This earns me a laugh. It’s a beautiful sound. Angelic.
“Well, if you’re sure,” she says.
“I am.”
“Are you particularly close with your brothers?”
“Thick as thieves,” I tell her with a grin. “There’s only about two years between each of us, so it was pretty easy to get along.”
“And how old are you?” she asks, sitting on the edge of her seat.
I pick up my mug of coffee, bringing the edge to my lips. “I don’t know if I should answer that.”
“We’ve seen each other naked, Zane. I doubt learning your age is going to change my opinion about you.”
I take a sip, the bitter acidity coating my tongue. “Forty,” I answer. “Thirty-nine and three-quarters, if you want to get technical. You?”
“Twenty-one. And a half. You know, for technicality.”
I already knew she was young. It doesn’t bother me.
But now that I know Willow is exactly the same age as my daughter…
“Hm,” is all I end up saying.
Willow laughs, so sweet and soft. She smiles at me sheepishly as she nudges my leg with her foot under the table. “Don’t get all shy on me now.”
“Finish your food,” I tell her, hiding my grin behind my mug. “And then we’ll go shopping.”
* * *
Despite it being the middle of December, Nevada is as hot as ever. The second we step out of the hotel-casino, we’re met with a blast of warm, dry air. It’s definitely not as scorching as it would be during the summer months, but it’s the furthest thing from frigid.
The streets are packed with all manner of tourists, cameras and cellphones in hand to take pictures of the neon vibrance of the Strip. Scalpers are out and about, pedaling their tickets to those who are interested in catching last-minute shows. Traffic is crazy, too, cars lined up bumper-to-bumper with people coming to test their luck—and some leaving with those who have lost it all.
A handful of boutiques are crammed along the main road, but most of the clothing stores can be found inside the massive casino complexes. They’re more than just a place to bet your hard-earned penny, but entire entertainment centers designed to keep you too amazed and hypnotized to leave. There’s a little bit of everything for everyone here in Las Vegas. Shopping malls and food courts and movie theaters next to the slot machines and card games and strip joints and free-pour bars, all within walking distance.
Willow and I wander into the Venetian, waltzing straight into one of the clothing boutiques next to the fake water canal they’ve built into the building. The whole place is designed to reflect the romantic atmosphere of Venice, complete with gondola pay-per-rides and vaulted ceilings painted blue.
As much fun as it is to see Willow genuinely enjoy herself, I’m also on high alert. I’ve made extra sure we haven’t been followed. So far, the coast is clear, but I can’t afford to let my guard down. There’s no telling who might be watching, or from where. With every store we visit, I make a mental note of the exits we can take, formulating new escape routes everywhere we go. If something happens, I need to be able to get Willow out of here in a matter of seconds.
Sometimes a second is all that stands between life and death.
“What do you think about this one?” Willow asks me, holding up a red dress she’s plucked from the shelf. “Actually, it might be a little too bold. I’ve never been allowed to wear something like this.” Her wistful tone strikes my heart.
“Do you like it?” I ask.
“Itispretty, but—”
“Try it on.”
“No, it’s really alright.”
I take the dress from her and gesture to one of the store’s employees. “We’d like a changing room.”
“Of course, sir.”
“Zane—”