Chapter 5 #2
Instead of answering me, they looked at each other and shook their heads. “Come on here. I’m not about to let y’all make me miss Death Row!” Crystal exclaimed.
The vibe in the casino was surprisingly chill.
The blue and bronze color scheme made things bold and vibrant.
The low hum of the music set the backdrop as we made a beeline for the casino floor.
Death Row’s show was phenomenal. I was still buzzing with excitement as we moved through the casino lobby to the high rollers area.
My girls had their minds set on finding a baller. All I wanted to do was continue to enjoy my night. I had about twenty dollars to spare before I was no longer interested in losing money, so I was going to play the slots if anything.
Honestly, with the three thousand dollars in car repairs that I needed, I couldn’t even afford to spend that. The night was about forgetting my problems, not focusing on them. With that in mind, I turned to my girls.
“I bet the bar in the high roller section is the best one,” I mentioned.
“Even if the drinks are watered down, I guarantee that’s where the high rollers drink.” Crystal agreed.
“I didn’t come here to sit at the bar. We are going to work the room and find the best roulette table,” Sade insisted.
“After we get one of these free cocktails. You know you love free shit, so stop fronting,” Crystal joked.
Sade laughed. “You got me there. I wonder what kind of shows they have next month. Death Row was so good. I’m ready to see another one.”
I rolled my eyes. I could already see her wheels turning as she tried to figure out how to get me back here again. “Humph, one outing is good enough for me. We gotta get through this one first.”
“You acting like this is the club, girl. We are at the casino. You ain’t gotta worry about no fights or shooting popping off. You ain’t gotta be on high alert tonight,” Sade insisted.
“Right, you ain’t Officer Sutton tonight. Tonight is the revival of Jameela Rice, the baddie.”
I laughed and shook my head, remembering my code-switching excuse. I used my mom’s madden name Rice when I was out debauching with my friends to identify the difference between cadet Jameela Sutton with the party girl I longed to be back then.
I loved to dance and party with my girls. It had been years since we had cut loose. Creating an alter ego helped me do just that. With that in mind, I knew that they would never let up on me if I didn’t loosen up and enjoy myself.
Luckily, that was exactly what I planned to do. That didn’t mean that I wouldn’t try to keep my girls under control. If I let Sade out of my sight, she was likely to turn the whole place out. With enough drinks in her system, my girl was buck wild. She would be standing on a roulette table dancing.
I loved that they didn’t mind having a good time when we were out of town where the people watching would never see us again.
I would turn a strange city out. Here, I had a name to uphold.
Even if most of my work was done behind the scenes and undercover, there were people who knew my dad and would have something to say if they saw me out acting a fool.
Now that I had a daughter, I was even more protective of my reputation.
“I hear y’all, but somebody has to keep a level head.”
“Well, it won’t be you tonight! We got a room. Even if we didn’t, I’m the driver. I volunteer to keep the level head. Y’all need to be trying to either bag a high roller or hit the jackpot,” Crystal warned.
“I volunteer for the jackpot with the way my car just died on me.”
As we made our way to the bar, I felt a searing heat crawl up my neck.
The atmosphere was relaxed, but the job caused me to always stay on my toes.
Even if I was there to force myself to have fun, I had enough sense to keep my eyes peeled for any foolishness that happened to ensue.
There was too much money and alcohol in circulation for me to think I could just let my guard down.
Tonight wasn’t about possible criminals. It was about letting my hair down and having fun. Even as I tried to focus on the conversation between my girls, I could have sworn I could still feel someone’s eyes on me. Was he here?
I had yet to see him, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t around.
Just to make sure that I wasn’t being paranoid, I casually scanned the room. As I eased onto the barstool, I slowly took in my surroundings. When the bartender walked over to take our orders, suddenly, there he was.
I caught myself before I could react to him, but the hitch in his brow said he noticed my surprise. He sat across the bar now with his eyes still locked on me. I refused to break eye contact because I wasn’t about to let him think he intimidated me, even if he kinda did.
My heart hammered in my chest as his smoldering gaze consumed me from the inside out.
How the hell did he look even better? The tailored black suit and matching shirt were a far cry from the T-shirt and jeans he was wearing yesterday.
This man was a chameleon. Now I had no idea what to think about him. What the hell had I gotten myself into?
The butterflies in my stomach woke up with a flutter as he stood quietly and straightened his jacket.
I hated the quiet command he had over me.
I was totally locked in as he moved closer.
I was sure whatever Sade was saying to us was as entertaining as it always was, but in the moment, all I could focus on was the man who was impossibly sexy and even taller than I remembered as he got closer and closer.
A hand on my arm tore my attention from Nicholas as I turned to face a man who had clearly been overserved.
I frowned as I carefully removed his hand from my arm.
I cocked my head to the side, waiting to see what he had to say.
There had to be a reason for him grabbing me like that.
I needed to know how bad I needed to curse him out before I started telling him to get the hell out of my face.
“You here by yourself, beautiful?” he asked, the gin on his breath potent enough to sting my eyes.
“No, these are my wives,” I said, pointing at my friends, who found that hilarious.
“You a damn lie. You ain’t no damn lesbian fine as you is. I know a carpet muncher when I see one.”
“I find that extremely offensive. Please move on,” I said, waving him off.
As if the drunk dude had left any space between us, Nicholas, who I had forgotten all about, stepped between us.
Looking down, he shot a sharp look at the drunk guy, causing him to wither as he scurried away without looking back.
When Nicholas’s dark eyes flashed back to mine, I almost shriveled under his gaze too.
“You good, Jameela?” he asked, searching my face carefully as if he would know if I wasn’t telling the truth.
“Um, sure. I’m fine.”
Speaking of fine, silently, I debated if he looked better in a suit or jeans.
The jury was still deliberating the answer.
My eyes drifted down to where a neatly trimmed goatee framed his perfect mouth.
The sight made me lick my lips as my eyes found his again.
Huge mistake. The pull of his dark eyes was hypnotic.
Standing from my seat, I smoothed my dress. “Thanks, but I had it.”
“I’m sure you did. I wouldn’t be a gentleman if I didn’t at least make sure of that.”
“Well, thank you.”
“I wasn’t sure you would come.”
I scoffed. “Neither was I.”
“I’m glad you did.”
“Tell me anything,” I said, trying not to blush at his apparent attempt at flattery. I hated that it was working.
“You ladies enjoying yourselves?” he asked, casting a quick glance over my shoulder at my girls.
“We will be as soon as we get some drinks in our system,” Crystal answered before I could.
I shook my head. “Don’t mind her.”
Nicholas just shrugged. “She’s fine. It’s good to let go sometimes.”
“I agree.” I nodded.
“Well, I won’t hold you. You ladies, enjoy your night. See you later, Jameela,” he said, placing something in my hand and casually strolling away.
What did he mean he would see me later? Did he mean later tonight or later when we checked on my car?
We definitely needed to discuss my car. I felt crazy for trusting the fate of my only means of transportation to a man I’d just met.
What was the alternative though? Either way, it was too late to think about using common sense. What was done was done.
“Girl, was that him?” Sade’s nosy ass asked, leaning over my shoulder.
I turned my body to face her before responding. “What do you think, nosy?”
“You didn’t say he was that fine. That’s what I think.”
“He left these,” I said, finally opening my hand and showing her the chips he gave me.
Crystal’s mouth hung open when she saw them. “Girl, these are five-hundred-dollar chips. Give me mine. I’m about to cash out and go the hell home.”
I could agree with that logic. “Who you telling? I need some more to go with these.”
There were four, five-hundred-dollar chips.
My girls and I agreed to go to a cashier and exchange them for a lower denomination in chips.
They insisted that I keep the majority of the money, so after giving me a thousand dollars and taking five hundred for themselves, we each got a hundred dollars in chips and headed back to the floor.
I wasn’t a gambling woman by any means, but suddenly, I was feeling lucky. Crystal insisted we try our luck at the roulette, so with our chips burning a hole in our hands, we made a beeline for the roulette tables.
“Always bet on black,” she advised as she placed a twenty-dollar chip on her number of choice.
I followed suit, putting a twenty-dollar chip on number thirteen.
Many people considered the number thirteen unlucky, but I didn’t believe in luck.
Both Crystal and Sade crossed their fingers when the wheel began to spin.
I didn’t see the use in all that. It was just a game of probability, so I wasn’t surprised that none of us won.