Page 40 of High Roller

“Not yet, but I ran into Amarjit. We can talk to Jacob at eight-thirty in the morning. Lili had a panic attack when I told her Jacob and Amarjit are spending the night, so Gracie and I are crashing in her room to make sure she’s OK.”

“OK. I’m taking Skylar to the penthouse at Diamond Desire tonight because she has early rehearsals, but I’ll be back for breakfast in the morning. What is your game plan for talking to Jacob?”

I shake my head. “I’m not entirely sure. My only idea is to show him a picture of Liliana and see if he has anything to say about her. It can’t possibly be the same guy, but I want to cover all our bases. The way she described the attack doesn’t sound like a hit, and Jacob doesn’t strike me as the type to go around raping random women.”

“I agree,” Matteo says.

“I’m here until closing if we need to come up with a better game plan after everyone is gone.”

Skylar returns with two drinks, and he pulls her back into his lap, nuzzling her neck as she settles. “We’ll chat then.”

As I go through the closing routine that night, it’s safe to say my mind is firmly planted inside suite two instead of out here where it should be.

And it feels like a mistake to let my mind dwell on the possibilities there.

Chapter 13

Lili

It’sbeenalongnight. The club was so full of people, and I was looking forward to seeing what Victor did with needles. But I lost my mind when I saw… him. Or I thought I saw him. It still seems impossible that it’s actually the man who attacked me.

It’s been an entire year since that incident, and I don’t even know if what I saw tonight was real. But that face is imprinted in my mind, so it seemed pretty fucking real.

When I noticed the first signs of a panic attack, I tried to stave it off with a cold shower, and it backfired, and I went completely numb instead. It’s happened before. Usually when I’m in bed with Phineas. Gracie coming to check on me pushed me over the edge for reasons I can’t explain, but when she came back with Victor and climbed into the shower with me, it pulled me back from the brink. It was a haze that I didn’t remember at first, but when the fog rolled back, the memories came back too. I’m grateful to both of them even if I’m still pissed about being kidnapped.

Now Gracie sleeps next to me, and I’m wide awake. I slip out of bed and try the door. It’s locked of course, but I try every time I walk past it.

I sit on the sofa and look around the room for something to read or count or anything to keep from going crazy. Time is a mystery right now, so I have no idea how much longer it will be before Victor gets back. But it gives me time to consider my situation and figure out what options I might have.

The door opens sometime later, and Victor walks in. His hair is a bit more unruly than before, and he’s carrying a plate of food and two cell phones.

“Gracie left hers in the staff lockers,” he says at my questioning glance.

“How was the rest of the party?” I ask.

He walks to the bed and kisses Gracie on the temple. It’s sweet, and my heart feels all fluttery watching him with her.

“It was uneventful. A typical weekend. We’re chatting with your ghost in the morning.”

My stomach lurches, and I jump up, ready to run to the bathroom in case I puke.

“Whoa. What is it, Spitfire?”

My stomach settles and I lower myself back to the sofa. “I’m sorry. I’m sure it seems like I’m making a big deal about nothing. It’s probably not even him. Right?”

“Right,” Victor agrees. Almost too eagerly. “Are you hungry?”

“Probably, but I don’t think I can eat.”

“Let’s try and get some sleep, then.”

“Can we have some music or something on? I don’t like the quiet.”

“I’ll turn something on. Now get some sleep. We’re going to do everything we can to get to the bottom of this.”

“Thank you, Victor. Really. I’ll help you. With all of it. Taking Finn down, any information I can give you. It’s yours.”

“What changed your mind?”

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