gentle squeeze. “You’ll have to wait and see. We’re almost at our destination. It’ll only be another five minutes. Do you need to be back in Vegas by a certain time? Do you have big plans for later?”
She hesitates before answering. If she admits she has plans, I might ask her what those plans are. Which means she would have to make up another lie or tell me the truth.
Which I highly doubt she’ll do.
Jade sucks at lying.
She knows it too and tries to avoid it. Anytime she’s put into a position of outright telling a fib, she’ll change the subject or redirect another question back to me.
Anything to keep from speaking a lie.
“How did the girl’s night out go with your friend last night?” I ask. “What club did you go to? Anywhere exciting?”
Jade blinks rapidly twice.
Busted!
“We decided not to go out to a club,” she says, glancing away again. “Our plans fell through. I felt a headache coming on, so we called it a night shortly after we saw you.”
Her answer has a ring of truth to it. She’s getting better at this. Her voice remained steady and calm.
“That’s a shame,” I say. “There are tons of great clubs to hit. I would’ve loved to have taken you to one of them. My name is on the VIP list for every club in town. The club managers take good care of me. I spend a shitload of money with them, so they should.”
“Maybe another time,” she says, her voice flat without a hint of enthusiasm in her voice. “I’ll take a raincheck.”
Jade doesn’t seem impressed by my exclusive VIP club status. Not that I expected her to be. She might even be turned off. Playing up my role as a Vegas big shot isn’t working with her. The more I do it, the sleazier I feel.
She can see straight through my never-ending lines of bullshit.
The thought terrifies me.
“I was surprised to see you with a new friend considering the short time you’ve been in town. Natasha was her name, right?”
Jade nods and nervously uncrosses her legs. She doesn’t want to talk about her friend.
“How did you meet her? Did you know her before you came to Vegas? Is she a college friend?”
“Oh no,
we met after I arrived.”
“Where?”
Her eyebrows lift at my inquisition. “What is this? Twenty questions?” She smiles at me to soften her words.
“No, I’m just curious. You don’t strike me as someone who makes friends easily. You also told me you’re not much of a party girl and you’re obviously not excited about bar crawling.”
“There’s a first time for everything,” she says unconvincingly. “And besides, it’s Vegas. I thought it wouldn’t kill me to shake my booty on the dance floor for a change. Natasha talked me into going out. She can be very convincing.”
She pulls her hand away from mine and unzips a pocket of her backpack to drop her phone back in. I suspect she’s using it as a diversion to change the subject.
Leaning back against the leather seat, I watch her carefully.
Figuring her out is a challenge that I’m enjoying immensely. I can’t remember the last time a woman intrigued me this much.
Whatever is happening with her, Natasha must be in on it too.
That’s the only explanation I can come up with for them to be hanging out together in the casino. It took me all of two minutes to surmise the girls are complete opposites.
No way am I buying their story of becoming fast friends overnight and then hitting the clubs together.
What are they up to?
The question is driving me nuts because I can’t figure it out. From their appearance last night at the Bora Bora casino, anyone would think they were having a night on the town. Except I knew something was off.
Jade isn’t a giggly, girl’s night out type, who hangs around with glamorous women in slinky dresses while knocking down shots of vodka.
If I had to guess, I’d say that would be one of the last things she would enjoy doing. She would be more comfortable visiting a quiet science museum with intellectual friends.
I’m wondering about who Natasha is too. Kit thought he remembered seeing her in Vegas before. A local girl wouldn’t be hooking up with a tourist to go club hopping.
Is it possible Jade lied to me about not knowing Natasha before? What if Natasha brought Jade to Vegas for a specific reason?
I can’t imagine for what.
Jade isn’t an innocent, runaway teenager who could be easily lured into a dark life of prostitution or drug dealing. She’s too smart for that.
Pimps don’t go after college students with advance degrees to lure into their dirty underworld. They hunt for girls with no other place to turn, without families or support systems.
The exact opposite of Jade.
What else could Natasha want from her? Or need?
There’s only one thing I can think of.
Jade’s brain.
The moment the thought crosses my mind, I realize I’ve hit the jackpot.
Jade is crazy smart. More intelligent than I might logically comprehend since our minds don’t operate the same way.
A statistics major might have considerable value in Vegas. Especially one who can slip under the radar at the casinos.
I study her closely, the dark-framed glasses, the college student backpack, worn jeans, sweatshirt and old sneakers.
She could easily move around Vegas undetected. There’s nothing about her that would stick out in a crowd.
The first time I spotted her she was wearing a baseball cap pulled down low to hide her face.
Since Jade will never tell me what she’s up to, I must figure it out myself.
“You still didn’t answer my question,” I point out, unwilling to let it go. “Where did you meet Natasha?”
“At a male strip club,” she replies bluntly, cutting her eyes over at me to catch my reaction.
“You were at a male strip club?” I choke out, shocked. “Really? Alone? Out of all the entertainment in Vegas, you chose that?”
“Sure. Why not? Do you have a problem?”
“Well…no. I guess not. Maybe. Hell, I don’t know!”
What the living fuck?
“Speaking of male strippers, your friend Kit would make an excellent one,” she continues. “I could picture him doing a Tarzan routine wearing nothing but a loincloth. The ladies would go insane! He would be awesome.”
She’s trying unsuccessfully to hide her smile. Okay, now she’s intentionally messing with me.
“Are you trying to make me jealous?” I ask.
“Are you?” she throws back.
“Of Kit? No way. Besides, he’s already knee deep in pussy. He doesn’t need more.”
“I take it he’s a ladies’ man then?”
“Not really. I meant he’s knee deep in pussy cat.”
She laughs at my lame joke.
“Where did you meet him?” she asks. “The two of you make quite an unusual pair. I almost fell off my stool again when I saw you walking through the casino with a tiger. Talk about making a killer entrance.”
“Wow, all I need is a four-hundred-pound rare white tiger to impress you.”
“That’s not true,” she says, giving my hand a reassuring squeeze.
“We met a few years ago. I wanted to add white doves to my show because what’s a famous magician without doves? After asking around town, everyone said to talk to Kit, the animal guy. He invited me out to his ranch on the outskirts of Vegas and we hit it off right away. In fact, that’s where Elsa came from. She was released for a wedding and had no idea how to find her way back home. Someone found her starving on their back deck and brought her to Kit.”
“Aww…the poor baby,” she says. “That’s terrible! I’m glad someone rescued her. Kit seemed very protective of Puffin. I’m surprised he handed over one of his animals to you so easily.”
“Believe me, it wasn’t easy, and he took some convincing,” I say. “Kit has taught me a lot. Everything I know about animal training came from him. Elsa played a big part in the adoption process too. She fell head over heels madly in love with me. Once Kit saw that, he agreed to let her come live with me and be a part of my show.”
“Elsa has a crush on you?”
“She thinks I’m her mate. Kit told me she’s hormonal. It might be time to think about finding her a real boyfriend. Apparently, they’re picky. She has to choose him herself, so I can’t bring any old bird home for her.”
“Is there a dove matchmaking service in Vegas?” she asks. “I wouldn’t be surprised since there’s everything else here. Or a dove wedding chapel?”
“Unfortunately, no.” I chuckle at the thought. “She’s stuck with me until I can find her a husband she approves of.”
“And how would you possibly go about doing that?”
“Kit told me to set her up on blind dates with other birds.”
Jade bursts out laughing. “You mean there’s not a website where you can swipe left or right with photos of eligible bachelor birds?”
“Don’t laugh,” I tell her. “This is serious business. Elsa needs a man. Kit said for me to bring her out to the ranch for a meetup with his other doves and pigeons. If Elsa meets a male bird she finds attractive, we’ll set up another playdate for them. Kit warned me the process might take a while.”
Jade slowly shakes her head at me.
“What?” I ask. “Am I too weird for you?”
“Not at all. Maybe I appreciate weird if it doesn’t include snakes. Or small boxes.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.”
“We’re here, folks,” Leroy calls out loudly from the front seat of the limo.
He swerves off the highway and turns into the lot for a small private airport. Rather than parking the limo in one of the designated spots, he drives right onto the tarmac.
“Time for your surprise,” I tell Jade when Leroy stops the limo and comes around to open the door for us.
Taking her hand in mine, I help her out. When she sees the bright red helicopter, she smiles at me in question.
The loud roar of the helicopter’s propellers is deafening.
My regular helicopter pilot, Trixie,
climbs down out of the pilot’s seat and hurries over to greet us. She’s a tall brunette, wearing her usual outfit of cowboy boots, jeans, and a red-checked flannel shirt.
For the past year, she’s flown me around Vegas to personal appearances. She’s always dependable and right on time.
“How’s it going, Trixie?” I ask her. “I appreciate you agreeing to take us out on short notice.”
I’d called her early this morning to see if she could squeeze us in for a helicopter tour of Vegas and Red Rock Canyon.
“It’s been busy,” she answers. “Swamped as usual with work. I’m taking every shift the boss offers me. If I keep working at this pace and with any luck, I’ll have enough money saved up by the summer to make a down payment on my own chopper.”
“You’re branching out on your own?” I ask, surprised. “Here in Vegas or back in your hometown in Alaska?”
While she’s a competent helicopter pilot, I’m a little surprised that she’s willing to go out on her own in this town.
“Right here in Vegas,” she replies. “Where the big money is. In Ketchikan, I would be lucky to get three solid months of bookings. In Vegas, it’s a year-round gig.”
“In that case you’ve got balls of steel, girl,” I tell her. “You’re a badass. If anyone can make it, you can. Give those old boys a run for their money. Do you need an investor or seed money?”
She shakes her head. “No, I’m hoping to do this all on my own. No matter how long it takes. Thanks though if you’re offering. It means a lot.” Stepping closer, she holds out a hand to Jade with a broad smile. “I’m Trixie,” she says. “Have you ever flown in a helicopter before?”
“No, I haven’t,” Jade replies with a shy smile. “This is a first for me. And a nice surprise that I wasn’t expecting. I’m Jade.”
“Nice to meet you!” Trixie says, shaking her hand. “Climb on in and let’s get you both strapped down. Do you want the side door to stay open or closed?”
“Open,” I reply at the same time that Jade says ‘closed’.”
“Which will it be?” Trixie asks, glancing back and forth between us. “Open or closed?”
“Let’s close it,” I say quickly, wondering if Jade is afraid of heights along with dark, tight spaces. “If Jade wants to try a ride with it open, we can always do that on the way back.”