“Impressive,” he stated while twisting his mouth like he was tasting something that didn’t entirely agree with him. “Have you been playing long?”
Behind me, Gwen gushed, “No, this is her first time, and she’s amazing.”
Gray tried to hush her. “Let Lexi concentrate on her game.”
Distracted by them, I missed what the dealer said to me, so I asked him to repeat it.
“Are you going to place a bet?” He leaned forward intimidatingly. “We don’t have all day.”
It was all starting to be too much for this introvert. I was done. All I wanted was a soak in a hot tub and a quiet room with no onlookers. I pushed a stack of chips forward before realizing it was too many. Sheepishly, I removed enough to make the bet an even one thousand dollars.
“Going big again, Lexi?” Basia asked. Turning to the crowd, she added, “She must know something we don’t.”
Great, that was all I needed, people thinking I was cheating somehow. The dealer looked me squarely in the eyes. My instinctively reaction was to flinch, but his whole shtick was beginning to annoy me. Despite what anyone thought, I wasn’t cheating. I was playing smart cards and getting a little lucky. But that wasn’t wrong. That was why people came to casinos—at least, that’s what I thought. So, I stared back at him unafraid, until he finally dealt.
The first card was an ace and the second was an ace, too, and the crowd around the table murmured excitedly.
“Can I split those cards?” I asked the dealer, who was showing a seven in front of him.
“If you wish.”
I pushed another thousand out and the dealer flipped over the first card. It was a queen. Blackjack. Gwen and the girls shrieked, but I kept my attention on the dealer as he flipped over a king for my second ace. Another blackjack.
Holy card luck.
Before I could react, I felt a rush of cold liquid down the back of my neck. Yelping, I turned around to find Gwen with an empty daiquiri glass in her hand, jumping up and down. When she saw me glaring at her, she covered her mouth. “Oh my gosh. I’m so sorry, Lexi. I got a little excited and spilled my drink. Two blackjacks in a row. That’s just crazy lucky.” She tried to mop the mess off my back with some paper napkins, but it only made my shirt stick to me more.
Suddenly I felt Gray’s hand on my shoulder and heard the quick intake of her breath. The crowd fell silent. I turned to find the casino pit boss standing behind me, and he didn’t look happy. A shiver ran down my spine.
He gave me a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Good evening, ladies. How are you doing tonight?”
“You should know,” I said without thinking. “You’ve been watching us for some time.”
“I have, indeed,” he said. He gestured toward my chip towers. “You’ve had quite a streak.”
I swallowed hard, trying not to be scared that my demise was imminent. Was he going to walk me out back and end me? “Yay,” I said half-heartedly. “Good for me.”
He stared at me, his eyes dark. “You wouldn’t happen to be counting cards, would you, ma’am?”
“Me?” I blinked. “No. I mean, not on purpose. I just have a good memory.”
“Good enough to remember every card played for the last hour?”
I hesitated. “Maybe. But that’s not illegal.”
Gwen jumped in, clearly concerned for my safety. “She can’t help it. She’s super smart. She remembers everything. It’s a condition.”
“Like being obsessive-compulsive,” Basia added. “Or anxious.”
Gray rolled her eyes but stepped between the two of us. “Is there something wrong, sir?” she asked. “We’re just having fun. Winning isn’t a crime.”
“No, it isn’t,” he replied. “But you’ve reached your winning limit in this casino. Ladies, I’m going to have to ask you to step away from the table.”
My pulse spiked. “Wait, are you detaining me? Because if so, I want a lawyer…and a snack. I haven’t had dinner yet.”
The pit boss sighed. “No one’s arresting you, sweetheart. But you’re done gambling in this casino.”
Gwen’s jaw dropped. “What? We’re banned?”
