Once upon a time, Evie had dated a professional gambler. They weren’t hard to find in Vegas. Some of them did exceptionally well for themselves, but her ex, Peter, was only mediocre. In his case, the moniker of professional gambler was more an excuse not to get a steady job.

When their relationship ended, she’d walked away with an understanding of poker and an appreciation for how tables worked, but with a desire never to play games of chance again.

Seeing Antonio step out of his comfort zone was worth going back on her word.

They walked by each of the tables, Antonio assessing the games. She was willing to bet that he had no idea what he was even looking for, and she choked back a laugh. Try as he might to look professional and composed, there was no way a man that logical and rigid could know how to play poker.

When he stopped at one of the high buy-in tables and approached, Evie knew he was in over his head. She grabbed his arm and pulled him aside. While she wanted to see Antonio squirm, she didn’t want him to lose significant money doing so—the buy-in was five thousand dollars, after all. There was no way she wanted to see him lose that much money in a matter of minutes.

“The table you’re interested in has a minimum buy-in of five grand. I think we need to go somewhere else.”

“Why?” Antonio asked.

“Because I don’t want to see you lose that much money,” Evie replied. “I don’t want you to walk out of here that much poorer than you started off. All I want to see is if you can break out of your shell a little bit and have some fun.”

In secret, she also wanted to spend more time with him. Antonio couldn’t be clueless about what was between them—not the way he kissed her last night. They had a connection every time they were close, and she liked to think that he felt it, too.

“What happened to your vision of me having enough money to sustain myself for a year?” Antonio asked, teasing her.

“Well, I mean...” Evie frowned. “Five grand is a lot to someone like me, and it’d make me uncomfortable to see you lose it simply because I challenged you.”

“I thought we’re stepping out of our comfort zones tonight,” Antonio retorted. “So what if it makes you a little bit uncomfortable? That’s probably a sign it’s worthwhile, right?”

That wasn’t what Evie meant at all, but all she could do was sigh and shake her head. If Antonio was so steadfast in his choice that he couldn’t be talked out of it, she was wasting her breath. It was a shame that he wouldn’t open his mind to reason and consider one of the lower buy-in tables, but…

She let it go.

There were better battles to be fought. Antonio wasn’t going to change no matter what she did.

“Let’s do it, then,” Evie said. “Do you know the rules, or do I have to walk you through them? The dealer isn’t going to put up with any shit if you don’t know what you’re doing.”

“You’re surprisingly knowledgeable about all of this,” Antonio remarked. “I’m impressed. Do you have another career I don’t know about?”

“No. I dated a guy for a few months who claimed to be a professional gambler. I’m not new to casinos, and I still remember a lot of what he taught me. It’s probably not all that surprising to you that most of our dates were spent at the tables.”

“Ah. Well. Then you’ll see how good I am at this.” Antonio winked.

Dread curled in Evie’s stomach. She was afraid she’d get to see firsthand just how terrible he was. Antonio was the kind of guy who’d likely never touched a card before in his life, and she wasn’t looking forward to when the harsh reality of loss bit him in the ass.

“Something like that,” she agreed.

They made their way to the table, and Antonio sat for the next round.

Evie loitered behind him, keeping an eye on the cards being played. It was surprising to her that Antonio seemed to know the rules so well—he didn’t hand his money directly to the dealer, laying it on the table instead, and he never touched the cards with more than one hand.

Maybe, Evie guessed, it was because Antonio was so perceptive he was picking up on clues from the other players.

That had to be it.

But when Antonio upped the ante, and then won, Evie was forced to face the reality that maybe he did know what he was doing. She gaped, unable to believe her eyes. The men who played high buy-in games were those who were either good at what they did, or had money to spare. She thought that Antonio belonged to the latter camp, but it turned out he might have found his place amongst the former.

As he cashed in for another hand, she leaned over to whisper to him. “Where the hell did that come from?”

“Turns out you aren’t the only one with past experience,” Antonio whispered back. “I’m not just some boring suit, you know. My life may be highly structured and my time may be spent officially, but that doesn’t mean I don’t know how to have fun.”

Antonio knew more than how to have fun—he knew how to win. Evie’s eyes widened as he claimed victory on another hand, then another. By the time he’d tripled his winnings, she grabbed him by the wrist and tugged. “We need to retire now before you push your luck too far.”

He looked up at her, eyes glimmering with mischief. “But I was just getting warmed up.”

Ten thousand dollars was a lot of money. With those kinds of funds, Evie could set up a gallery in the lobby at Bloom. She didn’t want to see it wasted by risky bets. “Let’s go,” she insisted.

“As you wish.” Antonio walked away from the table, winnings lining his pocket. She couldn’t believe he’d been so successful. During her days with Peter, she’d seen plenty of outlandish jackpots, but never something so effortless.

When they were well away from the table, Evie stopped him. “Care to explain where the hell you learned to play poker like that?”

“My father,” Antonio said. “When we were younger, he used to take all of us DeRose boys to sit in with him at games. That man knew how to pull strings. We all learned what we know from him, and some of us took it farther than others. For a while, both Giovanni and Luciano played professionally. I’m pretty sure Luciano bought his first house off his earnings.”

“That’s just…” Evie shook her head. “That’s insane.”

“I know.” Antonio smirked. “There’s a lot about us boys that you don’t know. We’re more than we appear.”

Just how much more was there to know? Evie thought she understood Antonio after more than a month spent working in close proximity day in and day out, but it turned out she’d only scraped the surface. She wondered about his past, about his parents, and about the things he did for fun. She wondered why he’d gotten involved with business in the first place, and why he’d given up on his artistic abilities.

Why, out of all of the DeRose boys, he was the only one not committed to a beautiful woman?

Why a man as handsome and as gorgeous as Antonio would want to deny himself the pleasure of sharing his life with someone who loved and respected him?

“You look like you’re tuning out,” Antonio remarked. “Are you okay?”

“Oh, yeah.” Evie shook her head, stirring herself from her thoughts. “I’m… I had some things to think about,” she said at last. “I’m just wondering if you were born with a horseshoe up your ass, I guess.”

“Care to find out?” Antonio gestured toward the roulette table. “Poker is about skill, but there’s nothing more random than roulette. Why don’t we make a wager?”

The crowds around them were thickening as the night drew on. Conversations rose, the roar of them drowning out other background noise. Evie wanted desperately to shove her hands into her back pockets, but the dress had none. Thinking about risking that money made her uncomfortable. “What kind of wager?”

“If I win, then we both win and you can have a seat at the table while I’m mapping out the renovations I’m planning for Bloom.”

Evie pursed her lips thinking. “Really?”

“And if I lose, then you’ll have no say in any of the shop plans.”

“What about all the money you’d lose? That’s money that would go toward the shop even if I don’t have input.”

“If I lose, I’ll match the ten grand I just won in poker and invest it back into the shop, so the shop isn’t losing anything, really. Do we have a deal?” Antonio held his hand out for her to shake.

Evie didn’t feel like it was okay. There was a lot going on, and she was still trying to wrap her head around it. Most times, leaving things to chance and going with her gut were her default ways to deal with life, but in this situation, she wasn’t comfortable with that amount of money. For once, being wild and unpredictable wasn’t sitting well with her.

“… Fine.” She held out her hand to shake.

“Then let’s do it.” Antonio beamed. “How nuanced do we want our bet to be? I was thinking I’d just bet on black, but….”

“Bet on black it is,” Evie murmured.

Antonio cashed in for his colored chips. The table was maxed out, five other players also placing their bets. With a nod, Antonio placed all his chips on outside black, and Evie held her breath as the dealer spun the wheel and called for no more bets.

He dropped the ball, and it started to spin in the opposite direction as the wheel.

“There’s a five point two six percent casino advantage,” Antonio whispered to her as the ball spun. “Unless you’re playing in Atlantic City, roulette is one of the worst games you can play if you’re looking to win.”

Her heart leapt into her throat. Even though Antonio had pledged to match the money he’d lose on the bet, she found that she didn’t want him to walk away empty-handed.

Why was he doing something like this? Why wasn’t he sticking to what he knew?

“The ball’s starting to dip,” Antonio whispered, nodding at the table. “Look.”

All the hairs on Evie’s arms stood on end. She shivered. There was nothing at stake for her, but she couldn’t help but feel like the outcome of the game was going to change her life drastically. Even if Antonio didn’t win—and she didn’t think he would—there was something else of hers wrapped up in this game. Risking it all had never felt more wrong.

“Twenty…two,” the dealer called out.

“Wait. Did he say? Oh my god, Antonio, you won!” Evie jumped up and down excitedly.

“Should I let it ride?” Antonio asked as the dealer placed another fifteen thousand in chips next to his original bet.

“Oh, hell no. I don’t think my heart could handle another turn. Come on, let’s get out of here.” Evie declared. Antonio chuckled. Scooping up the chips, he tossed a tip to the dealer who caught it neatly before tucking it into his pocket.

“Place your bets,” the dealer called out ready for the next spin.

“Let’s get out of here,” Antonio murmured. He kept her tucked against his side, as they walked toward the cashier. Cashing in his chips, Evie waited patiently, watching as what looked to be a manager stepped up to speak with him. Nodding his head, he thanked the guy before turning to her smiling.

“Where to next?” she asked.

Holding up what looked to be a keycard envelope. “The casino would like to thank us for gambling tonight. They gave us one of their luxury suites,” Antonio said softly.

“Are you kidding? Isn’t that reserved for high rollers?”

Chuckling. “So betting fifteen grand on a roulette spin isn’t high roller enough for you? Maybe we need to go back to the tables,” he teased her.

“Oh no. I just meant isn’t that usually reserved for out of towners?”

“So, you’re saying locals can’t win big?”

“No that’s not what I’m saying.” Laughing, she shook her head. “This has been an insane night. That’s what I’m saying.”

Antonio began walking toward the elevators. Turning around, he waved the card key at her. “So. Are you game?”

Evie didn’t bother replying. Spending the night with Antonio sounded like the perfect answer to an otherwise hair-raising night.