Page 32 of Secret Seduction

Lorenzo glances back at me, his blue eyes assessing me, and I smirk.

“Are you mocking me?”

I shrug, and he tosses a beer my way.

“This parenting shit is new to me,” he says, grabbing us each a slice of pizza and having a seat at the island across from me.

“I can’t even imagine having to look after another human every day, twenty-four hours a day. I can barely look after myself,” I admit, taking a bite of the pizza.

When the cheese and sauce hit my tongue, I moan in pleasure, and Lorenzo’s gaze meets mine.

“Sorry.” I shrug. “I’m starved.”

“Having Leo is a lot of work, and I never planned to be a single dad, but he’s worth it.” He takes a bite of his pizza and then washes it down with a sip of his beer.

“He’s adorable and happy. You’re doing a good job.”

I pick up the cards I was holding, and he glances down at them.

“Blackjack?”

I nod. “Know how to play?”

“Matteo and Dominick run an underground casino, so I play occasionally.”

I gather the cards, shuffle them, and then deal us each two cards.

We go back and forth and then show our cards.

“Nineteen,” Lorenzo says.

“Twenty-one.”

He glares, but it’s playful, and I bark out a laugh, not used to him not being completely serious.

“Again.”

“You got it.”

We play a few more rounds while we eat and drink, and after I win each time, he huffs.

“You’re cheating.”

I snort out a laugh and shake my head. “Unless someone’s counting the cards, blackjack is all luck.”

“Can you do that?”

I quirk a brow.

“Count the cards,” he clarifies.

I shrug and deal, and after we both announce we’re staying, I win again.

“Bullshit! You’re counting the cards,” he accuses, snatching the cards from the table so he can shuffle them.

“I am not!” I laugh as he deals this hand. “If I were counting the cards, I would have to focus. It’s not as easy as you’d think. I’d have to assign a value to every card and then keep a running count so I could calculate …”

I stop talking when I notice he’s gawking at me.