“Not so recent then,” Nate said in a deadpan voice. “Sounds like she’s still got a hold on you.”
Brent shrugged, his way of saying yes. “College girlfriend. Haven’t seen her in years.”
“Well, I hope that changes—that is, if you want it to change.”
Hell, did he ever want that to change. But he had no clue what Shannon was up to these days beyond a few posts she made on her Facebook profile, and chances were he wouldn’t run into her again. He hadn’t heard much from her since he’d walked away that night ten years ago.
He closed out the window, shifting gears, and showing Nate his vision for the nightclub.
After they discussed the logistics, Brent gestured to the door, and the world of the casino beyond it. “You up for a round of blackjack?”
“Hell yeah. I’m a gambler these days,” Nate said. They left his office and headed to the casino floor at The Luxe.
“What is it that’s making you a gambling man?”
“This and that,” he said, as they parked themselves on stools at a nearby blackjack table, the hustle and bustle of the casino surrounding them, the slap of cards on tables, the cha-ching of money from slots, and the scent in the air of desire for bets to turn into bigger bets.
Brent didn’t press it. Whatever Nate was betting on these days was clearly private.
* * *
Nate was betting on change. He was betting on possibilities. He was betting on hopefully someday soon having the guts to tell Casey how he was really feeling.
That prospect scared the hell out of him. He had no clue how to find the courage to even begin to verbalize all that he felt for her, and how much she was changing his ideas of everything he’d ever wanted in his post-Joanna life. In a few short weeks she’d upended his priorities, and had him considering everything he’d sworn off since he’d stumbled across the emails from Joanna and her professor.
But then, that wasn’t entirely true. He hadn’t only started thinking of Casey that way in recent weeks. Those notions had been forming since he had first started to get to know her. They’d simply elbowed their way to the front of the pack after he’d touched her, kissed her, held her, and experienced the magic of her coming apart in his arms. He supposed that was the power of such intimacy—it could shake a man to the core. It could change a man.
If he let it.
That was the big if.
That night in London had rocked his world, and had ended their roles as teacher and student. They’d become lovers for real. They’d been together like that again and again in New York when they returned, spending nights tangled up in each other, unable to resist touching, exploring, discovering the depths of their connection. The answer? It was endless.
Which was both wonderful and terrifying.
It was the dark unknown.
Maybe that was why neither one had said more about what the night in London meant. All he’d managed was to let her know that he didn’t want this time with her to end. Which was terribly unfair because he knew deep down that he could never be enough for her long-term, and he’d have to figure out what the hell to do with this crazy mass of emotions that was rattling around in his head and in his heart.
For now, he had a soft seventeen, so he asked the dealer to hit. He was willing to take a chance on twenty-one. He overshot though, and lost a handful of chips to the house.
“Win some, lose some,” he said to Brent, and the two men played a few more rounds.
Later that afternoon, he settled into his seat on the Gulfstream, along with a pack of Chihuahua-Mini Pin mixes from a local shelter that was overrun with dogs. They were sharing the flight with him from Vegas to Manhattan, en route to their new homes. The tiniest of the crew had insisted on curling up in his lap, a small brown and tan creature who liked to snuggle.
The flight attendant stopped by and stroked the little dog’s head, then rested her hand on the armrest. A brunette with a gorgeous figure, she was exactly the type of pretty that would have lured him to talk to her had he met her at a bar—his type being sexy and someone he never expected to see more than three times.
But he had no desire for her.
He had no desire for anyone but his good friend who had rocked his body, his head, his heart, and his whole entire world.
“The pilot said we’ll be ready to go in five minutes, Mr. Harper. Is there anything I can get for you?”
“I’m all set,” he said, and she returned to the front of the cabin.
His phone buzzed, and he checked the new message. It was a text from Jack. He read the note and laughed. Rather than text back, he gave him a ring.
“Lucky me. A phone call from my best man,” Jack said when he answered.
Nate laughed. “Yeah, and to answer your question, I’m pretty sure there are no strip clubs at my property in the Maldives.”
“Damn. I was really looking forward to a lap dance at my bachelor party.”
“Sorry to let you down,” Nate said, but it was all in jest. Jack had no plans for a bachelor party, and certainly none at a strip club. He wasn’t the strip club type, nor was Nate, for that matter. Besides, there was only one woman he wanted to see stripping—
Shit.
It hit Nate like a flying ton of bricks. It wasn’t as if he’d forgotten Casey was Jack’s sister, but it simply hadn’t mattered much when they were merely messing around. Now it mattered, and Nate was going to have to man up and say something to Jack. Something like, “I’m falling for your sister.” Or maybe something closer to the truth. “I’ve been crazy about her for years, and I’m pretty sure the feeling is mutual, and I have no clue what to do about it, and if I hurt her I will hate myself forever and ever, and I don’t know how to not hurt her, but I don’t know how to not be with her either. Got any advice?”
But his flight had begun to taxi, so now was not the time for that conversation. Perhaps next week, when Nate saw his buddy in person. Actually, that would have to be item number one on his agenda since there was no way Jack, or Michelle especially, would miss the vibes between him and Casey.
They chatted for another minute, then Nate told him the plane was about to take off. He said goodbye, then quickly fired off a text to the woman who was front and center for him: Looking forward to seeing you later tonight. Your place?
They’d been at his home a few times, and at her apartment the other nights. Her next-door-neighbor had even started saying hello to him when they ran into each other in the hall. There was something that felt right about being a part of her life like that.