“Everything okay here?” Caleb asked, his tone light but his eyes sharp on the crew from Newark.
Finn turned to face them. “Yep! Totally fine! Great, actually!”
Chapter Four
Finn
Finn jumped off thetable, snatched his clothing and boots from the pile on the chair. He ran down the hallway toward the sleeper car.
Nope. Absolutely not. Never playing cards again. Ever.
He didn’t stop until he reached his cabin, where he tumbled inside, slammed the door shut, and slumped against it, his body heavy with exhaustion. His feet stayed planted eventhough every instinct told him to move. So much for making new friends on the Pride Train.
There was an announcement feeding through the intercom in Finn’s sleeper car, “Stopping in Philadelphiaand new ticket holders will be boarding. Please welcome them.”
Finn slammed his bedroom door shut.
Strip poker. Seriously?
He yanked his jeans back on, fingers fumbling with the zipper. Total rookie move, letting those guys talk him into it. And of course they’d all had way better poker faces—or better cards, the fucking cheaters.
Finn was just snapping his last bracelet into place when a heavy knock shook the door.
He froze.Oh, great. Now what?
“Mr. Andersen, open up.”
The voice was all business. Finn took a steady breath and finished looping his favorite necklace around his neck. “Who are you?”
“Mr. Santos, the engineer in charge.”
The engineer in charge?This couldn’t be good.Finn opened the door a crack, then wider when he saw the man standing there. The guy looked like he was in his fifties, with a no-nonsense face that meant this wasn’t a social call. Without a word, Mr. Santos stepped inside and shut the door firmly behind him.
“I’m here to check on you.”
“Why?” Finn’s voice came out a little too high. He cleared his throat. “Did I do something wrong?”
“I don’t know. Sit down and relax,” Mr. Santos said, though his tone didn’t exactly invite relaxation.
Finn perched on the very edge of his bed, back straight. The engineer just stood there, looking him over.
“Why were you on the table naked?”
The question hung in the air.Way to get straight to the point.There was no use in lying. “I lost at strip poker.” No doubt Caleb reported the incident to Mr. Santos.
“How come no one else lost their clothes?”
“I don’t know.”
Because they were obviously dealing from the bottom of the deck but saying it out loud just made him sound like a sore loser.
“Did you willingly go with them to the Game Car?”
“Yes.” That much was true. They asked, and he had said yes. Big mistake.
“Did anyone touch you?”
“No.” Finn shook his head, then added quickly, “But I think they cheated.”
