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He grins. “Clearly, you weren’t the only hungry one. Will Ben be joining us?”
I suddenly feel like I’m shrinking under their interested gazes. “Um, no? He’s asleep. I think.”
No need to mention I was just asleep with him. In his bed.
But from the knowing looks I see when I glance around the table, they all know exactly where I’ve been for the last two days. Gah! I am not usually a blusher. But I can feel my skin growing hot as I look down, focusing on my food.
“He’s probably worn out,” Leandra says, with a bit of a smirk. “I’ve never seen him go to such lengths for anyone.”
“It’s strange,” John says in an even voice. “We all knew Ben was lying about you being his girlfriend, but you’d never know from the way he’s been behaving.”
Tao’s grin widens. “He’s a smitten kitten.”
I laugh. I can’t help it. “No, he’s just a flirt.”
And a kidnapper, but I don’t say that part out loud. Leandra hums but doesn’t otherwise respond. Neither does anyone else, which speaks volumes.
Volumes I don’t want to interpret.
Danny clears the plates as we finish, and Tao deals the next hand, cleaning out Danny completely and taking a good bit of what I won earlier. A few hands later and I’m out too, having lost it all on a bluff from Leandra.
I yawn and catch John looking over. Danny catches my yawn and yawns too.
“Shall we settle up and call it a night?” John asks.
“More like a morning,” Tao says. “It’s one-thirty.”
Danny groans. “Tomorrow is already kicking my butt.”
“How much do I owe?” I ask, reaching for a phone that isn’t in my pocket. Did I leave it back on Oakley? I have a distinct memory of plugging it in beside my bed, but it wasn’t in my room when I showered and dressed. “My wallet is somewhere. But I might have to do Zelle or Venmo whenever I find my phone …”
I trail off, watching as Danny pulls out a stack of bills. Hundred-dollar bills. My mouth falls open as he counts out a stack and settles up with Leandra, who’s acting as banker.
“Don’t worry about it, hon,” she says with a wink. “I’ll spot you.”
I sputter. “But … those are hundreds. How much was each chip worth?”
In my poker games, the chips are usually worth ten dollars, five dollars, one dollar, and a quarter. I’m trying and failing to do math in my head. I think the sight of so much money broke my brain.
Leandra pats my hand. “Please don’t worry. Ben pays us all very well.”
“Very,verywell,” Danny says, leaning back on his stool with a big smile.
Tao stands up, moving to clean up the dishes, and kicks Danny’s stool, sending him crashing to the ground in a heap. Which leads to the two men chasing each other around the room, Danny swatting at Tao with a dish towel and Tao deflecting the strikes with a cookie sheet shield.
“Can’t you do something?” Leandra asks John.
“Boys,” John says in a completely flat tone, clearly not interested in getting involved. “Stop. Don’t. No.”
Danny corners Tao near the sink, swatting him over and over on the thighs. It must hurt because Tao howls. And then he grabs the hose from the sink, extending it toward Danny. Tao’s hand clutches the faucet, clearly itching to turn it on.
Danny drops the towel and holds up both hands. “I surrender. Drop the hose, Tao.”
“Surrender isn’t enough,” Tao says. “Apologize.”
Danny drops his hands to his hips. “You first. You’re the one who started it.”
Three things happen at once. Tao turns on the sink, releasing a stream of water. Danny ducks, dropping to the floor.
