High Stakes (8 page)

He crossed his arms. “I don’t want you to
have any regrets in the morning.”

“I won’t.” She couldn’t imagine a woman alive
who would regret sharing a bed with Liam.

“You never said what brings you to Vegas,”
he said, setting the linen napkin in his lap.

“I have a meeting with a handbag designer
in the morning. If her designs are as impressive as her online portfolio, I’d
like to feature her work in my boutique.” She could hear the slight slur to her
words, but instead of reaching for her water, she lifted the wine glass.

“Do you travel a lot for business?”

“I have been lately, but now that I have
the major suppliers in place, I imagine it will be much less moving forward.
I’ll go to the major shows, of course, and occasional trips to visit the
designers I’m featuring, but that won’t be more than a few times a year.”

He’d obviously been visiting Nashville on
business, and she knew he had a hotel there, but she didn’t want to make it
awkward between them by asking when he was planning a return visit. “You must
travel a lot for business. It can’t be easy, raising a daughter by yourself and
traveling so much.”

“It isn’t easy, but nothing worth having is
ever easy, is it?” He smiled at her over the rim of his wine glass. “I love my
business and I love my little girl, so I wouldn’t change a thing.”

Her heart melted when he spoke of his
daughter. Safeguarding her heart against the aloof CEO was easy, but when she
stole a glimpse of him as a doting father, her imagination kicked into
overdrive. She couldn’t help but fantasize about being the woman he showered
with his undivided attention and affection. “Your daughter’s very lucky to have
you in her life.”

“I’m the lucky one.” He sipped his Merlot before
he said, “I didn’t know what love was until she came into my life.”

Alisa smiled. “My dad keeps telling me that
I’ll know the meaning of unconditional love when I have a child of my own. When
we argue because of some of the choices I’ve made, he tells me that one day
I’ll understand how hard it is for him to stand back and watch while I make
choices that he knows will inevitably cause me pain.”

“Like getting engaged to a man who wasn’t
worthy of you?” He smiled when he said it, but she knew he was serious.

“My parents liked Nick at first. He and my
father travel in the same circles. That’s how we met. My Uncle Luc…” She
smiled. “He’s not really my uncle, but I call him that because he and my father
have been best friends forever. Anyways, my Uncle Luc signed Nick to his label,
Titan Records, and we met at a party Titan threw to welcome him to the label.”

“How long ago was that?”

“Four years.”

Her mind drifted back to the day she met
him. Nick had been a rising star who’d swept her off her feet with promises of
how wonderful their life could be together. And it was, until the rumors
started circulating about his life on the road. The people who loved her warned
her that he wasn’t as devoted as he pretended to be, but it wasn’t until she walked
in on him and his lover that she finally told him it was over.

“I’m sorry things didn’t work out the way
you hoped they would.” He reached across the table to take her hand. “It’s
never easy to let go of a dream, but sometimes it’s for the best.”

She looked up and read the sincerity in his
eyes. “In this case, I know it was, but some days are harder than others. We
ended it a year ago, but he’s determined to make it difficult for me. He still
calls, sends texts and emails, drops by unannounced, sends flowers…” She
sighed. “I just want it to be over.”

“I’m surprised your father hasn’t told him
to back off. I know if someone was hassling my daughter, I would.”

“Believe me, he wanted to, but I told him I
needed to handle Nick on my own.”

Liam waited until the waiter placed their
entrees in front of them before he said, “Maybe it would help if he believed
you’d moved on with someone else.” He winked. “I’d be more than willing to be
your decoy.”

She laughed. “Thanks for the offer, but
I’ve already tried that. I went through a pretty crazy period after the
break-up, drinking, partying, getting my picture in all the tabloids…” She
reached for her utensils. “I wanted to send him a clear message that I’ve moved
on, but Nick’s one of those guys who doesn’t believe in taking no for an
answer.”

“Maybe he just needs to hear it from
someone other than you.”

Alisa smiled at him. She had no doubt Liam
was used to people complying when he issued orders, but so was Nick. It would
be a battle to the death between these two hardheaded men. Not that it would
ever come to that. Liam was just passing through her life, and Nick would
undoubtedly be a problem long after she returned home.

“Do you mind if we talk about something
else?” She sliced the tender meat and forced herself to sample it. She wasn’t
hungry, but she knew it would upset him if she continued to drink on an empty
stomach. “Tell me about your business.”

“I started it almost twenty years ago. My
father was in the resort business, so I learned a lot from him. And when my
grandfather left me a small inheritance, I saw it as an opportunity to take the
knowledge I’d gained and put it to good use by branching out on my own. I’d
just graduated from Yale…” He smiled. “I thought I was ready to take on the
world. Needless to say, I was pretty naïve back then. A piece of paper from an
Ivy League school doesn’t give you the tools you need to succeed in business.
That comes with experience, making mistakes and learning from them.”

“I’m surprised you didn’t take over your
father’s business.” The food was delicious, and Alisa found herself quickly
digging in with more enthusiasm. “Wouldn’t that have been easier than starting
your own company from the ground up?”

“I’m not interested in the path of least
resistance. Ever.” He smiled as his gaze drifted over her. “I love a
challenge.”

She returned his playful smile. “Good to
know.”

“My brother and I encouraged my mother to
sell the company when my father passed away. The company was struggling, and we
were at risk of a hostile takeover if we didn’t act quickly. Fortunately, she
was able to unload it, and it gave her the financial security to live the rest
of her life comfortably. She deserves that after what she had to endure. Not
that I wouldn’t have been happy to take care of her. I owe her… a lot.”

Alisa knew there was a story there, but she
wasn’t sure if he felt comfortable sharing it with someone he’d just met. “If
you want to talk about it…”

He raised his head, as though he seemed to
be considering her offer. “My father was a lying, cheating, moral-less shark
who’d have sold his own mother down the river if it benefited him. I was embarrassed
to share his last name.”

Alisa knew her sharp intake of breath
betrayed her surprise at his hostility, but he’d caught her off-guard. “I’m
sorry.”

He sneered. “It was ten years before people
in the business world started to take me seriously, before they realized that I
was nothing like my old man.”

“That must have been difficult for you,
having to pay for his sins.”

“It made me stronger, and I’m grateful for
that.” He reached for his wineglass. “People expected me to be a chip off the
old block. Take a different woman to bed every night, treat people like dirt, destroy
businesses and families without a second thought whenever it suited my
purpose.” He downed half a glass of wine before he said, “My father taught me a
hell of a lot about the man I
didn’t
want to be.”

“That’s why you don’t sleep around?” It was
becoming clear to Alisa that there was so much more to him than she’d
suspected. She’d judged him because of his accomplishments, instead of
questioning how much it cost him to achieve success, just like people had done
to her.

“Yes, that and…” He closed his eyes for a
moment before he said, “The incident with Abby’s mother. That’s when I realized
that I could never have a normal relationship. Women stopped viewing me as a
man when I made my first million. Now I’m just a walking ATM.”

“You’re selling yourself short.” She could
already see this man had more depth than any of the other guys she’d dated, but
she knew she wouldn’t be able to alter his perceptions in just one night. “I’m
confident there’s a woman out there who’ll love you in spite of your wealth,
not because of it.”

“You don’t know how much I want to believe
that,” he said quietly. He bowed his head, as though he was afraid of revealing
his vulnerability if he looked her in the eye. “I’m getting tired of being
alone, but to tell the truth, I’ve pretty much given up hope of ever finding
anyone.”

Alisa knew finding your soul mate wasn’t
easy, but she’d just assumed a man like Liam would have his choice of potential
candidates. “You’ve never been with anyone who made you think… maybe she’s the
one?”

He looked at her a long time before he
said, “If you’d asked me that yesterday, I would have said no. Now… I don’t
know.”

She could barely breathe when he looked at
her that way, as though she was the only person in the world who mattered. She
didn’t know what was happening between them, but it was intense and terrifying
and exhilarating, all at once. “Don’t say those things. Please.” She closed her
eyes when she couldn’t stand to look at him anymore. This was too much. Tonight
was supposed to be about having a good time, not falling for a man she may
never be able to forget.

He stood up and walked around to her side
of the table. He dropped to one knee and eased her around to face him. “Please
believe me when I tell you that I’m just saying what’s in my heart tonight,
sweetheart. I’m not trying to wear down your defenses or coax you into bed. I
never asked for this, I never expected this, but I’m not going to try and deny
it’s happening, either.”

“This is an impossible situation.” She
shouldn’t feel the weight of remorse weighing so heavily on her when she
thought about never seeing him again, but she did. She liked this man, a lot,
and she believed, with time, it could evolve into more, but their time together
was running out and they both knew that. “We live thousands of miles apart. I
have my family and business in Nashville. You have your daughter and your
business in San Francisco. Tonight is the only night we have, so why waste time
pretending this could be more than it is?”

“I’m not pretending.” He held her hand in
his and bowed his head. “You think I don’t know this is crazy? I’m not supposed
to feel this way about someone I just met. The thought of never seeing you
again isn’t supposed to make me feel physically sick, but it does.”

Someone cleared their throat in the doorway
and Liam whispered a curse. “You can clear now, Robert. Thank you.”

The waiter glanced at the food remaining on
their plates as Liam stood up. “Was there a problem with the food, sir?”

“No, everything was fine. My apologies to
the chef.”

Alisa was still reeling from everything
he’d said to her when she reached for her wine glass again. How was she
supposed to process the fact that she was falling for a man she’d just met and
would never see again?

“Robert, wait,” Liam said.

The waiter turned toward him. “Yes, sir?”

“I want a blackjack table and dealer in
here.”

“Of course, sir.”

Alisa smiled up at him. “What’re you up
to?”

“Tonight wasn’t supposed to be like this.”
He eased into his seat and tipped his head back. “I wanted to show you a good
time. Instead, I’ve unloaded all my problems on you and made you feel sorry for
me. The least I can do is try to salvage this night with a little fun.”

She loved that he was thinking of her, and
she suspected that would always be the case with him. He’d put her first, and
with that realization, she fell just a little deeper. “That’s so sweet, but…”
She was surprised when she stood up, intent on reaching out to him, and swayed.
“Oh, I guess I had a bit more than I thought.”

He glanced at the second empty bottle of
wine on the table and muttered a curse. “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize you’d had
so much.”

“It’s not your job to take care of me. I’m
a big girl. I can take care of myself.”

Liam reached for her, pulling her into his
arms. “Just for tonight, will you let me take care of you?”

She laid her head on his chest and smiled
when she heard the steady beat of his heart under her ear. “Fine, but just for
tonight.”

Liam wandered through the lobby while Alisa
slipped out to use the restroom and two of his staff set up the blackjack table
in their private dining room. He glanced into the window of the jewelry store
and saw the ring,
her ring.
He had this crazy, impulsive urge to give
her something to remind her of him and the one night they’d shared.

“Excuse me,” he said to the neatly coiffed
young woman behind the counter. He extended his hand. “I’m Liam Bryson.” He
reached into the breast pocket of his suit and extracted an embossed business
card. “My…” He faltered as he searched for a word to describe the woman who’d
torn through his life. “Girlfriend was admiring that oval-shaped diamond ring
in the window earlier. I’d like to get it for her.” He reached into his wallet
and handed her his black American Express card. “I only have a few minutes.”