Page 10 of The Billionaire's Accidental Legacy

“Aren’t you going to take the cards from him?” she asked the dealer.

She’d betrayed more of herself then than she would have liked.

“Of course,” said the dealer, removing the cards from the center of the table. Was everyone under his spell? No one seemed concerned.

He lifted a brow in question. And she tried to simper.

“Just wanted to make sure you don’t have anything up your sleeve,” she said, trying to keep her tone sweet.

“I never have anything secreted away except for an extra bottle of whiskey. You have no need to worry.”

No. She decided then that he wouldn’t cheat. Not like that. It would be clumsy and inelegant.

But there were other ways. And she knew them all.

Gameplay began. The cards were dealt. And bidding began.

He was relaxed. And he didn’t have a tell. But she was keeping track of where the cards were.

And everyone else had easy tells.

By process of elimination, she had figured out several hands.

When the dealer dealt the cards, all she had to do was keep watch on the edges.

It was easy for her to approximate where they then folded and who they went to. What was still in the deck and what might still be at hand.

It required concentration, but if she lost it at any point, she could simply call back the image in her mind.

Right now Ewan had a particularly good hand.

There were a couple of cards she could not account for, of course, but she had a fair idea of everything that was happening.

And so, when the bidding became intense, she folded.

She would have one more round to take all.

And this was where things became complicated.

Knowing when to trade. When to hold. When to fold.

He won, quickly and decisively. And he took the pot to himself.

Good. Let him think it would go his way.

Her adrenaline spiked.

Several left the table. Done for the evening.

Two were eliminated.

And there she remained. Her heart beating faster, her blood singing. She was doing it. Like she always did. It felt so good.

Winning.

The next hand went out.

She nearly breathed a sigh of relief. She almost had a full house. One card short. And if she traded... It was still there. It was in the deck.

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