Hot Number (19 page)

But shortly after that, her betting pattern
changed. Instead of one or two hundred-dollar chips, she was
pushing forward varying stacks of four to six. Nick leaned forward,
as if getting closer to the monitor would make a difference. Every
one of his Marine instincts went on full alert.

Fuck.

For the rest of that shoe, Sadie won six
hands and lost three. Nick estimated she was up close to two
thousand dollars in practically the blink of an eye. As the dealer
began to restack the shoe, Sadie gathered up her chips and headed
to another hundred dollar table farther down the row.

Nick switched to camera 42. As he continued
to monitor her play, he knew exactly what was happening, but his
mind rebelled at the reality staring him in the face. How could
sweet, goofy Sadie Bligh be a card counter? Yet he saw the evidence
with his own eyes, all the telltale marks. Her amateurish attempts
to mask her counting hadn’t fooled the pit bosses, and it sure
wasn’t fooling him.

His stomach landed somewhere in the vicinity
of his feet. This couldn’t be the first time for her—she was too
skilled. But her name and face hadn’t come up when he’d searched
the database of known counters and other cheats. So, how the hell
had she escaped notice?

None of it made any sense. From the moment he
met Sadie, Nick had pegged her as just another young woman looking
for a good time on a Vegas vacation. Hell, she’d told him that
herself in no uncertain terms. Plus, she’d dropped that invitation
about keeping a close eye on her. What kind of card counter would
do that? It was the weirdest damn thing he’d ever seen.

“How’s she doing?”

Nick had been so deep in thought that Carson
had somehow managed to creep up from behind without Nick sensing
it. Now that Carson stood over him, he almost choked on the stink
of cheap cigars that clung to his boss’s clothes.

He’d obviously come to gloat.

“She’s up some,” Nick replied, swiveling his
chair so he faced his boss. “You were right about monitoring her,
Chief. But I need more time before I can give you a definite
answer. I want to be absolutely sure about this.”

Carson rolled his eyes. “Color me surprised.
All right, Saxon, but you sure as shit better do something by
tomorrow. We don’t want the bimbo taking any more of our money, now
do we?”

“No, we don’t.” Nick turned his back, making
it clear the conversation was over. He couldn’t stand the bastard’s
overbearing attitude, and he couldn’t stand that he was probably
right.

* * *

Sadie practically skipped down the long hotel
corridor toward her room. She’d won almost five thousand dollars in
less than five hours, and God, it made her feel lighter than air.
Her only worry was that maybe she’d gotten a little reckless at
times. She’d probably bet more heavily than she should have when
the shoes got hot. But, for some reason, the pit bosses on duty
seemed to be mostly ignoring her today, and that had led her to
take more risks. Tomorrow she would be more careful, but right now
she intended to enjoy every moment of her success.

If her friends back in Chicago, or especially
her father, could have seen her in action this afternoon, they
would have fainted in horror. Professor Sadie Bligh, math genius,
counting cards in a Vegas casino. It should horrify her too, but it
didn’t. For the first time in a long while, she was having
fun.
Kick-ass fun, too, not the tepid variety she usually
experienced. In fact, if it hadn’t been for her date with Nick,
she’d have gladly glued her butt to a chair and gambled all evening
and into the early morning hours. But even the incredible rush of
winning at blackjack couldn’t compare to her excitement at spending
the evening—and hopefully the night—with the sheriff.

In less than half an hour, she’d showered,
washed her hair, and blown it dry. Back home, she’d never really
cared when her sometimes unruly locks made it look like she’d done
her hair with an egg beater. But tonight, as she eyed herself
critically in the bathroom mirror, her stomach clenched at her
image. She really needed to find a good stylist—someone who could
figure out what to do with red, corkscrew curls that just wouldn’t
quit.

Still, she hadn’t looked a whole lot better
yesterday evening, and Nick had treated her like a goddess. What
the man saw in her remained a mystery. It sure couldn’t be her
looks that had snagged his attention, not given the kind of women
that likely threw themselves in his path on a regular basis. Maybe
it was her winning vocabulary, she thought wryly, or perhaps he had
a thing for the terminally uncoordinated.

Cassie’s warning to be careful darted into
her head, and she sat down on the closed lid of the toilet, trying
to think it through. Was she putting herself at risk by spending so
much time with Nick? As much as she’d like to deny it, she
was
developing feelings for him, and that made her nervous.
Particularly because it didn’t make sense that a man like him would
be attracted to a woman like her.

Exhaling impatiently, she ordered herself to
stop analyzing Nick’s motives. She’d come to Vegas to see if a wild
week could somehow turn her life in a new direction, and so far it
had been a smashing success. Using her brain and her newfound nerve
to beat the house at blackjack felt damn good. Maybe not as good as
winning the Eagleton Prize, but empowering, nonetheless. And having
a mind-blowing, completely unexpected affair with a man like Nick
Saxon—however brief it might turn out to be—was going to change her
forever. She couldn’t imagine going back to the kinds of
relationships she would have settled for in her old life.

Sadie rushed out of the bathroom and began
rummaging around in her suitcase, suddenly burning with eagerness
to be with Nick. Last night, she’d almost felt like a virgin.
Technically, she’d had intercourse with Sheldon and two other men.
But that hadn’t been
sex
. Sex was what Nick did to her in
that massage room, in the sauna, in the pool, and in her bed. And
what she’d done to
him
. Sex made you tingle and ache with
wanting. It made you sizzle and burn with passion, crying out with
need and glowing with satisfaction when it was over.

She imagined him with her right now, maybe in
the bathroom as she tried to style her unruly hair. He’d come up
behind her and bend her over the sink, sliding into her and then
screwing her till her hair went straight.

Choking with laughter at the image, she fell
onto the bed. Sadie couldn’t believe she actually said that, even
if it was just in her head. She had Nick partly to thank for her
new found courage, and she wanted to be with him, regardless of the
risk. Losing the Eagleton Prize had pretty much blown up her
orderly and careful life, so nothing that happened now could be
anywhere near as disastrous.

She had come to Las Vegas to take chances,
and that was exactly what she intended to keep doing.

Sadie paid off the cabbie, giving him a big
tip to compensate for the short ride from the Desert Oasis.
Stepping out of the cab, she scanned the front of the small house
set back from the quiet street. The bungalow could only be called
modest, though its central location near the Strip held obvious
appeal. But it was pretty and tasteful. Painted in forest green and
cream, it had a Spanish tile roof in a faded terra cotta tone and a
well cared-for front yard. Two tall trees dominated the front of
the house, and a few shrubs and a smattering of flowers had been
planted in beds on both sides of the front door. Nick’s SUV took up
most of the single car driveway.

She hurried up the brick walk, smiling as
Nick opened the screen door. “Eight-fifteen on the dot,” he said,
his eyes warm and welcoming. “I had a feeling you like to be on
time.” He took her hand and helped her up the step and into the
narrow foyer.

“You have excellent insight into my
character, Sheriff. Either that, or it’s pathetically apparent how
much I’m looking forward to this evening and couldn’t wait to get
here.”

He laughed. “I’ll try not to disappoint
you.”

No chance of that, she thought as she looked
him up and down. He was wearing the same type of low-slung, sexy
jeans he’d had on at the spa. Only this time the button was done
up, and a black cotton tee shirt was loosely tucked inside the
jeans. Barefoot, he looked casual, relaxed, and totally yummy. It
was all she could do to keep her hands to herself.

She’d thought hard about how she should dress
for the evening, and had finally decided on laid-back casual.
Unfortunately, her choices were limited, since she hadn’t packed
much that would fall into that category. So, she’d opted for the
jeans and sandals she’d worn to the casino that afternoon, but
added a glittery silver top that didn’t quite make it all the way
to the top of the hipsters. She felt sexy, and from the way Nick
looked at her, she had a hunch he thought so, too.

He shut the screen door and pulled her into
his arms. “I couldn’t stop thinking about you all day,” he murmured
as he kissed her neck.

Sadie’s heartbeat kicked up several notches.
“Ah, I expect that’s a gross exaggeration.” She searched for
something else to say, but came up dry. What was it about Nick that
either reduced her to babbling, or tied her tongue up in knots? She
hoped she’d get over that reaction soon, or else he would think she
was some kind of idiot.

Fortunately, he had something else in mind
besides conversation. His warm mouth found hers, and her lips
parted easily in response. He deepened the kiss, their tongues
playing a slow, arousing dance while his hands traced intricate
patterns of pleasure along her spine and down over her bottom. She
broke away on a gasp, relishing his clean masculine scent and the
feel of his hard muscles under the soft fabric of his shirt.

After one last quick nuzzle of her mouth,
Nick took a step back. “You must be hungry, so we should start
cooking before I drag you off to the bedroom and have my evil way
with you. The kitchen’s in back and I’ve already fired up the
barbecue.”

Sadie sighed. She was starving, but would
have gladly delayed the steaks indefinitely for an extended tour of
Nick’s bedroom. Still, she should try to preserve just a wee bit of
her dignity and stop acting like a sex-crazed maniac whenever he
touched her. Besides, this was like a real date, and people on
dates should talk. Get to know each other. As much as she wanted
him to have his evil way with her, she was curious—very curious—to
know more about Nick Saxon. “Good point. Show me the veggies and
I’ll get chopping.”

It turned out he had a well-stocked
kitchen—one that looked like serious cooking took place there. His
set of professional quality knives caught her eye. Either Nick’s
mom was still compos mentis enough to cook, or Nick had at least
some interest in the culinary arts. “You like to cook?” she asked
as she opened the packages of vegetables and lettuce he’d arranged
on the kitchen counter.

“Sure, but I keep it pretty simple,” he said,
bending over to extract something from a bottom drawer. Sadie
couldn’t help admiring his lean body, and his tight, masculine
butt. She could swear her mouth was beginning to water, like some
kind of demented poodle.

So much for dignity.

He straightened up, a corkscrew in his hand.
“But Mom is a gourmet cook, and she taught me some stuff. After Dad
died, we liked to do as many things together as we could. Cooking
was something fun that gave us lots of time for conversation.” He
popped the cork on a bottle of California Pinot noir.

“Can I ask how your father died, Nick?” She
was reluctant to pry, but she’d been wondering if he’d been killed
in action.

Nick waited until he had poured a glass for
her, then one for himself. “In a car accident coming home from the
base. He was only forty-one.”

She dropped the carrot she had just started
to peel. “Oh, God! That’s so young. You must have been a child when
it happened.”

“Fourteen,” he replied. His voice sounded
casual, but she could see the tension in his shoulders. She knew
what it was like to grow up without a parent, and knew the absence
it left in a child’s life, a void that nothing could ever quite
fill. Not even the parent who was left to pick up the pieces.

“I’m so sorry, Nick.”

“With Dad gone, I had to grow up fast. Mom
and I kept each other going, so we became incredibly close. She
tried her best to be both mother and father to me. And now I’m
losing her, too.” His voice turned hard and almost bitter. “It’s
happening slowly, but a tiny bit more every day. And I fucking hate
it.”

Sadie wrapped her arms around him from
behind. As she laced her hands together against his broad chest, he
drained his wine in one swallow. For a long moment they stood
there, silent comfort flowing between them. Eventually, he turned
to face her. With one index finger, he lifted her chin and bent to
kiss her gently on the lips. No tongues this time. It was sweet and
sad, and it practically broke her heart.

“I should apologize for dumping that on you,”
he murmured, “but that hug really hit the spot.”

She gave him her best schoolteacher’s frown.
“I asked, so don’t you dare apologize to me. You’re a good man,
Nick Saxon. Your mother must be so very proud of you.”

His mouth curved in a warm smile. “I hope you
get a chance to ask her about that yourself.”

Her breath caught in her throat. Had she
heard him right? It sounded like he was saying that there might
actually be a future for them beyond the next few days she would be
in Vegas. “I’d absolutely love to meet her,” she breathed, trying
to keep her voice steady.

“Let’s drink to that, then.” He refilled his
glass and held it up for her to clink.