Trapped by Revenge: A Shelby Nichols Adventure (11 page)

“You could tell them I have some serious poker skills and wanted to try my luck with the real pros or something,” I said with a shrug. “Most men are pretty competitive, so I think if you make it more of a challenge, they’ll go for it.”

Uncle Joey nodded. “Good point.”

“What about the money to bet with?” I asked. “I didn’t bring any.”

“Don’t worry. I’ve got you covered. We start with one thousand each, so I brought enough for both of us. We usually stop at midnight or earlier if someone wins it all, which I have to tell you has never happened.”

“So it’s okay if I win it all?” I asked.

His brows drew together in concern. Was I serious? “Maybe not. But we’ll see how it goes. Remember, you’re there to find out if the judge is involved, and that’s your primary role.”

“Sure,” I said. “But I get to keep any money I win, right?”

This time his smile reached his eyes. “Of course.”

“And you’re playing?”

“Uh-huh,” he answered. His shrewd glance pinned me to my seat. “Just don’t make anyone too angry. This is supposed to be a friendly game.”

I smiled. “I wouldn’t dream of it.” I knew that Uncle Joey didn’t want to lose in front of his friends, and it seemed funny to me that in this one thing I could probably beat the pants off him. How could I pass that up? From the front seat, Ramos was thinking it took a lot of guts to beat Manetto. But he wouldn’t put it past me to try, and this was one game he didn’t want to miss.

The car slowed, and I glanced up as we pulled in front of the club. A big neon sign with “The Comet Club” in blue lights blazed above the entrance. An attendant opened our door and after Uncle Joey exited, I tried to glide out with as much elegance as I could. There was a small crowd gathered in front of the club waiting to get in, and all of them turned to watch the limo, hoping to catch sight of a celebrity or famous person. Too bad all they got was me.

Uncle Joey held his arm out for me, expecting me to slip my arm through his. With a swallow, I complied, hoping no one I knew was there to witness us together like this. I hadn’t even thought of that, and my stomach tightened with dread.

Of course, none of the people I knew were rich or famous, so I was probably safe. Still, I couldn’t help hearing a few random thoughts about me and Uncle Joey. I slammed my shields tight, just to make sure my feelings wouldn’t get hurt and throw me off my game. Even though I was nothing like the person I portrayed, I still had to act like her. Shelly Manetto… ugh!

The doorman quickly admitted us, and I was able to drop Uncle Joey’s arm. I followed him through the club to a small back room with a set-up just like the one in Orlando at The Metropol, where I’d beat the pants off Carson. That seemed like ages ago, but it gave me the confidence I needed to see this through. If I’d won a million dollars then and come out alive, I could certainly do this now. And this time I’d get to keep my winnings!

Three other players were already seated at the poker table, and they each stood as Uncle Joey introduced me to them one at a time. The first man was a business colleague, the second was an astrophysics professor at the local college, and the judge, whose name was Jack, came last. I kept repeating “Jack the Judge” over and over in my mind so I wouldn’t forget his name.

Uncle Joey told them I was his niece from Orlando. “She begged me to let her play with us, and since Paul couldn’t make it, I thought why not? I hope you don’t mind.”

They were all too polite to protest, although the professor was miffed, thinking that if I slowed down the game he would be seriously peeved. He thought the ‘seriously peeved’ part with a British accent, and I couldn’t help the mocking smile that came to my lips.

The business colleague was delighted to have such a beautiful woman to look at across the table. Whether I could play or not, he was happy with the arrangement. I liked him immediately. Maybe I’d let him keep some of his money.

Jack the judge was thinking Joe was up to something and wondering who I was since he’d known Joe all his life and knew he didn’t have a niece from Orlando. He smiled at me, thinking I was a puzzle that he hoped to solve before the night was out. Maybe once he figured it out, he would have some leverage with Joe, and it would help him out with his other problem.

Great! So Jack and Uncle Joey were childhood friends? Why didn’t Uncle Joey tell me that? It didn’t make sense that Jack would be setting Uncle Joey up for anything if they’d known each other all their lives. Only… there was something he was hiding from Uncle Joey. Something he thought might make Uncle Joey upset.

“Shelby?” Uncle Joey said.

Oops. They were all waiting for me to say something. Then it hit me that Uncle Joey had just called me Shelby instead of Shelly. I scanned their minds, but they only thought they’d heard wrong the first time and it was no big deal.

“Um… it’s a pleasure to meet you all, and thanks for including me in your little game,” I said. “I’ve been thinking about entering a poker tournament in Las Vegas, so this will give me some practical experience.”

They were all a little shocked that I thought I was that good. The professor perked up and changed his mind about me, thinking that maybe this wouldn’t be so boring after all. It didn’t change my mind about him, since he’d based his first impression that I couldn’t play poker on my blond hair. Nope, I still didn’t like him much and was determined to take all his money, just because I could. At least that part was going to be fun.

The dealer got right to work and traded in our cash for chips before dealing out the first hand. It had been a couple of months since I’d played, and I was a little worried that I wouldn’t remember everything, but it came back pretty quick. It was also easier than I thought to keep everyone’s cards straight.

The first half hour went by quickly, while everyone tried to get a feel for how I played. Since I didn’t have the pressure on me to win, I enjoyed playing a lot more this time. The only problem came when I couldn’t keep my poker face on. It was hard not to smile when I had the better hand. The others picked up on my twitchy lips and folded before I could raise them.

When I heard them thinking about my lips after that, it was even harder not to smile, so I tried smiling and twitching my lips when I had a bad hand and confused everyone. After that no one trusted my facial expressions, and I started winning pretty consistently.

We took a break after an hour, and Uncle Joey was thinking that I probably hadn’t heard a thing I was supposed to. Not with how well I was doing. He was right about that. “Let’s go talk to the judge for a minute,” I told him. “He’s hiding something.”

Uncle Joey raised his startled gaze to me. “You think he’s the one?” He really hoped it wasn’t him.

“Not exactly,” I hedged, hating to disappoint him. “But there is something he doesn’t want you to know.”

Uncle Joey sighed. “All right then, let’s get it over with.”

Jack stood at the bar waiting for his drink. We joined him and he sent me a pained expression. “She’s cleaning me out.” He was thinking he was having more fun losing to me than he’d had in a long time, so I didn’t take it personally.

“Hey, I’m down to my ten dollar chips, so don’t complain to me,” Uncle Joey said, clapping him on the back. “And I think she’s enjoying it way too much.”

“How come you never lose?” Jack asked me. He couldn’t believe that I would cheat because Joe would never put up with a cheater, but there was something about me…

“You should know better than to ask a woman her secrets,” I chided him. “So… how long have you two been playing poker together?”

Jack’s mind immediately went to the day his wife died two years ago. If Joe hadn’t gotten him out of the house to play poker, he might still be lost in his grief. “What’s it been Joe? About two years?”

“Sounds about right,” Uncle Joey agreed.

“We’ve known each other for a long time,” he said to me. “So, it was a surprise to hear he had a niece from Orlando that I’d never heard of.” He was thinking it was always best to go straight for the jugular with Manetto.

Uncle Joey smiled. “I never could pull one over on you. That’s why I’m surprised you’d try to hide something from me.”

Holy cow! Talk about going for the jugular. I cringed, hoping I hadn’t misread Jack’s thoughts and he wasn’t hiding anything after all.

Jack’s eyes widened in surprise. How did Joe find out? Maybe he was just bluffing? But as far as he knew, Joe never bluffed about anything he was certain of, and he seemed pretty certain of this. Damn! He’d been so careful. There was no way Joe could know what he was doing, unless Carlotta had told him they were together. But he didn’t think she’d ever do that.

My eyes bulged. Carlotta? Uncle Joey’s ex? Oh hell, this was bad. “We all have our little secrets,” I jumped in. “And you’re right, I’m really not Uncle Joey’s niece by blood. But I am where it counts.”

Uncle Joey glared at me. Why was I stopping Jack when he was about to confess. Why did I admit we weren’t related? “And where is that?” he asked.

“Right here.” I pounded my chest. “In the heart.”

Uncle Joey wondered if that was his clue to stop pressing Jack for answers. Jack was wondering if I was alluding to him and Carlotta. How had I found out? Who was I really? More important, was I going to tell Joe?

“That’s right,” I said, answering Uncle Joey’s thought. Jack glanced at me with confusion. What was going on? I wasn’t making sense. I quickly continued. “Matters of the heart can be… difficult. Sometimes they don’t even make sense. But when you feel a connection to somebody, it’s like you’re related in some way. So it does make sense when you look at it like that. Oh look! I think everyone’s waiting for us. We’d better get back.”

I tugged on Uncle Joey’s arm and he reluctantly followed me to the table, leaving Jack to question my sanity at the bar. “What was that all about?” he hissed.

“He’s not the one,” I said. “And yes, he is hiding something from you, but you don’t need to know what it is. Believe me; it’s for your own good.”

Uncle Joey closed his eyes. He was thinking that it wasn’t up to me to decide what was for his own good and what wasn’t, but for now, he’d let it go. At least until we were done here. He glanced at me and I nodded. Maybe he was right. Maybe it wouldn’t bother him at all that Jack and Carlotta were together. Last time she was in the picture, Uncle Joey wasn’t too happy with her, so it could be fine. I was the one who was over-reacting. I hoped.

We went back to the table and I concentrated on the game, taking as many hands as I could in a short amount of time. I cleaned out the professor first, but rather than leave, he stayed to watch. He was thinking I was cheating, and he was going to watch me like a hawk, just so he could accuse me and get his money back. It irked him that Manetto had brought me in to play. What was Manetto thinking? This was supposed to be fun, and he’d never lost so badly before.

What a complainer. At least when the business associate lost, he had the good grace to be sweet about it. Although he didn’t leave either, wanting to watch me play and wondering how I could win so handily. It didn’t make sense that Manetto would play with a cheater, especially since he was losing too. So I really must be that good. Wow, what a game.

Jack threw in his last chips and lost the next round, making it a match between Uncle Joey and me. Having won a few rounds of his own, he had about three hundred dollars in chips to my seven hundred. I was ahead and planned to keep it that way.

All at once, I sensed excitement from everyone in the room. Was I really going to challenge Joey “The Knife” Manetto? Wasn’t I afraid of what he’d do to me if I won? That made them all even more excited to see the outcome of the game.

I slapped a hand to my mouth, trying to hide the big grin that spread over my face. Uncle Joey saw it and scowled. He was thinking that he never should have invited me to play poker with him. Now he was going to lose and how would that look?

I pursed my lips and shook my head that he was being such a big baby. I glanced at him and lifted my eyebrow, giving him that look I gave my kids sometimes when they misbehaved. His surprise that I’d dare look at him that way was followed by a small smile, and he was thinking that I was enjoying this way too much. What was he going to do with me?

If I didn’t know better, I’d think he was upset, but I picked up that he was enjoying the game lots more than he let on. He had sensed the nervous tension in the room and it added to the drama. He liked that everyone was afraid of him. It meant that he was good at his job of intimidating people.

He caught my smile and sent back a knowing smile of his own. He knew I knew what he was thinking and he was having fun with me. A warm feeling slammed into my heart, and I realized we were acting just like a real uncle and niece might act who were in on a secret together.

The dealer passed out the next hand, and my cards were high with an ace and a jack. Uncle Joey had a pair of tens… no… a ten and a seven? Wait just a darn minute. Uncle Joey was thinking a ten and a seven real hard, but I had seen his first thought of a pair of tens. Was he trying to trick me? Oh my gosh! He was! I pursed my lips tightly to keep from laughing, but it took all I had, and even then, I almost lost it.

I knew I couldn’t look at him, so I kept my gaze on my cards. I really wanted to keep my cool so he wouldn’t know I knew he was trying to cheat me, but this was almost more than I could take. I took a few deep breaths until I got under control and placed my bet.