Page 35 of Reputation (Toronto Royals #1)
Chapter Twenty Two
Eavie
The casino at the MGM Grand was a swirling cacophony of levels, crowded with games and people. Everywhere you turned, sounds and neon lights were flashing, beckoning people to play. The low lighting and patterned carpet added to the overwhelming stimulation crammed into every corner.
They descended a small set of stairs into the main pit, wandering down the aisles and around tables, surveying what was on offer. Eavie wasn’t someone who gambled often—or ever—but since she was here, she thought she might as well have a bit of fun.
As she considered which of the many games she wanted to try, they ordered drinks from a passing server. With her gin and tonic in hand, she followed Molly to a roulette table, where she stood, watching as she sipped the cool cocktail.
Molly, apparently a big roulette fan, placed a bet right away while Eavie continued to watch, deciding whether she wanted to try it.
After a handful of rounds, Eavie decided to place a bet. She’d never played before but knew the basic concepts, and Molly filled her in on how to play.
“For your first turn, I recommend betting on the outside. The odds are better, and it’ll give you a feel for it,” Molly said, pointing to the outer squares of the inset table. “The boxes on the perimeter have higher probabilities.”
“Got it,” Eavie said, nodding as she considered what bet to place. Her eyes narrowed as she scrutinized the board.
Beside her, Molly let out a low chuckle. “Roulette isn’t a game you can calculate,” she said. “It’s a feeling. Just look at the board and place your bet on whatever box feels positive to you.”
Eavie bit her lips, the idea of doing something based on feeling utterly foreign to her. She always made her decisions based on sound logic and careful considerations.
Molly shook her head as she laughed again, seeing Eavie’s discomfort. “Come on, just try it,” she said, placing a token in her hand.
Blowing out a breath, Eavie fixed her gaze back on the table, trying not to focus too much on thinking and instead on feeling, as Molly had said. Taking a deep breath, she looked first at the color boxes. Red or black.
Letting her instincts come forward, she reached out and placed her token on red. A small smile pulled at her lips as her fingers grazed the green felt. She took another of her tokens and placed one more bet, this time on the even square.
It was strange, letting herself choose based on nothing more than feeling, but she found it pleasantly satisfying. It felt as if something had loosened in her mind, relinquishing control to her instincts.
The dealer called no more bets as he swept his hand across the table. The wheel spun as the ball circled the outside, everyone focused on awaiting the results. The ball jumped suddenly, bouncing across the wheel before it settled into one of the divots.
When the wheel stopped, the dealer called “Fourteen red.”
Movement began around the table as chips were raked in and doled out. The dealer pushed twenty dollars in chips back toward Eavie, her win doubling her ten-dollar bet.
Smiling, she gave Molly an excited look. “Okay, that was fun.”
Molly nodded. “See what happens when you give your mind a vacation,” she said, giving her a pointed look.
Eavie’s lips pinched even as she smiled. “Yeah, yeah,” she muttered, placing another bet on the table.
This time, she placed a five-dollar chip on thirteen-twenty-four and red. When the spinner stopped on seventeen black, she collected her fifteen-dollar win.
They continued playing for some time, the small pile of chips growing in front of both of them.
Molly was more comfortable placing larger bets while Eavie continued with her small wins, slowly growing in her confidence to bet on the inside.
Placing a twenty-five-dollar bet on eleven, black and even, she couldn’t help the little jump of excitement when she won a hundred dollars back.
“Okay, I’m going to stop there,” she said, collecting her chips into her clutch.
“Are you sure?” Molly asked, turning toward her. “We haven’t been playing that long.”
“Yeah, I’m going to wait, maybe play something else.”
“Do you mind if I play a little longer?” Molly asked.
“No, no, keep going. I’m going to go to the bathroom. I’ll be right back.”
Molly nodded, taking a sip of her vodka tonic.
Turning, Eavie picked her way through the crowd, lights flashing all around her.
As she neared the bathrooms, she felt an odd sensation of being watched.
Tingles snaked their way down her bare spine as she stepped around a young group of what appeared to be a bachelor party.
All the men wore t-shirts that said, “Game Over: Kevin’s Final Round. ”
Eavie shook her head, wondering why t-shirts like that always made getting married sound like the men were being forced into that life. If that was how they thought of it, they probably shouldn’t be getting married. That, and the fact that they looked like they couldn’t be older than twenty-five.
“Excuse me,” she muttered as she slid carefully between two of them.
They both looked at her, gazes unfocused. The one to her right with short blond hair gave her an overly enthusiastic grin. They were definitely several drinking hours deep.
“Hello, gorgeous,” he said, eyes racking her up and down in a way that made her uncomfortable. “My friend may be getting married, but I’m single.”
Slowly, she fixed him with a hard look. She didn’t trust that for a second, and she was not about to be the reason some poor girl suffered the heartbreak of a cheating boyfriend, even if she would likely be better off.
She gave him an equally assessing look, starting with his too-perfectly styled hair and brown glassy eyes, down to his loafers with no socks. This close, she corrected her assumption about his age. He looked like he couldn’t be older than twenty-one or two.
Dragging her gaze back up, she gave him a cold smile. “Aw, look. A lion cub escaped the zoo,” she said, tilting her head condescendingly.
His friends chuckled as he narrowed his eyes at her. Stepping closer than was comfortable for her, he answered, “Trust me, sweetheart. I’m fully grown. How about I show you how I roar?”
She wanted to laugh, but was cognizant of what could happen if she pissed him off. She knew how to defend herself—kickboxing was good for more than just an intense workout, but she wasn’t stupid and knew what could happen with a group of drunk men with no inhibitions.
Taking a step back, she glared at him. “First of all, I’m not your sweetheart,” she said. “Second, I eat boys like you for breakfast.”
Turning, she stepped around them before he, or any of the others, could answer.
Despite the laughter from his friends, her shoulders remained rigid as she quickly closed the distance to the bathroom.
She could feel eyes tracking her, the sensation like a physical touch.
She could feel a simmering anger in the look that made her heart beat faster.
Inside the ladies’ room, she closed the door firmly behind her.
The heavy material dulled the noise of the casino to a muffled pulse, making the quiet of the bathroom feel removed.
Walking up to the sink, she looked around to make sure she was alone.
Miraculously, all the stalls were empty and, besides the dull noise outside the door, there was no sound other than her own heart beating in her ears.
Bracing her hands on either side of the black porcelain, she sucked in air as the cool stone of the countertop burned her overheated skin.
What she had said was probably not her best decision. She should have just walked away, but how he’d looked at her made her feel the need to put him in his place.
Rolling out her shoulders, she let the stupidity of the moment go, taking comfort in knowing the group had likely moved on to whatever activity was next on their agenda. Probably some overpriced strip club.
When she felt she’d collected herself enough, she opened her clutch and pulled out her lip gloss. Applying a fresh layer to her lips, she smushed them together to bring some swell to them. Emerging back into the brightness of the casino floor, she found her way back to where she’d left Molly.
Stepping close to her, she bent to speak into her ear. “I’m going to go get a drink at the bar,” she said, needing something to help shake off the altercation. She hated that the guy had left her feeling shaky.
At Molly’s nod, she beelined for the bar on the other side. The sign above the entrance arch said Whiskey Down. Climbing the three steps, she moved toward the bar, sitting on one of the dark brown leather stools.
“What can I get you?” the tall, dark-haired bartender asked.
“Gin and tonic,” she said, a weak smile pulling at her lips.
When he set the drink down in front of her, she took a large sip, letting the cool liquid settle her nerves.
Blowing out a breath, she looked out the open arches toward where she could see Molly still playing roulette. Keeping one eye on her co-worker and new friend, she turned to look back at the shelves behind the bar.
As she continued to sip her drink, she slowly felt herself relax. She rested her crossed arms on the bar, suddenly feeling exhausted. Between the packed travel, her job and the complication that was Jax, she felt like a tightly wound rubber band, ready to snap.
Lost in thought, she didn’t see the guy approaching her as she sat alone at the bar.
“Hey, sweetheart,” he said, the words coming out slurred.
Looking to her left, her back straightened as she spotted the blond from the bachelor party standing next to her.
Rolling her eyes to herself, she muttered fuck before tossing back the rest of her drink.
Placing the empty glass on the bar, she laid some cash beside it before swiveling the chair to get up.