24. Twenty-Four #2
Well, that was… I didn’t even know how to feel about it. “We don’t do anything on the grounds,” I said, turning my pleading eyes to Zach. “If you’re going to fire somebody, make sure it’s me and not her.”
Confusion had Zach’s eyebrows on a collision course toward one another. “Um, why would I fire someone?”
“Because there’s a no-fraternization rule.”
Zach burst out laughing then caught himself when my frown only deepened. “There’s also a rule about how many inches of cleavage is appropriate to show on the casino floor. It’s a rule from thirty years ago. Do you think that rule is enforced?”
“No, but … this is different. This could actually hurt the casino.”
“How?” Zach looked genuinely curious.
“What if Tallulah and I break up—not that we’re even in a real relationship yet, but I’m working on it—and it turns into a war zone in the lounge?”
“That would not be ideal,” Zach replied. “Do you think you and Tallulah are going to break up?”
“We’re not really together yet,” I grumbled. “I have to convince her to take a chance on me.”
“Um, I saw the two of you in that tacky Paris bar two weeks ago,” Rex countered. “I was cutting through to avoid a dust storm, and she was practically on your lap. You guys didn’t even notice me, and I gawked for a good ten minutes.”
“You watched us?” That was gross.
“Don’t make it sound as if I’m a creepy voyeur,” Rex chided.
“Aren’t you?”
“Only with my future wife.” Rex was stern. “If you guys didn’t want anybody to see what you were doing, why do it out in the open like that?”
I opened my mouth to tell him to stuff it, but different words came out. “It was supposed to be a friends with benefits thing. That’s what we agreed on.”
I must have sounded pathetic because they took pity on me.
“Let me guess. You want it to be more than that,” Zach said.
“It is more than that. It always has been. I just didn’t realize it.”
“And my marriage with Olivia was real way before I realized it,” Zach said. “Things like this happen.” He held out his hands and shrugged. “When it’s meant to be, it’s going to happen, regardless.”
“It’s like Jurassic Park ,” Rex agreed.
Did he think he was explaining something? “Um, what’s like Jurassic Park ?”
“Oh, he’s going somewhere with this,” Zach said dryly, his eyes twinkling.
“I am going somewhere with this.” Rex shot his best friend a testy look. “In Jurassic Park , life finds a way. In Vegas, love finds a way.”
“Wow” was all I could manage.
Zach made a snickering noise. “Yes, profound, huh?”
“I don’t even know what to say,” I muttered.
“Well, don’t say anything.” Zach turned matter of fact.
“Just listen. I knew you had a thing for Tallulah long before Rex saw you in the weird Paris bar—what were you guys even doing there anyway when there are so many other good bars?—and I saw you zip-lining together when I was visiting Mickie Finnz about a month ago.”
My mouth fell open. “You saw us too?”
“You guys weren’t exactly discreet.”
“But … we were trying to be.”
“Well, you’re both terrible at it.” He grinned. “If we were recruiting spies, you guys would be last on the list.”
“Unbelievable.” I rubbed my forehead. “Does that mean we’re not in trouble?”
“Why would you be in trouble?” Rex asked.
“I already told you. I know what you said about fraternization, but the rule is still on the books.”
Rex pursed his lips. Was he getting angry? When he burst out laughing, I realized that wasn’t the case. “You do realize that I’m engaged to my former boss, right?”
“She’s still your boss,” Zach argued.
“Don’t go there.” Rex jabbed a warning finger in his direction. “We’re on even footing.”
Zach’s eye roll was pronounced. “If you say so.”
I felt better about the situation—despite their ribbing—but I was still bothered by something. “Does everybody know the fraternization rule is bunk?”
“It’s not something we spread around,” Zach replied. “Nobody has ever been fired over it since I’ve been with the company, though.”
“We work weird hours,” Rex interjected. “It’s Vegas. If you’re not allowed to date coworkers, the population will die out because nobody will ever hook up again.”
It made a strange sort of sense and still… “Kyla stressed to Tallulah and me that fraternization is not allowed.”
“Kyla has never met a great time she didn’t want to kill,” Zach replied. “She’s a good worker, but she wants to suck the fun out of life for everybody. Don’t listen to Kyla.” He caught himself. “On this topic. Even if she tries to fire you guys, I wouldn’t allow it. That won’t be an issue.”
“Huh.” I’d come in here prepared to argue to get what I wanted. It had been handed to me on a silver platter. I had no idea how to react. “Well, that is just … great.”
“You don’t act as if you think it’s great,” Zach countered.
“I thought you guys were going to fight me on this,” I admitted. “Now, I realize I have a clear path.”
“And the big fight is with her,” Zach surmised. His smile was so wide, it threatened to swallow his entire face. “You’re going to be okay.”
“How do you know that?” I needed to hear the answer.
“Because Tallulah is a good girl, and you’re a great guy. It’s not just you who stares with adoration. It’s her too. I’ve never seen her so happy.”
I let loose the breath I didn’t even know I was holding. “You act as if it will be easy.”
“Oh, Tallulah isn’t easy.” He shook his head. “Something tells me she’s going to be worth the effort for you, though.”
Something told me he was right. I took another sip of the beer and braced myself for the other thing I needed to tell him. “You’re right about the pear being too sweet,” I announced. “It’s actually kind of gross.”
Zach nodded. “That’s what I was thinking.”
“Also, I’ve seen my father with your father a handful of times in the past two months. It’s always in weird places, like Superfrico, and they always have their heads together, as if they’re plotting.”
Zach’s eyes went wide. “That’s quite the transition, my friend.”
“I figured it was better to just blurt it out.”
“Yeah.” Zach dragged a hand through his hair. “Let’s get more beer. I think I’m going to need it for this story.”
“That’s probably a good idea.”