With His Love (For His Pleasure, Book 16) (5 page)

“It’s a little juvenile,” Red added, hands on hips, as he walked about. “But they know their market. This hotel is like a playground—Disney World for guys.”

“What about their wives?” Nicole asked.

Red looked at her. “Well, I don’t know. Do you hate it?”

She opened her mouth to answer truthfully. I hate it with every bone in my body, she wanted to tell him.
It’s ugly, it’s gaudy, it’s silly and loud.

But something in his face was so pathetically hopeful that she just couldn’t tell him the truth. “You know what, it’s got a great sense of humor. And it feels like fun, just walking inside. It looks like a giant party just waiting to happen.”

“Exactly, Nicole!” Red told her, clapping his hands together. “I love it. Hell, that could even be our slogan. The Paragon Hotel and Casino: A Party Just Waiting To Happen.”

***

Nicole called Danielle while Red was taking a shower.

“Hey, Nic, is everything okay?” Danielle asked.

“Yeah, everything’s fine.”

“Flight was all right?”

“Perfect.” Nicole strained to hear—she thought she heard Riley doing her baby talk in the background.

“Oh, well…” Danielle trailed off. “We’re doing great over here. Riley and Kane were playing blocks and now I’m feeding her some free range grilled chicken and non-GMO corn for din-din.”

“Oh, that sounds very healthy,” Nicole said.

“It is, Nicole.
Very
healthy—and she loves it.”

Nicole swallowed, feeling tears sting her eyes. She hated how silly she was being. “That sounds nice,” she said. She missed her daughter suddenly and terribly.

“It is nice.” Danielle’s voice dropped to a small whisper. “And you should see how great Kane is with Riley. He’s like a natural—better than me by far. I almost want to tell him about my…you know what…right now.”

“Are you going to tell him tonight?”

“I don’t know. I still think I should wait until the weekend’s over. I mean, what if he gets bored of her after a couple of hours? I don’t want to jump the gun.”

“Good point.” Nicole laughed. “I’m sure he won’t get bored of her. She’s a pretty amazing little girl if I don’t say so myself.”

“She is! Nicole, she’s so smart. She’s always watching everything, like a hawk!”

Nicole wiped more tears from her eyes. She was sitting on the edge of a circular bed with golden sheets and silver blankets, in a master bedroom that would have been welcoming to a Roman emperor. This wasn’t home—she didn’t belong here—she belonged with Riley.

“Is it crazy that I miss her so bad already?” Nicole asked.

“Heck, no!” Danielle said. “It would be crazy if you didn’t.”

“Thanks for saying that, but I know you’re just telling me what I want to hear.”

“Not at all. You’re a great mom and she’s a great little girl. But she’s in good hands—Kane and I are taking care of her like she’s our own.”

“That’s right!” Kane shouted from the background.

“Well, I feel better now,” Nicole said. “I’ll try not to bother you again until tomorrow.”

“You can call as often as you want. Seriously.”

“Thanks, D.” Nicole said goodbye and hung up the phone. She sat for a long moment, took a deep breath and let it out.

She decided it was time to put on her big girl pants and stop fighting this trip, and this hotel, and everything about what it represented. She owed it to Red to try and have an open mind about Las Vegas. He was happy here. Maybe she could be too, at least for a little while.

***

Jeb came by a little while later to bring them on a tour of the hotel and casino. He was dressed in a dapper pin striped suit and he smelled of fresh cologne.

“You’re all dressed up,” Red said. “And here I was, hoping I could convince you to play me one-on-one in that nifty little basketball court we have in our suite.”

“Maybe later,” Jeb said. He glanced at Nicole. “I trust you found the accommodations to your liking as well?”

Nicole affixed a smile to her face. “The room is lovely. I love the bathtub, it’s luxurious.” She didn’t mention what she thought of the nearly nude women depicted on the bathroom ceiling, like some bizarre Sistine Chapel as designed by Hugh Heffner.

Jeb grinned. “We tried to make each room into something the guys would love—

but at the same time, we offer little perks for the ladies too. We’re hoping that we don’t turn women completely off to our hotel, because that would kill revenue.”

“I’ve appreciated the little touches in the room,” Nicole said, and then she realized he was waiting for specifics and so she continued with the next thing that came to mind. “The bed’s incredibly comfortable.”

“That’s what we like to hear. So, now that we’ve covered your suite, let’s continue the tour.” Jeb gestured down the hallway. “Shall we?”

The three of them left the penthouse suite and began the tour of the hotel. Jeb brought them down to the Olympic-sized swimming pool, showed them the gym. He explained that, unlike most hotel gyms, theirs was equipped with a boxing ring and heavy bags and the kind of equipment that boxers and mixed martial artists used in training. He was hoping that some of the pro’s in town for a fight might use this gym, which would in turn make The Paragon a hotspot to come to if you were hoping to catch a glimpse of your favorite fighter in his natural element.

Red loved every bit of it. He stood in front of the large black heavy bag and punched it a few times, rocking it back and forth with the powerful blows. Jeb laughed and clapped, while Nicole stood by and tried to appear interested.

After they’d seen the gym, Jeb took them down to the casino, which was smaller than many of the big ones on the strip. But Jeb explained that this casino would focus on games that guys liked, such as poker and sports betting and craps and blackjack. They were even working on adding some new games that would cater to the fight lovers, including slot machines featuring fighters licensed from the UFF.

“Synergy,” Red exclaimed. “I’d love to talk to Patrick about some of his plans in person. Where is he, anyway?”

Jeb scratched his cheek and seemed temporarily at a loss. “I’m pretty sure he’s got his hands full right now,” he said.

Red nodded and sucked his cheeks in, as though trying to keep a straight face.

“What?” Nicole said. “Is there something you don’t want me to know about this friend of yours?”

Red just waved at her. “It’s nothing, Nicole. Just the way Jeb phrased that, and knowing Patrick—I couldn’t help myself.”

Jeb grew serious. “He’s going to meet us for dinner at The Coliseum in just a bit,” he said, checking his watch.

“The restaurant’s already open for business?” Red asked.

“Still training staff and getting the menu set, but we prepped them for your visit, so this will be their chance to impress you—and us.”

The final stop before dinner was the arena. It was enormous, and by far the biggest investment that they had made, according to Jeb. It could seat up to ten thousand people, and there was state-of the-art lighting and rigging for cameras and audio. It was vast and empty, but Jeb got a technician to turn the lights on so that Red and Nicole could see the house lit up. In the center of the arena was a boxing ring.

“We can change that ring to a cage easily,” Jeb said. “We can also turn it into a stage for the right kind of act, whether that be Chris Rock or Mumford and Sons.”

“Amazing,” Red said, taking it all in. “I could do wonders with this place.”

“That’s what we’re banking on,” Jeb replied. “Hit the lights,” he called out, and a moment later, the arena went dark.

That led them to dinner.

The Coliseum was just as over-the-top as the rest of the hotel, with paintings and pictures of gladiators fighting, statues of the same, as well as pictures and video of fighters like Muhammad Ali and Bruce Lee throughout the restaurant.

Jeb introduced them to the staff of the restaurant, including the head chef (who was apparently a big deal) and the manager. They were sat at a table on the restaurant balcony overlooking the empty casino floor below. If there had been people in the hotel or the restaurant or casino, it might have been fun.

But as it was, everything felt rather empty and abandoned. It was as if they were on the Titanic, being served by ghosts or something. Nicole felt uncomfortable and out of place there.

The food was good, if not great. Nicole had the Caesar salad (which was appropriate given the theme of the restaurant) and a perfectly serviceable cheeseburger.

Red and Jeb talked about the grand opening of the casino and some of the big events that Patrick wanted to line up for the arena.

Nicole was having trouble staying plugged into the conversation. She picked at her food and thought of Riley, pictured her sleeping in a crib set up in Danielle’s home.

She was suddenly emotional and depressed. Drinking beer probably hadn’t helped matters, but when in Rome…she nearly laughed and cried all at once.

Red was looking at her when she snapped back to reality. “Hey, you okay?”

“Yes, fine. Why?” she asked, taking a sip of beer and smiling perfunctorily.

“You looked deep in thought about something.”

“Oh. No, I was just...” She wanted to change the subject away from what she’d been thinking about. “Hey, where’s Patrick? I thought he was meeting us for dinner?”

She said, by way of a diversion.

“Oh, wow,” Jeb said, looking at his cell. “He just texted me this very second.

You must be psychic, Nicole.”

“So I’ve been told,” she laughed without much humor.

Red glanced at her and put his hand on her leg. “You sure you’re okay?”

“Totally.”

“Patrick wants us to meet him at the nightclub for a private party. He’s there with Drew Ellis from the UFF and a bunch of fighters.”

Red straightened in his chair. “Really? Right now?”

“Yeah, Patrick said he wanted to surprise you with it. He just texted me and said that Dominic Colletti is there—”

“The Fist is here, at our nightclub?” Red said, his voice actually breaking a little in his excitement.

Jeb laughed. “Yup. He’s here and he wants to meet you, my brother.”

“Holy crap.” Red looked at her. “Dominic Colletti is probably the baddest dude on the planet right now. I am so blown away.”

“I can see that.”

“Should we go, then?” Jeb asked, wiping his mouth with his napkin and putting it on his plate.

Red looked at Nicole. “Are you finished eating, honey?”

“Yes,” she said. But then she thought about going to what would surely be a half-empty nightclub containing only fighters, and realized that she was suddenly tired beyond words.

As they all stood up and said their thanks and goodbyes to the staff, Nicole pulled Red aside. “I don’t mean to be rude, but I think I’m going to skip the nightclub,” she told him.

His brow creased. “What’s wrong? Are you not feeling well?”

“I’m fine,” she lied. “I’m just tired from the trip and…you know, it’s my first night without Riley.”

Red’s eyes softened. “I’ll come with you. I don’t want you to be alone right now.”

“Don’t be silly,” she told him. “I want you to go and have fun with your brother and your friends.”

Red took her hand. “I don’t know, Nic. I feel like maybe you need me more.”

She smiled, warmed by his willingness to put his own needs aside for her. “I’m seriously okay. I’ll go and relax in that amazing bathtub and read a book in bed. You go and enjoy yourself.”

“You’re sure?”

“I’m sure. Just text me if you’re going to be too late, okay?”

“What’s too late?”

“I don’t know. Anything after two in the morning.”

“I doubt I’ll be gone that long. These brutes can’t have that much to talk about.”

She gave him a kiss and then said goodbye to Jeb, who seemed genuinely disappointed that she wasn’t going to join them at the nightclub. She assured him that she was tired and would be ready for more fun tomorrow.

Nicole was relieved as she left the restaurant by herself and made her way back to the penthouse suite.

Relieved and also slightly troubled.

She did run the bath, and, while soaking in the deep tub, trying to let her body relax, she had to keep herself from staring up at the ceiling. And her mind kept going back to the fact that Red already seemed to have accepted a position working at this hotel, and that meant living in Las Vegas for the next twelve months.

Nicole couldn’t imagine living in this city, being around this kind of environment, surrounded by men who were interested in fighting and gambling and God only knew what else.

Maybe if we got a house in the suburbs? She wondered.

It sounded awful to her, but she had to at least consider all possibilities. If Red truly wanted this, than she would be willing to explore how to make it work. This was something she determined to mention to him when he got home from the nightclub.

After her bath, Nicole slid into bed and read a book she’d read before. It was one of those lighthearted stories where nothing bad even seemed like it could ever happen.

She put something fun on TV and tried to keep her mind off this casino, and she pictured Riley sleeping soundly and, eventually, she also drifted off.

A few hours later, she awoke to a text from Red. Fumbling and confused, she grabbed her cell off the night table and looked at it with bleary eyes.

Going 2 be a little while more. Is that ok?

She sighed and texted back that it would be fine and she was going to sleep anyway. After that, she tossed and turned for a bit, but eventually, drifted off yet again.

The next time she awoke, Red was coming into the room, moving loudly about like a bull in a china shop. It was dark in the room, but for the flickering of the television set, and Red seemed to be stumbling a bit as he walked around, taking off his shoes, his shirt, pants.

Something in his movements told her he was intoxicated.

“Hey,” she said, sitting up a little bit.

“Hey,” he replied, his voice louder than it needed to be. “Did I wake you?”

“Yeah, but it’s okay.” She glanced at the clock. It was nearly four in the morning. “Oh my God. You were at the nightclub until this late?”