Page 1 of Letting it Ride

PROLOGUE

From:[email protected]

To:[email protected]

Subject:Re: Fwd: Cruise

That sounds awesome! I’m in for sure. I’m sure Holly won’t mind. Open seas, sun, and Bahamas, here we come. Can’t wait for a piña colada.

M

From:[email protected]

To:[email protected]

Subject:Fwd: Cruise

Just talked to the people about the deal below,and we’re in! You’re coming, right? Week of April 14. Four-day cruise to the Bahamas. Details below.

Cam

From:[email protected]

To:[email protected]

Subject:Cruise

Let your poker skills take you to the high seas!

Royal Crown Cruise Lines is one of the premier cruise ship travel companies in North America, and we pride ourselves on offering a diverse selection of activities to our guests. For our upcoming cruises to the Bahamas, we are providing guests a chance to gamble with blackjack, poker, and more in our on-board casino. As a special bonus, we plan to offer lessons on poker gameplay and strategy.

As a professional poker player, we can offer you a deeply discounted cruise package in exchange for your expertise in this area.

Interested in hearing all the details? We have plenty of dates to fit your busy schedule! Contact us at the email above or call 800-CRUISES ext. 55 to speak to one of our special events coordinators today. We look forward to sailing with you!

1

CAM

“I’m pregnant. It’s, um, not yours.” My long-time girlfriend chews on her red-stained lip and shifts her weight from one foot to the other as she tucks her short, dark hair behind her ear. Ellie’s gaze moves to the front door, like she’s planning her escape from where she’s currently standing in the center of my living room rug.

“Are youfuckingkidding me?” My voice is dangerously soft, but it seems that Ellie is barely listening. It’s what I’ve come to expect: I talk, and she picks and chooses what she hears.

My stomach drops to the floor, the edges of my vision beginning to blacken. Bile rises in my throat as I catch a whiff of her flowery perfume. I used to love thatsmell.

Ellie and I have been on again, off again for almost two years. And yeah, we’ve been on more breaks than I can count, but when we were together, it was good. Wasn’t it? I would have thought that the time we were together meant she owed me… well, something. At the very least, the curtesy to use a goddamn condom when she was fucking someone else.

Fuck. If the baby were mine, I’d do the right thing, obviously. Marry her, raise the kid. Honestly, if she wasn’t sure who the father was, I’d offer to do that, too. But if she’s certain it’s not mine? Shit…

“Cam? Say something.” Ellie’s blue eyes glisten with tears. It seems almost calculated, but then, maybe I’m just cynical from all her manipulating over the last couple years.

I swallow hard against the lump that rises in my throat, choking off all the terrible things I wish I could say. “Are you sure, Ellie? That it’s not mine? You can take a test. If there’s any chance it’s mine…” I trail off as she shakes her head.

“I know it’s not, Cam. And even if there was a chance it was…” Her gaze is cemented to the floor, unable to meet my eyes. I guess I have my answer.

My stomach twists. A wave of nausea passes through me again, and this one has nothing to do with her perfume.

She doesn’t say it, but I know.

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