Isn't It Time (15 page)

“Ah,” said Nate, taking my hand.  “Can you smell that?”

I sniffed. “No. What?”

He looked down at me and grinned.  “That unique casino smell
– smoke and alcohol and a fine layer of desperation.”

I laughed at the truth of that as he led me by the hand and
navigated through the masses. “What do you want to play?” he asked.

“Oh, I don’t know. Do you want to just walk around and see
what looks interesting?”

“Okay, sounds good.”

We spent the next thirty minutes fighting the crowd and
searching for anything that might have two spots available together.  We
lingered by the table games and Nate scanned them hopefully, but the only
available seats were at the $100 tables. 

“Wow,” said Nate.  “This is crazy. What do you say we go see
if we can find a seat at the bar and wait some of this out?”

I agreed and we walked to a partially enclosed circular bar
in the center of the casino. I sensed rather than saw Nate’s shoulders slump as
we stood at the entrance surveying the wall-to-wall people inside.

“Now don’t panic,” I said to him, holding up a hand. “I
don’t have many skills, but I am very good at spotting who is about to get up
from a bar stool.”

I pulled him toward the center of the room, standing in
front of the long bar area. I looked carefully at each person sitting there,
watching what they were doing and assessing body language.

“There!” I exclaimed, tugging his hand. “Hurry! Those two at
the other end are just about to leave.  And they’re end seats!” My excitement
at this was such that I said that last part just as enthusiastically as I might
have said I was just commissioned to repaint the Sistine Chapel.

I dragged him with me to the other end of the bar and we
arrived just as the couple sitting there turned in their stools and prepared to
get up. I clamped my hand onto the backrest of one of the stools, laying claim
before someone could beat me to it, and flashed my most winning smile at the
exiting woman. I apologized for invading her space but she didn’t respond and
dejectedly walked away, trailing closely at the back of her companion.

Relieved to be off our feet, we sat down, me on the end seat
and Nate to my left. Nate started a tab with the bartender, ordering a beer for
himself and vodka and grapefruit juice for me.  I had debated the advisability
of drinking again, but decided I would just have one and see how it went.

“See?” I said to Nate after our drinks arrived.  “All is not
lost. We have a seat, a drink and a game built right into the bar.”  I was
happy about this.  If I played anything, I preferred to play video poker or,
occasionally, if Jack was with me for guidance, blackjack.

“Yeah, this will work.” Nate pulled out his wallet,
retrieved a $20 bill and slid it into the machine.  I did the same, only with
$10. After my earlier spending spree in the lingerie department, I had given
myself a miserly budget of $20 for the night.  I was confident I could make it
last.

Nate opted to play video blackjack and I selected a regular
poker game.  Being the big spender that I am, I bet one quarter and dealt the
cards. Nate leaned over to look at my machine and laughed.  “One quarter? You
know you should bet all five if you want to maximize your wins, right?”

“Oh, I know. But I’m feeling cheap tonight so I’d rather
minimize my losses.”  Looking at the three of a kind I had drawn, I added,
“Besides, I just made fifty cents.  What did you do?”

“I lost five dollars,” he sighed.

“See? So shut up.”

We laughed and continued to play while sipping our drinks
and teasing each other.  I raised my eyebrows and smirked when he pulled out
his wallet for the third time. I looked pointedly at my screen, which showed I
now had a balance of $11.25.

He laughed and shook his head.  “Shut up. The night’s
young.”

“Slow and steady wins the race,” I said wisely, leaning over
my drink and sucking some up through the straw.

“Yeah, we’ll see,” he snorted. He finished off the rest of
his beer and set it on the bar.  “I need to go find the bathroom.  Can you
order me another beer if the bartender gets over this way?”

“Sure, no problem.  I’ll just sit here and make more money
while you’re gone.”

He caught me off guard when he bent over and planted a quick
kiss on my cheek. “Be right back.” And then he was gone.

I leaned against the back of my seat and blew out a slow
breath. Just like the kiss in my kitchen, it was given very casually. Not a big
deal.  It could even be construed as friendly.  But it left me feeling jittery
just the same.

I removed the swizzle stick from my drink and chewed on it
while I took a break and looked around the room. My eyes widened in
appreciation when I saw a man who could only be described as tall, dark and
brooding walk into the bar. Dark, short hair, longer on the top, with one piece
that fell down over his forehead.  As I watched, he ran his hand through his
hair, pushing back the errant piece while he slowly scanned the room. Nicely trimmed
goatee, black leather jacket, black tee shirt, black jeans, black belt, and
black boots.  I couldn’t see his eye color from where I was, but I would guess
black.

There was a small silver ring pierced through his left
eyebrow and although I didn’t see any visible tattoos, I felt sure he had them.

He was exactly the kind of guy I loved as a fictional
romantic hero – but had little interest in when it came to real life.  Oh,
sure, he was awesome to look at, but I preferred my men to be like Jack – a
laid back, secure, well-adjusted adult who could make me laugh and wasn’t
carrying around any emotional baggage.

I paused at that thought but didn’t have time to delve
further into why I was holding Jack up as my romantic ideal - because Tall,
Dark, and Hot turned his head in my direction and locked his eyes on mine.

Shit. I quickly looked away and pretended to be deeply
engrossed in my single-quarter betting, biting harder on the swizzle stick
still dangling attractively from my mouth.

I caught a flash of black moving in on my right side and
knew he had walked over and was leaning sideways against the bar. I could feel
his eyes on me, but acted as if I didn’t notice. I prayed he would order a
drink and go away. No such luck.

“Hey, beautiful,” he said.

First of all, I hated it when men I didn’t know greeted me
by calling me beautiful.  It grated on my nerves and fairly reeked of
player
.
I looked up to see him smiling at me and, oh my God, he was really gorgeous up
close.

“Hi,” I said, lifting my chin but not smiling.  I returned
my eyes to my game and bet another quarter.

Not at all put off by my lack of enthusiasm, he asked,
“Would you like some company?”

“No,” I said. Then remembering my manners, I looked back up
at him and added, “Thank you.”

“Oh, I see,” he said, no longer smiling.  “You’re too good
for someone like me, is that it?”

Now he was just pissing me off.  That was quite a chip he
had on his shoulder. I slowly removed the swizzle stick from my mouth and
raised an eyebrow. “Maybe.” I watched his jaw tighten at that and then added,
“Or maybe you’re too good for me.  Hard to say since I don’t know you.”

He blinked at me a couple of times, then his jaw relaxed and
he started laughing. And I hated to admit it, but he had a great laugh - and it
made me smile.

“I think I like you,” he said, extending his right hand to
me. “I’m Finn.”

I took his hand and shook it.  “Nice to meet you, Finn.”

He stared at me for a second, released my hand and asked,
“And your name?”

“She won’t tell you her name unless she’s properly
introduced – she has a rule.  And she sure won’t be telling it to you, you ugly
son of a bitch.”

Oh my God.  Nate had snuck up right behind Finn, crowding
him and growling directly into his ear.  I froze with my eyebrows practically
hitting my hairline. My heart started palpitating wildly at this disturbingly
possessive side of Nate.  I couldn’t believe easygoing Nate was pressing for a
fight with a guy of Finn’s size. Or a guy of any size, really.

Finn’s whole body went on alert, stiffening as he turned
slowly, putting his back to the bar. “What the fuck…” he started. His face
relaxed and his scowl turned into a wide smile. Then he was laughing as he
exclaimed, “Nate? What the hell, man?” He shook hands with Nate, who was also
laughing and I watched as they exchanged a man hug, pounding each other’s backs
while they continued to shake hands.

I let out the breath I didn’t even know I had been holding
and relaxed in my seat.

“What are you doing here, man? I thought you still lived in
Ohio.”

“I do. I’m in town doing some work for Jack this week,” Nate
explained.  “And, speaking of Jack, this is his friend, Angie Richards.  Angie,
meet Finn Brogan. He’s not nearly as obnoxious as he looks.”

“Friend, as in girlfriend, friend?” Finn asked me.

“No, just a friend.  So you know Jack, too?”  I was starting
to wonder if I was destined to meet all of Jack’s friends in random bars.

“Hell yeah, I know Jack!  He dated my sister for two years
while we were all in college.”

“Oh, Lauren?” I asked, although I was pretty sure she was
the only one Jack had dated for that length of time.

“The very same.  I take it you’ve heard of her?”

“Yeah, he’s mentioned her a couple of times.”  In truth, he
had only mentioned her once. He had told me the story of how, after two years,
she had unexpectedly dumped him for her lab partner. He had been surprised, but
not hurt. He said by that point they were together more out of habit than
because they shared any deep feelings. As far as I knew, they parted on good
terms.

The bartender finally showed up and Nate reclaimed his seat
after ordering another round, including a beer for Finn, who was leaning on the
end of the bar again.

“So how is Lauren?” Nate asked, leaning forward and talking
across me.  “Still in California?”

“Yeah. She’s doing great.  She and John had a baby girl
around Christmas. Cutest kid you ever saw.”

“She must look like her mother, then, because her father is
butt-ugly.”

“True,” Finn said and he and Nate laughed when I swatted at
Nate’s arm and scolded him.

“Well he is!” Nate protested, rubbing his arm.

The bartender set fresh drinks in front of us and I
hurriedly drank the last of my old one and handed him the empty glass.  So far,
no effect from the alcohol, so I relaxed some more and bet another quarter.

“How’s the private investigating going?” Nate asked.

“Pretty good.  I’ve been doing some bounty hunting, too,
when things are slow.  Matter of fact, that’s why I’m here tonight.  A guy
jumped bail in Albuquerque and was traced here.  I got some information that he
hangs out in this bar, but I haven’t spotted him yet.”

I glanced around to see if anyone in the bar looked like a
bail-jumping criminal.  Most of them did, so I turned back around and left the
bounty hunting to the expert.

“You know, Jack’s got a bit of a situation at work and it’s
possible he might need to use an investigator,” Nate told Finn.

Finn pulled out his wallet and handed a business card to
Nate.  “There’s some new contact information there. Tell him to give me a call
if he needs me.  Where is Jack tonight?  I’d love to see him.  I think it’s
been close to a year since we got together.”

“He’s at a dinner meeting, but he’s here downtown
somewhere.  I’ll text him and see if he’s free yet.”

I perked up at that and hoped he was free.  I’d love to see
him, too.

Nate’s phone beeped before he had even set it down and he
looked at the display. “He says he was just leaving, and he can be here in
about ten minutes.”

“Excellent. This is turning out to be a much better night
than I expected,” Finn said, winking at me. I smiled at him, shaking my head,
and he laughed.

“Whoa,” I said, straightening up and looking at my screen. 
“Speaking of Jack…”

Nate and Finn both leaned in to look at my game.  The ace,
king, queen and ten of hearts.  I carefully held each card and paused with my
finger over the draw button.  “Jack, jack, jack,” I chanted under my breath.

“Do it, baby,” Finn encouraged.

I closed my eyes and pressed the button.  “Yes!” Nate
exclaimed. “Good job!” I opened my eyes to see the jack of hearts completing my
royal flush.

“Woohoo!” I high-fived Nate and then Finn.

“Wow, how much does that pay?” asked Finn.

I checked the screen.  “Sixty-two fifty,” I informed him
proudly.

“That’s all?  For a freaking royal flush?”

“Yeah, when you’re only betting one quarter at a time,” Nate
said.  “Angie, if you had been betting all five quarters, you would have just
won a thousand dollars.”

“Holy shit,” said Finn.

“If I had been betting all five quarters I would have been
out of money a long time ago. Ergo, no thousand dollars - and no sixty-two
fifty.”  I picked up my drink and took a long swallow, excited by my relatively
puny win.

“Ergo?” Finn raised his eyebrows at me.

“What?  It’s a legitimate word.  Look it up.”  I wasn’t
going to let these two kill my winning buzz. I pushed the cash-out button and
collected my payout ticket for $74.25.

Nate rolled his eyes at me and shook his head.  “Sixty-two
fifty. Unbelievable.”

“Well, Nate, I’m going to go cash in my winnings.” I
swiveled my seat around and stood up.  “Would you like me to cash in yours,
too?” I asked solicitously.

He tilted his head and smirked. “Ha. Ha. Ha.”

“Slow and steady,” I reminded him with a tap to his nose. I
heard them both laughing as I sashayed away, happily clutching my ticket.

After using the restroom and cashing in my ticket, I walked
past the table games on my way back to the bar.  I was engrossed in putting my
wallet, with my winnings tucked safely inside, back into my purse, when I heard
a familiar laugh.  I looked up and tried to locate the source.