Romance in Vegas - Showgirl! (18 page)

It was the best sex he'd ever had in his
life, as he shot into the back seat and took her eagerly, knowing
the limo driver was probably listening. Hell, she didn't care and
neither did he.

She didn't know he was here today.

A minute later, he heard the room card, and
she came in, not glancing his way. Throwing her duffle on the
kitchenette table, she took a deep breath and shook her hair out
from a pony tail.

"Strip," he said quietly.

Whirling around, she saw him and her eyes
narrowed. "Make me."

He jumped up from the chair, and grabbed her.
"We can do this hard or easy."

"Hard. Very hard," she replied.

Jamming down her leotard, shucking off her
sleeves, his hands rolled across her generous breasts. He pressed
her to him, and he sucked her nipples hungrily.

"Oh, God," she murmured, "I should
shower--"

"Hell with that," he said, as he kissed her
neck, then her lips, a deep probing kiss, a hard kiss, tongue
roving in her mouth. "You can take one after," he said with his
lips against hers.

He ran into the bedroom, dragging her by the
hand, and pulled off her leotard and panties. "Damn," as he threw
her on the bed, "where you been all my life?"

Knowing she liked it hard, he entered her
without foreplay, but he thought she was way ready for him. The
only sound in the room for the next minute was the slapping of
their bodies, and sighs before he stopped.

Neither moved. He felt her pulsing against
him, as her eyes closed. Her breathing was ragged now, her lips
opened slightly. He licked around her lips then kissed her
softly.

"Please," she whispered.

He thrust once, and stopped again. She
pulsed.

"Show me your eyes," he said.

She opened them, but her brown eyes were
glassy as they looked up now.

"You going to come for me?" he asked her.

He quickly brought her over on top of him and
he pounded into her, knowing it would make her peak. They reached a
rhythm together before he stopped again. "Come for me," he urged,
"come for Tony. Now. Right now."

Flipping her across the bed again so he was
on top, he jammed into her, as she cried out, time after time.

Robert got the call around eleven o'clock.
"Scaletti," he said, as he hung up the phone.

"Shit," Jerry said, "what'd you do?"

"Damned if I know," he replied. He brushed
his pants off, and tried to straighten his shirt. "How do I
look?"

Les laughed. "Like dog crap. You're not
meeting a girl. Guys don't notice those things."

"He will," Robert moaned, as he cursed his
way out the door.

He arrived at Al's penthouse office a few
minutes later. His eyes searched for Dani, but she wasn't there. He
knew she was in the casino, though. He'd seen her on camera.

Al indicated a chair in front of his desk,
and they both sat.

"Yes, boss?" Robert said nervously.

After rummaging in the papers on his desk, Al
picked out check and handed it to him.

Without even looking at the amount, Robert
asked him, "I don't understand, sir. Did I do something wrong?"

Al smiled. "No," he said softly, "you did
something right. Don't ever think I don't appreciate the job you're
doing here."

Robert's brows furrowed. Then he glanced at
the check amount. "Holy shit!" he breathed. His eyes moved to Al
again.

"A little bonus for you. Buy a car or
something. You've saved me an unimaginable amount of money. But I
did want to ask you something while you're up here."

Stunned, Robert nodded.

"I notice from your HR file that you have a
B.A. in economics. The General Manager spot is opened. Would you
like to put in for that?"

Robert's breath came out in a gasp. "Hell,
yes," he said.

Al laughed. "Okay I'll talk to Stutgart about
it. I need someone I can trust in that slot. And, you've been doing
so well with everything I asked you to do. I thought of you right
away."

"Thank you, sir," Robert said, as he
stood.

Just then, his gaze moved past Al to the
doorway beyond.

Dani walked into the entrance, with her long
red curls in disarray, her eyes sleepy and her cheeks rosy. Robert
thought it was probably the most beautiful sight he'd ever
seen.

His boss turned to her and said, "Baby, this
is the man who's been following you."

She smiled that electric smile he'd only seen
once before. "Thank you," she said, her voice husky from sleep.

Al rose, and shook his hand. "It will be a
few weeks," he told Robert, "we still have to have some auditors
come in and clean up Vito's mess. I want to hand everything over
with clean books. Understand?"

"Absolutely, sir. And thanks very much, I
appreciate the opportunity."

After he'd left, Dani sat on Al's lap. "Think
he'll be okay?"

"No doubt in my mind."

*****

Logan sat at the middle table, playing a
half-hearted game of blackjack, betting as small as the table
permitted. His eyes darted here and there, as he'd been doing for
hours now. Watching the pull, the carts, the guards and their
stations by the entrances, exits and those walking along with the
team. He took extended restroom breaks just watching them, never
stopping of course because then they'd be onto him.

And he watched for signs of inattention in
guards, carelessness of the team, gaps between the entrance and the
pull as it rolled slowly along. He thought this was going to be
tougher than he and Beamer had talked about.

It wasn't going to be like the other casino,
where they'd walked off with all that fucking cash. He remembered
their celebration at one of the strip hotels, with champagne and
hookers. No fingerprints and nothing to link them to the job. They
wore gloves and black masks and no one knew who the fuck they even
were. They were in and out before the guards even knew what
happened.

He sighed now, though. They'd run through
almost all the money. Beamer was a degenerate gambler and he
couldn't just bet small. No, he bet bigger and bigger, and he won
big then lost big, and in the end, he'd given it back to the same
casino they'd robbed in the first place. Kind of funny, he thought.
But not really.

Now they had to plan this thing here, in
Winner Takes All Casino. It was what Beamer wanted, he said Winner
Takes All had the most money taken in, and Logan usually went along
for the ride on these decisions. It was better than having to think
for himself.

Logan was a loner, too. Never had too many
friends growing up and with no brothers or sisters, and parents
drunk all the time, he never really wanted to get close to anyone.
Until Beamer, that was. The man showed him how to steal, rob, then
gamble the take, rob more, gamble more. They'd gotten close to
three hundred thousand dollars in the last casino heist. And now it
was almost gone.

Also, Beamer showed him how to act like a
high roller. He took on a persona of Logan Gretsky, high roller
from Arkansas. He figured Arkansas because it was where he was from
in the first place. Then Beamer was Gavin Lewinsky from Florida.
And both last names ended in "sky" which really made them laugh, as
they sat at separate tables. The casinos didn't have a clue, just
kept handing out comps to both of them like crazy. Free breakfast,
lunch meals, steak house meals, rooms, even hookers at some
places.

But, he almost thought after this job he
would go back to Arkansas and get a regular job. The thought of
getting caught in a casino robbery made him more than nervous,
although he never told Beamer how he felt. That wasn't how they
operated.

Although, he thought, sometimes they'd cuddle
at night together. Depending on Beamer's mood.

Logan had known he was gay since high school
and the coach that drew him out. And Logan felt like the whole rest
of his life he'd spent trying to recreate the relationship he'd had
with the coach. Even with women sometimes. Nothing and nobody ever
measured up though, not even Beamer.

He gathered up his chips, and wandered over
to the cage, taking in everything, including the blonde he'd seen
there before. She wasn't bad to look at, but not for him. His eyes
took in everything, where the guards stood, the security at the
cage, where they kept the money, where the safe was located.

Anyone watching him would never guess who he
was and what he was about to do. And that's just how he wanted
it.

Chapter 16

While Al was tied up in a meeting about a
week later, after she'd gone to the casino with him, she checked to
see if her package came. It had, and she quickly scanned over the
contents, and realized if she had her laptop in her suite, she
could work directly from it and get her high school degree. She
wondered, as she looked around her suite, how she could tell Al. It
seemed as if he was planning on her living at his house, and then
she wouldn't be able to keep it a secret from him.

She had a desperate need for him not to know
about her failure to get a degree. But then her love for him was in
the way and she ended up confused. She hadn't even told Kim about
her plans to study.

Tucking the envelope in her drawer, she
quickly answered the door as Al knocked.

"Ready?" he asked, strolling in.

"Al," she began, "would you mind if I gather
up some of my things and stay here for a while? I mean, here at the
casino. Like I used to, stay here in the suite."

He stared at her for a minute without saying
anything. "Like you used to do." He repeated.

"Well," she grew nervous now, unsure of how
to proceed, "you know how much I like the casino. And all the other
dancers." But then she added, "We could still see each other."

He nodded and said stiffly, "I'll send
someone for your things."

"Should I call you later?" she asked him
softly.

But he never answered that, just smiled
slightly before he left the room.

"Hey," Robert told Jerry, "look at Scaletti.
Outside her door."

They zoomed in the camera to Al's face, as he
stood leaning against the doorjamb of Dani's room.

"Looks like he lost his best friend," Jerry
said.

"He just did. She kicked him out," Robert
said. "I know the look. I've had it on my face often enough." He
sighed. "This is really going to complicate things up here. Guess
I'll just have to wing it."

"Yeah, tough assignment," Jerry replied
sarcastically.

Dani watched the door for a minute hoping
he'd come back in. But, he didn't. She knew then she'd done the
wrong thing. She'd ruined the one relationship where someone
actually cared about her.

All the nights they'd had at the house.
Intimately sharing, urgently whispering in the darkness, the
thrilling peaks of passion.

Now, he was gone from her life. She pulled
out her cell phone, and almost called Kim. But, she decided against
it. If she could get her GED, maybe she could get a decent job, one
where she wouldn't have to expose her body.

Looking down at herself, she felt loathing
now, directed at her own body. And an emptiness. Sobs wracked her
body.

Four days later, after she'd gotten settled
again in her suite, and her tears stopped, she pressed the doctor
into giving her a back to work slip.

Stopping by HR, she presented it to
Stutgart.

The woman sat back in her seat, and peered at
her before she waved Dani to a chair by her desk. "Kind of soon,
isn't it?"

"I miss it," Dani said simply.

"Does Scaletti know?"

"No."

"He's back in the penthouse, did you
hear?"

"That's nice for him. I think he really
prefers it up there, as I prefer my suite. I'm getting a lot
done."

"Like what?" Stutgart said, eyeing her
closely.

"Things."

She sighed. "Something is going on here.
You're keeping something from me."

"No, really. I'm fine Miss Stutgart. Say, by
the way, I cut a picture from a magazine. This hairdo would be
right for you. It would just be perfect."

Dani dug around in her purse and found the
picture.

Stutgart studied it. "Not too bad. Mostly
bangs it looks like."

Dani smiled. "So if the wind blows, it still
goes back into place and looks nice."

"I might give it a try. So, when will you go
on stage again?"

Standing now, Dani said, "Nat says today.
Nine o'clock is a piece of cake. Eleven takes a little more effort,
but unless I try I'll always be afraid."

The woman nodded. "A coward, you aren't my
dear. Good luck to you then."

Lefty watched his boss staring out the
penthouse window moodily, with his feet up on his desk.

Al's cell phone rang.

"What?"

Stutgart said, "She's onstage. Tonight. Both
shows."

"She have a doctor's note?"

"Yes."

"Can't stop her then." He snapped the phone
shut.

"Dani?" Lefty asked.

"Yes."

"You going to see her? Should we leak it to
the press?"

Al just smiled at him tightly.

"Sugar, you sure you're up to this?" Kim
asked her with concern as they prepared to go onstage that
night.

"Yes. It has to happen sooner or later."

They took their positions before the curtain
opened to thunderous applause. "Somebody blabbed," Kim hissed at
her "the place is packed." But Dani just smiled her electric smile,
and proceeded down the stairs.

After a flawless first performance, they
hurried to the same positions just before the curtain opened on the
second one, the wild dance act. "Sugar," Kim said under her breath,
"don't do this thing."

Dani just shook her head, before she took the
lead position.