away. She bent closer looking at his tattoo. It was a knight’s fist, gripping a bloody heart.
Instantly she knew that he’d gotten it after she’d left. She realized that she’d made a huge mistake. But she couldn’t decide if sleeping with Hayden last night had been a bigger one than leaving him all those years ago.
Seven
Hayden strode through the main casino two nights later feeling like a gambler riding a streak of luck that just wouldn’t quit. Shelby had shown up at the children’s facility yesterday afternoon and had given him a run for his money on the rock wall. They’d had a lot of fun and she’d gotten the girls together to compete against the boys.
Last night he’d taken her up in his old Cessna, the same one he’d had when they were dating. They’d flown out over Hoover Dam and Shelby had mentioned that she’d been thinking about going to Arizona to see her mom. Hayden felt as if this time he was really getting to know Shelby.
The sounds of the bells and whistles of the slots and the rolling of the roulette wheel always excited him, but seeing Shelby standing at a blackjack table, holding one of those small Bêcheur d’Or gold bags, excited him even more.
She still wouldn’t move into his penthouse but he contented himself with the fact that she denied him little else. Like tonight. He wanted to show her his world. Wanted her to experience what life was like in the casino and though she said she wasn’t much on gambling, here she was. Waiting for him.
She glanced up as he approached, smiling sweetly at him, and it was the sweetness that wrapped around him, stopping him in his tracks mentally. This thing with Shelby was the kind of risk he never took outside of gambling. But he couldn’t stop it.
He approached the table and noticed that Rodney, one of his best dealers and longest employees, was the dealer. “Evening, Rodney. You treating my lady nicely?”
“I am, sir, but the cards…not so much.”
Shelby laughed a tinkling sound that lit the dark places of his soul and made him want to keep her happy always. “I am the worst player ever. Isn’t that right, Rodney?”
He shook his head. “I’ve seen worse.”
“I think he’s just being nice.”
“Maybe you need some expert help,” Hayden said. He took some chips from his pocket and placed them on the table in front of Shelby. She sat perched on the high stool but was still shorter than his six-two frame. Two other players joined the game, but Hayden scarcely noticed them.
He wrapped his arms around Shelby and looked over her shoulder as she picked up her cards. She had the queen of diamonds and a two of spades.
Hayden signaled Rodney for one card, which he dealt faceup. The card was a nine of diamonds. Shelby won.
She squealed and turned in his arms to kiss him. She won the following three hands, still with Hayden standing behind her. “Thank you. I think you’re my good-luck charm.”
“Ready to try it on your own?” he asked. He wanted to be more than her good-luck charm. He wanted her to move into his house. To sleep with her every night in his bed and wake up with her every morning. He doubted winning a few hands of blackjack was going to sway her.
“Yes. I think I’ve got it now.”
Hayden grabbed an empty stool from a nearby table and joined the play. Shelby lost the first and second hands. Finally she tossed her cards on the table and picked up her winnings.
“Giving up?”
“I don’t want to lose all your money,” she said, handing the chips back to him.
“They’re just chips.”
“No, they aren’t. I know that you’re going to think—I just can’t take money from you.” She picked up her big leather bag and the small gold lingerie shopping bag.
Hayden pocketed the chips and nodded goodbye to Rodney. This wasn’t what he’d planned. He wasn’t the most sensitive guy in the world, but he knew that Shelby was telling him something that had to do with more than gambling.
Suddenly all the pieces came together. He realized that while he was dealing with the fact that she’d taken the money and left, she was dealing with the fact that his money, any of it, represented paying her off again.
“Come on.” He took her hand and led her out of the casino.
“Where are we going?”
“I wanted to take you to see Roxy’s show tonight. We never do anything that’s really Vegas.”
“Everything with you is Vegas, Hayden.”
He tucked his hand under her arm and led her to the theater where Roxy performed. Hayden had a private box where they sat and watched the show. Shelby seemed to really enjoy it, but afterward she was still quiet and he knew that money was still an issue between them. That he’d been insensitive earlier. He still had no idea how to fix it.
“What’s next?” she asked.
He had nothing else planned. But he knew that he had to get her away from the casino and taking her back to his penthouse didn’t seem right. He needed to get her out of here, to find a way to take that melancholy from her. Somehow he was responsible for it and didn’t really know why.
“Let’s go someplace a little quieter so we can talk.”
“About what?” she asked, but stood and grabbed her shoulder bag once again. He handed her the small gold lingerie bag, not willing to let her leave that behind.
“Luck and Vegas.”
“Well, I think we’ve established I’m not lucky.”
“Not at cards,” he said, draping his arm around her waist and pulling her into the curve of his body. He shortened his stride to match her shorter one and used his body to protect her from the throng rushing to get to shows or casinos.
He led her out of the casino into the night. The pool and waterfalls were off to the left, but to the right was a small box-hedge maze, and nestled in the far back corner was a padded bench and gazebo.
“Where are we going?” she asked. Her eyes were weary and he knew he didn’t want to stare into them anymore.
“It’s a surprise,” he said, taking from his pocket the black silk mask she’d used on him days earlier. He’d been carrying that damn thing around, tormenting himself with the different ways he wanted to use it with her.
She laughed as he slid the mask over her eyes, fastening it in the back. Leaning down, he brushed his lips over hers. She sighed and opened her mouth for him. She snaked her arms around his waist and laid her head on his chest right over his heart. And he could do nothing but hold her. To make this moment an oasis in two lives that had seen too much chaos and hurt.
The sensation of being blindfolded was difficult to adjust to. Shelby already felt vulnerable from realizing that she was losing Hayden’s money in the casino. Sure, she knew it wasn’t a lot of money, but still it was the principle of the matter.
