“Shall we go? Ryan, can you grab my sweetheart’s bags? Her hands are full.” Bill smiled first at Gina Mae and then at the oversized puff of flowers she could barely fully grasp with her arthritic fingers.
“Sure, Pops.” Ryan reached behind his grandfather and plucked the handle of Nana’s rolling suitcase. “Got it.”
Mr. Blue Eyes was a man of few words. Hopefully, his apparent lack of interest meant he wouldn’t be in her way the next few days as she brought some balance back to Nana’s life.
“You need any help?” Ryan McBride’s voice reminded her of caramel. Low, slow, and with just a hint of burnished sweetness. Now that he’d uttered several syllables together, his voice surprised Lisa. After years in the world of the theater, listening for tone and inflection in the spoken word came as second nature. It was just an analysis she made without even really thinking about it.
His candied voice made Lisa’s stomach growl a little as it made her blood pressure rise a few notches with the awareness of it.
Lisa shook her head. “I’ve got it.” At least she could confidently say she had one thing under control here.
Nana and Bill took the lead, walking toward the doors that led to the parking lot with the lightness of step most commonly seen in teenagers. Lisa couldn’t believe it. Nana had moved in with her two years ago when it became clear that the day-to-day tasks of keeping a house cleaned and maintained, and dinner cooked, and laundry washed were just taking a physical toll on her. But now, here in the middle of Las Vegas, holding hands with her long-lost first love, it seemed like the years had just disappeared—from both the calendar and her arthritic knees.
The transformation amazed Lisa, and she tried to keep herself from looking obviously drop-jawed as she followed the newly reunited couple.
Standing directly behind Ryan McBride forced Lisa to keep her potentially drop-jawed state in check, too.
He wore a plain black T-shirt and a pair of jeans that seemed dyed to match the black-blue of his eyes. The shirt and the jeans both seemed to fit him like a casual second skin, careless yet confident at the same time.
Snap out of it, Lisa Marie. The only thing she needed to be confident of right now was making sure that her Nana escaped Vegas without making decisions she clearly didn’t think all the way through. Nana needed help, and Lisa couldn’t risk a wrong move by being distracted.
Her toe collided with six inches of brightly-painted concrete that divided two handicapped parking spots. Lisa flailed her left arm a bit, trying to regain balance. Her suitcase landed with a thud as she jerked it over the offending curb.
Quickly, she lifted her chin up to see if anyone noticed.
Ryan raised an eyebrow.
Lisa took a deep breath in through her nose, resisting the challenge. Yep, she had everything under control.
Or not.
But she was darned sure gonna fake it ‘til she made it. No one in Las Vegas would notice a little more fake, would they?
When they all got to the car, Ryan realized immediately he had a big problem on his hands. His fancy European sports car really wasn’t made to chauffeur four grown adults, two suitcases, two carry-on bags, two purses, and one oversized bouquet of roses.
He ran a hand through his hair in a swipe of frustration. He loved Pops, but everything about today had been crazy. If Pops had just been honest with him, maybe they could have made plans for transportation with an adequate number of seats and square feet of trunk space. If Pops had come clean from the start, maybe they wouldn’t have been in this predicament at all. Because Ryan would have tried every negotiation skill at his disposal to talk Pops out of this craziness.
Which Pops obviously knew, the crafty old man.
And so, that brought Ryan to standing outside a black convertible sports car in a parking garage, wondering how everything—including the accompanying cast of characters—was going to wedge in there.
“Pops? Where are we going? I’m not taking these ladies back to your retirement home, am I?”
“Well, of course not, Ryan. It’s not a hotel. I made Gina Mae a reservation at your place. In the honeymoon suite.” Pops’ eyes lit up with an arctic twinkle.
“At my place? You mean the Renaissance Grand?” The honeymoon suite at the newest and most talked about hotel on the Vegas strip did not come cheap.
Pops nodded as he opened the door. “Yes, sir. I put my girl there because I thought you’d be able to help her if she needed anything. She wasn’t sure her great-granddaughter would come, but since she’s here now, maybe you can help me with getting her a room too.”
“Wait. Don’t get in the car yet. I’m not sure how everything’s going to fit, Pops.” He popped open the trunk and picked up the first suitcase, trying a few different angles to get them to both fit. His game of suitcase Tetris worked, but barely.
With that task completed, Ryan turned his attention back to Pops and the limited space inside the car.
“So, can you help me get another room at your place, Ryan?” Pops leaned over and slid the seat forward, then started to help Gina Mae into the half-sized back seat.
Out of the corner of his eye, Ryan noticed Gina Mae’s great-granddaughter standing cautiously to the side. Clearly, she didn’t want to get in Pops’ way, but she wasn’t convinced her assistance was not going to be needed. Ryan recognized the skeptical half-scowl on her face because it was written across his own. He could feel his eyebrows knitted into a quirky furrow.
“Your place?” The skepticism wasn’t just pasted on her face. It was woven through her voice too. “Do you own the hotel or something?”
Ryan had lived out under the glittering lights of Vegas long enough to automatically read into that statement. In this world, things were so often not what they seemed. And that included a long-lost girlfriend and her tag-along great-granddaughter.
Ryan hated that “gold digger” popped into his mind immediately. But he’d been trained a long time ago to look for signs and to anticipate the next move and then the next, and the next, so on until he reached the end game.
Why would some Social Security recipient find his grandfather online and drag along her great-granddaughter on this trip? Gina Mae seemed sincere and her great-granddaughter looked a little overwhelmed. But in this stop in the Nevada desert, things just were rarely what they seemed.
Everyone had a story.
And everyone knew that what happened in Vegas stayed in Vegas.
Except for this time. Ryan knew something didn’t add up. He knew these two would not be staying in Vegas. They were on the next plane back to Texas, even if he had to charter a flight himself.
“Ryan?” Pops’s voice had the bark of a drill sergeant.
“Yeah?” Ryan answered without a thought, still trying to make sense of what was going on.
“The young lady asked you a question. Are you going to reply?”
Pops’s tone and words made Ryan feel very small. He hadn’t been taken down a notch in a long time. As the winner of the last four consecutive Global Poker Challenge rings, most people in this town knew who Ryan McBride was. And they all treated him with a champion’s deference.
“No, it’s not my hotel. I just live there.” Ryan looked over the convertible top of the car at the woman with the honey-blonde curls that fell over her shoulders and trailed down her back. “Pops? What are you doing?”
Bill ducked his head low and squished like a crab into the narrow back seat of the car.
“Sitting with my sweetheart. Is that okay?”
Ryan pushed his hand through his hair again. He usually carefully controlled all physical signs of emotion, reluctant to ever tip off an opponent. It was a key to playing good poker.
Good thing he was not at a table this afternoon. There was no way he could ever have concealed everything he thought about this whole crazy trip.
“Sure, Pops. I just didn’t think you two would fit comfortably back there. I’m not even sure that seat is made to hold preschoolers.”
“Well, I wouldn’t say it’s comfortable, but we’ll do.” Bill squeezed the hand of the woman next to him and looked into her eyes with a relaxed smile. “Right, Gina Mae?”
Her smile bookended his. “Right as rain, Bill. My flowers are a bit squashed, though. Lisa Marie, get in the car and hold these, will you?”
Ryan saw Lisa exhale sharply. “Sure, Nana. Pass them up.”
Lisa ducked and slid into the front seat, then moved it up to give some more room to the cramped passengers in the back seat. She laid the proffered bouquet in her lap. Ryan caught a glimpse of her as he started the car and adjusted the volume on the radio. Between the curly hair, pinned up in a clip at the crown of her head, and the oversized riot of flowers, Lisa looked like an exasperated beauty queen.
In a town where most of the beauty was exactly as the adage said—skin deep—something about Lisa’s soft features made Ryan do a brief double-take. He wasn’t used to seeing a woman with no makeup and her hair carelessly secured with a plastic clip. For all that he didn’t understand why she was here or what her endgame would wind up proving to be, something about her was refreshing.
Ryan mentally slapped himself as he backed out of the parking space. It was never just about the chips your opponent put on the table or the cards they showed.
It was always about the endgame.
And until Ryan McBride knew what Lisa Marie Fleming and her little great-grandmother were up to, then he needed to stay on top of his own game so he and Pops didn’t come up with the losing hand.
No mental lapses. No loss of concentration. No signs that gave away his thoughts.
And no second glances at a clean, fresh face framed by some spiral waves of honey and brown sugar.
“Mr. McBride. It’s good to see you.” A uniformed man opened the door as they pulled under the valet porte-cochere at the Renaissance Grand. Another uniformed man materialized at Lisa’s door and swung it open, then helped her get out.
What in the name of Velvet Elvis were they wearing? Were those pantaloons?
Lisa narrowed her gaze, studying the strips of red and black and gold fabric fashioned into some kind of bubble shorts.
There were tights.
And feathers in floppy velvet berets.
She was looking at both of the freaking gentlemen of Verona. Good grief. Wait until she told her best friend Amanda—the English teacher back at Port Provident High School who loved all things Shakespeare.
Lisa stood back and looked at everything else surrounding her. Shades of red and gold and black set the tone for the entire entrance. The floor into the main lobby was black marble, polished to a high shine. A red carpet rolled out to the edge of the sidewalk. Lisa walked over to it to wait out of the way of the hustle and bustle. She remembered attending the Tony Awards years ago, stunned by all the glitter, spotlights, and theater royalty.
That night felt special, otherworldly. She had to admit that the Renaissance Grand felt much the same right now.
This was definitely like no other world she’d ever seen.
She’d been sucked into some parallel-universe-other-dimension-time-warp thing.
But she couldn’t lose her focus on the one thing that did make sense: getting Nana on the next possible plane back to Texas.
And while she was at it, Lisa silently thanked the little twinkling stars on the fake Da Vinci-styled ceiling above her that there were no men in velvet berets in Texas.
“Nana? Are you okay?” Lisa called to her great-grandmother, being gently escorted to the red carpet by one of the Veronian-style doormen on one side, and Bill on the other. The uniformed man who’d opened Ryan’s door grabbed both of the suitcases effortlessly, and as they neared the valet station, Lisa saw Ryan hold out a small roll of green-and-cream bills as a note of thanks.
“Should we take your car over to the residence's garage, Mr. McBride, or will you be coming back for it soon?” The man with the suitcases reached out, took the tip, and discreetly tucked them in his pocket.
“Go ahead and take her back to my space, Kip. I’m playing in the celebrity lead-up to the charity tournament tonight. It’ll be a short walk home.”
“Charity tournament?” Ryan’s grandfather turned with an emotional reaction. “Ryan, our rehearsal dinner is tonight. You’ve got to come with us.”
Ryan came up alongside his grandfather as Gina Mae hesitated behind them slightly. “Pops, I’ve been booked to play tonight for months. You’ve kind of sprung this whole wedding bells scenario on me in just the last hour or so, and I still don’t quite understand why you kept this all a secret. Where are you having dinner? What time?”
The gentleman stopped and leaned up against the first black marble pillar just inside the door. “Well, I don’t have a place yet. I was hoping you could recommend something. You know all the best places here.”
“Pops, I know a lot of great places. And the best are booked well in advance.” Ryan looked toward the corner of the room, then continued to follow the man with the suitcases to the reception desk. “Which I might could have helped you with if you’d given me a heads up about your plans.”
Bill looked at Ryan and gave him a shrug, then looked down at the floor. “You’d have talked me out of it, Son. I didn’t want you calculating the odds,” he said, the words almost falling under his breath. Bill waited for Gina Mae to catch up. Once her hand was firmly in his again, they both followed in Ryan’s wake.
Lisa trailed behind, feeling no hurry to get checked in. Despite the anachronistic Veronians, the hotel was beautiful. Shiny, bold colors were everywhere. The decoration was impeccable and modern yet with a strong Italian Renaissance feel.
Every tell-tale sign pointed to the fact that this wasn’t a place she’d choose to stay on a teacher’s salary. She’d have to figure out which almost-maxed-out credit card to put the next few days on. Lisa thought about the air conditioner repair her car needed and mentally moved it back several months on the calendar. Summer in Texas without A/C in her car was going to stink—literally—she’d be a sweating mess—but getting Nana out of here safely came before any creature comforts.
Even though Lisa wished she could find an online coupon and book the smallest room this place offered, as best she could figure out from the conversation between Ryan and the valet, Ryan lived somewhere nearby. He’d said he was playing in a tournament tonight. Surely he didn’t afford a residence in all this luxury by gambling?
Based on what he’d said back at the airport, it was more likely that he had some kind of ownership share in this hotel or something equally out of Lisa’s orbit.
Whatever he did, Ryan McBride clearly did it well.
Because Lisa was not at Port Provident High School anymore. This was a world of glitz she’d only heard of from others. And she was pretty sure everything about Ryan McBride and Las Vegas was way, way out of her league.
And Nana’s too.
Everything in this lobby strengthened Lisa’s resolve to get Nana out of this mess and get her the help she needed to make sure she was living out the rest of her years comfortably. Nana had practically raised her and had supported Lisa’s long-dimmed Broadway dreams. She deserved to have Lisa looking out for her now. The tables had turned, and it was Lisa’s obligation—no, privilege—to take care of the one person who’d never let her down.
Lisa looked at Nana, gently supported by Bill as they caught up to Ryan at the front desk. The older gentleman seemed sincere. And the look on his face at the airport when he took Nana into his arms had been just precious.
But that didn’t mean the plans Nana and Bill had apparently made were in either of their best interests.
Nana had always looked out for what was best for Lisa. She’d given sound counsel and wise advice through the years. Lisa could do no less for Nana now.
“We’ve got everything taken care of, Mr. McBride. You know we’ll always do what we can for you, sir.”
Lisa made it to the counter in time to watch Ryan place a b
lack American Express Centurion card on the marble countertop. The onyx plastic blended almost perfectly with the surface on which it had been so casually laid.
AmEx Black. Wow. She’d heard about them, but never actually seen one. She didn’t play in that league, herself—a charge card given by invitation only, to people with eight figures of net worth and an annual income of more than a million dollars a year.
Quickly, she revised her estimation of Ryan McBride’s league.
She wasn’t just way, way out of it. She was way, way, way out of it.
Like millions upon millions of ways out of it.
“So, we’ll be at the Gran Mona Lisa at six-thirty, Russell. That will give my grandfather and his bride here enough time to dine and I can still be at the celebrity thing for the charity tournament by nine-thirty.” Ryan tucked the sleek rectangle of black plastic back in his wallet after the man behind the counter swiped it.
Lisa wondered if his wallet would slide back in those form-fitting jeans easily and caught herself staring just a little too long at some of Ryan McBride’s more valuable assets in front of her.
She blew out a harsh breath through pursed lips, mentally chiding herself for thinking more about Ryan McBride than her mission to protect Nana. She only had a matter of days to get this straightened out and get Nana on a plane back home—and booked in for a follow-up with the dementia specialist—without a wedding ring in tow.
“Lisa Marie? Are you okay?” Nana’s voice brought Lisa back to the here and now.
“Sure, Nana. Just a long day, that’s all. Some of us have been up since five-thirty this morning, in another time zone.”
“Well, it’s five o’clock now,” Bill said. “Why don’t you ladies go get some rest and get freshened up. We’ll meet you at the restaurant for dinner. What floor is it on, Ryan?”
“Fourth. Where are you going until dinner, Pops?”
“I thought I could go back to your place.”
Ryan shrugged. “Sure, but it’s kind of a long way over to the residence tower. I may live at the Renaissance Grand, but where I live isn’t the same as the hotel. I can get one of the guys to get you a golf cart to shuttle you over there.”
Lucky in Love Page 2
