"How interesting should we make this game, Asher?" Li asks.
"It’s your game, Li. You said best of ten. You bet first and I’ll match. That will be our ante."
He allows a small grin as he walks over to the bar and asks for a snifter of brandy.
I watch him. He’s very confident. But everything about him—the way he dresses, walks, talks—everything says he’s got a reason to be confident. And it’s more than money. Hell, I’ve got money. Lots of money. But I don’t think I’ve ever walked around like that.
Why is he taking such an interest in Grace? She’s beautiful and she’s sweet. But why her?
"One hundred thousand," Li says, bringing my attention back to the game. He pushes ten neatly stacked chips to bet the player.
I grab ten chips from my rack and place them on the banker.
"Do you like to bet against me?"
"Banker always has a higher advantage, Li. I’m sure you know that."
"Ah, it’s making sense now. You hate risk, Asher? And yet”—he cocks his head at me, like he’s thinking through some elaborate theorem—“you find yourself in a world of risk right this very moment.” I make to answer him but he puts up a hand. “Not this, Asher. Miss Kinsella. Do you know where I found her?”
I just stare at him.
“In a hallway, sobbing her eyes out.” He narrows his eyes at me. “Over you.”
Who the f**k does this guy think he is? “Not that it’s any of your business, but that was a misunderstanding. I haven’t had a chance to explain what’s happening yet. But once I do, she’ll see past it.”
“Past it?” He sneers at me. “She’s just a thing to you, isn’t she? She really is a gold watch. You think you own her.”
My jaw clenches and I want to f**k this man’s world up in so many ways. But I’ve spent my whole life dealing with ass**les like him. I’m a professional. “I only own what she’s willing to give, Mr. Li. Regardless of what you read or watch on the tabloids, the decision to stay always belongs to them.”
“Hmmm. She was a fountain of information in the twenty minutes we sat and had drinks before this suite was ready.”
I clench my jaw again. What the f**k did she say?
“She told me,” Li says, “that you threw her away.”
“I didn’t throw her away. I made a decision to keep her safe. I’ve got… a situation brewing. I don’t want her caught up in it. She’s misunderstanding, that’s all.”
“Hmmm. Then you are a poor communicator, Mr. Asher.”
“Probably, yes.”
“I think she deserves better.”
I laugh loudly. Too loudly. “Is that right?” He nods and smiles, but says nothing. “You have no idea what you’re talking about. I am determined to have my say tonight. And once I do, she will understand and be right back in my arms.”
“But maybe you don’t deserve that chance.”
“Who the f**k are you, Li? The f**king guardian angel of second chances? Fuck off and let’s play.”
That smile again. That motherfucking overconfident smile. “Let’s liven the game up, Mr. Asher. Let’s see how badly you want that second chance. How much you’re willing to risk for it. Every time you lose I’ll have my associate make Miss Kinsella an offer and if she accepts my offer before our game is over, then she’s mine to keep."
“She’s never going to be yours.”
“You’re probably right. I have a daughter her age, so I’m not really interested. My point is that if I win this game, she will not be yours because my offer will take her to places beyond your reach. I’ll introduce her to a whole new life. Give her a chance to find a nice man who will treat her well and not make her break down in a hotel casino hallway because her lover threw her out like trash.”
"And how do you plan on getting her to accept your offer?" I growl.
"A job offer. In Hong Kong where I do a lot of business. She has a useful profession. Everyone needs someone to coordinate events, right? Even you, maybe."
"She’ll say no," I reply with confidence. "She likes her job, she has friends, she’s rooted in Denver."
"Perhaps. But each time you lose, the offer will increase by thirty thousand dollars. How long will she hold out when the salary offered is in excess of a hundred grand?"
My jaw clenches along with my fists. "Why are you doing this?"
"I thought you liked to play games with your women, Asher?”
I just stare at him.
"When I took her into the bar, we watched the Buzz Hollywood interview with, what’s her name? The soon-to-be mother of your child? Jackie, Jacey, Jennifer—"
"Jasinda."
"Right, right. My Grace was very upset. And she was a little bit drunk at the time. She mentioned an NDA—"
Fuck.
Li laughs. "And then she mentioned so much more." He shoots me a smile. "So, since you are an avid game player, let’s play." His jovial nature disappears and a ruthless businessman takes over. His smile drops into a straight line, his face becomes passive, and he builds superiority with a squaring of his shoulders and a raising of his chin. "You do not deserve any woman, let alone her. So if you lose, I steal her away with an offer that will change her life, I call up Buzz Hollywood and repeat everything she told me, and I take your money."