The Gambler(23)

When the woman started thanking him to death he figured it was time to go. "Find out who she is."

"On it boss."

After that Jenna played on every machine she felt like. She didn't win  shit but he didn't care. The way she threw her head back and laughed  whenever the wheels would spin, or she'd hit for a small win, was  payment enough.





Chapter 20




She soon grew tired of playing and took his arm to lead him away.

"Come on Jenna, I was just starting to get hot." Gramps complained when he told him it was time to go.

She took out her phone and sent Andros another text. He laughed his ass  off when he showed it to him. ‘It's a dud.' He didn't even want to know  how she knew that shit, but he wasn't willing to bet against her.

He thought for sure it was going to be a short night since it seemed she  was done with the machines. But she seemed to have something else in  mind. He followed her up the stairs and to a room he knew well. He had a  bad moment when he remembered the last time he was here, just a few  short nights ago. "You wanna go in there baby, you sure?" She nodded and  walked ahead of him.

"Andros … " The men sitting around the table called out to him as he  entered the room. Some of the old timers greeted gramps, whom they  hadn't seen in these parts for a long long time.

Some of the faces from that night were there and he saw recognition dawn  on their faces when they saw her, but no one said a word. That was  good, because he wasn't in the mood to field any questions.

He took a seat at the table and the guys brought one over for Jenna to  sit at his side. Gramps also took his place as security took up  strategic positions around the room.

By his first hand she seemed to lose interest and fished her toy out of  her purse. He thought he'd play a few hands before she got bored and  then head out. By the fifth hand he was about ready to call it a night,  the game wasn't holding much interest for him. "Jenna play."

Shit, did she want to go back to the machines? "Okay baby we'll go play."

"No play." She pointed to his cards. He looked around the table to see  if anyone would object, not that he gave a fuck, but he wanted to see  whose face he might have to break for being stupid. No one said anything  when he changed places with her.

Contrary to what he thought, they were only too happy with this turn of  events. To a man they thought Andros was a fool to let the imbecile play  his hand in such a high-stakes game. His lost, they prepared to fleece  the pretty air headed girl for all Andros was worth.





She took her time studying her hand and the table. He didn't look over  her shoulder to see what she was doing, as far as he was concerned as  long as she was having fun that's all he cared about.

The game seemed to take longer because of this, and some of the players  were getting antsy. One glower from Andros was enough to have them  settling down again. "Call."

Andros looked at the asshole next to him as he added fifty grand to the  pot. He threw a hundred -thousand dollar chip down to cover her.         

     



 

She was concentrating really hard on her hand and not really paying  attention to the other occupants of the room, as the cards were dealt  for another three rounds with calls and folds. When it was down to the  last three players, five having folded and the pot a little under half a  mil, she still didn't seem too interested.

He knew she had no concept of money and he could stand to lose that and more so he wasn't too worried.

Gramps had folded a long time ago and was just watching like everyone  else to see the end result. Andros was getting himself ready to leave as  he was sure she must be tired after the long night, what with her  shoulder wound.

When one of the others folded and it was just down to her and the last guy he hoped she wasn't too disappointed when she lost.

Damn! He cursed silently when the asshole showed a straight flush and  grinned around his cigar. Andros was giving some serious thought to  making him swallow the shit, the fuck.

He heard the ‘oh shit' from Garrett just seconds before she placed her  hand on the table for all to see. He started laughing before he pulled  her to him and kissed her long and hard. A royal fucking flush. No way  this was her first game.

He took out his phone as his guys collected her winnings and the rest of  the room fell silent. Some of them were thinking Andros had pulled a  fast one, others were thinking it was the luck of the draw.

Still some were trying to figure out how the hell she'd done it, she  hadn't been counting cards, they would've known. They played the game  enough they had an eye for those things. Plus she hardly ever looked at  the fucking table half the damn time.

Andros texted her a message. ‘Have you done this before baby?'

‘Yes.' She had a big goofy grin on her face.

‘Where?'

‘Vegas, Monte Carlo.' She was practically vibrating in her seat, but he was starting to get a bad feeling in his gut now.

Was this yet another way in which they'd used her? He didn't want to  dampen her spirits, so he let none of his inner turmoil show, but he was  pretty sure he was sitting next to a card shark. Well fuck, what now?





He tested his theory on the flight home. Everyone was in a high state of  excitement, not least of all Jenna. He had to practically drag her away  from the felt, as she seemed to get some kind of charge out of playing.

The other occupants were only too happy to see her go, seeing as how  she'd wiped them out to the tune of seven hundred and fifty grand or  thereabouts.

His one nagging thought was, if she'd made that much in the short time  they'd been there, how much had she made Bonata over the years? And  they'd paid her with fucking chocolate; which is exactly what she'd  asked for after they'd cashed in her chips.

He wondered why he'd never heard of her playing here in The City, he  would've known about her if she had, he was sure. No one that good could  go unnoticed for that long. There had to be a reason they'd taken her  to Vegas and Monte Carlo, away from Bonata's backyard so to speak.

He had mixed feelings about her success, he was happy that she was  happy, but he hated the fact that this was yet one more way in which  they'd used and exploited her. He shuddered to think what else he'd  uncover in the weeks and months ahead, as they settled into a life  together.

There was one area at least, and quite possibly for a man like Andros,  the most important one in this situation; where he was sure she hadn't  been handled. Her kisses were still innocent and her reaction was such,  that he knew no one had ever touched her.

He wasn't sure what he would've done if that were the case, if they'd  used her in that way as well. The thought had him at the brink of  exploding. Still he kept his cool as he, gramps, and even the men, tried  to best her at cards.





By the time they landed in the wee hours of the morning the rest of them  were wiped out, she on the other hand seemed like she'd just caught her  second wind, and he knew that meant he'd be up for at least another few  hours. No biggie, he was actually high off of her exuberance.

He said goodnight to the others as he took his two charges inside with  him. He had no need to check the security detail around the premises  because he knew they were in place, plus when he put the house on  lockdown no one and nothing was getting in there.         

     



 

He carried her up the stairs after they said goodnight to gramps. She  prattled on and on about what she'd seen tonight, nothing at all about  her playing and winning close to a million dollars in less than five  hours.

"Angel, butterfly sleep."

"No baby I don't think they sleep." He walked over to the cage where  they were hanging on the sides not moving, but he knew they weren't  sleeping; they can't, they don't have eyelids. He tried explaining it to  her but she'd made up her mind already and apparently had moved on.

He was busy shedding his own clothes and walking in and out of the closet to hang shit up, because he was a neat freak.

He was pondering if he should grab a pair of pajamas as he walked out of  the closet for the last time in his silk boxers, when she poleaxed his  ass. She was standing near the window where the predawn light was doing  its best to break through. She had her dress up and over her head as she  struggled to take it off.

Her body, clad only in black lace, the underwear and bra she'd picked  out for herself, made his mouth water. And when she dropped the dress,  stepped out of it and shook her hair out, he thought he moaned. He had  no control over his feet or his heart as he moved over to her. His  silent mantra of ‘please let this be alright' blocked out every other  thought in his head.





He approached her cautiously, not wanting to move too fast lest he spook  her. When he stood in front of her and ran his finger down her cheek,  his eyes boring into hers, she smiled the most beautiful smile up at  him. It went straight through his heart and beyond. "Angel, kiss?"