Page 16 of My Billionaire Casino Boss

I look around the hotel the next day, wondering if anyone knows about the date yet. Lily is at the desk, talking and laughing as she usually does.

I don’t think we were public enough. I go about my day, wondering if Hillary saw or heard about us. That’s the point of all of this. Eric asks how the date went, and I make it sound casual. It was. I can’t tell him how pretty Lily looked or how much I wanted to kiss her neck when she was leaning over the table while playing poker. I tell him we’ll do it again the following weekend and see what happens. I hate lying to him about Lily, but it’s the only thing we can do.

The next weekend, I dress in another suit and look in the mirror. I haven’t talked to Lily too much, but I plan to take her to a steakhouse on the lake for dinner tonight at the other end of the strip. The view is amazing and the food is some of the most talked about in the area. I’ve been paying attention lately. We can watch the sunset again, but I’ve made bigger plans for the end of the night.

I fill her in on the place it is so she can plan her outfit and tell her I’ll pick her up at seven. She opens her door in a lace vintage dress, this time in a pale-yellow color with heels and a light gray cardigan.

“When did you buy these dresses? I remember you wearing jeans all the time,” I tell her as we walk to the car.

“Ally is big on thrift shopping and consignment stores. We went all the time, and you don’t know every little thing about me. I changed my style a little over the years.” Lily slips into the car and I take in her curves with a swallow. “It’s nice to have a place to wear it,” she says.

“You looked good at the club that night, too,” I say. I hadn’t meant to say it, but the comment slipped out.

“Thanks.” Her voice is quiet, and I glance over to see her staring forward.

“Are you dating that guy?” I ask, unable to resist.

“If I was, I wouldn’t be here. I met him that night and it was fun, but I always planned to go home alone,” she tells me, and I hear the strain in her tone. “Even if I did plan to talk to him again, I’m sure Eric ruined that with his immature behavior.”

“I didn’t enjoy seeing him with you, either,” I tell her, regretting it immediately. I keep saying stupid things.

She throws her hands in the air. “It wasnothing. I just danced with him a little bit because Olivia was into his friend. And why do you even care?” I know I said the wrong thing. “You’ve slept with half of Tahoe,” she hisses. “Isn’t that why we’re doing this in the first place?”

“I haven’t slept with anyone recently,” I admit, and she’s quiet until we pull up to the restaurant.

We walk in and get seated with another incredible view, but Lily won’t look at me. I feel something bad growing between us and I feel helpless to stop it. She orders wine and I ask for a beer before Lily looks at the menu.

“Talk to me,” I urge her, and she looks at me, green eyes full of fire.

“About what?” she asks and looks down to scan the menu.

We get through the meal with scattered conversations, but nothing that Lily allows to stick. The food is great, but she pushes it around her plate, distracted by her thoughts. We’re sharing dessert when the sun slips below the horizon before turning dark and I swallow nervously.

I pay the bill and we walk outside, and I thank Mother Nature for the full moon. There’s a pathway along the water where a few people are looking at the picturesque view and I pull Lily over, near a streetlamp.

“What are you doing?” she asks, looking at me as I cup her face. “Thomas?” she whispers, gripping my waist with trembling hands.

I kiss her softly, feeling everything, I felt before. Heat washes over me as she moans, gripping my suit jacket to pull me closer. Lily wraps her arms around my neck, and I let her, sliding mine around her waist to tug her against me. Our mouths crash together again, and I feel her tilt her head, urging me to deepen the kiss.

I meant to keep this sweet and short. Just a peck under the moon, but here we are making out like the first and last time I ever kissed her, and I’m not letting go.

Eventually, we pull away to catch our breath and stare at each other. I saw Hillary at the window of the restaurant, looking broken, so our plan worked. I should be thrilled about that, but I’m not thinking of that. It’s not why this kiss turned out like that.

I am in so much trouble.I don’t have much experience dating anyone seriously, but this thing with Lily needs to be convincing. Even though this is just for show, I plan the date carefully. I make reservations for dinner at an excellent sushi restaurant. I know how much Lily loves seafood, and it seems like a great place for a date. Eric approves of the location, but he doesn’t know what he’s asking of us.

Every time I see her at work, I get a little more anxious about the date, fake or not. Lily is breathtakingly beautiful, and I wonder how many other men think the same thing. I already think Jacob does by the lovesick gazes I see him giving to Lil. Every time I see them together, I want to drag him aside and remind him of the policy.

Which, of course, is the same policy I’m pretending to break.

The night of the dinner, I pick her up at seven, and Lily comes to the door in a fitted vintage green dress that brings out her eyes. She’s stunning. I’d considered flowers but giving her those at her door would have been a waste since no one would see. Instead, I ordered them to be delivered to the restaurant at eight tonight. Nothing crazy—a small bouquet of tulips. Eric told me they’re her favorite flower.

I’m wearing a suit tonight, and she looks me over before meeting my eyes. I want to reach out and touch those soft curls I got to run my fingers through that night years ago.

“You look incredible, Lily.” She takes a deep breath.

“My best friend says to dress up for dates, so here I am dressed up. Playing the part,” she says, turning to lock the door. She pulls her sweater around her, and we walk to the car quietly.

“Thank you for doing this,” I tell her, opening her door for her.

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