Chapter 9: THE PERFECT PLAN

I was lucky enough not to wake up with a hangover the next day, but I could still feel the slight twinge of embarrassment creeping up my cheeks as I remembered the whole encounter with Damon Bass. His dirty smirk, laced with amusement as I fell onto his lap, was stuck in my head like a bad song. I threw my legs out of bed anyway and headed to the bathroom to shower, trying to scrub the memory out of my mind and hoping I’d never run into him again—or, by some special grace, that he never came to the casino.

I dressed quickly, throwing my hair into a sleek ponytail, grabbing my jacket, and heading out of the room when I ran into Aiden, who was also stepping out of his room. The difference was that I was fully dressed for work, while he was shirtless, fresh out of bed, with wicked bed hair. Only then did I fully notice the roundness of his muscles, hard and smooth, his skin silky. His abs were right in my line of sight, taut, with tattoos running smoothly over them, up to his tight chest and encircling his neck in a sexy yet subtle way. I forced my eyes to his face, but, if I’m being honest, it was an even better sight for sore eyes.

“What exactly do you do for a living that you can afford this place and yet still have so much free time?” I managed to ask. He chuckled.

“Nothing to worry yourself about, Tiny.” He walked toward the kitchen, and I followed behind him to grab my keys and leave—anything to stop imagining what it’d be like to kiss him again. I couldn’t believe it. I was yearning for a kiss with my bully, the same asshole who tormented me all through high school.

In the kitchen, I quickly picked up my keys and was set to leave when his voice stopped me.

“You’re not going to kiss me goodbye?”

I froze, turning around to look at him, waiting for the amusement to crawl into his eyes, but they remained fixed on me, focused, and serious. My mind immediately froze as I started imagining what it’d be like to kiss Aiden at that moment, to feel his soft lips graze mine like they did before, catching me unawares and knocking the wind out of my lungs. But this time, it’d be different. This time, I’d run my hands over his abs, feel the tight muscles of his chest, and—

“God—I’m joking, Tiny. You should’ve seen your face,” he said, forcing me out of my daydream.

“Like I’d want to kiss you,” I threw back before hurrying out of the house, trying to calm my pounding heart and compel it to behave.

By the time I got to work, I’d managed to slow my heart to an almost steady beat. God, he was such an asshole, but that didn’t stop my brain from constantly picturing what it’d be like to kiss him.

The day started off slow, with the regular gamblers trooping in. Some I was already familiar with because of how frequently they came, and some were new takers coming to register and begin what might become a lifelong addiction to gambling.

It was only toward the end of the day that I noticed a certain familiar woody scent I shouldn’t remember. When I looked up, there he was, standing right in front of me with a cocky smile plastered on his wickedly handsome face.

It was him—Damon Bass.

“We’re closing in five minutes, so maybe you could come back tomorrow,” I said immediately.

“Only if you’re going to be here,” he replied.

“I’m off tomorrow,” I said, thankfully. He tsked.

“I can’t wait that long.”

“To do what?” I regarded him carefully.

“Ask you to go on a date with me.”

My mouth fell open slightly as the words left his mouth, leaving me dumbfounded. I hoped he’d pull an Aiden and say he was joking, but nothing of the sort happened. His eyes remained on me, cool, calm, and collected, as he patiently waited for me to process his question.

I cleared my throat, searching my brain for words.

“A date? Why? Why would you want to go on a date with clumsy old me?”

“Because I’m curious about you, Cheryl Taylor,” he said in a honey-laced voice. His eyes flicked to my name tag, and I realized that’s how he’d learned my name. “You’ve intrigued me in some way, and I can’t rest until I’ve unraveled the entirety of you. So, give me that chance.”

His words blindsided me, and I couldn’t fully fathom them. It was shocking. I remained dumbstruck, my mouth unwilling to form words. Curious about me? No one had ever been curious about me—not even Marty. Yet here was a complete stranger, one I’d embarrassed myself in front of several times, who was, in fact, curious about me. What harm could there possibly be in going on a date with him? Maybe this way, I could stop thinking about Aiden and imagining what it’d be like to kiss him all the time. Maybe I could kiss this stranger instead and think about kissing him.

It was the perfect plan.

I looked at Damon, meeting his cool eyes, and sighed. “Fine, I’ll go on a date with you.”

He nodded cheerfully, though his face remained serious. “I’ll pick you up Friday night.” Then he reached for my phone, which I’d placed on the table. He swiped it open easily—since I never used a password—and dialed his number. I heard his phone ring. Placing the phone back on the table, he winked at me.

“See you,” he said before walking away. I watched him leave, thinking that maybe this was exactly what I needed after a divorce and crushing on my bully-turned-roommate. This was exactly what I needed.