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CHAPTERONE
Gina
Las Vegas is supposedto be the land of the lucky, so why do I feel like the unluckiest woman on earth?
I nudge an elbow into my sister’s ribs.
She turns to face me. “What the hell, Gina? That hurt.”
The smile on Bella’s face tells me that it might have stung a touch, but she’s fine.
I tilt my head slightly. “Why is Lawton here?”
Her gaze wanders to where our older brother, Dominick, is standing next to a poker table in this crowded casino. Seated to his left is his lifelong best friend.
Daniel Lawton.
I’ve known him for as long as I can remember. I can count on one hand the moments when we haven’t wanted to strangle each other.
“He’s Dominick’s best man,” she points out. “How could I not invite him?”
I tuck a few strands of my long brown hair behind my ear. “You could have given me a heads-up that he’d be here.”
“He said he couldn’t make it,” she explains, shrugging her shoulders. “I guess he decided to make a surprise appearance.”
That’s the type of surprise I can do without.
She glances to the left when the joyous sounds of someone hitting the jackpot on a slot machine fill the air.
I trail her gaze to see a woman dressed in a long white lace gown jumping up and down. Next to her is a man in a black tuxedo, complete with a red bow tie.
“Do you think they’re on their way to one of the chapels to get hitched?” Bella’s hands dart to the middle of her chest. “Or maybe they’re already married, and this is their wedding night.”
My sister is three years younger than me. She’s also happily married with a beautiful daughter.
Bella is a firm believer in true love.
She found it with her husband, and now that Dominick is marrying the love of his life, I’m the focus of my sister’s heart eyes, and wishful dreams.
On her wedding day, she predicted that I’d be married before my twenty-ninth birthday. Since that’s less than a month from now, it’s time for her to face reality.
I’m never walking down the aisle. Love hasn’t been kind to me.
I’ve lost count of how many men have broken my heart. There was a time when I thought I’d find my perfect match, but those days are long gone.
“If they got married here, I give it a week,” I say flippantly. “Las Vegas weddings are a bad idea.”
Bella’s head snaps in my direction. “Don’t be so cynical.”
I skim a hand over the skirt of the short royal blue dress I’m wearing. It was a gift from one of my many sponsors.
When I announced on social media that I was heading to Vegas for the weekend, I was inundated with messages from companies looking to cash in on my online popularity.
I’m an influencer.
My follower count across all platforms is in the tens of millions.
Countless strangers scrutinize every image, video, and review I post. It doesn’t matter if I’m raving about a new lipstick shade or if I’m in the kitchen of my grandmother’s Italian restaurant back in New York City. Everyone has an opinion on my every move.
