Page 5 of Just My Luck

“Take your time. We’ve got nothing on the books until tomorrow,” I said, heading to the right.

Since our meeting with Mr. Sterling wasn’t until mid-morning, we’d agreed to spend our first afternoon and evening eating, drinking, and introducing Nova to the casino floor. I stripped out of my travel clothes. Off the clock, my style leaned a lot edgier than the business suits my job demanded.

I pulled on a pair of new jeans and a charcoal gray tee, grabbed my leather jacket, and laced up my favorite boots. I pushed my hair back, realizing I needed another haircut as I checked my watch, then I stepped back out into the sitting room.

A second later, the door to the other bedroom opened.

My breath caught directly in my throat.

Nova stepped out of her room, and for a terrifying three seconds my brain entirely short-circuited. Gone was the rule-following junior associate in the sensible office slacks. She had changed into a slinky, form-fitting emerald green summer dress that hit her mid-thigh and was hanging off her toned shoulders from delicate spaghetti straps. Her dark hair fell in soft waves around her bare shoulders, and she’d added a pair of killer heels that made her legs look miles long. She looked dangerous. Beautiful. An absolute firecracker.

“Well?” Nova asked, spinning around playfully, though a small hint of nervousness flickered in her eyes. “Too much for a casual time on the casino floor?”

“No,” I choked out, clearing my throat quickly to find my normal voice. “No, you look… incredible.” I swallowed and tried not to sound like an idiot.

A bright, triumphant flush spread across her cheeks, and she grabbed her clutch. “Lead the way.”

We hit the casino with a vengeance. First, I took her to Prime, the notoriously expensive steakhouse hidden in the back of the VIP lounge. Since everything was on the books for our trip, the corporate card was going to get a lot of use.

If it had just been me, I would have ordered dinner in my room and probably hung out all night watching the game. But since I knew this was Nova’s first time in Sin City, I was determined to show her what all the hype was about.

Over dry-aged ribeyes and a bottle of cabernet that cost more than I wanted to worry about, the tension bled away, replaced by the familiar, easy laughter we’d shared since childhood.

Afterward, it was time for the main event. The casino floor was a sensory overload of chiming and clinking slot machines, and low, ambient music mixed with all the voices of people gambling. I steered her toward a low-limit blackjack table that was relatively quiet.

“All right, rule follower,” I said, leaning over her shoulder as she took a seat. The scent of her perfume was driving me crazy, but I forced myself to focus on the cards. “Here’s the breakdown. You know that the goal is twenty-one. The dealer has to hit on a soft seventeen. You’ve got your chips?” she held them up. “Place your bet here…”

I spent the next hour coaching her through the basic strategy, watching her eyes light up every time she doubled down and won. She was a natural, calculating the odds with the same meticulous brain she used for her marketing spreadsheets.

Next, we moved to the roulette wheel, the chaotic heartbeat of the casino. We continued to enjoy the endless drinks that were being delivered to us as we shifted between tables.

“This one is pure chaos. No logic, just luck,” I explained, placing my hand on the small of her back to guide her through the crowding onlookers. The touch sent a jolt straight up my arm, but I kept my voice steady. “Red or black. Odds or evens. Or, if you’re feeling dangerous, pick a single number.”

Nova looked at the spinning wooden wheel, then at the layout of numbers. She reached into her chip stack, selected a heavy black chip, and placed it squarely on number eleven.

“Eleven?” I asked, looking down at her.

She glanced up at me, a soft, knowing smile playing on her lips that made my chest tighten. “The age I was when my luck changed.”

I chuckled and watched as the croupier spun the ball. It rattled violently against the metal dividers, bouncing past the red, skipping over the black, before finally clicking into a dead stop.

Black eleven.

The table erupted. Nova gasped, throwing her arms around my neck in a burst of pure excitement. I caught her by the waist, lifting her slightly as she laughed against my chest. Holding her like this, surrounded by the flashing lights and the roar of the casino, I realized the absolute truth.

Onyx was a massive account, but Nova was the only prize in Vegas that actually mattered to me.

My biggest hurdle was overcoming my fear of our future and breaking a few of her carefully laid out rules.

Chapter 3

Nova

I was on a high. Not only was I up almost five hundred dollars, I had just hit it big by betting on my lucky number. I didn’t know how much I’d just won, but the dealer had shoved a large stack of chips my way.

But the real win? The way Jax’s hands had felt wrapped around my waist when he lifted me up, the rumbling sound of his laughter against my chest, and the look in his eyes right before he set me back on my feet. For a split second, his steady, reliable best-friend facade had slipped, leaving something raw and entirely untempered underneath.

After I’d cashed out my ridiculous pile of plastic chips, the adrenaline was still humming too loudly under my skin for me to go straight to bed. I was a little over a thousand dollars richer.