Leo was in first with a solid bet of a quarter of a million dollars. She was careful not to blink at the outrageous bet on the cards she knew he had. He was definitely trying to “see” who was willing to stay in. Art folded. Jameson stayed. Park stayed and Vienna did as well.
The dealer burned a card and turned over three cards: the queen of spades, the three of hearts and the ten of spades. That gave Vienna four spades. She would need to pull the jack of spades on the turn or the river in order to get her royal straight flush. One more spade, any spade, would give her a flush.
Leo looked the table over, looked at the cards and at each of them carefully. Two spades showing on the table was definitely a possible flush if someone held two spades in the pocket. He made his quarter-million-dollar bet. Jameson folded. Park stayed. Vienna raised, willing Park to stop preening to his fans and pay attention when the bet came round to him again. Leo remained silent for a few moments, looking at her face. In the end, he pushed his chips in to call her. Park did the same.
The turn was a four of hearts. Leo pushed his chips out in front of him, making his bet, a half-million dollars. Vienna raised the bet to a solid million. Park looked sober but answered. Leo studied her face again, and then once more met her chips with his.
The dealer burned a card and then turned a card over. The jack of spades. She knew that card was going to be there, but it was still a thrill and difficult to keep her expression blank. As it was, her stomach did a somersault. She had a royal flush. That was unbeatable.
Leo bet a million and she raised. Park pushed all in. Leo answered without hesitation, certain he had the winning hand. The spectators had gone silent, the atmosphere tense with anticipation as the betting went around the table. Art and Jameson leaned in close as if they could see through the cards.
Leo and Park both called her. Park had two pair. Leo had a queen, jack, ten, nine and eight of spades—a straight flush—a hand most poker players never lose with. He’d had the nine and eight of spades in the pocket. There was a murmur of excitement as Vienna turned over her ace and king, revealing she had a royal flush.
Leo stared down at her cards as if he couldn’t believe them. “My God, woman, Art wasn’t joking when he said the river favored you.”
Park stood up, giving them his famous grin. “I’ll leave you to it.” He shook hands with both of them, saluted his adoring audience and sauntered out.
“She was bluffing up to that point,” Art said.
“She was playing the odds,” Jameson disagreed.
“Nothing seems to faze that guy,” Leo said, watching Park leave. “Did he come here to make money?”
“No one sits at a gambling table like this for any other reason,” Art said. “I think half the shit he says and does is for show. I checked into him. He’s the real deal in modeling. Makes so much money it’s ridiculous.”
“He makes it gambling too,” Vienna said. “He gambles online and wins the big money.”
“Why do you think he was really here?” Jameson asked. “Because I don’t think it was just to play cards.”
Vienna thought that over as she stood up and stretched, grateful she could escape to her room for the rest of the evening. She was an active person, and sitting for hours was difficult. Once her body got over the strange lethargy that gripped her after long hours of cards, she intended to go running. She needed to be outdoors, where she could breathe.
“You think he was here for another reason?” Art asked.
They were down to four players. The hotel had really managed to get the hype they wanted from the tournament and more. The tournament had been heavily advertised, particularly once Art, Leo and Jameson made the final table. They were huge names in the poker world, and each had their own following. Charles was a controversial player and often had eruptions at the table. Spectators watched just to see what he would do. Benny was the wild card of poker. He could be erratic, playing as if he’d thrown out the rule book, or extremely professional, following every rule. With Theodore came the drama of would he finally make his win? The hotel knew exactly how to build that kind of suspense.
Park was a famous model. The hotel took advantage of his making the final table by creating many opportunities for photo shoots of him with his legion of fanatical fans. Park had been more than happy to cooperate with the hotel, generating even more advertising for them.
Vienna knew she was beautiful. She couldn’t look in the mirror and not see what others found attractive in her. She had classical bone structure, exceptional green eyes and a generous mouth. Her hair was thick and naturally platinum, unusual for her age. She was tall and had a figure, but never seemed to gain weight, mostly, she knew, because she was so active outdoors. Her mind was too restless to allow her to stay still for too long.
After the visit from Daniel Wallin, his security crew and his doctor, she had to laugh over the invitation to play poker in the hotel’s big tournament. Mitzi had been right. There was always an ulterior motive. And why not? Wallin was in the business to make money. He’d come to her room, appearing to be nice, but making certain her injuries weren’t severe enough that she could claim to a jury later that she had been incapacitated enough to be awarded millions. His lawyers probably wanted to know the alcohol level in her blood. She hadn’t taken a drink, so that wouldn’t help them. She didn’t really blame Wallin for that either. He probably got those kinds of claims all the time.
She had given her share of interviews and posed for cameras with the other finalists, but as fast as possible, she had always made her way to her suite. She didn’t like the spotlight, and she never would. This tournament only went to show her that, as wonderful as the accommodations were, online was the way to play for her. She could win big money without the glare of the spotlight.
Park, on the other hand, just like the celebrity gamblers, thrived on the attention. That continued attention from fans allowed them to be popular with the hotels—that and the fact that they were excellent poker players. Each of them had managed to create a persona that appealed to the public and knew how to use social media to their advantage.
“Good for his career,” Leo pointed out. “Park probably added another hundred thousand screaming fans to his platforms.”
Vienna found it hilarious that Leo knew anything at all about social platforms, but of course, he would have to.
“Good for him,” Art said. “His companies most likely put up the money for him so he’s not out a penny.”
“I’m heading up to my room,” Vienna announced. Deliberately, she touched the bruise on her head to remind them before they could protest. “I know I should go in and talk to the media, but I’m really exhausted.”
“Do you want me to escort you up?” Leo asked.
She liked the man. How could she not? “I’ll be fine. Charles was a one-time thing, and the hotel put enough security guards on me that I think the rest of the hotel is at risk.”
Leo laughed. “At least they’re taking your safety seriously.”
“That they are. See you later.” Vienna gave a little wave of her hand and made her escape.
The moment she was off the floor and heading toward the elevator, she was surrounded by security. She recognized the two guards who had come to her rescue the evening before. They rode up in the elevator with her.
“I didn’t have a chance to thank you yesterday, and I didn’t get your names, so I couldn’t send you a note.” She looked pointedly at their uniforms. The taller of the two had a nametag proclaiming his name to be Simon. His partner was Harold.
“No need for that, ma’am,” Simon said.
“I know you don’t think so, but you got there so quickly. I was scared. The man in the suite next to mine is older, and I was afraid if Charles was able to get up, he’d really hurt Mr. Forsyne too.”
The elevator glided to a stop, the doors opening. Harold held the doors and Simon stepped out first, looking up and down the hallway before gesturing for her to come out. The two security guards walked her to her door.
“We’re glad you both are all right,” Simon said.