Page 53 of Royal Shark
“Everyone has their secrets, I suppose, but we’re not really a secret. You could’ve told her we’re together.”
She gets quiet, and I have the uneasy feeling that I’m all in, and she’s keeping her cards close to her chest. I can’t believe I’m actually the one who wants to have the relationship talk. I used to cut myself loose before the wordrelationshipcould even be uttered. Karma, man.
I take her to the money-changing room with its many vaults and full security staff.
“Wow!” she exclaims. “This is really fancy.”
I gesture toward my assistant’s office as we walk past it, empty now, and take her to the slots room.
She weaves up and down the aisles. “Noisy but fun. What’s the highest pot?”
“Five hundred euro.”
She lets out a low whistle. “Very nice.”
I guide her out, my hand on the small of her back. “We work hard to attract high rollers. We have less expensive options too, but we want to keep the high rollers interested enough to seek us out.”
“Smart.”
I point out some of the guards by name and the dealers, but I don’t want to interrupt them while they’re working. We wrap up with the restaurant and bar, where I offer her a drink.
“Absolutely!” she says, taking a seat on a barstool. I’m glad she’s enjoying herself so far.
“Sara! Join us!” The guys are all waving her over from a table with plenty of lobsters and a pile of crab legs.
“After my drink I will,” she calls with a sunny smile. Sunny Sara. No, she’smySara.
“How late do you stay open?” she asks.
“We’re open eleven a.m. to two a.m. Staff works in shifts. I’m usually here the whole time.”
“So this is like your whole life.” She gestures in a wide circle. “You work, sleep, work.”
“Basically. But I’m sure it’s like that for most new businesses.”
Her drink arrives, a martini, along with my beer. She sucks on the olive and my trousers get tight.
I take a sip of beer, trying to cool down.
“That’s not how my job goes,” she says, sipping her martini. “I’ve got lots of free time. It’s awesome.”
“And what do you do with your free time?”
“I’m networking, always looking for new players, especially fish with deep pockets. And I’m scouting out restaurants for new menu ideas and interesting locations. I try to keep it fresh.”
“So your free time is actually your work time?”
“I work out too. Daily run.”
“When do you have free time for your friends?”
Her eyes shift to the side. “I work it in here and there.” I suspected she kept to herself. Chloe is the only real connection she has, and Chloe is all grown up.
“You should work here,” I say.
She smiles nervously and sips her martini.
I lean close. “I could really use your help.”
