Unspoken Vendetta (Casino King)

1. Amelia

Igiggle and throw the black dress back towards Gia. "I'm not wearing that. It's way too boring. I want something that glitters for tonight."

Gia catches the dress and tosses it aside. "What about that green sequin one? You look amazing in it."

"Yes. That's exactly the one I want."

Whenever we go out, we take turns hosting the pre-party and tonight it's Gia's turn to play hostess.

Gia digs around in her closet and finally pulls out the emerald green dress. "You know I don't think I've ever even worn this. You're the only one. You may as well keep it. I think I bought it because it reminded me of you."

I laugh. "Don't lie. We all know you have a little shopping addiction. Don't blame it on me. But I will keep this one. I love it."

Gia rolls her eyes with a massive grin on her face. She is gorgeous and has been my best friend since middle school. People always ask us if we are sisters because we have the same long dark hair and chocolate eyes. "Lia, I've seen your closet. Don't try to make out that you aren't as much of a shopping addict as I am."

"Fine, that's fair." I throw my t-shirt off and toss it onto the bed covered in dresses because we've been getting ready for the past hour, and it's been a champagne-filled laugh. Gia is standing in her undies still rummaging through her dresses to try and choose one for herself.

I slip the green glittering dress over my body and admire myself in the tall mirror. "Black heels?" I ask.

"Definitely." She nods without looking up.

I love getting ready with Gia. The other girls will be arriving in about half an hour, and then we will have pre-drinks to warm up for our night out. Gia calls our getting-ready champagne the pre-pre-drinks.

I grab my favorite pair of red bottoms and slip them onto my feet.

I've already curled my hair into big waves and my makeup is accentuated by black eyeliner with a cute wing to accentuate my big brown eyes.

"I think I'm done," I say triumphantly.

Gia turns to see for herself, a pink silk dress in her hands. She nods enthusiastically. "You look amazing." She agrees.

"Oh, I love that pink one. Yes. You have to wear it. With the gold heels, you got last week."

"That's what I was thinking too."

She slips it over her head and pulls it down her body. It's as tightly fitted as my dress and just as short.

She grabs the gold heels and then joins me in front of the mirror.

I hand her a glass of champagne and we chime them together a little too hard then giggle again.

The doorbell rings and announces the arrival of the rest of the girls and Gia jumps excitedly.

"I'll grab the other champagne from the ice bucket. You let them in."

I open the front door and five beautiful girls stream into Gia's apartment. They are all bubbly and excited for our night out.

"Oh, wow you guys look amazing," Samantha says, hugging me.

Melina pushes past with a grin. "Champagne. Where is it?"

Leanna, my cousin, wraps her arms around me too, and lifts me off the ground slightly when she hugs me.

The apartment becomes a loud, colorful glittering ball of energy for the next thirty minutes until Gia announces that the limo is downstairs.

"Wait. We don't even know where we're going yet?" Samantha says.

"Oh, I decided earlier. We're going to the Amalfi Royale Casino. A little gambling, a little dancing. It's going to be amazing." My father has always been very strict about me not going near that place because the Amalfi family is a rival of ours. But I don't see the harm in sneaking in for a fun night as long as no one knows who I am.

In the limo the champagne continues to flow, and our energy increases with the anticipation of what the night will bring.

"I hear the owner is ridiculously hot." Gia comments.

"I think we need a dare," Melina shouts excitedly.

"What kind of dare?" I ask.

"I dare you to try and seduce the owner of the casino." She packs up laughing.

Leanna's eyes grow wide. "Your father will kill you if he finds out."

"Challenge accepted. And my father doesn't need to find anything out." I say boldly lifting my champagne glass up in the air.

The girls laugh and we start plotting out what games we want to play and what bets we want to place in the casino.

The driver stops right outside the entrance and one by one we spill out of the limousine in a colorful array of short dresses and high heels.

We walk confidently into the casino and spread out over the gambling floor.

For a few hours, we enjoy the poker tables, a little bit of blackjack, a few more drinks, and fending off the old men who try and flirt with us.

When we've had enough of the tables a few of the girls announce that it's time to go dancing and I am more than ready.

"Don't forget the dare." Melina reminds me.

"How could I?" I giggle.

The club is a thriving mass of gorgeous people dancing in time to heavy bass which floods the air around us.

We weave our way through the crowd and into the center of the dance floor.

Within seconds my body just wants to move. The music overtook all my senses.

I love these nights out with my girlfriends. It's my favorite way to let loose and celebrate life. I guess, being twenty, these are my party years, and I should make the most of them.

Gia nudges me hard enough to almost knock me off my feet. She leans close to my ear to shout over the music. "He's by the bar. That's the owner. Stefano Amalfi."

Melina grins because she knows exactly what we are talking about. She raises her brows at me, daring me all over again.

I turn to search in the direction Gia has gestured and I spot him immediately.

Holy fuck he's the most gorgeous man I've ever seen. Tall. Dark hair, fucking built, tight shirt with his sleeves rolled up over his tattooed forearms. He's all kinds of bad in all the right ways.

"You still on for the dare?" Gia laughs loudly.

"I'm more on for the dare now than I ever was before," I shout back because he's so ridiculously hot.

The girls are grinning mischievously as Gia pushes me in the direction of the bar. "It's time for a drink." She says and we all start moving in that direction.

I step off the dance floor, leading the girls, and out of nowhere, Clarissa arrives. She spots me and her entire face turns sour. Her lips curve down at the corners and her botoxed face tries to frown but fails. We've been enemies for as long as I can remember. Our families are rivals and there has always been hate between us. Mostly I ignore it though, but Clarissa is not one to miss an opportunity to be a bitch.

She pretends to lose her balance and throws her drink right down the front of my dress.

I bite my lower lip. I do not want to ruin tonight's amazing vibe because of Clarissa's bullshit. Without a word I push past her, wanting to just move on, but she sticks out her foot and trips me.

I land hard on my knees and cry out at the sudden sharp pain.

In seconds my friends have lifted me up again and after checking that I'm fine, which I reassure them that I am, they turn full force towards Clarissa.

Clarissa's face turns to one of horror. She didn't realize that I had all my girls with me tonight and she is horribly outnumbered.

"I say we drag her to the bathroom and shove her head in the toilet." Gia snaps.

"I say we shred that pretty little dress of hers." Melina steps closer to Clarissa.

I hurry to step between them. "Not tonight. Let it go." I say sternly.

"No, Amelia. She needs to know she can't mess with you."

"Oh, she'll learn soon enough. But I am not wasting tonight on that stuck-up bitch." I tilt my head towards my friends making sure they fully understand me. I am so grateful that they are all willing to have my back like this, but I didn't come here for some pathetic street brawl. I want to have fun and relax.

I turn to Clarissa who is frozen in place like a deer staring into headlights.

"Clarissa, next time we cross paths I promise you; you won't be so lucky. So, maybe make sure you avoid me next time you see me."

Clarissa tries to hold her head high, but she just looks like she's snubbing her nose in the air. She looks ridiculous. Without a word, she spins on her heels and hurries away into the crowd. She knows she doesn't stand a chance and wisely makes a quick getaway.

All of my friends continue to ask if I'm ok as we arrive at the bar. I grab a handful of cocktail napkins and pat down the front of my dress, soaking up at least most of the spilled drink.

"It's fine; you can hardly see it because of the sequins." I sigh.

"I don't know why you let her get away like that."

"Because she's not worth it." I shrug. "Besides, one tequila and the entire mood will be back where it was, and we can forget about her."

"Tequila," Gia shouts, leaning over the bar and waving at the bartender.

After a burning shot of tequila and the sharp tang of a lime wedge, we have already forgotten about Clarissa and her bitch-mode attempt to ruin our night.

We are about to head back to the dance floor when a security guard stops our entire group.

We freeze, hoping that this huge disaster isn't going to get us kicked out, but I know I didn't retaliate so there should be no reason for that.

I step forward towards the bouncer.

He nods at me.

Before he can say anything, I start talking. "Everything is completely fine here; it was just a mistake. There's nothing to worry about." I say confidently.

"I see." The security guy says, eyeing me up and down.

"So, we're just going to head back to the dance floor if that's alright." I smile sweetly.

"Actually, I'm here to invite you and your friends to the VIP section. We have a private table reserved for you, overlooking the dance floor and you will have your own private dance area. I think you'll find it much more enjoyable than down here."

"Oh."

"Oh." I hear the girls' chorus behind me.

"Let's go," Gia shouts excitedly.

"I guess you can lead the way," I say to the security guy who hasn't even smiled once.

He turns and steps to the left and we all follow him towards the private area of the club. He's right; it's amazing up here. We can see the entire dance floor and we have the freedom to move around.

There are two bottles of champagne chilling on the table and a bottle of tequila.

The girls don't waste a second before diving in to take full advantage.

I turn towards the security guy. "Why did we get invited up here?" I ask curiously.

"You can ask the boss yourself. He wants to see you in his office right now."

"The boss?" I ask, shocked. "Why does he want to see me?"

"Again, that is something you can ask him yourself. If you would like to follow me, I'll take you there now."

Gia is watching the conversation go down and she tilts her head with her brows knotted in question. "Just give me a second," I say to the security guy. Then I go over to Gia and explain what is going on.

"The boss… as in the hot owner?" Gia asks in shock.

"I guess so." I shrug.

"But you didn't even flirt with him yet." She packs up laughing.

"Do you think I should go?"

"Of course, you should go, idiot." Leanna interrupts.

"OK, but like, alone in the back office with some tall dark stranger I've never met before?"

"And - doesn't that sound hot?" Gia shrugs.

I giggle. "Actually yes. It sounds insanely hot. Don't wait up for me."

I turn back towards the security guy and nod. He walks ahead of me, leading the way again.