Free Meant for Me (A Second Chance standalone) by L.P. Dover Page B

gave
me a long, hard squeeze. “It’s good to see you again, Jake. You don’t look a
day over thirty,” I teased.
    Jake Montgomery was in his early fifties, and I wasn’t
kidding when I said he didn’t look a day over thirty. He had short, salt and peppered
colored hair that he always kept expertly coifed, and it was no surprise that
he was wearing a light blue button down shirt with gray slacks. I don’t think
he even owned a pair of jeans.
    Jake chuckled and let me go. “I may not look a day over thirty,
but I sure as hell feel like it.” He turned to acknowledge Mason and extended
his hand. “I’m Jake Montgomery. If you’re with Claire I’m sure she’s told you
about us.”
    Mason smirked and shook Jake’s hand. “Not everything. I
think she forgot to tell me about the dancing part.”
    Jake’s eyes went wide and he gasped, “Really? That’s
shocking considering that was what she was most known for here … well, other
than keeping my ass in line with the books. I tell you what, I’ll get Avery
down at the bar to send up some drinks and I’ll tell you all about our little
summer goddess here.”
    I groaned and waltzed into Jake’s office with Mason on my
heels behind me. This was going to be interesting.

 

     

     
     
    Jake ushered us into his office, or better yet, I would
consider it a mini suite. He had a large wooden desk in the corner, a small gym
set in the other, and a couch with two separate chairs in the middle. Claire
and I sat on the couch, and when she sidled closer to me I draped my arm over
her shoulders.
    Jake sat across from us, and by looking at Claire’s
expression I could tell she felt at ease with the man, but in my experience,
most of the club owners I knew were all a bit shady. Jake might be a good man
underneath all that sophistication he wanted to exude, but if there was
anything deceitful about him I would find it. Anyone had the capability to
deceive, and I learned a long time ago never to trust anyone.
    The door to the office opened and in walked a dark haired
woman with a blue toga on, carrying a tray of drinks. She smiled warmly at us
and set the tray down before walking out of the room without a single word. I
passed Claire her glass of wine and gulped my gin and tonic down in one
sitting. If I was going to have to sit through a story about Claire’s past then
I sure as hell needed the liquor floating through my system.
    “So how did you two meet?” Jake asked curiously.
    Claire took a sip of her wine and set it down, glancing at
me quickly before she explained, “Oh, wow, let’s see. It’s actually a long and
complicated story, but all in all he’s related to one of my close friends. I
actually just ran into him the other day.”
    “Ah … so new love, huh?” Jake laughed. “I wish I could
remember what that felt like. So what brings you back to Las Vegas, kitten? I
know it wasn’t to visit me.”
    Claire rolled her eyes and smiled. “Actually, I’m here
because of this one,” she said, pointing to me. “He likes to gamble and I
figured I could show him a thing or two at the blackjack tables. Plus, I
thought it would be fun to come by and visit you while I was here. We’re
staying at the Bellagio.”
    Grinning, Jake shook his head and then turned to me. “That
doesn’t surprise me. Mason, did she tell you that’s where I met her and offered
her a job?”
    Claire had told me everything except the dancing part, and
she mentioned about him approaching her in the lobby of the Bellagio, but she
didn’t elaborate on it. “Yeah, she might have mentioned it. She basically only
told me about the club and that she worked on the management side of things. So
what happened?” I asked.
    “Well, let me tell you,” Jake began, “I saw Claire sitting
in the lobby at the Bellagio looking all studious with her hair in a messy
ponytail, biting on a pencil with her books scattered all around her. I just
had The Labyrinth built a couple of years beforehand so it