Page 45 of What Happens In Vegas
He searched the audience asif he were looking for someone, and she got a thrill of pleasure thinking that he might be looking for her. Or perhaps he was looking for Landon? Of course, she hadn’t thought about him. She didn’t like that as much. Bonni stayed where she was and continued to watch, leaning forward to look around the pillar. If Landon was here, then she would slip quietly away without any fuss. No point in creatinga hullabaloo by being present when she wasn’t expected. The crush of people didn’t allow her to see anything beyond the immediate area, so she stood up to look back at Quinn’s table and discovered he’d found her in the crowd. He had a big smile on his face. Bonni’s heart jumped, and she returned his smile, feeling it stretch her cheeks wide. It was involuntary. She wouldn’t have been able to controlit if she had tried. Since meeting Quinn, she’d turned into a grinning fool and, as she wove her way through the seats toward him, Bonni accepted that she didn’t mind the least little bit.
‘I wasn’t expecting to see you here.’ Quinn reached over and grasped her shoulders, drawing her in for a kiss. ‘Could you be my lucky charm?’
She loved that he didn’t have a fear of PDA, kissing her in themidst of all the people here, at a poker tournament with television cameras everywhere. It gave her another insight into his character. He was his own man.
Bonni pointed at the table. ‘I don’t think you need any kind of luck. That’s quite a haul.’
‘Hm, oh, yes, it was a strong table, but I’m looking forwardto tomorrow. That’s where the real competition lies. How long have you been here?’
‘A little while.’ A seed of unease planted itself in her belly at how cavalierly he treated the money.
‘Come.’ He took her hand and they walked side by side, the divider curtain between them, until they rounded to the entryway.
‘So what did you think?’ he asked her.
‘I don’t know how you do it. It takes a lot of guts to play cards like that. And the money, I simply can’t get over the money.’She shook her head in wonder.
Bonni briefly thought about texting her partner to ask him to do a background check on Quinn, but she wouldn’t, fully aware of the can of worms she could be opening. It was unethical, since he was not under any kind of investigation, and, really, it was none of her business where he got the money. At least at this point in their blossoming . . . what? Relationship?If they were going to have a shot at making this work, she had to trust him, not snoop around in his world. If she went behind his back, it wouldn’t be something she could ever come back from. She had to trust that he would open up to her when the time was right.
Although time was something they were running out of.
‘You get used to it. Winning keeps me in the game. Building points makes sponsorshappy and means I get to keep moving on. It’s fluid, and I’m always ready to go where the game is.’
Okay, so he sorta told me. He plays off his winnings.She bit her lip, as the seed of unease just sprouted a little stem. Would he ever be able to put down roots or would he continue to travel around the world, always chasing the next game?
They had to sidestep around a crowd of people, so separated,but came back together.
‘Have you had breakfast or anything to eat?’ Bonni asked him.
‘Yes,I had something earlier. I’m going to be tied up here pretty much most of the day.’ He looked at his watch. ‘But I do have a bit of time before they call for the next round.’
‘I have no idea how you can just keep going from one to the next.’
‘This one is organized a little differently. It’s over justthree days, and it’s an invitational tournament. Most tournaments run for a week.’
‘So for an invitational tournament, you have to be really good, eh?’
He looked down at her. ‘Yes.’ There was a thrill shining in his eyes, driven by something that was so far from her wheelhouse she wondered if she’d ever be able to understand. ‘Have you eaten?’ Quinn asked.
She shrugged her shoulders. ‘I hada coffee and a biscotti on the walk over.’
‘Well, I could use a coffee. Let’s go grab one over there.’ He took her hand, and he kept her close this time when they had to dodge between people lingering around the ring of tables near the refreshment station. ‘Landon texted me – he’s nursing quite a hangover. Apparently, Celia drank him under the table.’
Bonni laughed. ‘I told you he’d have hishands full. Celia can pack ’em back for a little thing.’
Quinn chuckled, and Bonni shivered with delight when he put his hand on her waist.
‘Let’s sit over there.’ Quinn slid his hand up her back, his fingers strong and totally reminding her of their magic touch. He guided her to a small table in a bustling café. His presence had a powerful effect on her. She absorbed the sensations he rousedin her, the thrill of his touch and the delightful seductive quiver that flowed through her body. The sense of security she had around him . . . and . . . something else had her in astate. She eyed him, watching how he fussed with the chair, before motioning for her to sit, and realized it was his attention to her.He cared?Bonni smiled to herself and was glad she’d come to the tournament now.She’d never really been treated like a lady before. Her line of work made it hard to be feminine; she’d always been just one of the guys, both at work and growing up. Bonni had figured the girlie gene had never made its way into her DNA. Yet, here, in the presence of this man, she was feeling everything womanly.
And she liked it.
‘I was surprised you were gone this morning. I didn’t hear youleave.’
She gazed at him and saw that he wasn’t accusing her, he wasn’t judging, yet the look in his eyes was something she hadn’t seen before. Soft, calm and with an almost-yearning in them. The layers were peeling back and Bonni tried to see deeper.Just what did the expression in his gaze mean?
She cleared her throat, suddenly thrown off kilter. ‘I tried to be quiet so I didn’t wake you.I don’t sleep well. When I wake up, it’s hard to get back to sleep. Plus, I knew you had to be up early today for this tournament. I didn’t want to be an unnecessary distraction for you.’
She dropped her gaze and caught her breath, trying to steady her pounding heart. Something that had become oh so common since meeting Quinn.
