“Do you need her help?” Tully answered for her. I could have punched him. I gritted my teeth and took a long, deep breath.
“Remember what I told you.” I looked down at our hands as I let go and rushed out of the sex store to get our bags.
“Lemme guess—” I could hear Tully being a smart-ass from behind me, but there was little I could do about it. I moved fast, collecting our shit and hurrying back inside. I cringed,hearing Scout’s giggles as Tully entertained her.
They both stopped laughing and turned when I came back. Instant irritation rose up in my throat.
“Ready?” Tully asked. I nodded. Scout smiled and returned to my side. She took her suitcase from my hand, and three of us went into the back room together. It was a large storage room with another door in the far back that had several locks on it. Tully took out a set of keys and started unlocking them. He finally got it open and urged us in.
There were immediate steps, and Scout stumbled for a second before Tully flicked on the lights. We were in a fully finished hallway. The walls were dimly lit,and a soft red carpet was on the floor. The walls were lined with off-white wallpaper and random pictures of still life.
I kept looking at them as we passed,and Tully commented on them.
“I had a chick once who was really into painting.”
“I like painting,”Scout told him. I glanced as Tully grinned and leanedtowardher, way too interested in that little factoid.
“Yeah? I’d love to see some of your work.”
He was in front of us, and I reached out and kicked the back of his knee. He faulted for only a second before continuing on.
“Dante and I were actually setting up a game for tonight if you want to join us.”
“Game?” Scout asked as we reached the end of the long tunnel. We were at a large door and could hear voices and music from the other side. Tully turned to us and smiled wide.
“You didn’t think I made my fortunes selling fake cocks and ball gags, did you?”
8
We had stepped into the floor of a casino. Tables were scattered around the gigantic room, with a bar at the far end. Light rock music played from speakers hanging from beams and on the walls. The floors were burgundy, and the walls were gold. It was hard to tell because the room was dimly lit. Which was intentional, I could see.
“Where are we?” Scout gasped as Tully led us further into the room, closing the door behind us. People in white dress shirts and black pants were walking around fixing chairs, preparing tables, and shuffling cards. Some women in red cocktail dresses carried trays and other small things toward the bar.
“My house. My basement. You like it?” Tully turned to me and wiggled his eyebrows, waiting for praise.
I didn’t.
“It’s like Vegas,” she laughed. “No slots?”
Tully’s face darkened for only a second before the slimy smile returned. “It’s just a card club.”
“And the sex shop is the front. Because you earn all of your money here,” Scout pushed, and I bit my lip. I hated her curiosity sometimes. It seemed to get us in more trouble than it ever helped.
Tully clicked his tongue and pretended to cock a gun at her. “You got it,babe. You want to play?”
“No!” I interrupted their conversation, dropping our bags and putting my hand up. I then brought it around her and pulled her to me. “She’s not playing with you.”
“Ugh, is this who you are now that you’ve wifed up?” Tully gave me an exaggerated grimace.
“We’re not married.” Scout stiffened and stepped away from me. “We’re just dating. I could hang. What card games do you play?”
“Poker, mostly. Different versions at different tables. You play?” Tully flicked his tongue over his fangs as he shot a shit-eating grin at me before returning his attention toScout.
This was bad. This was really bad.
Scout, shut the fuck up.
I gritted my teeth and tried to shout it telepathicallybut tono avail. She opened her mouth and played right into Tully’s hands.
