Page 39 of Risky Bet

“It is, lover,” he whispered then cleared his throat. “It’s extremely helpful. I know I’m looking in the right direction now. Smug of him to take the blame in front of you. I guess he had no idea who you were either, though.”

“He was here yesterday, wasn’t he? Did you know then that he might be involved?”

Memphis nodded. “I did. My attorney advised me not to confront him just yet. I’ll meet with Jeremy this morning and then with Andrew again this afternoon, and at that point Iwillconfront him. Hopefully, the State Attorney can be convinced to drop the charges against me and transfer them to him instead.”

“If I can help let me know.”

“So, you’re not leaving?”

She shook her head. “I don’t know where we stand sexually, but I’m willing to stay if it keeps you out of jail. I just need you to understand how fucked up it is that you tell me blatant lies are a deal breaker for you and then you pull a stunt like this. I’m conflicted.”

He wanted to pull her into his arms, but he resisted. “I get it. I swear. And I’ll spend as much time as you need making this up to you.”

“You can start by paying for a suite at the Pink Sapphire for my friend Carla. She gets in at three. And Hunter wants me to come sit in on a high roller tournament on his dime later today or maybe tomorrow. Is that something I could do or will that cause you problems?”

He hated the idea of her leaving. It felt like if she did, she might not return. But he couldn’t keep her here against her will. Rylee wasn’t the one on house arrest.

“I’m sure we can work it out. They warned me not to use you to bring in contraband, but you should be free to go to the strip. I’ll call about the suite now. Did she already make a reservation?”

Rylee nodded. “I think so. She just told me she was coming last night. If I have her sign an NDA, can I talk to her? She’s my best friend.”

Memphis waved his hand. “Yes, please. No NDA needed. I trust you.”

She quirked an eyebrow up and gave him an awkward shrug. “OK. Well… I’m going back to bed.”

When Rylee was gone, he jumped into action on his phone. It was time to get this damn chip out of his skin and get on with his life.

He just hoped that life could include a certain professional poker player.

“I need you here ten minutes ago, Jeremy,” he barked when his attorney complained about the early hour.

Eventually, he got his message through and his attorney said he would be there within the hour.

After that, he called Andrew and asked him to come over for a lunch meeting.

As he was talking to Hunter about a suite for Carla, Rylee poked her head into his office and said she was heading to the strip to have breakfast with Hunter before she started playing poker.

“Don’t spend all his money,” he teased, hoping to get a smile out of her.

It worked, and she gave him a little wave. “I hope you get everything worked out today.”

“I’m pretty sure I will, thanks to you. And Carla has a suite for the next three nights it’s all covered.”

When she was gone, he squared his shoulders and got to work building a case against his former best friend so he could confront him in a few hours.

13

♥♥♥

Rylee sat to the left of the dealer button and contemplated her next move. She was up twenty-five grand and had the potential to triple that with this hand. Spending Hunter’s money had proved to be more fun than she thought it would be. Carla wasn’t due in town for another three hours, and Rylee planned to play until then.

The rest of the players stared at her or their cards and waited for her decision.

Finally, she called the bet and waited for the dealer to turn up the river.

It was a gamble, but it paid off. She tossed her pair of queens on the table to reveal a three of a kind. She won the pot. The men around the table grumbled, and she knew they were tiring of her cramping their style.

She was about to ante up for the next round when her name sounded over the speaker system asking her to come to guest services.

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