Unwanted Company

 

POV: Brigail

"Barry, fancy meeting you here," Pam greeted Barry dryly, while stealing a malicious glance at Brigail.

"Pam, what are you doing so far away from the dog house? Won't your master miss you?" Barry replied with an equal dose of sarcasm.

"Oh, now, Barry, we both know you're the one in the dog house," Pam snarked. She fixed her scrutinizing gaze at Brigail. "Hello again, Miss Havens."

Brigail gave her a curt nod as she eyed Pam and Barry warily.

"Don't tell me Eli's buying the pyramid, too?" Barry asked, diverting Pam's attention away from Brigail.

"Don't you wish you knew," Pam replied wryly. "Well, I have to go now. Ta, Miss Havens. I have a feeling we'll be seeing each other more often."

Pam flashed Brigail a cryptic smile before she sauntered toward the lobby. "And don't you worry about Barry, he's all bark and no bite."

Barry glared at Pam, while Brigail followed the leggy blonde's graceful movements as she exited the hotel.

"What's that about?" Brigail asked after Barry nudged her elbow to keep moving.

"Ignore her. She's Eli's right-hand. The one doing all his dirty work for him," Barry replied as they stopped in front of TENDER steak and seafood bistro. "I hope you're not a vegetarian because they do a mean Kobe wagyu here."

Brigail had never been to a restaurant that fancy before and she, not for the last time, felt out of place.

---

Two hours later, Brigail was laughing so hard her sides hurt.

"You did no such thing!" Barry gasped while he cast a sidelong glance at Brigail. "You folded a trio of Kings?"

"I did," Brigail said as she beamed at Barry. "But it's nothing compared to the full house I gave up so you could run the Asian shark over."

Barry's hearty laugh echoed inside the car as he drove Brigail home. "Who would've thought an innocent girl like you could play those whales like a pro?"

"I wasn't really playing them. I only wanted you to stay in the game because, no offense, Barry, but you kinda suck," she jested.

Brigail, unlike Jerry, had inherited her father's adeptness in card games. Once in a while she would play with the customers at Latoya's and she would milk them like cows on the farm. Latoya didn't seem to mind because Brigail was drawing customers who were eager to buy drinks to ignore the bleeding of their pockets.

But it was only a hobby for Brigail, never a profession. Easy money was always easy to lose. She'd learned that the hard way from her father.

Barry wasn't the least bit offended as he continued to laugh. "That's why Eli thought we were conspiring."

"Aren't we?" Brigail asked.

It was Barry who invited her to play, in the first place. He also shouldered the three-hundred-dollar buy-in. He was also the one who picked the table for them, stressing that the players at that particular game were fat sharks who wouldn't mind losing their money. "I mean, I thought that was the plan. That's why you took the seat across me so we can send signals or somethin'?"

Barry nodded as he pulled up at the curb in front of Brigail's mid-rise apartment building.

"Yes, we are. And we make such a good pair, don't you think?" Barry asked as he unbuckled his seatbelt. Without waiting for Brigail's response, Barry stepped out of the vehicle and was beside Brigail's door in a jiffy.

Brigail got out of the car and was standing side by side with Barry, who was looking at her expectantly.

"Would you like to do it again sometime?" Barry inquired hopefully. "Like you said, I'm in dire need of your assistance."

Brigail smiled shyly as she hugged her knives' roll to her chest. "I don't know, Barry. I think I've had enough fun with the casinos for a while. Gran will roll over in her grave and tan my hide if she finds out I'm following my father's footsteps."

She clutched the roll tighter. "Plus, I already gave my word to his Excellency that I will never go back to his casino again."

"Eli doesn't own all the casinos in Vegas, Brigail. Also, I'm banned in all of them. Rest assured we won't be doing our Thelma and Louise act under Michealson's nose."

Barry moved closer as he tried to convince Brigail.

Although he'd dropped the Southern drawl when he moved to Sin City, he still had a few Southern tricks up his sleeve that he was sure would work on Brigail. She was from Louisiana, after all. And like all girls from the South, she wasn't impervious to a gentleman's allure.

Brigail took a small step back, clutching her bag to her chest. Classic defensive stance.

"I'll think about it, Barry. Thank you for dinner."

Barry took her hand and planted a kiss on it. "Good night, Brigail. Sweet dreams."

A minute later, Brigail walked inside the building, leaving Barry standing on the curb with a satisfied smile on his face.

What neither of them noticed was the dark gray Land Rover SUV lurking in the shadows two lamp posts away.

Or the man behind the wheel who'd been shooting daggers at Barry for the past hour.