If Max was serious.
I hoped he was serious.
I wasn’t buying in without testing him. “Why would you help me?”
“I like you.”
That seemed too simple. Also, it seemed unlikely. “You wouldn’t betray your brother for some random woman.”
“I don’t consider you some random woman.”
“I showed up randomly in your life two days ago.”
“Three days ago, and it was more inevitable than random.”
I guess I knew what he meant. First we saw each other in San Francisco. I wasn’t about to ask if he’d felt something then, but I sure remembered the impact on me. Then there was the lobby lounge in Vegas, then dinner, then Brooklyn and Colton.
It did have an air of inevitability around it.
“It’s still only three days,” I said. “And he is your twin brother.”
“And I don’t want to see him make a mistake.”
Now I had hope. “You think it’s a mistake?”
“I give it fifty-fifty.”
“I’d give it less than that.”
“I’ve seen them together. They think it’s real.”
“They’re wrong,” I said.
“Do you want my help or not?”
“Yes. I do.”
“Good. Rick’s back.”
I looked at the hillside and saw Rick coming our way. The sun was falling behind him, and the shadows were getting longer. We’d been away from the hotel for a long time. Brooklyn had to be wondering where I’d gone.
“Did you tell anyone we went up in the balloon?” I asked Max.
I hadn’t texted Brooklyn. Mostly because I thought we’d be back before she and Colton returned. And also because I didn’t want her getting the impression I’d gone on a date with Max.
It was a fake date.
If it was an actual date, there’d have been intimacy—flirting, kissing and hugging and things like that.
As I rationalized, I couldn’t help but remember being in his arms when the balloon went down. But that didn’t count. I’d feared for my life. Any strong man’s arms around me would have felt good.
“I didn’t tell anyone,” Max said.
“So they don’t know where we are?”
“We can tell them all about it when we get back. It’ll make a really good story.”
“That you saved my life.” I guess if I was Max, I’d be bragging, too.
“I didn’t save your life.” He paused. “Maybe your ankle. I probably saved you from a broken ankle.”
“Thank you,” I said.
He chuckled. “I wasn’t fishing for that.”
Rick grew closer. “Help is on the way!”
* * *
The helicopter that flew us out of the desert brought us all the way to the hotel.
It was my first and only time using a rooftop landing pad. I had to admit, I found it incredibly efficient. I could see why the superrich liked to travel that way. It sure beat fighting traffic in my Honda on Route 99.
I called Brooklyn from the express elevator.
It took a few rings, and she sounded breathless when she picked up. “Layla!”
I didn’t want to imagine what I’d interrupted, and I didn’t ask. “Hi.”
“What time is it?”
“Just after six.”
“I was going to call you earlier.” Her words were rushed.
I realized then that she hadn’t even noticed I was gone. There was no way that was good.
“But I got distracted,” Brooklyn continued.
“James called,” I said, hoping to shake her up a little.
She paused, as I’d hoped she would. Her tone turned cautious. “What did he want?”
The question struck me as ridiculous. “He wanted you. He wanted to know what was taking so long. He wanted to come here to see you.”
Her voice went up an octave, the sound of panic creeping into it. “He can’t do that.”
“In fact, he can.”
“I need more time, more time to think. Seeing him is going to mess me up.”
I took pity on her. I don’t know why, but I did. “He’s not coming. I talked him out of it.”
“Good.” Brooklyn seemed to calm down. “That’s good. You’re the best.”
“No, I’m not.” I felt like a traitor.
“Where are you right now?” she asked.
“I’m in the hotel.”
“I’ll come and meet you.”
I could hear in the phone that she was walking now. I was encouraged that she wanted to meet me right away. We needed to find somewhere to talk—not that I was exactly sure what more I could say. But I had to keep trying. I had to keep trying for as long as it took.
“Do you have plans tonight?” she asked.
What a nonsensical question. No, I didn’t have plans tonight. She was my plans for as long as we were stuck in Vegas.
“I’m free,” I said.
“Because, well, Colton has tickets to the Twenties Tangle.”
Colton, Colton, Colton. I wanted to bang my head against the elevator.
“He’s had the tickets for months,” she said.
I didn’t care if he’d had the tickets for years. “Can he not go alone?” I caught Max’s quizzical gaze.
“It’s a dance,” Brooklyn said.
“You’re going to a dance?”
Her world was falling apart around her, and she was going to a dance?
“The Twenties Tangle,” Max said to me.
I gave him a glare of frustration.
“We found this supercool flapper dress,” Brooklyn said.
I covered my phone. “Your brother needs to stop.”
“Stop what?”
“It’s all silver and black,” Brooklyn said into my ear. “With lace and tassels and sequins. There’s a rhinestone headband, and you should see the shoes.”
“Buying Brooklyn’s affections,” I said to Max.
He moved closer, keeping his voice low. “With what?”
“A dress.”
“A dress?” He looked puzzled. “I thought maybe some diamonds or a car.”
I gave him a shove with my shoulder.
He didn’t even budge.
“We need to talk,” I said to Brooklyn. “We need to have a really good talk.”
“The dress is in my room. Do you want to see it?”
“No, I don’t want to see your dress.”
“I have tickets,” Max said to me. “We can go with them.”
I covered my phone again. “That’s your big plan to break them up? A double date?”
“You want a dress?”
“No.” I was insulted. “I will not be bought.”
“It’s a great party.”
“I’m not here to party.”
“Brooklyn seems like she’s here to party. And we can’t break them up if we’re not with them.”
I opened my mouth to shoot down the idea, but I realized he was making sense.
If I couldn’t get Brooklyn to skip the dance—which seemed like a tall order, given her level of excitement—maybe the next best thing was to follow her there. It would be a whole lot harder for her to avoid me if we were in the same room.
“Fine,” I said to Max.
“You’ll take the dress?”
“I’ll go to the dance.”
“Then you will need a dress.”
“Layla?” Brooklyn asked, clearly puzzled by my silence.
“I’m here,” I answered her.
Brooklyn sounded fragile now, vulnerable as she spoke. “I really, really love the dress.”
“Fine,” I said. “I’ll come and see the dress.”
Max spoke u
p. “Colton’s suite is next to mine.”
Max’s words gave me pause on a whole bunch of fronts.
I’d made passionate love with Max right next door to where Brooklyn was staying? We could have been caught that very night. They might have seen us on the patio, or out in the hallway, or—or...
The elevator doors slid open. We’d arrived at the lobby.
“I’ll be there in three minutes,” I said.
“I can’t wait to show you.” Brooklyn ended the call.
“How do you want to play this?” Max asked as we made our way through the main lobby.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Kendrick,” a staff member greeted him in passing.
“Afternoon, Brian,” Max responded.
I couldn’t help but comment. “Of course, you know him, too.”
“He’s the events manager.”
Other staff members watched our progress. I realized they were wondering who I was.
“Just another date, people,” I muttered under my breath. “He does this all the time.”
“Pardon me?” Max asked.
“Everyone’s staring at me.”
“They’re staring at me. They’re wondering when I’m going to give them their next raise. So do we just up and admit we’re going to the Twenties Tangle together? Or do you want me to casually bring it up? I can hang back and arrive after you, or we can tell them about the balloon trip.”
“You mean the balloon crash.”
“I wouldn’t lead with that. It’ll probably upset Brooklyn.”
I knew there was wisdom in his advice.
“I’ll go in first,” I said. “You arrive casually in a few minutes and then mention you have an extra ticket—at an appropriate point.”
“And the balloon adventure?”
“We’ll play it by ear.” It wasn’t a secret, but if Brooklyn knew Max and I had spent virtually the entire day together, she’d start getting more ideas about us. I didn’t need that, and neither did Max.
* * *
“If I don’t buy you a dress, Colton will,” Max said as we left Colton’s suite. It was a mirror of Max’s next door.
Brooklyn was thrilled when I’d agreed to come to the dance. I’d made them work to get my yes, and Max had played along quite brilliantly.
I figured Brooklyn would get all speculative on my feelings toward Max if I gave in too easily. Plus, I’d honestly held out hope that she’d change her mind and would spend the evening alone with me instead of going with Colton—wrong about that.
“You might as well pick it out for yourself,” Max said.
I knew I didn’t want to be indebted to Colton for a dress. And I knew Brooklyn would show up with something for me if she thought I had nothing to wear.
I decided Max was the lesser of two evils.
The other option was buying my own dress. A strong independent modern woman would likely insist on that.
But this strong independent modern woman had mortgage and car payments coming due, and she’d covered a whole lot of incidental expenses leading up to a wedding that might not even happen. Plus, I rationalized, it was Max’s and Colton’s fault I was in this mess, and this was no more than pocket change for Max.
I didn’t really buy into that rationalization. But I did allow myself to be swayed by the mortgage payment and the fact that I’d only wear the dress once.
“Fine,” I said to Max. “Buy me a stupid dress.”
“You had to think a long time on that.”
“I’m not thrilled about the idea of having a strange man buy me a dress.”
“But...” he said.
“But what?”
“There has to be a but, since you said yes, anyway.”
“But I have a mortgage payment coming up.” I was going with blunt honesty from here on in. I didn’t particularly care how embarrassing it got.
There was no point in pretending I had money. I was an ordinary schoolteacher with a nine-hundred-square-foot condo and a ten-year-old car.
He gave a low whistle. “Exactly how much are you planning to spend on this dress?”
I knew he was joking. At least I was pretty sure he was joking.
“A lot,” I said. “I’m attending this dance under protest, and I have zero scruples about maxing out your credit card to look good doing it.”
He grinned. “This I have got to see.”
Before I knew it, we were out front of the hotel.
Max held up a hand, and a black SUV eased to a stop in front of us.
The driver jumped out, but Max was already opening the back door for me.
“Where to?” The driver asked.
“Crystal’s.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Do they sell costumes?” I asked as I slid into the seat.
“They sell everything.”
Max sat down beside me and the vehicle glided onto the Strip.
I watched the people on the crowded sidewalks while Max sent a text to someone.
I sent my own text, alerting Brooklyn to my dress-shopping expedition so she didn’t get any strange ideas of her own.
A few blocks later we pulled up to a bank of glass doors set in a gleaming geometric building.
A man in a suit jacket opened Max’s door.
“Mr. Kendrick,” the man said. “I’m Dalton Leonard, an assistant manager here at the Crystal Shops.”
“Hello, Dalton.”
Max stood, then he turned to offer me his hand.
Feeling like I’d wandered into a fairy tale, I took his hand to steady myself.
“We’re attending the Twenties Tangle,” Max said.
Dalton turned his attention to me. “I’m happy to be of assistance, ma’am.”
“Layla,” I said to him and offered my hand.
He shook. “Of course, ma’am. Might I suggest Andante’s on the second floor?”
“Sure.” I wasn’t about to argue. I was along for the ride on this one.
He gave a sharp nod. “Their selection of period dresses is wonderful. They also have modern ensembles with a nod to the past, if you’d like to go that route.”
I wasn’t at all sure what route I wanted to go.
“This way.” Dalton gestured to the glass doors.
As we entered the opulent shopping mall, I was even less sure of what route I wanted to go—maybe straight back out the front door. I knew I’d joked about spending Max’s money, but now that the reality of high-end Vegas shopping was staring me in the face, I didn’t know if I had the nerve.
Don’t get me wrong, I like designer brands. Brooklyn and I spent many happy hours haunting the outlet stores looking for good bargains. Brooklyn had a flair, and I had learned quite a lot over the years.
But paying full-blown retail in a place as fancy as this was enough to make my mouth go dry and double my pulse rate.
“You asked for it,” Max whispered in my ear as we walked.
It was then that I realized I was still holding his hand.
“Are you testing me?”
“Maybe. If you want to back out, there’s a used clothing store north off the Strip.”
“There is?” I stopped.
I wished he’d said something sooner. I could afford to buy my own dress at a used clothing store. It was a perfect solution. Where else did a strong, independent, modern, smart woman go to buy a dress she’d only wear once?
Max tugged on my arm. “Oh, no you don’t. We have a deal.”
I peered at his smug expression. “You were testing me there, too, weren’t you? There is no used clothing store.”
“Not in your future. Dalton’s getting away.”
“Let him.”
“That would be rude.” Max kept tugging, and I started walking.
“I don’t
need a brand-new dress,” I said.
“You may not need one, but you’re getting one.”
“I’ll take the used option, thank you.”
“That’s way too much trouble, and not nearly as much fun.”
I wasn’t sure I was capable of having fun at this. It wasn’t like I was going to enjoy the dance. This extravagant shopping trip was wasted on me, and Max should be spending his money on some other woman.
Wait a minute.
“Who were you planning on taking to the dance?” I asked.
“Nobody.”
“You’re lying.”
“I’m not lying.”
“The dance is tonight. You already had tickets. You must have had a date. Is that who you texted in the car? Please don’t tell me you broke some poor girl’s heart.”
“I didn’t break anyone’s heart. I texted the Crystal Shops office to have someone meet us out front so we didn’t have to traipse all over the mall to find the right store. But thanks for the vote of confidence.”
“What vote of confidence?”
“That I had the power to break a heart by breaking a date.”
“Well...” I didn’t exactly know what to say to that. I could deny it was what I meant. But I had absolutely no doubt he could break a woman’s heart by breaking a date.
“It’s a charity thing,” he said. “I always buy tickets, even if I’m not in town. I wasn’t planning to go.”
Now I felt guilty instead of stupid. “I’m sorry I’m making you go.”
“I offered. Here we are.”
Dalton had stopped outside the doorway to a clothing store.
I could tell by the plush carpet, the gleaming racks and the wide distances between the displays that the prices were going to be sky-high.
“If this doesn’t work for you,” Dalton said, “try Silver’s across the way.” He pointed to a dazzling sign. “Or one floor directly up is Ace and Night. They also carry period clothing.”
“Thank you, Dalton,” Max said.
“Nancy Roth is the store manager here at Andante’s. She’ll be happy to help if you have questions. Or call me if I can be of any additional help.” Dalton handed Max a business card, nodding to both of us before he walked away.
“You live in a weird world,” I said to Max.
“It’s the same world you live in.”
The Twin Switch (Millionaires Legacy Book 13; Gambling Men) Page 12
