roared with laughter.
“It’s not funny! You’ve got a reputation now as a womanizer . . . that’s why I thought you were shagging Natasha Jürgen lookalikes.”
“And to think I gave him that job. He shouldn’t bite the hand that feeds.”
“Exactly,” I agreed.
“He must be pretty screwed up to think he can get away with it.”
“Well what are you going to do about it?” We arrived at the casino, Daniel rested his hand on my behind and steered me out of the elevator. I loved this new Daniel, the Daniel who was keen to show in public that I belonged to him.
“Nothing,” he said. “Let him have his fun. There’s one thing you should know about me; I don’t give a fuck what people think. I know who I am, and if my friends doubt me or judge me, then they’re not my friends and they can fuck right off. Let’s go and play. You ready?”
“Don’t blame me if I lose.”
“I’d never blame you for anything, Janie. Come. Something tells me tonight’s going to be pretty interesting.”
There were no seats at the roulette table, but an elderly man made way for us to get in on the action. There was a lighted board that indicated the last winning numbers. Daniel noticed me studying it.
“Don’t pay attention to that,” he warned. “That’s how they make their money. Every roulette play is completely random and has nothing to do with previous wins. Just because black came up the last seven times doesn’t necessarily mean red is due to come up next. Ever heard of the law of independent trials?”
I shook my head. More evidence that Daniel was steeped in this dangerous world. At least he had the money to experiment with his dollars. Could afford to take risks.
“If most people see one color come up several times in a row, the odds are they’ll bet the opposite color, and lose,” he explained.
He took out a wad of freshly minted hundred dollar bills from his jacket pocket and bought several stacks of chips. I wanted to run from the casino, there and then. I felt sick to my stomach at the thought of anyone losing all that money, especially on my account.
The croupier spun the wheel and called out, “Ladies and gentlemen, place your bets.”
“Go ahead, Janie,” Daniel urged.
“I know nothing about this game,” I said in a low voice, my heart in my throat.
“Pick a number, pick a color. Quick.”
“Okay, black and nineteen,” I said on impulse. I was nineteen when I lost my virginity, and for some reason, at this present moment, I had sex on the brain. Perhaps it was because everything that Daniel did was sexy; the way he moved, the way he challenged me with his azure eyes—his dark, mussed up hair, his wicked smile, his confidence. But mostly, the flashbacks of what had happened in the plane, the memory of how huge he was and how much he’d desired me.
Daniel placed a high pile of chips on 19 and some on various other numbers, his long fingers cool and unhurried. My eyes moved with the ball as it clunked over several different numbers on the spinning wheel. I immediately wished I’d picked red and the number 15, my lucky number. I felt as if time was frozen as everyone’s locked gazes followed the little white ball tumbling over one number to the next. Finally it landed on 15, and I felt completely nauseous. I knew it, I knew it ! But then, like magic, it toppled over into the 19 slot. I waited, holding my breath. What if it toppled over again into the next number and we lost?
But it didn’t. I gasped, my heart racing a million miles an hour. I thought I’d faint again, the way I had before I’d ended up in the hospital. But Daniel had me in his grasp, his hands clinched around my waist, as if he knew instinctively how shocked I’d be.
I squealed out in delight, and a few people at the table smiled at me. The croupier handed Daniel several colored chips.
“This one’s for you, Janie,” Daniel said, handing me a pretty pink and blue chip. I stared at it, stunned. It was
“It’s not funny! You’ve got a reputation now as a womanizer . . . that’s why I thought you were shagging Natasha Jürgen lookalikes.”
“And to think I gave him that job. He shouldn’t bite the hand that feeds.”
“Exactly,” I agreed.
“He must be pretty screwed up to think he can get away with it.”
“Well what are you going to do about it?” We arrived at the casino, Daniel rested his hand on my behind and steered me out of the elevator. I loved this new Daniel, the Daniel who was keen to show in public that I belonged to him.
“Nothing,” he said. “Let him have his fun. There’s one thing you should know about me; I don’t give a fuck what people think. I know who I am, and if my friends doubt me or judge me, then they’re not my friends and they can fuck right off. Let’s go and play. You ready?”
“Don’t blame me if I lose.”
“I’d never blame you for anything, Janie. Come. Something tells me tonight’s going to be pretty interesting.”
There were no seats at the roulette table, but an elderly man made way for us to get in on the action. There was a lighted board that indicated the last winning numbers. Daniel noticed me studying it.
“Don’t pay attention to that,” he warned. “That’s how they make their money. Every roulette play is completely random and has nothing to do with previous wins. Just because black came up the last seven times doesn’t necessarily mean red is due to come up next. Ever heard of the law of independent trials?”
I shook my head. More evidence that Daniel was steeped in this dangerous world. At least he had the money to experiment with his dollars. Could afford to take risks.
“If most people see one color come up several times in a row, the odds are they’ll bet the opposite color, and lose,” he explained.
He took out a wad of freshly minted hundred dollar bills from his jacket pocket and bought several stacks of chips. I wanted to run from the casino, there and then. I felt sick to my stomach at the thought of anyone losing all that money, especially on my account.
The croupier spun the wheel and called out, “Ladies and gentlemen, place your bets.”
“Go ahead, Janie,” Daniel urged.
“I know nothing about this game,” I said in a low voice, my heart in my throat.
“Pick a number, pick a color. Quick.”
“Okay, black and nineteen,” I said on impulse. I was nineteen when I lost my virginity, and for some reason, at this present moment, I had sex on the brain. Perhaps it was because everything that Daniel did was sexy; the way he moved, the way he challenged me with his azure eyes—his dark, mussed up hair, his wicked smile, his confidence. But mostly, the flashbacks of what had happened in the plane, the memory of how huge he was and how much he’d desired me.
Daniel placed a high pile of chips on 19 and some on various other numbers, his long fingers cool and unhurried. My eyes moved with the ball as it clunked over several different numbers on the spinning wheel. I immediately wished I’d picked red and the number 15, my lucky number. I felt as if time was frozen as everyone’s locked gazes followed the little white ball tumbling over one number to the next. Finally it landed on 15, and I felt completely nauseous. I knew it, I knew it ! But then, like magic, it toppled over into the 19 slot. I waited, holding my breath. What if it toppled over again into the next number and we lost?
But it didn’t. I gasped, my heart racing a million miles an hour. I thought I’d faint again, the way I had before I’d ended up in the hospital. But Daniel had me in his grasp, his hands clinched around my waist, as if he knew instinctively how shocked I’d be.
I squealed out in delight, and a few people at the table smiled at me. The croupier handed Daniel several colored chips.
“This one’s for you, Janie,” Daniel said, handing me a pretty pink and blue chip. I stared at it, stunned. It was