AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The doors open suddenly, startling me.
The foyer of the hotel is buzzing with activity. People trying to check in, others waiting in line to be let into the bar and restaurant. Anyone not here is probably in the casino. I step out and head left, dodging groups of laughing, happy people who seem to only want to stand in my way. Large crowds and noise go hand in hand in Vegas, but this is extreme.
I glance at the bar directly next to the hotel, which is known to be low key and offer live music every night of the week.. Since I’m in Vegas so often, I’ve spent many nights in there, listening to some amazing music.
My curiosity at who’s playing tonight gets the better of me, so I poke my head inside. I smirk when I see the karaoke machine. There’s nothing more entertaining than drunk people who think they can sing.
I turn around and—
No fucking way.
Lily, Julian’s ex-girlfriend is standing at the front of the hotel, only a few meters away from me. I take cover behind a group of people and watch her for a moment. She glances at her phone, and then looks around, shifting impatiently on her feet.
What the hell?
I’m torn over what to do. Lily being here could pose a huge problem, for me as much as Julian, but being late to pick up Marco would be worse for me right now.
Twenty minutes later, she’s still standing there. It kills me, leaving her like this, but I have no choice. I wait until she’s looking the other way and then I take off in the direction of my car. What the fuck is she doing here, anyway? There’s no way she got a wedding invite—though that would be kind of amusing. Unless she’s planning on attending anyway. I shake my head, because that would be a disaster. The real question is, do I tell Julian I saw her or keep this to myself?
I push Lily out of my mind when I reach my car. I’ll figure her out later.With the hectic traffic adding even more time, I’m forty minutes late to pick up Marco. He seems less than thrilled by my tardiness, but his mood improves when I slip a hundred-dollar bill into his hands and tell him it was the traffic. He barely says a word to me the whole drive back to the hotel. I’m not sure if it’s a language barrier or if he just doesn’t like me. Either way, I don’t have time to worry about it, because I have other things on my mind; like the fact that I forgot the damn champagne. Lucky for me, I know the liquor store just down the street from the hotel stocks it.
I let the attendant park my car, and then walk the few minutes to collect the champagne with Marco snapping at my heels, like a lost puppy. Then we walk back into the hotel—in total silence, because he still hasn’t said a word to me and I’ve given up trying.
I nervously glance around the foyer as we walk through it. I’m keeping an eye out for Lily, but she’s nowhere to be seen. I guess that’s a good thing, because if she’s not causing trouble, then it gives me more time to figure out how to deal with her.“What did I miss?”
I smile at the guys as we walk back into Alberto’s suite.
“What you missed, is much more than you should have.”
Alberto frowns at me from where he sits next to the bar, nursing a glass of scotch against his crisp, white shirt. He adjusts his custom-made silver suit jacket, which probably cost more than my salary last year, he quickly raises his eyebrows at me.
“I was expecting you back an hour ago.”
I hand him the bottle of champagne and wink at him in response. He puts it down and stands up, throwing his arms around Marco. They exchange a few words in Italian, then he turns his attention back to me.
“I’m still not sure why someone with a private bar in his room needs to source their own champagne?” I add with a sly grin.
“Lucky for you, that’s none of your business.” His eyes burn through me. “So,” he continues, perplexed. “Did you get lost?”
I shrug innocently. “What can I say? There was a lot of traffic.”
He shakes his head and looks at Marco for confirmation.
Marco nods. “A lot of traffic indeed.”
He speaks in perfect English, albeit with a thick accent.
Huh. I guess it is just me.
Julian smirks at me as I sit down, his mouth twitching into a grin.
“How much did you pay him to agree with you?” Julian asks.
I shrug and return the smile, then tilt my cards enough to examine them. I nod confidently at my two kings. Maybe my luck is changing.
