Page 4 of Restless Hawke

That bet against Atlas was supposed to stop the bleeding, get me back everything I had lost. Instead, it only twisted the knife deeper.

This pile in the middle of the table is another small dent in what I owe Satriano.

Two million out of ten.

That number still shocks me at times.

Ten million…

All to fund that downward spiral I set myself on, always believing I would win it back. Always so confident that the horrible slide would eventually level out. Always so sure I could secure the next big win and then act like none of it had ever happened.

Fuck was I an idiot…

I push up from my chair and step back from the table.

All I want after a game like that is a stiff drink and to fall into bed.

The lights and sounds of the casino assault me the moment I step out of the poker room. Thousands of people fill the floor, many completely oblivious to the fact that they’ve been sucked in by quicksand that will suffocate them and wring them dry.

Most don’t have the skill to survive in a place like this.

The games are designed to lose.

And the house always wins.

Which is why poker has been my game.

I prefer my opponents to have names and faces, to be able to read them for all the little tells, knowing the deck isn’t already stacked against me the way it is with any other casino game. And normally, I would prefer to celebrate a win properly—with a strong drink and a warm, willing body under me.

But I shouldn’t stay any longer than necessary.

The more time I spend here, the greater the chance one of the Hawke spies will get word back to the family about where I am, and if they interfere, everything will become even more of a shitstorm than it already is. So, going back to my comped suite upstairs, packing, and heading out to the next game is the wisest plan.

I make my way past the central bar toward the guest elevators when that same flash of shiny green catches my eye again.

My steps falter, and I pause to examine the back of the woman sitting alone at the bar, sipping lazily from a martini glass.

Slender shoulders taper down to a stunning ass hugged in the skin-tight, shimmery emerald fabric.

Ishouldkeep walking.

Ishouldleave.

But I want to celebrate.

And one night here with her would be worth any risk that staying in one place for too long might pose.

One night…or maybe two.

Because even though I haven’t seen her face yet, those lush curves and the way her body swayed when she walked away earlier are enough to tell me I won’t get enough ofherin the hours we have left before tomorrow morning.

* * *

ALLEGRA

The sharp acidityof my cosmopolitan makes my lips purse as I swallow, but I relish the heat that spreads through my body the moment it hits my stomach, my shoulders relaxing slightly.

Damn. I needed this…