Page 133 of High Roller

Ah. So, this is about Grace, and not his feelings for me. My barrage of thoughts about the future of our relationship seems silly now.

I smile and squeeze his hand before pulling mine back to my lap. “I appreciate that, Victor. Grace is special to me. You both are.”

There’s that heated gaze again. The one that almost convinces me he wants me just as much as I want him. I saw it in the club the other night, but I’m uncertain whether I can trust my perception.

Victor stands and pulls his phone from his pocket. The screen lights up and I spy Matteo’s name before he puts it to his ear.

“Excuse me, I need to take this.”

He walks toward the stairs, and I flop back onto the sofa as I contemplate what it might be like to file for divorce.

Am I ready to take that step? Can Victor and his friends really protect me the way they seem to think they can? I can tell they’re powerful and would do everything they could to take care of me, but I also have intimate knowledge of Phineas Draven and Claudia Brandt. The mayor, who remarried after Phineas’ father died, is vicious and has no problem destroying lives if it gets her where she wants to be. To the average Las Vegas citizen, she’s a business owner- turned politician who loves this city and wants what’s best for its people. To those in the know, she’s a monster who would drown every homeless person living in the tunnels beneath the strip if she could get away with it.

Grace interrupts my thoughts by calling my name from the top of the stairs. “Victor is asking for you.”

I smile at her and rise from the sofa. She waits for me at the top of the stairs and steps in close for a hug and a tender kiss. “I missed you,” she murmurs.

I brush hair from her face. “You could have asked me to join you. I was downstairs the whole time, lover.”

Grace blushes, but before she can respond, Victor steps out of his office.

“Liliana, stop playing kissy face with my girl and come in here, please.”

I wink at Grace and squeeze her shoulder before I stop around her and head toward Victor.

“We’ll find you in the den in ten minutes, butterfly,” Victor tells her as he motions me into the room.

I sit in the chair facing his desk and wait for him to speak.

“Are you open to the idea of divorce sooner rather than later?”

With a slow exhale, I wipe my palms on the thighs of my yoga pants and nod. “I think so. We would still need to be strategic about it. Hire the right attorney, and likely a PR firm to handle the fallout. It won’t be as easy as filling out some papers and hoping he signs them.”

Victor laughs. “I know that, but we have to strike soon if we’re going to catch him off guard. We can take another couple of weeks to get things in order, but that’s really all we can afford with Hunter Novak breathing down our necks.”

I nod. “OK. Let’s hash it out then.”

“It can hold for a few hours. Let’s go talk to Grace. I want to run something by her.”

Chapter 39

Victor

Intheden,Isit between Grace and Lili, and they both lay their heads on one of my shoulders. It feels right, despite the voices in my head telling me it’s wrong, and I try to focus on Tyson’s advice from earlier.

“What should we do for dinner?” Grace asks, still sounding sleepy from her nap.

“Actually, that’s what I wanted to run by you. Unless you object, we’re having some company, and Luke is going to grill.”

Lili sits up. “Luke? Is Zara joining?”

“She is. And Bellamy, Owen, Tobias, Matteo, and Skylar as well.”

Grace raises an eyebrow. “It’s rare for all of you to be in the same room outside of the club.”

“We like it that way, but we’re making an exception because Matteo has some kind of news he wants to share with everyone.”

“Even me?” Lili asks. “Are you sure it’s OK for me to be present? This sounds like a family thing.”

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