Page 67 of Vera Stein Is Fine
“What the hell?” she asked.
“Your baby daddy is out there looking for us.”
She rose up on her knees to sneak a glance, but I yanked her back down again.
“I don’t tolerate shenanigans,” the clerk said as she tapped her long red fingernails on the glass countertop. Then she turned to a new customer. “Hello there, young man.”
That’s him, Vera mouthed.
“Can I help you find something? Or someone?” the woman asked, her tone nothing short of devious.
The man made some kind of grunting noises in response.
I scrambled for my wallet and took out my credit card. The same card my mother told me to melt tonight. I was about to light it on fire.
I held up the card until I caught the clerk’s attention.
She looked to me, her eyes bored and lazy.
With a finger pressed to my lips, I pointed to the glass case full of overpriced shitty-ass crystal souvenirs. “Get rid of him,” I barely whispered. “And I’ll buy it all.”
In front of me, Vera’s eyes went wide and she tried swatting my card-carrying hand down.
I took the finger from my lips and pressed it to hers. Her breath waswarm on my fingertip and I had to force myself not to let my finger trace her lips.
“Well, if you don’t need anything,” the woman said, “I’m closing up for the night.”
After a torturously long moment, the man huffed a thank-you and left.
The woman raised an eyebrow as she walked over to us with her hand held out. “Time to pay up, handsome. I get a commission on everything that’s in a locked case.”
I relinquished my card and decided that if we didn’t get our asses beat or arrested, this was worth every penny.
“Would you like me to Bubble Wrap everything?” she asked.
“Oh, I’m not keeping it. Give it away for all I care.”
She gave me a slightly confused look and then nodded. I had to assume that working in Vegas, this was one of the least weird things she’d ever seen.
I gave the keychain display next to the counter a quick spin and grabbed a plastic poker chip withViva Las Vegasstamped onto one side.
“Don’t want to forget the time I went toe-to-toe with a Goliath-shaped human?” asked Vera as she hovered behind me.
“Oh, please trust that the last thirty minutes have been burned into my brain for the rest of my life.”
When the clerk read the total, Vera balked. “You can’t spend that kind of money on—” She turned to the clerk. “No offense—this crap.”
The woman was unbothered. “Wouldn’t be the first time someone blew their money in this place.”
Before we left, Vera asked if she could keep one of the crystals and chose a small die withLas Vegasengraved on the side.
There were still some security guards milling around the perimeter, but by the time we stepped outside of the store, the crowds had calmed and thinned.
“Take off your cardigan,” I told Vera. “Just in case.”
She did so without arguing and followed me as we walked at a normal pace toward the exit.
When we walked past a security guard, she took my hand and tucked her head against my chest so he didn’t see her. It was fake. It was make-believe, but holding her this close felt all too real. When we were in the clear, I didn’t let go.
