Gemini: Book 4 in a Young Adult Paranormal Romance Series (The Zodiac Twin Flame Series) (4 page)

Chapter Six

I sent the text. My local contact would know if there were any games in Brighton that evening. The sun was fading fast. We had laughed as we’d pushed the girls into the cold sea. They had squeaked and hit us, feigning feminine sensibilities.

‘Are you staying down here?’ Leo asked. His guitar hung over his shoulder as we packed up the van. The picnic basket was sufficiently empty after our lunch session on the pebbles.

‘I don’t-’ My phone beeped, interrupting my answer. ‘Yes, there’s a game.’

Leo closed the back door and put a hand on my shoulder. Tattoos covered his arm, right up to his sleeveless T-shirt. Like Aries and Scorpio, he was a couple of inches taller than me. My six-foot height was a blessing when I wasn’t with them but I looked short when we were all out.

Taurus came over to us. Standing between the two muscly men, I glanced down at my slim arms. I wasn’t unfit or completely skinny but I was pretty slim compared to them. At least I was taller than Taurus.

‘Are you still as disconnected from the game as you used to be?’ Leo’s question was a good one.

I had promised them that as soon as I had an addiction, I would step down as a professional gambler. At twenty-two years old, I didn’t want to be tied down to anything. Especially not a job that became an obsession.

‘I’m good, thanks.’

It was the only answer I had. It was rare for my brothers to even think about what I was doing, let alone be worried about it. If only they knew the extent of what I did.

‘Leave him alone, he knows what he’s doing.’ Taurus defending me was new. We rubbed along okay but we weren’t very sentimental compared to some of the others.

They finished packing everything up and climbed back into the van. I waved as they pulled out of the busy seaside town. They were good people. My best friends, even if they were a hassle at times. At least life was exciting.

‘Hello!’

I greeted my old friend. The one that had let me know that there was a game on that evening. He wandered down the promenade towards me, a woman hanging off his arm. His suit was neat and his hair slicked back. A bit like mine.

‘Gemini!’

The woman stiffened. I hadn’t taken much notice of her, it was usual to see my gambling friends with pretty ladies on their arms. However, my attention was caught by her hand as it tightened on my friends sleeve. My gaze moved up her silk clad figure. I recognised those curves.

‘This is Athena,’ my friend, Gary, introduced his date. ‘I’m looking after her for a friend.’

I knew exactly who the friend was. Liam. The man that I had lost all my money to. The man that had ruined me.

I regretted staying in Brighton. I should have jumped in the van with the others and gone back to London.

She wouldn’t meet my gaze. She was smiling at Gary, her arm casually draped through his.

‘Is he doing a good job?’ I asked, trying to get her attention.

Her smile froze when she was forced to make eye contact. Gary watched her with an indulgent grin on his face. Was she hired out? He said he was ‘looking after’ her. Did that mean what I thought it did?

‘Yes. He’s been a complete gentleman.’

I wasn’t aware that Gary had become friends with the big boys. Being so young, I hadn’t been socially accepted into the serious crowd yet. It was something I was working on, which was why I had been tempted to play the big stake game. I had far overestimated my skill.

‘Are you wanting to play big stakes tonight?’

Gary was ignorant. He showed it in the way he stared down the top of Athena’s dress. What a name. If it was real, I would never scorn my own name again.

‘No, I’m after the little ones,’ I replied.

Athena smirked as Gary nodded. She knew full well why I wasn’t going to play the game. I was using the very last of my money to try and make a profit as it was. Maybe I should give up poker altogether and stick to the races. I’d made a tidy profit from them a few weeks back. A starting out professional gambler didn’t stick to one game when he was learning the tricks of the trade.

‘Well, there’s a private meeting tonight. Liam is having it at home,’ Athena said.

My hands sunk into the pockets of my suit. How could I back out of the game without losing face? The last thing I needed was to play another game of poker with the man I had lost a hell of a lot of money to.

‘That game is too big for Gemini, sweet cheeks. I know a good casino. I can’t believe you never come down here.’ He steered Athena in the opposite direction to the one I had come from. ‘Before we go anywhere, I’m starving. Let’s eat.’

I followed the couple to a nearby restaurant. Brighton was heaving with people. Teenagers heading for a night out. Couples of all shapes and sizes relaxing on the beach. It was a good atmosphere.

‘Do you have any tips for me?’ I asked Gary as we sat down at the table.

‘Yeah, get out while you still can.’

I flicked my gaze to Athena as she read the menu. She had been ignoring me brilliantly. ‘It’s a little too late for that,’ she said under her breath.

We laughed at her but the sharp look she gave me didn’t go unnoticed.

‘I must visit the little boys’ room,’ Gary said, excusing himself.

Athena put her menu down and watched him until he was out of sight.

‘What are you doing?’ she hissed.

I leant back in my seat and crossed my legs. ‘Whatever do you mean?’

She sucked her bottom lip into her mouth and flicked her smooth hair over her shoulder. ‘You know exactly what I mean. If Liam sees you gambling without having paid your debt, he will…’

I raised my eyebrows as she kept her gaze on the surface of the table. Her fake eyelashes grazed her cheeks.

‘What will he do, Athena?’

Her name sounded good as it came out of my mouth. She swallowed as she looked up at me. Only her eyes moved when her gaze pierced me.

‘You’re playing with fire.’ Her words were quiet.

I glanced down. Her hands ripped a paper napkin to shreds. It was the first sign of nerves I’d seen.

‘You’re playing with wind.’

Her forehead creased. ‘What do you mean?’

I wasn’t about to explain to her that I could control wind. I couldn’t tell her that with a click of my fingers I could cause a breeze to tickle the hairs on her arms. I wanted to, though. For the first time ever, I wanted to tell a woman what I could do. Just to impress her.

‘Why are you with him?’ I leant forward, resting my elbows on the table.

Our faces were inches apart. She froze, releasing the remains of the tissue in her hands.

‘He protects me,’ she whispered.

I held her gaze, not able to look away. Who was she? What was she so afraid of?

Her brown eyes were almost liquid. The top of her lips bowed but the bottom lip was full. Her nose was perfectly straight with a slight tilt up at the end.

‘Why do I get the impression you’re analysing every part of my face?’ she said.

I smiled slowly as she pulled back and ran her hands down her waist. The gesture was meant to be in defence but it only drew my eyes to her even more.

‘We have to go. Sorry, Gemini, I’ve spoken to’

‘It was nice to meet you,’ Athena interrupted, getting up from her seat.

Not moving my head, I looked up at her with a smile on my face. Did I make her nervous? Or, was it her man?

‘Good to see you, fella, catch up soon? Sorry to run but when the boss calls…you know.’

I shook hands with Gary as Athena walked out of the restaurant. ‘Give me the address of the big game. Just in case.’

Gary grinned as he tapped it out on his phone and sent it to me. ‘Good luck tonight.’

Feeling lonely as I waited for my beer to arrive, I contemplated jumping on a train back to London. The evening was not going to plan so far. Athena’s face came into my mind. I fantasised about stealing her from under my enemy’s nose. Liam. I didn’t want to say that he was her pimp but my gut told me it may well be the case.

‘Would you like to order?’ the waitress asked.

My stomach growled but I ignored it. Shaking my head, I downed my pint and threw a note on the table. I had to see if Athena was being fairly treated. I couldn’t see a woman like her trapped with a monster.

Leaving the restaurant, I dug my phone out of my jacket pocket. Typing the postcode into my maps app, I saved the road where the game was being held. It wasn’t too far away. The night was still young. The game wouldn’t start for an hour or so.

It wasn’t my plan to lose more money. In fact, I wasn’t even going to play. Going back to my phone, I googled casinos in Brighton. I would waste an hour trying to win some cash.

When I found what I wanted, I headed towards the first place that showed on the map. It was only a few hundred yards away. The bouncer smiled when I greeted him, letting me go straight in.

The tables were busy but I managed to find a spot pretty quickly. The sweet spot wasn’t only the stool at the table. My luck was in. I threw a few games on the roulette and found that my winning streak had begun.

‘You’re pretty lucky,’ a woman said, leaning over to place her chip on the black.

The corner of my lip moved involuntary when her boobs pressed against my side. The low cut dress didn’t leave much to the imagination.

‘You have the cutest dimples,’ she whispered as she pulled back.

They were my weapon. Many women had fallen for the dimples. ‘Thank you. You have the cutest…’ I left my sentence unfinished as my eyes trailed downwards.

Her cheeks didn’t warm under my inspection. It made a nice change. A woman that was completely comfortable in her own skin.

‘You seem older than your age.’

The slow blink of her eyes was the only reaction when the croupier called her win.

‘I am,’ I replied, scooping up my winnings.

She laughed, her big mouth opening wide as she did.

‘What are you? Nineteen? Twenty?’

I calculated her own age as nearing forty. I had seen it all in my line of work. Money seekers in every man and woman. They enjoyed fine wine as much as I did. I gestured towards her empty glass. She nodded as she crossed her legs, being careful to rub my leg with one of hers as she did.

‘Twenty-two.’ My answer was honest for once. My age would go in my favour in the position I found myself in.

‘So, you’re old enough to play.’

She fiddled with her dangly earring as she eyed the cut of my suit. My skin prickled at the attention. My elder colleagues had said that I reminded them of a young Tom Cruise when he was in some film where a rich older woman became his cougar. I had never seen the film but I enjoyed the appreciation.

‘I can play anything I want.’

I turned from her to place a bet. The tables were in my favour tonight. Roulette was a game of intuition for me. I couldn’t ignore that.

‘Would you be interested in a game with much higher stakes?’ She pressed against me again as she placed her chip directly on top of mine.

Her teasing made me start to sweat. The warmth of the casino was getting under my jacket already. Having a hot older bird all over me made it worse. I instantly knew what game she was talking about. Would it be wise to go along with her or should I check it out myself from the outside? ‘If you’re talking about Liam’s game, I already know about it.’

She raised her eyebrows as the croupier called a loss. Our chips were swiped away from the table. I took it as a sign.

‘And are you going?’ Her shoulders came back.

Maybe she could tell that I wasn’t actually that interested in her. I would have taken her to bed but as soon as she’d mentioned Liam, an image of Athena had come into my mind. ‘I hadn’t decided.’

It was true. I was still debating whether to use her for access. She did have nice-

‘Come! I would love some company. You can be my lucky charm.’ Her hand landed on my arm.

I nodded slowly. A smile spread over her face as she pulled me from my seat and linked her arm through mine.

‘Don’t we make a handsome couple?’ She laughed.

She was going to play Liam. Was Athena right in saying that he would kill me if he saw me? Maybe not if he saw that I was only there for…

‘What is your name?’ How rude was I?

‘You don’t need to know that.’

Her cryptic answer made me even more intrigued. She might not be the prettiest woman in the casino but she was certainly the most bold. A woman of mystery was always attractive.

She led me outside into the night. The darkness had descended. I let her pull me along the streets. She knew where we were going more than I did. I was her arm candy. It made a nice change to be appreciated for my appearance. Not that I wasn’t usually but this woman made me feel even better about myself.

‘You’re about to enter the house of big boys. I want you to be quiet and not say a word.’

Looking down at her, I pretended to zip my lips. She chuckled lightly as she guided me to a dark door in a back street.