Call My Bluff

by Elizabeth Knox

  I turned back to Nat and Fred and waited to see what would happen next. This was a complete shitshow.

  Nat turned to Fred and assured, “Frederick, darling, you know I wouldn’t do this.”

  He studied her face and then turned back to Nick and I scratching his chin awkwardly and saying, “Now, Nick—“

  Nick cut him off, “Fred, the bitch came to our room yesterday crying, threw a fit and asked me to meet her at the bar, I got down there, and she said you were threatening her and she needed me to keep her safe, then tried to make Har uncomfortable by reminding her that we fucked a few times. I’m not shitting you, man. This bitch is trouble, and she’s lying.”

  Two scary official-looking men walked over to us and asked what was going on. After the back and forth and everyone relaying the story, he looked at poor Fred and demanded, “She goes one way or the other, either alone or you forfeit and go with her.”

  Fred pulled back and said, “She’s going.”

  Nat gasped and started to object, but he cut her off, “Natalie, you give great head, but it’s not worth losing out on seven mil. Go. I’ll meet you in your room after.”

  She pouted, glared, stomped her foot because clearly she was two, and then stomped out of the room.

  Fred looked at me and said, “I truly apologize. I had no idea she would behave in such a way.”

  I shrugged, there was nothing I could do about it. Then the dealer called everyone back to their tables.

  Nick walked me to my seat and kissed me hard, gave me a soft look, and swaggered back to his table.

  The part of me that had worried that he was only putting on a show for his ex, took her last gulp of air and died a painful death. He hadn’t needed to do that, and if it had all been an act, which I’ll admit had been a stretch even for me, he definitely wouldn’t have kept his heated gaze pinned on me while he won the second game of the championship.

  But his eyes hadn’t left me for more than seconds as he went from hand to hand to hand.

  Chapter Nine

  In the elevator, he, once again, had me pinned to the wall.

  And I didn’t give a fuck.

  Nick had just won the second round, and that meant it was down to just him and one other player. Friday, winner would take all. It didn’t affect me when it came down to it, but I was hyped up and, in the mood to celebrate, none the less.

  The ding indicating we had reached our floor rang out, and he pulled away, taking my hand and pulling me down the hall quickly. I was laughing so hard I couldn’t keep up, so he turned and wrapped his hands around my waist, pulled me close and lifted me over his shoulder then hurried down the hall.

  He was laughing as hard as I was, and I could only hope that he didn’t trip and send us both down in a heap.

  He managed to get the door open with only one free hand and hurried inside, slamming the door behind us. He hit the couch and dropped me to the seat. I poofed out a breath and reached for him, wanting to feel his mouth conquering mine.

  Then the impatient rapping came at the door.

  Knock-knock-knock. Pause. Knock-knock-knock.

  I groaned, threw my head back, and lifted my head as he climbed off of me and turned to the door.

  It wouldn’t be.

  No way.

  She wasn’t that stupid.

  Oh, but she was, and I had that instinctive feeling that standing on the other side of the door was my nemesis, the manipulative little blonde who, apparently, gave good blow jobs.

  I was on my feet before I’d had the conscious thought to do so and rushing to catch up with Nick.

  Too late, he yanked the door open and declared, “You have got to be shitting me.”

  He didn’t get a chance to say anything else though because I ducked under his arm, gave myself a mental pat on the back for calling it, and crossed my arms, blocking Nick from Nat.

  “What do you want, Nat?”

  She made a huge error in judgment when she laid hands on me. I’d grown up getting abused and taken every self-defense class I could find when we got to the city. If my father had ever gotten word of where we’d gone and came after us, I wanted to be fully prepared to defend not just myself but my little brother.

  Just because I’d never used it, didn’t mean I forgot a single thing. I was tiny, but I could kill a man with my own two hands, or at least beat the shit out of an idiotic gold digger.

  I balled up my fist and punched her as hard as I could. Then shook out my hand muttering, “Shitshitshitshit.” because that was not as painful when you were practicing. That shit hurt.

  I didn’t have a chance to feel more than the first twinges of pain before she came at me again, this time going for my hair, the idiotic little twit.

  We went down, and I easily got the upper hand. It wasn’t very long before I felt strong arms circle my waist and lift me off of her. I shoved my hair, now in utter disarray, back from my face and taunted, “What d’you got now? Huh? Come at me.”

  Nick laughed, full-on belly laughing, bending at the waist and forcing me to do the same. I caught sight of Fred holding Nat, but instead of trying to come at me again, she was clutching him crying.

  “Ca-calm down, scrappy.” Nick choked out over his laughter.

  She turned to look at us at his voice and evident laughter, and I grinned and snickered when I saw the trail of blood trickling down her lip.

  I was a weapon of mass destruction. Hell yeah.

  Too late to do any good, two bulky security officers stepped from the elevator and, on high alert, searched the hallway.

  They relaxed, seeing that the drama had de-escalated, and stomped to us. “What’s going on here?” The scarier looking of the two demanded to know.

  Nick answered, still fighting to regain composure from his laughing fit, “Nat beat on the door, attacked my girlfriend and then got her—“ he stopped to laugh and compose himself once more then finished, “she got her ass beat.”

  I tried to pull out of his arms, but he laughed and held me tighter. Urg.

  They asked a few more questions and then told us we could go back inside before turning all of that intimidation on the other couple.

  We walked back in, still finding the whole thing funny, and Nick led me to the bathroom. He picked up my brush and pulled it through my locks in silence before asking, “Where’d you get moves like that, Baby Doll?”

  I shrugged; it didn’t matter if he knew at this point, so I told him the short version of the story, “My dad beat me and my little brother our whole lives. When I turned seventeen, I had had enough. My little brother had his first overdose. It scared me, so I packed us both up, stole the two grand the old man kept in his safe, and we bought bus tickets and headed west. Vegas seemed like a big enough place for us to hide.”

  “Shit, Har, I didn’t realize—“

  I met his gaze in the mirror and cut him off, “Nick, honey, it’s fine. I found a job working at night to clean businesses, and with the money I’d taken, it was enough to keep Edgar and me safe. One night, Rico was working late and found me helping my little brother with his homework and offered his office. He helped Eddie with his math while I did my job, and while they were together I guess little bro told him about our last year and Rico made sure to stay on the days we were here, we became close, and I learned about his business, and he offered me a job working as his secretary, I wanted a bite of the big money though and started escorting for him. At first, it was just people he knew personally so he could make sure I was safe. Self-defense was his idea, and eventually, I moved on to the bigger paying clients. It kept us fed and comfortable, especially with the new IDs. He kept us hidden, and he’s been my rock. I don’t know if I would’ve survived losing Edgar if it wasn’t for your uncle. He became the family we’d never had.”

  He took all that in, studied me, and decided to focus on an insignificant part of what I’d said. Thank goodness.

  “I’m sorry, Harlow. I hate that you went through all of that. Even though i
t was spectacular watching you teach Nat a lesson.” There was no natural segway, but I was effectively distracted when he asked, “Wait, so Harlow Spencer, isn’t your real name?”

  I grinned, “Nope. My name is Harley, and Spencer is nowhere near my actual last name.”

  “Harley.” He tested it then grinned, “It brings to mind a sexy woman who takes no shit, so it fits you to a tee.”

  My hair was tangle-free, so I turned in his arms and looked up at him, oddly content given that my body was starting to ache from my battle minutes before.

  He did that thing that made me feel like, maybe I wasn’t the only one feeling big things, and brushed his lips to the tip of my nose. I was an ooey-gooey mess inside, even though I wasn’t fighting it tooth and nail.

  Then he stole my breath when he asked, “You given any thought to running off to Mexico with me? We could start our mornings naked, making love, spend the afternoon on the beach soaking up the rays, watch the sunset from our own piece of heaven and end every night the same way we started the day, fucking each other senseless.”

  I grinned.

  “That sounds like heaven. I wish I could.”

  My hair was still in his grip, and he gave it a sharp, but not painful, tug and demanded to know, “Why can’t you? Rico can make it without you, but I’m not sure that I can.”

  He was flirting, being sweet, and making the moment all the more bittersweet. So, I answered him honestly, “We both know that’s not where this is going. You don’t know how much I wish it was, how I’m feeling things bigger than myself, but we have to be honest. We have two days left, and then this is going to be a memory. You’re off to Mexican beaches and days in the sun, but my life is headed somewhere else.”

  “Where do you think your life is headed, Harlow?”

  I flinched. Now that he knew my real name, I didn’t like hearing my fake one slip through his lips. “You can call me Harley now, Nick. I know this isn’t forever, but while we’re us, I don’t want lies. Harlow isn’t a real person. She’s a high society escort who flaunts around Vegas and only accepts the highest paying clients. Harley is a girl from a trailer park in the Midwest who tried her damndest to be the heroine in her own story.”

  He was silent, thinking over, I assumed, the things I’d just revealed. I probably should have left it alone, let him go on thinking I was Harlow. But, the girl who’d spent the last few days falling in love with him was Harley.

  A look crossed his face that didn’t make any sense to me, and then he nodded and kissed me breathless.

  I figured the conversation was over when he randomly asked, “Have you thought about packing up your place and putting your non-essential stuff in storage? It’ll cost a whack traveling sea to shining sea and paying for a place in the city.”

  It was so out there, so far from anything that had been on my mind, that I answered without thinking, “Well, no. I hadn’t really planned it out yet.”

  He nodded and said, “Let’s call Rico.”

  I found myself nodding back though I was floundering with trying to keep up with him.

  He dropped my hair and gave me a smile that made everything feel right in the world, then pulled his phone out and called his uncle.

  I listened as he told his uncle that I was moving and needed to get out of my rental agreement and packed up over the weekend so I could start my ‘new life’ first thing Monday morning.

  Last Saturday, I’d gone out to a charity dinner with a man old enough to be my father, and as respectful as he’d been, I had hated every second of it but knew there was no way out.

  Now we were planning on me uprooting my whole entire life and starting a new life a week later. I couldn’t find it in myself to be scared. I was excited, even though I was heartbroken at the idea of never seeing this beautiful man again. I knew I would miss him every day for the rest of my life.

  Nick ended the call and tossed his phone on the cabinet, then grinned and said, “Rico’s taking care of it. He said there’s a wait on your apartment, so they’ll be happy to let you out. Evidently, they kept your rent to the rate you paid your first year even though everyone else is paying today’s rate. I’m sure my uncle had nothing to do with it,” he winked, “but he says they’ll jump at the chance to free your place.”

  I was going to have words with Rico later because I could see him threatening them, or blackmailing given how much he knew about so many people in this city.

  “That’s well and good, but I still have to find somewhere to store my stuff.”

  He was shaking his head then informed me, “That’s all taken care of too. He’s sending boxes and moving shit over, and we can go pack it up tomorrow on our off day. He’ll send someone to come pick up the shit and store it for you.”

  And just like that, the next chapter had started in my life.

  Thanks to a man who ran an escort service and his high rolling nephew.

  Chapter Ten

  Thursday

  I woke up to Nick, his head buried between my thighs, and his tongue working overtime. Before the sleep had left me, I was arching off the bed and moaning out my orgasm.

  I laid face up, ankles locked on his back, and my heart thundering in my chest for several long seconds before I looked down my body and met his eyes.

  “Morning Baby Doll, I’ve had my breakfast already,” he winked, “what are you hungry for?”

  My lips curved, and I answered him, throatily, “You.”

  A predatory look crossed his face as he moved up my body, my ankles falling to his sides, and he covered my mouth with his. I tasted myself on his lips, and I didn’t care.

  Heat was building in me again, so I shoved, taking him by surprise, and once he landed on his back, I slithered down him and took him in my mouth.

  His hands balled into fists wrapped up in my hair, and he bucked his hips in time to my bobs. He let me take control then quickly took it back, getting a grip on me and dragging me up his body. Once I was in position, he surged up and filled me.

  We’d had the talk and had done away with condoms quickly, so we now had the freedom to go at it with no worries.

  Before long, I was gasping once more, laying over his chest and memorizing every second of this, though it would be cold comfort on lonely nights when he was gone forever.

  I trailed my fingers lightly over his cheek and asked conversationally, “You said you have a family. Where are they? You don’t say a lot about them.”

  He tangled his fingers in my hair and answered in the same tone, “My parents are rich. My father is the head anesthesiologist for one of the biggest hospitals in LA, and my mother is a woman who was raised as a normal person and became a vapid, judgmental lady who lunches and drinks a full bottle of scotch three times a week. They’re nothing like Rico. I split when I graduated and moved out here, found I have a talent with cards and made my own fortune. I haven’t seen my folks in years, and honestly, I don’t feel bad about it at all. I’m happy, and I’m free, and those are two things every man searches for.”

  I sighed. Being tied to a woman would take that freedom. I locked that thought away. There was a lifetime to go over every detail of my heartbreak when he was gone.

  He gave me a squeeze and asked, “How do you feel about carnival games and fried food?”

  Sadness firmly locked away, I grinned and lifted a little, so I could look down at him, “Like fried Twinkies, funnel cakes, Tilt-O-Whirls and bumper cars?” I was smiling bigger than I ever had before.

  He took that in and smacked my naked butt demanding, “Go get dressed woman. We have some teeth to rot out.”

  I scurried off of him and found my feet before I reached out a hand and practically dragged him off the bed in excitement, “Hurry!”

  He laughed and jokingly took his time trudging with me to the bathroom to shower off our early morning festivities. “The way you jumped off my dick so fast, I was prepared to be offended. You’re lucky you waited for me, or I’d have paddled that ass and fucked
you again before you got to eat anything fried.”

  I laughed, still tugging him along, “Threaten me with a good time. Seriously. You missed your window, so it’ll have to wait for another time.”

  He yanked me back into him and dropped my hand so he could wrap his arms around me and whispered in my ear, “I don’t know how I got lucky enough to find you, but fuck if I’m not ecstatic that I did.”

  “You say the sweetest things.” I fought around the lump in my throat to say.

  “Only to you, Baby Doll. You stick with me, and I’ll say it every morning when you wake up lying on my chest.”

  In another life, I’d marry this man and spend the rest of my life making him feel just as special as he made me feel when he spoke to me like that.

  We hurried through our shower, and I realized that I hadn’t taken a shower by myself since I’d arrived, and I didn’t mind it one little bit.

  I put on leggings and stole one of Nick’s Metallica band tees, tying the back up in a knot. It hadn’t been intentional, but if I’d known that Nick would be drawn to the small space of bare skin above my waistband, I would have totally done it on purpose.

  Outside the lobby, he flagged down a car and ushered me inside, giving the driver directions.

  I watched the city fly by and felt the tiniest of tugs at my heartstrings that I wouldn’t see this place again for a very long time after I woke up Saturday morning.

  I shook it off and snuggled into Nick.

  He took me to a carnival meets arcade that had to take up two solid acres, at least.

  I spent the day gorging on fried everything. If it looked good, we tried it. So, I was a little drunk and a lot happy.

  I kicked Nick’s ass at air hockey, and then he killed me eight times at laser tag. We stopped for lunch and had greasy pizza and warm beer before hitting the arcade and accumulated a crapload of tickets.