Page 64 of Never Stop

“I didn’t know he was a pro!” Avery groaned.

“You think it’s going to look good for you if you beat your bosses?” I smirked to Gary.

He laughed. “I’ll take my chances. Plus, I could use an extra five-hundred dollars. Gas money for Boston.” He winked.

Avery and I laughed. We totally knew the cost in that expense. My laughter trailed off as I noticed a few people flash something at a guy near a stairwell and then proceed to descend after he nodded an okay.

“What’s down there?” I asked.

“That’s for tournaments,” a female voice said, causing me to look away from the doorway. She was standing near our table, and had a Jessica Rabbit vibe going on.

“But what are they flashing?” I questioned, not caring she’d eavesdropped.

The redhead smiled. “You can’t just walk in there and play. It’s invite only.”

My brows furrowed as I processed what she’d said.

“How do we get invited?” Avery asked.

“It’s all in who you know.” Her grin widened.

“Are you invited?” Gary asked.

She laughed. “I may know a guy.”

Gary stepped closer to her. “Yeah? Can we get invited?”

“What?” I laughed. “You want to play a tournament now?”

“How much is the buy-in?” Gary asked the redhead, ignoring me.

“A thousand.”

I laughed at the ridiculous amount, waiting for Gary to say never mind so we could go back to playing our games.

Instead, he questioned, “Per person?”

She nodded. “Yeah. You can win around eight grand if all the tables fill. Well, seven after your initial buy-in.”

My eyes widened, and I looked at Avery, silently asking if he thought Gary was interested. He nodded.

Fuck.

Gary turned to us. “I think we should do it if we can get in.”

“Are you fucking insane?” I snapped. “We agreed on five hundred and now you want us to put up a thousand dollarseach?”

“It will increase your odds to win, and you can take the money and pay for that honeymoon.” He smiled. “Worse case, you’re out a thousand and so are we. If one of us wins, then we all get our money back, and you can keep the extra five.”

I stared at him. Was he fucking serious?

“I didn’t say I could get you in for sure.” The redhead ran her fiery red nail down Gary’s chest and he watched her hand with a smirk on his face.

“Hold up, sweetheart. Let me talk to my boys.” Avery motioned for us to form a huddle where I was sitting.

“No,” I clipped as soon as we were within inches of each other.

“Come on, boss. If there are only eight players, we have around a thirty-seven percent chance. They only have about twelve percent. Give or take,” Gary stated.