“No, let him run along,” Max said with a smirk. “I’m guessing poor Ben actually has a case of the trots and is afraid he’s going to shit himself.” He turned back at me. “We’ll meet you at the restaurant.”
I glared. He was lucky I didn’t have time to argue. He was also lucky I didn’t have time to walk over there and punch his smug face. “I’ll meet you there.”
I waited just long enough for the car to pull away before I turned, searching for a cab. The one Chloe and Sara were in had just reached the streetlight, and if I hurried, I could still catch up. When a car pulled over, I climbed in, promising the cabbie a small fortune if he could get me wherever they were going, and fast. I hadn’t exactly worked out what I would do or how’d I’d get her alone, but I was operating on autopilot: get to Chloe, get her alone, get myself off.
My fiancée surprised me with a lap dance in a sex club and then I hopped in a cab for a car chase. My bachelor party in Vegas had officially begun.
* * *
Their cab stopped just down the Strip and I watched as they both climbed out. I paid my driver and stayed back, watching for a moment as they talked, each of them pointing in a different direction—Sara at Planet Hollywood and Chloe at the Cosmopolitan. When they appeared to reach a decision, they nodded, kissing each other’s cheek before heading in opposite directions.
Fucking perfect.
Climbing out, I followed Chloe through the late-night crowds and into the building. The Cosmopolitan casino was dark and it took a moment for my eyes to adjust. Pinpoint colors, flashing lights, and the sound of electronic dings filled the air as I scanned the large room. I found her near the front of the casino, turning to climb a set of stairs.
Beads of sparkling crystals hung from the ceiling several stories up and curved around the giant staircase. From where I stood, it looked like Chloe was disappearing into a giant chandelier.
I followed, staying just far enough away to admire her ass as she moved, and wondering what exactly she was doing here. Was she meeting someone? Although she’d never mentioned any, maybe she had friends in Las Vegas. Or, perhaps she was simply waiting here for Sara to finish whatever she was doing across the street. My blood heated over the sheer mystery of Chloe; we lived together, worked together, and for all intents and purposes our lives were completely intertwined. But I relished knowing that she would always keep me guessing. Because of her wild independence, I would never know absolutely everything in her mind. Even when she was entirely mine, she would always be a challenge.
As we neared the third floor of the spiraling club, her destination grew no clearer to me, and the wickedness of her little game started to bloom into an ache in my abdomen. I gave in, hungry to fall into the familiar routine of chastising her, and then having my way with her body. In only a few long strides I was there, wrapping my hand around her upper arm.
“You are in so much trouble,” I growled into her hair.
I felt her stiffen for a moment before going lax, the tension slipping from her body as she leaned back against my chest.
“I wondered how long it would take you to find me.”
“You,” I said as we continued climbing the spiraling staircase, “have done enough talking for tonight.” We were fully inside the glimmering, beaded curtains now, and they seemed to wrap all around us, twinkling in the soft light. “It’s time for you to keep that pretty little mouth closed . . . unless I have need for it.”
We reached the third story, where a rather impressive bar was situated, the shelves lined in jewel-colored bottles and draped in even more of the sparkling gems. Continuing on, I led us to a darkened corner. Smiling, I noticed the sign above a door tucked into the corner: I needed to be alone with Chloe on my terms and, quite frankly, we’d always been pretty great in restrooms.
An older gentleman with dyed black hair looked up in surprise as we entered the men’s room. I reached out to shake his hand, and pressed a folded bill into his palm.
“It’s so noisy out there,” I said, nodding in the direction of the casino and bar on the other side of the door. “Perhaps you’d be good enough to give us a few minutes to talk?”
He looked down at the money, his eyes widening, and then smiled back up at me. “‘Talk’?”
“Yes, sir.”
His gaze moved to Chloe. “That okay with you, miss? I might not look like much now, but back in my day I could drop a pretty boy like this before he knew what hit him.”
Beside me, Chloe laughed. “Something tells me you still could,” she said with a wink. “And trust me, I’m perfectly capable of dropping this pretty boy as well.”
“I don’t doubt that.” His smile widened, revealing a white, toothy grin. “You know,” he said, looking down at his watch, “I just realized it’s time I took my break.” He reached for a hat hanging on a hook and set it on his head, winking as he moved the CLOSED FOR CLEANING sign outside and in front of the door.