I startled from the mental meander I was lost in. Glancing to the left, I found Ollie peeking at me as we waited at a stop sign out in the middle of nowhere.
“Sorry, I was just woolgathering. I spent a few hours doing the books before I got ready for our date.”
He gave my thigh a pat. “Making money hand over fist?” he teased and eased into and across the intersection. I’d never been out this way before. There seemed to be nothing but corn, homes dotting the plains here and there, and cows. Oh, and a lot of deer that liked nothing better than to stand along a cornfield as you rolled up to them and then dart in front of you.
“We wish. More like spending money hand over fist, but we do have two cabins ready to accept guests, so that’s something. And Baker assures me that next spring, when the spring calves go to market, we’ll see some money coming in.”
“He’s right. You will. It’s just a long time between then and now, I get it.”
“Yeah, it is, and the money we’ve all invested is burning up rapidly. But that’s our worry and not yours. Also, this is a date. So I’m going to chuck all my worries out the window and focus on you and how damn handsome you are. You clean up nice, Sheriff.”
He puffed up his wide chest. It was no lie. The man was delectable. He’d paired a pair of dark slacks with a white cotton shirt, short-sleeved, to show off his thick forearms. Freshly shaven, smelling of windy days and sinful nights, his hair gleaming in the lights of the dashboard. Yum.
“Thanks. So do you. I’m having a hard time keeping my eyes on the road. You’re so distracting in those tight white slacks.” I nodded a thanks. I had to confess I knew I’d looked good when I’d picked the white linen slacks, a navy and white vertical striped shirt, and some soft leather sneakers.
“We’ll wow them at the casino,” I said as we turned off the main road at a large sign shining in the twilight to lead people to the casino. “People will be too busy admiring our handsomeness to even enjoy the show.”
That made him chuckle. I really liked the sound. Soft but gruff. Gave me tingles in personal places. The road was paved nicely, the sunset soft peach and gentle blues as we pulled into the parking lot. The casino itself was breathtaking. Red cedar siding with the name LEGACY WINDS CASINO in soft blue neon above the wide doors, the curls of artistic wind around the name in navy blue and white, over the wall of glass holding the four front doors. There was no place to park as far as the eye could see, but Ollie cruised around the back to several dozen spaces marked for employee parking only. Once we were in our slot, he gave me a wink.
“Feeling lucky?”
“Damn straight. Let’s go gamble!”
“You don’t do this often, do you?”
“Hardly ever. I did go to Vegas once when Chris was playing there, and we went to the casino there. Very flamboyant. He left me in the room to gamble. Room service was fantastic.”
“Your ex is a dick.”
“I’m aware.”
“I will not leave you in our room all alone, trust me.”
I gave him a shady look. “You booked a room?” He grinned without one ounce of shame. “You that sure of yourself?”
“No, just hopeful. Come on, let’s go gamble!” He stole a kiss before sliding out of the Jeep and coming around to open my door for me. I wanted to call him cheeky for arranging a suite but couldn’t find it in me to scold him. Perhaps a bottle of bubbly, a swanky room, and a good dicking would purge me of my lingering funk.
Little did I know that once I stepped into the Legacy Winds that sticky shroud of meh I’d been wearing since my spat with Dahn—and his subsequent ignoring of me for the rest of the day and up to when I left—would be erased. The inside of the casino was even more astounding than the outside. The din of people enjoying themselves, flashing lights, slots sounding off, and the steady rat-rat-rat-rat of the ceramic ball in the roulette wheel was close to overwhelming. Ollie stopped to talk to the security man at the back door, introduced me, and then we ambled off to find the restaurant.
“So we have two options,” he said as we lingered by a splashing fountain where several dozen patrons were seated sipping drinks and chatting. The noise of the casino proper seemed a bit less glaring in this rear part of the building. “We have a really great buffet or we have a smaller but prepared-to-order dining hall where the live shows take place. The shows don’t start untilnine, and it’s just eight now so plenty of time. Which do you prefer?”
“I love a good buffet,” I said, and just like that, with his hand resting on my lower back, we entered the Windswept Buffet and were immediately shown to a booth. Our server brought us some drinks: a Coke for Ollie since he was technically on call and a Tom Collins for me. “This is lovely.” I gawked at the spacious room packed with long buffet tables and soft lights dangling from the ceiling. “Some buffets are kind of on the cheapish side, but this is really nice.”
“Thanks. Not that I had much to do with it, but the tribe has great pride in our casino.”
“Oh, there you are. Kinny at the back door said you’d arrived. Hello,” the striking older man with Ollie’s nose and eyes said as he wiggled into the booth beside his nephew. Gordon looked nice in his tie, dress shirt, and slacks. He cut a fine managerial figure. “Nice to see you again.” Gordon held out a large hand. I clasped it. “Ollie never tells the family anything. We have to find out that he’s here with a date via the guys at the door. Your sister is not happy.”
“She’ll survive. Also, as noted in your own words, Edutsi, we are on a date.” Ollie began nudging him off the bench.
Gordon snickered. “Right. Got it. I’m off. Someone said there’s a pigeon stuck in a slot machine. Dodge, hope you enjoy your time here. Oliver, don’t be a dick about the crab legs.”
Ollie rolled his eyes. Gordon clapped him soundly on the shoulder and headed out, stopping to check on something on one of the buffet tables.
“Two questions,” I said, taking a sip of an expertly made Tom Collins. “What is edutsi? And crab legs?”
“You and your buddies eat all the crab legs at the buffet one time and you never hear the end of it.” He sat back, wearing a look that told of warm memories of days gone by. “Aiden, Baker,and I had come in one night for our poker game and wandered to the buffet just as the crab legs were being placed out. Did we take them all? Yes, and we did eat them all. I regret nothing other than the fact that now he busts my balls every time I come in here to eat.” I was laughing now. “And edutsi is Cherokee for uncle.”
“That’s what family is for. Busting balls. Speaking of crab legs…” I jerked my thumb at the buffet. “Shall we?”
