I hadn’t texted Bishop yet to tell him my decision, even though I knew it was a shitty thing to do. The last thing I wanted was for him to send his friends to find me and babysit me. I’d had enough babysitting to last a lifetime. Guilt rode me as I walked toward the tables, because I knew Bishop had to be wondering what I’d decided to do. Unless he was so into the tattoo he was finishing he hadn’t noticed the time . . .

That was a cop-out and I knew it. I stopped next to a machine and unzipped my purse to find my phone.

“I remember you.”

The deep, smooth voice came from beside me, startling me so much that everything tumbled out of my purse. I jerked my eyes up to see a familiar man in a tux beside me, and we both crouched to collect my lipstick, loose change, ID, the little cash I brought, keys, and other flotsam and jetsam.

“Shit. Sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

I loaded my purse back up. “No worries. You just surprised me is all.”

“My wife will never let me live down scaring people by just saying hello if you mention it. Actually, she’ll probably say something that will have me carrying her out of here clawing and kicking. So, feel free to mention away.”

“Umm . . . okay.”

“Lucas Titan. We met at Dirty Dog and again at Valentina’s party before Mardi Gras.”

“I remember. It’s good to see you again.” It was one of those polite throwaway lines, and I immediately wondered if he’d been on the lookout for me at Bishop’s request.

At least, until he spoke again.

“Is Bishop here with you?”

Any budding concern I might have had about him being sent to babysit me fell away with his question. “No, he’s working, but I wanted to . . . show my support and probably lose the entire fifty dollars I’m planning on gambling.”

“What’s your game?”

“It’s about to be blackjack. After I watch a few hands and get the hang of it.”

Titan studied me closely. “You’ve never played?”

“Nope. Never. But tonight I’m going to.”

“You want a rundown on how it works? I’m due to lose some money, otherwise I’ll never hear the end of it from those two.”

He jerked his head toward Con and Lord, who were ordering cocktails from a circulating server.

“Are you sure you don’t have something better to do?”

He glanced back toward the group. “My wife shooed me away so she could spend time with her girls, so I don’t think I’ll be missed quite yet.”

“Okay, then I appreciate it.”

Lucas Titan led the way to a blackjack table, and I scanned the felt to see what the minimum bet was. I got the feeling his idea of gambling and mine were worlds apart. His tux looked like it cost more than a nice used car.

Five-dollar minimum bet.

I could handle that. I had said I only planned to gamble fifty, so maybe he was being polite.

“I’ll play a few hands and talk you through them. You can jump in whenever you’re ready.” He reached into his breast pocket and pulled out a money clip. He peeled off a hundred and slid it across the table to the dealer.

“Changing one hundred,” the dealer said aloud, and a man stepped up behind him and nodded.

The pit boss? My guess was solely fueled by the knowledge of casinos imparted to me by Hollywood.

The dealer sat out stacks of chips and spread out one stack on the table before pushing them toward Titan. Then he began to deal.

The two other players at the table received their cards first, and Titan kept a running commentary of what he was doing and why as I stood behind him.

I wondered if the dealer would get annoyed, or perhaps the pit boss, but neither said a word. Titan’s stack of chips grew and then diminished before growing again. After about fifteen minutes, I felt like I was getting the hang of it. My hands were sweating where I gripped my wristlet, and equal parts of anticipation and anxiety spread through me.

What if I lost it all in five minutes? I guessed that didn’t really matter, as long as I got to try.

A piece of bumper-sticker philosophy floated into my head. It’s not whether you win or lose; it’s how you play the game.

Well, I couldn’t win if I didn’t play at all, and this was what I had come to do.

“I’m ready,” I said as I slid into the seat next to Titan.

He gave me an encouraging nod, and I pulled the fifty from my purse. I had an extra twenty stashed to make sure I could get home, but otherwise I was spending everything I had.

I slid the bill across the table, and the dealer repeated the process he’d done with Titan and pushed chips toward me.

The other two players stood and collected their chips. Apparently they didn’t want to play at a table with a complete newbie.

Titan watched them leave and must have read the embarrassment on my face. “You’ve got as much right to play at this table as anyone. Don’t worry about it.”

I nodded and placed a five-dollar chip on the circle in front of my seat, and the dealer began to flip the cards in front of us. Titan talked me through the first four hands, and I lost two and won two.

“Not bad for a beginner. You’re doing fine.”

Two more hands went by, and I was down to thirty dollars in chips and getting a little nervous. I’d taken my chances splitting aces and lost both.

“You’ll either come back or you won’t. The thing you’re doing that’s smart is not betting more than you’re willing to lose.”

“And now you’re a blackjack coach?”

A woman’s voice came from behind us, and we both turned.

“Yve, the love of my life, you remember Eden?”

“Of course I do. I see you’re not wearing one of my dresses.” Her tone sounded playfully disapproving.

“I wasn’t sure what would be considered appropriate for tonight so I fell back on the little-black-dress rule.” I hoped she wasn’t offended, but the smile that spread across her face told me she wasn’t.

Her dress was some kind of vintage couture that hugged and flattered her every curve, and I was immediately envious.

“It was a good choice. Next time, I’ll have to find you something like this. I’ll keep an eye out.”

The next hand was dealt, and I lost another five dollars while Titan won a stack of chips.

“Oh good, you’re winning. Can I borrow you to go bid on a piece that Valentina donated to the silent auction? It matches the other pieces of hers we bought, and there’s no way I’m letting someone else get it.”