I find an area where there aren’t a lot of people and settle into the cushiony chair, the lights from the slot machine illuminating me.
“Do you want a drink?” a cocktail waitress stops by my chair to ask.
“Sure, a white wine, please.”
She gives me a smile. “You got it. Be right back.”
I start playing, the colorful screen mesmerizing me. I play slow so my money lasts me as long as possible.
“Win anything?” A deep voice resounds over my shoulder, making me yelp.
I whip around and Nate’s grinning down at me from behind my chair. “Nate, you scared the crap out of me.”
“I could tell.” His sexy smirk has butterflies chaotically flipping in my belly.
The waitress reappears in record time and hands me my wine. Fierce jealousy fills me when she turns to Nate with a flirty smile and asks if he wants a drink. It’s quickly doused when Nate never takes his eyes off me while placing his order. I wrap my lips around my teeth to hide my smile.
When she leaves, Nate removes his wallet from his back pocket. He pulls out two one-hundred bills. Sliding into the seat beside me, he feeds one into his machine. Before I can react, he’s feeding the second bill into my machine.
“Nate, what are you doing?”
He shrugs and starts playing. “You know what they say, gambling is more fun with friends.”
I scrunch my face. “Who says that?”
He playfully pats my thigh. “No idea. I’m sure someone has. Now, play. Don’t make me sad.”
I huff out a laugh and roll my eyes. “Fine.”
We sit in silence for a few minutes until the waitress brings Nate’s drink. He takes a sip and tilts his head toward me. “Besides playing penny slots, what are you up to tonight?”
I shift in my chair to see him, and air catches in my throat. He’s in jeans and a loose t-shirt. His normally clean-shaven jaw has a bit of a scruff. He’s so breathtakingly handsome. Tingles run straight between my legs as I watch his arm muscles flex slightly with the motion of him pushing the button. I almost forget his question for a moment. Ripping my gaze from him, I refocus on my machine so Ican answer. “I, uh, wasn’t sure. Cade ditched me, but I didn’t want to stay in my room.”
He nods slowly, as if lost in thought. After a beat, he spins in his chair so his knees brush the side of my thigh. When his arm slides across the back of my chair, desire zips across my skin where his fingers brush across my back. “I have a proposition for you.”
Tilting my head, I raise my eyebrows.This should be good.
“Well, we’re both clearly out alone tonight.” He sweeps his hand back and forth between us. “We should team up so we can enjoy the city together.”
I narrow my eyes at him.
“Don’t look at me like that. Strength in numbers and all that. Vegas can be a scary place.” Pausing, he takes a sip of his beer. “And I want you to protect me.”
I roll my eyes. “Fine, but only because I would feel really bad if something happened to you. Like you getting married to a cocktail waitress.”
Nate nods thoughtfully, a teasing glint in his eyes. “You’re right. That would be bad.” He rubs the dark scruff covering his ordinarily clean-shaven jaw. “I should probably marry a flight attendant instead.”
I choke on my sip of wine. Nate casually pats my back while smiling at me, as if what he just said doesn’t have me dizzy.
“So,what do you do in all the different cities when you’re stuck there?”
After we played slots for a little while longer, we ate dinner at another casino. Then Nate suggested we go to a different restaurant he heard was famous for its desserts.
Even though we were seated in a curved booth with room for five or six people, we ended up sitting mere inches apart at the back of the booth. We ordered another drink, and despite my objections, Nate ordered all seven of their desserts. I’ll have to tell Cade about how wrong he was about Nate and sugar. I’m not sure who’s more excited about the spread before us—me or Nate.
With a shrug, I take a bite of the cheesecake. “I do what I did tonight. Go out to eat. Or go to museums. And sometimes, just relax at the hotel.” I hum through a sip of wine as my favorite part of traveling comes to the forefront. “There’s one thing I always try to do in any city if possible.”
“Oh, this sounds naughty. Okay, tell me,” he teases.
