Page 54 of One Night Gamble
He lifted her in his arms and carried her away from the motocross area up to the penthouse where he made love to her. When Gran got home from her trip, they drove out to Gran’s house. She was happy for them and Talia realized she had everything she’d ever wanted. She had always thought that the only way she’d find happiness was without a gambler in her life and outside of Las Vegas but she had found her heart with Casey.
Epilogue
He was back again.
Zelda Quincy couldn’t ignore the man dressed all in black. He was over six feet tall and wore black jeans that hugged his muscled thighs and a fitted shirt that made him look lean and a bit mysterious.
She figured he had to either be a thief, competition, or a magician looking for something. And since her shop sold one-of-a-kind, antique magic props she was betting on the latter.
She made sure the register was locked and walked straight toward him. He glanced up, those pale blue eyes of his so light against his tanned skin and dark hair that she hesitated for a moment, but she wasn’t about to let him stand outside her shop again.
This was day three.
She should have put a stop to it yesterday, but he’d intrigued her. And twice could be a coincidence, right?
But three times…that was a pattern.
She opened the door to her shop that was housed on the corner of a retail strip on the outskirts of Las Vegas. She got a lot of high-end customers which was why she had opened her shop here. But she also got her fair share of oddballs as well. This guy didn’t look like a weirdo.
But her best friend Molly said that weird and sexy weren’t mutually exclusive.
She wondered what Molly would make of this guy.
She lifted her cell phone and snapped a picture of him.
“I suggest you think twice about whatever it is you’re about to do here,” she said. “I have your photo and I think…well I think you should know I’m also pretty much a badass, so stealing from my shop isn’t going to be easy.”
“You think I’m a thief?” he asked.
His voice was low with a deep timbre like a bass guitar, surprising her. And though he hadn’t spoken loudly there was a force to his words that made them echo in the back of her mind.
“Or a creeper.”
“Creeper?”
“Stalker…dude, you’ve been standing in front of my shop for three days and that’s straight-up odd.”
He nodded. “Fair enough. I’m not here to harm you.”
“Then why are you here?” she asked.
“I was waiting for someone who stole something from me,” he said.
She crossed her arms over her chest. “What did they steal?”
“Houdini’s water chamber. I read on your website that you would have one available this week,” he said.
“I will. I bought it on an auction site. I didn’t steal anything,” she said.
“Who did you buy it from?” he asked.
“Elite Magic in London. So I’m pretty sure they didn’t steal it from you,” she said.
“All I know is my cabinet is missing and you have one for sale…sounds like more than coincidence to me.”
“Sounds like you’re grasping at straws,” she said. “Seriously if you’re not buying anything I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”
“Would you at least let me look at the cabinet when it comes in?” he asked. “I’ll make it worth your while.”
