Hot Number (26 page)

Cassie scrunched up her face. “Who am I to
call you foolish? But I’ve wasted a lot of time chasing after guys
I should have just let go. I’d hate to see you make the same
mistakes I did.”

Sadie bristled. “You think having hot sex
with Nick Saxon is a mistake? A lot of women would be happy to
commit that particular error. Besides, isn’t this exactly why we
came to Vegas in the first place?”

Cassie gave her a
get off it
look.
“It’s not about the sex and you know it. If you could just screw
the sheriff’s brains out and walk away, I’d think it was great. But
it isn’t going to be that way—I know it, and so do you. That guy’s
more than just a good time. He’s gotten into your head, and I’m
really afraid he’s going to end up breaking your heart. And that’s
the last thing you need right now.”

Sadie wanted to rail at her friend, but how
could she? She’d been thinking the same thing over and over. But
she’d throw herself into the lion cage at the MGM Grand before
admitting it. “Losing the Eagleton is what broke my heart. It
shattered my self-confidence into fragments so microscopic that I
believed nothing could ever put it back together. But I was wrong.
I let you talk me into this crazy trip, Cass—this wild woman
fantasy—and guess what? It worked. I wouldn’t swear on the Bible
that I’m healed and ready to go full blast from here, but these
past few days have been life-changing.”

As she said the words, she felt her
confidence rise. It
was
true. No matter what happened with
Nick, she would never regret this trip, or anything she’d done
here.

Cassie gave her a skeptical look. “You’re
telling me you’re going to be able to walk away from here with no
regrets?”

Sadie grabbed her purse and started toward
the front of the store. “I won’t deny I might be sad to leave, and
sad to say goodbye to Nick. But I’m not going back home to sit and
wonder what might have happened if I’d been willing to take more
risks.”

Cassie followed her out. “I hear you, Sade.
That being the case, I guess we’d better get you those smoking hot
shoes.”

* * *

Nick wolfed down a pastrami sandwich and
fries at Nathan’s Deli. Sadie still hadn’t shown up at the casino
when he left the ops center around seven, but he was sure it
wouldn’t be much longer before she appeared at one of the blackjack
tables. His taut nerves manifested themselves in a steady tapping
of his left foot as he ate. He didn’t know what had wound him up
more, the thought of his last night with Sadie, or the prospect of
having to run her out of the hotel tomorrow. Either way, his normal
equilibrium had deserted him.

Since Nathan’s wasn’t far from the casino
floor, he decided to swing by the blackjack pit before returning
upstairs to his ops center console. He wound his way through the
army of slots in tight formation at the south end of the floor,
relieved as always when he left behind the mind-numbing din of
those hell-spawn machines. It didn’t seem to matter whether it was
seven in the evening or seven in the morning, the slots stayed busy
and noisy all the time. Nick knew first hand that there were
addicts who didn’t move off their stools for twelve hours or more.
Some of them even had those weird things strapped to their legs so
they wouldn’t have to take trips to the restroom. It was that kind
of crazy shit that often made him wonder why he was working
here.

He had never been able to get a grip on what
made gambling fanatics tick. Some had told him they got a rush
almost like snorting coke when they won. Those types always came to
a bad end, yet they kept coming back, day after day—whether it was
to the slots, the tables or the sports book. He knew he should be
thankful they did, because they paid his comfortable salary. But
spending ten or twelve hours a day in a casino, watching ordinary
Joes and Janes getting fleeced by the house, wasn’t his idea of a
fulfilling career. Not for a guy who used to have a job that really
meant something.

For months, he’d blamed Buzz Carson for
making his life miserable. But as much as Carson deserved blame,
Nick knew his frustration ran deeper than one screwed-up man’s
vendetta. He just wasn’t cut out to spend his whole life helping a
big corporation relieve people of money they couldn’t afford to
lose. For now, though, he didn’t have a choice. But as soon as he
built up his experience, he was determined he’d shoot for something
better.

He entered the blackjack area and scanned the
twenty tables, noting that only a dozen were operational. Most of
those had only two or three players at them. He didn’t see Sadie
anywhere.

The action normally intensified as the
evening wore on, but the small number of players tonight was
unusual, even considering the early hour. When he trailed his gaze
around the perimeter of the blackjack section of the casino floor,
the reason for the sparse turnout hit him immediately. Security
operators practically outnumbered the players. He saw DaRon, who
flicked him a quick wave. Nick returned his greeting with a
nod.

The platoon of extra security staff appeared
to have discouraged a lot of patrons from trying their luck at the
tables. Whether having security watching over their shoulders made
people uncomfortable, or whether they stayed away thinking trouble
might be coming, was an open question.

As he made his way through the tables, Nick
couldn’t help hoping Sadie would steer clear of the blackjack pit.
She obviously didn’t appreciate being watched—she’d made that
perfectly clear to him. Twice. Maybe she’d take a pass on playing
for the evening. Better yet, maybe she’d head to one of the other
casinos, something he wished she’d done earlier. Knowing her,
though, that didn’t seem likely. His sexy little professor seemed
to view her ability to gamble at the Desert Oasis as some kind of
fundamental right, something up there in the Constitution with
freedom of speech and the right to bear arms. He suspected she’d
sooner walk over hot coals than let the Oasis drive her away
without a fight.

Nick greeted more of the security staff as he
headed toward the east elevators that would take him back up to the
ops center. He’d almost cleared the casino floor when he heard a
low but distinct whistle. Not a warning whistle. A wolf
whistle.

He glanced over his shoulder, then spun
around.

Every security operator had locked his eyes
on the two babes who were strolling up one of the center aisles
toward the blackjack pit. One, a long-haired blonde, shimmered in a
short, sequined dress of royal blue. The other, shorter woman,
whose wavy auburn curls were oh-so familiar, was dressed in a
bright red halter dress that lovingly hugged her ultra-feminine
curves. Predictably, though, she looked like she was having trouble
with her high heels.

His heart banged in his chest, whether from
anger or from arousal he couldn’t be sure. Hell, both, Nick
guessed, because Sadie had shown up to the party dressed in a
fuck-me outfit that he suspected would cause no end of trouble
before the night was out.

Nick stepped back slowly until the columns of
the elevator lobby afforded him cover. Flattening himself against
the wall like he was taking on snipers in Ramadi, he peered around
the corner. The last thing he needed was for Sadie to give him a
grin or a wave in front of all his men. He hoped she hadn’t caught
a glimpse of him when she’d stopped and cast surprised eyes around
the platoon of security men.

Just then, she turned and whispered in
Cassie’s ear. When Cassie responded, Sadie shook her head and
continued up the aisle, clearly mustering as much dignity as she
could with a walk that was somewhere between a sway and a stagger.
Her friend trailed behind.

As Nick watched Sadie try to keep her balance
on those dangerous red shoes, the urge to laugh warred with his
anger. God, she was a character, and his world got brighter every
time he saw her. And, she looked amazing—the prettiest, sexiest
thing he’d ever seen. As she drew nearer, his eyes locked on to the
way the soft red fabric of her dress hugged her gorgeous curves.
The hem barely reached mid-thigh, and the neckline plunged low,
revealing far more of her beautiful tits than he would have liked
to have her display in this particular venue. Especially in front
of the eyes of his security buddies.

His erection surged, more than matching his
frustration. A primitive response to the sight of his woman
entering a circle of voracious rivals.

His woman
? Okay, what planet did that
thought come from? He seriously needed to get a grip.

As Sadie more or less wobbled her way onto
one of the middle seats at a twenty-five dollar blackjack table, he
was surprised to see Cassie sit down next to her, on her left. Her
friend had previously displayed no interest in blackjack.

Sadie unleashed her blinding smile on the
dealer and the security guys. A couple of them grinned back,
looking interested if not outright smitten.

Nice work, guys. Very
professional
.

He should get back up to the ops center where
he could watch Sadie play. He’d been waiting all day for her to hit
the blackjack table. Now it was time to work.

* * *

“Sheriff Studly sure took off quick enough,
didn’t he?” Cassie said as she pushed forward a chip. “I wonder if
he knew you’d spotted him.”

Sadie pulled her skirt down as far as she
could manage, embarrassed at how high it rode up on her thighs when
she sat. The eyes of the dealers and the security staff bored into
both her and Cassie with more intensity that she’d bargained for.
She’d picked the red dress to attract Nick’s attention, not the
slavering notice of every guy in the casino.

“I guess. I think he beat it as soon as we
came into view. He wouldn’t want to be seen conversing with me.”
Sadie flicked her finger to ask for a card. The dealer flipped over
a jack to go with the ten she’d already been dealt.

“God forbid,” Cassie said in a snarky
tone.

Sadie couldn’t help feeling a wee bit hurt
when Nick made such a quick exit, but she understood why. “It’s a
long story, Cass. Let’s just say he and I have to avoid being seen
together.”

Cassie shrugged as she hit on fourteen and
busted. “Whatever. God, Sade, I hate this game. I don’t know why
I’m doing this.”

“Because you love my company. Besides,
somebody has to catch me when I fall on my derrière because of
these shoes. I still can’t believe I bought them.”

“But they’re perfect,” Cassie said, glancing
down at the killer sandals. “The color is an exact match for the
dress, and they’re really, really sexy. I bet the sheriff got wood
the second he saw you.”

Sadie rolled her eyes. “I’d venture to say
what he got was mad. Or maybe jealous. But, then again, that would
be fine, wouldn’t it?” In her very brief glimpse of him, Nick
had
looked pretty infuriated, and she could only assume it
was because of her outfit since he already knew she’d be coming
back to the casino to play. “It could make the night even more, um,
interesting.”

Cassie laughed. “I look at you now and I ask
myself what the hell happened to the Professor Sadie Bligh I used
to know. Talk about an extreme makeover.”

Sadie sighed. “I just hope I can sustain the
change when I get back home. It’ll be dreadful if I let myself fall
back into the same old routine. The same boring little life I’ve
always had.”

“Well, I can’t help wondering what your
father will say about all this. I have a feeling he won’t be
instantly thrilled with the new Sadie.”

A sudden image of one of her father’s
disapproving scowls leapt into Sadie’s mind. Her stomach pitched,
and she had to force herself to respond with a nod when it was her
turn to say yes or no to an additional card. “You had to raise that
specter, didn’t you? Please, let’s forget my father and everything
else in Chicago for now, and keep our minds on the game.”

They spent the next two hours at the
twenty-five dollar table. Sadie would have preferred a higher
stakes game, but that would have been too rich for Cassie’s blood.
Fortunately, her friend seemed to be having more fun this time,
picking up the system from Sadie in bits and pieces. By the time
Cassie announced she’d had enough for the evening, she had exactly
broken even. Sadie, having ridden two hot shoes, was up nearly a
thousand dollars.

Cassie grabbed her bag from the back of her
chair and stood up. “When did you say you were meeting Nick?”

“After he gets off work. He wasn’t sure
exactly when. He said he had an open-ended assignment that might
keep him late, whatever that means.”

“Well, you have fun, sweetie, but watch out
for your heart, okay?” Cassie kissed her cheek and headed off
toward the hotel nightclubs.

Sadie flipped the dealer a chip and got up to
move to a hundred dollar table. She couldn’t get over how empty the
place was tonight. Most tables had only two or three players, and
several hadn’t even opened. Combined with all the extra security,
it piqued her curiosity about what was going on. Maybe it had
something to do with Nick’s mysterious assignment.

She chose a table with only one player. A
young, dark-haired woman was seated in the chair farthest to the
left in the anchor seat. Sadie gave her a smile as she sat down in
the middle, leaving an empty chair between them.

They’d played only three rounds when loud,
deep voices made them swivel to take a look. A hulking, completely
bald, and very handsome black man in a dark suit stood directly
behind her, his tree trunk legs spread wide. A few pounds of gold
and diamond jewelry dangled from his thick neck.

Sadie’s jaw dropped. He must be a movie star,
she thought, as she took in the entourage that hovered in the
background. One of those action heroes, perhaps. She never went to
action movies, though, and didn’t read People magazine. Not even in
the grocery checkout line. It was kind of pathetic how ignorant she
was when it came to pop culture.