“Scotch?” he asked. I hadn’t noticed him walking over to the bar to fill two tumblers with the brown liquid. I didn’t particularly want a drink, no. I would have much preferred the money that I lost tonight. He clinked the side of his glass against mine and I took a tentative sip. I knew the way the night was going to end. There was nothing I could do about that but the money was bothering me. Short of asking him outright to give me the cash, what the hell was I supposed to do?
Please… what was his name?
I had forgotten the man’s name. I giggled again.
“What's so funny?” he asked.
“I don’t remember what your name is,” I said. He laughed, looking down.
“I thought calling you the Baroness had a nice air of mystery about it.”
“After all the time we’ve spent together, in and out of bed, maybe it makes sense to know what the other is called.”
He formally stretched his hand out. “Niall Bridges.” I nodded, shaking his hand.
“Edwina but everyone calls me Eddy.”
“Eddy. I like that,” he said. I felt a little ripple through me. Oh my god grow up, I thought. He said he liked your name. You didn’t even pick it yourself. Focus. You’re here to figure out how to get your money back. I needed to figure out something to bet on.
Was this how gambling addictions started? I didn’t often empathize with Russell but at
the moment I was.
Just one more game. Unlike him, my life depended on it, god rest his soul. I didn’t begrudge him, but he was the reason I was being reduced to this. I could get out of this hole, all I needed was one more game.
I took a swig of my drink and took a few leisurely steps around the room.
“What say you to another game?” I asked. He looked surprised.
“Again? You enjoy losing, don’t you?”
I shrugged. “I like to play. I want to bet. On anything, it doesn’t even have to be cards.”
He seemed pensive. I wasn’t sure whether it was working. Maybe he was done. He had gotten his prize and now all he wanted to do was collect. I scrambled to think of something.
“I know,” I said, walking up to him. He was almost a head taller than me even though I was in heels. “A friendly wager.”
“What do you mean?”
“A staring contest.”
He laughed. A staring contest. I cringed internally. It was the best that I could come up with on short notice.
“You’re kidding,” he said.
I shook my head. “Someone sounds scared.”
“Me? Eddy, you don’t even have anything to bet with,” he pointed out. “Far as I’m concerned, I won already.”
I took a deep breath. He was kind of tipsy, and he seemed like he was in a good enough mood to go along with me. I had to try.
“A simple staring contest. If you blink first, I get that fancy watch of yours. If I blink first, you can have my panties.”
He laughed again. That was a good sign. It meant that he was game. I still had a chance. Whatever came out of tonight, I could go away with a thirty-thousand-pound watch.
“Okay,” he said. “But before I agree to anything, I'll need to get a look at the goods.”
Of course, he did. He had already agreed to my terms, so I was amenable. Besides that, spending time with him all night and now being in the same room with him had gotten to me. The drinks I had put away through the night had gotten to my mind but I wasn’t doing anything with him that I didn’t expressly want to do. I turned around slowly and bent over, at the same time hiking up the skirt of my dress so that it rose over my hips and thighs. I was wearing a white, lacy thong. I hadn’t expected anyone to get a look at my pants tonight but I was thankful that they were one of my nicer pairs. I turned back around in time to see the look on his face. He was flushed. He swallowed and nodded, unlatching his watch.