Chapter 9

Greyson

I was surprised to see Skylar coming back from the pool so soon after I had left her with her friends. She was wearing one of the white robes from her room and black flip flops. Her beach bag was slung over one shoulder, and her strides were long and determined. If I knew anything about women, I knew she was upset.

I hurried toward the elevators to head her off. She was moving quickly. I had to weave through bodies in the casino and make a dash for the elevators when she pushed the button.

I slid to a stop behind her just as the elevators doors opened and fifteen guests spilled out. Skylar stepped aside to let them by, and I ducked in beside her.

“Hey,” I said, shooting her a crooked grin.

She looked up at me, her brows drawn together in a scowl, and then smiled when she saw me. The creases in her forehead vanished. “Hi,” she said, stepping back to give the people leaving the elevator more space.

“Sorry, I bailed back there,” I said, referring to my dodge of her blonde friend coming on to me. “I had to escape the girl in the heels.”

Skylar rewarded me with a giggle. “I may or may not be doing the same thing.”

“So, she’s the terrible one you were talking about? Your sister’s friend?”

“Yep, she’s the one. I don’t think I lasted four more minutes out there once they came down. You know how some people somehow manage to say all the right things to get under your skin?”

“Yeah, I do,” I said, wondering what it was Nikki had said that made someone as sweet as Skylar so upset. “I also know how annoying it is to be cut off when you’re trying to ask someone out to dinner.”

Skylar’s green eyes widened, and she blinked at me. “Sorry?”

I scratched the back of my neck. Why was I so damn nervous around this girl?

“Yeah,” I said, shrugging slightly. “I was trying to ask you out to dinner when your friends showed up, and I lost my chance. So, I’m trying again. Skylar, do you want to go to dinner with me tonight? I know some great places that I think you would really like.”

She searched my eyes with her own, her green irises flicking back and forth. “I really appreciate the offer,” she said. “But I think I should spend the night with Renee and Nikki. I came here with them and have yet to spend any time with them.”

“Because you can’t stand one of them. That’s not your fault. Come on, I just want you to have a good time.”

“I don’t know,” she said, stepping on to the elevator.

I stared at her for a moment. How hard was I willing to fight for this? Would she be uncomfortable if I kept pushing? I didn’t get that impression at all. If anything, I was sure she was enjoying my company. I had to be more fun to be around than Nikki.

I stepped through the elevator doors as they started to close. I caught Skylar smiling as she looked at her feet.

I glanced at the illuminated buttons on the panel. I had until the thirtieth floor to convince her to go to dinner with me.

“Listen,” I said. “What’s the point of going on vacation if you’re not going to have a good time? Now is the time to be selfish. Don’t spend your first real night here with a girl who knows all the nail polish colors in the salon, but not our previous presidents. Come on. Live a little.”

“She does know all the nail polish colors.” Skylar chuckled, “You should be an FBI profiler.”

I stroked my chin playfully. “Maybe I missed my calling.”

Skylar glanced at the counter above the door. We were passing the tenth floor. I was running out of time.

“I’ll have you back in your room by nine so you can go out with your girls after. Best of both worlds so they won’t be upset with you. You can tell them I was a creep and wouldn’t take no for an answer.”

Skylar laughed, and we passed the fifteenth floor. “Well, part of that is true.”

“Hopefully not the creep part,” I said.

“No, not the creep part,” Skylar said. She was looking at me in a way that made me think she was considering my offer.

“I’m not going to stop until you agree to just sit down and have a meal with me. That’s all I’m asking. Nothing more. A nice meal and a glass of wine and good conversation. You won’t regret it. Come on, Skylar. Don’t leave me hanging here.”

She regarded me with glittering eyes and pursed lips. She was thinking. I wanted her to think faster.

By the time we reached her floor and the elevator opened, she still hadn’t answered me. She stepped off the elevator and turned back to me, clasping her hands in front of herself. The smile she gave me had a flirty edge. It made my knees ache.

“Okay, fine,” she said. “Dinner tonight.”

“I’ll come to your room,” I said, unable to stop myself from grinning.

“Three thousand seventy-three,” she said before turning on her heel and walking away from me.

I watched her leave as the doors closed and she was only visible through the thin sliver. I saw her look back over her shoulder and smile just before she was gone from sight, and I was staring at my own reflection in the mirrored elevator doors.

She had finally said yes.

Later that day, I bumped into Meek in one of the staff rooms. He was on his break and was snacking on an apple and cheese while sipping a cup of piping hot black coffee. When I entered, he nodded to a free table, and the two of us sat down together.

“We working tonight?” Meek asked through a mouthful of apple. He washed it down with coffee and sloshed it around in his cheeks before swallowing.

“No, impromptu dinner plans this evening. Take the night off. You’ve been working too much lately, anyway.”

“What, can’t afford to pay me?” Meek joked.

“No,” I said. “I’m just sick of always running into you. You’re always scowling in the corner somewhere. You need to lighten up. Enjoy the night.”

Meek chuckled. “Well, working is a way I enjoy my night. I could accompany you to this dinner in case something goes wrong.”

“No, it’s all right,” I said, knowing that having a giant man watching from the corner wasn’t the right foot to start a date on.

“At least bring one of the other boys with you,” Meek said.

“Stop worrying so much. I’m going to a restaurant, not an underground poker game, for crying out loud. The worst that could happen is a waiter spills hot coffee on me.” I was growing a little annoyed with Meek’s endless helicopter parenting.

Meek shrugged and finished his apple. “Just saying. You have to be smart now that you’re worth millions.”

I didn’t need to be reminded.

Everything had changed in my life since opening the casino. After inheriting it, I completely rebuilt it with the money my uncle left me in his will. I hadn’t been expecting any of it. When he was alive, my uncle had never mentioned any of it to me, and I always thought he had other family he would have left it to. Perhaps he thought I was the best choice for running such a massive, dangerous operation.

Meek had saved my neck on more than one occasion. Drunk patrons sometimes got into fights on the casino floor, and one night, I had tried to intervene, thinking my smooth talk would diffuse the tension, and everyone would be able to go home to their families without having to involve the police.

I had been terribly mistaken.

One of the men, a massive, brooding, angry guy, had pulled a knife out of his pocket and gone after me. As foolish and naive as I had been, I never saw it coming. I narrowly missed getting stabbed in the gut, and instead, took it in the side, right below my ribs.

Meek came barreling in as the guy pulled the knife out and tried to go for me again. Meek had him pinned face first on the black obsidian floors faster than I could blink. Other guests called emergency services, and the whole thing became a much bigger issue, all because I thought I would be able to talk my way out of it.

An article was published in the paper about it, naturally, and my face became even more recognizable to Las Vegas residents. I felt like a fool for taking such a stupid risk, but the whole damn town thought I was pretty dashing. My face had been plastered all over the place, and I had been followed around by dozens of women for weeks after returning to the casino when my wound had healed.

I now had a nice little scar below my ribs to remind me of my idiocy.

Meek had never said a critical thing about it. He had just become even more protective over me, always insisting that I watch my back, keep my eyes peeled, and bring security with me everywhere.

I wasn’t willing to let go of my independence. It was unnecessary. I could take care of myself. At least, I could for the most part when the other guy wasn’t going to fight dirty and pull a knife on me.

I had taken some fighting classes after the event so that I could properly defend myself. Meek didn’t know about those, either. He didn’t need to. They were for my peace of mind more than anything else. I didn’t ever want to use them on someone. I preferred the nonviolent approach. I preferred a conversation, a compromise, and the chance for everyone to leave safe and sound.

But the scar on my side reminded me that sometimes we can’t always get what we want.

“I’m going to head home to get ready,” I said, getting to my feet.

Meek nodded and sipped his coffee. “Have a good night. I’ll see you in the morning.”

“You too. Try to do something fun, will you?”

“What is fun?” Meek joked as I left.

I made my way out the front doors of the casino. The day was hot, but not intolerably so. The sun was low in the sky, and I would be returning in a couple hours to pick up Skylar.

As I hurried down the front steps, a black SUV drove up the ramp and passed the valet at a snail’s pace. I stopped halfway down the stairs and watched it pass.

I was sure it was the same one I had seen the day I rode my bike to work. The windows were tinted, and the rims were black. The SUV stopped, and I was sure that whoever was driving was looking right at me.

I didn’t move. I stayed where I was, staring calmly back until the vehicle pulled away and left.

I knew I should have gone back inside to tell Meek about the suspicious car, but I had things to do and places to be. I hurried down the rest of the stairs, and the valet went to get my car. As I waited, my belly swirled with excitement.

I thought of Skylar and the way she had looked back at me when I was still on the elevator. There was something about her that I couldn’t put my finger on. There was also so much more to her than met the eye, and I couldn’t wait to discover what lay beneath the surface.

But it was still just a date. I went on dates often enough. Why was I so bloody nervous for this one?