One Night with the Player

I swirled what little liquid remained in my crystal tumbler before downing the last sip of whiskey. Even in my private plane, flying made me nervous. A patchwork quilt of green and brown spread out several thousand feet below. The pilot just informed me we’d be on the ground in twenty minutes, though looking out the window, it didn’t seem like there was anything around, much less somewhere to land.

“Would you like another whiskey before we touch down?” The flight attendant stopped at the edge of my plush leather seat.

“No, thank you.” I handed her the empty glass. One was enough to take the edge off of coming home to Texas after fifteen years without dulling my senses.

She set her hand on my arm. “Is there anything else I can get you? Anything at all?”

“I’m fine. Thanks, um…” I struggled to remember her name.

“Alexa.” Her lips spread into a wide smile. “If you like whiskey, there’s a great bar at the Driskill Hotel downtown.”

“Thanks for the recommendation.” I politely slid my arm out from under her hand.

“That’s where I always stay when I’m in Austin. How about you?” She tilted her head and studied me with eyes the color of the bright blue summer sky outside my window.

“I won’t be staying in Austin this time, Alexa. If you like whiskey, try The Speakeasy off East Seventh. You need to be a member, but I’ll have my assistant send you a guest pass.”

Her eyes widened. “Thank you, Mr. Steele.”

“Don’t mention it.” I turned my attention toward the window, my way of ending the conversation. As one of the richest men in Chicago, I was used to women coming onto me, and often took them up on their thinly veiled invitations to spend an evening together.

But not this time.

This weekend marked the first time I’d set foot in Texas since I left over fifteen years ago. I wouldn’t have come now if it hadn’t been for Mama Mae. When my foster mother found out I planned on skipping another one of my high school reunions, she threatened to drive to Chicago and drag me back herself. We both knew that would never happen. Not only did she hate traveling, but if I had any hint she was on her way, I’d call my pilot and be able to take off at a moment’s notice.

When she realized threatening me wouldn’t work, she resorted to guilt. That’s when I gave in. Mama Mae was the only person who’d ever believed in me. She’d taken me in as a struggling teen when I’d run out of all other options except for juvenile detention. Because of her, I’d learned that even though I’d gotten a rocky start to life, I didn’t have to let my past define me. I owed everything to her.

The wheels touched down on the runway, interrupting my thoughts. Seeing Mama Mae would be great, but I wasn’t looking forward to the weekend ahead. There’d been a reason I left Broken Bend, Texas and never looked back, and the reason had a name: Olivia Monroe. She was my best friend Ethan’s little sister and the only girl who’d ever captured a piece of my heart. At least I wouldn’t have to worry about running into her during my short visit home.

I stepped off the plane and glanced around for the car my assistant hired to take me into Broken Bend. The only vehicle nearby was a tripped-out Hummer limo painted neon yellow. There was no fucking way he would have picked a ride like that. Not if he valued his job. I slid my phone out of my pocket and pulled up his number.

“Leo Steele?” A high-pitched falsetto came from inside the limo. “Are you the gazillionaire from Chicago who’s finally decided to grace the great state of Texas with his presence?”

I shook my head and bit the inside of my cheek as I stalked toward the limo. Which one of my asshole high school friends was responsible for this?

It didn’t take long to find out. The door flung open, and Ethan sprang from the back.

“What the hell?” I held my arms open and embraced my best friend. We hadn’t seen each other for a few years. Not since the last time he came to Chicago for a long weekend.

“Wanted to welcome you home in style.” He clapped me on the back and motioned to the limo. “Come on in. We’ve got a fun night planned before we drop you off at Mama Mae’s place.”

I recognized a few of the guys from our graduating class as I climbed into the backseat. “What happened to the car my assistant arranged?”

“Oh, we sent him away. Who needs a town car when you can have a party mobile? Am I right?” Ethan climbed in after me and handed me a shot glass full of a dark liquid.

As the limo slowly started to move, he held up his glass. “A toast. To my best friend Leo, who’s been gone a hell of a long time. This weekend, we’re going to show you what you’ve been missing in Broken Bend. Hell, maybe we’ll even get you to think about moving back.”

Everyone lifted their glasses and clinked them together. Alcohol sloshed over the edges, dousing several of us. This wasn’t what I had in mind when I agreed to come home for a quick visit.

I slammed back the shot and handed Ethan the empty glass. “Where are we headed?”

“Nothing but the best for you, my friend. Don’t worry, you’ll get to see everyone in Broken Bend later on tonight, but we’re stopping by a new place on our way out of Austin first.” He waggled his brows as he poured me another shot. “Drink up. Tonight, everything’s my treat.”

“Where’s your family this weekend?” I’d checked, double-checked and triple-checked that my plan had been successful, but it wouldn’t hurt to hear it straight from Ethan.

“They’re on a cruise. It was the weirdest thing. My folks got a call they’d won an all-expenses paid trip from some contest they didn’t even remember entering. Two weeks cruising from New York to somewhere down south and back again.” Based on the way his eyes couldn’t fully focus on mine, he looked like he’d gotten a sizable head start on whatever shots he was pouring.

“Oh yeah? Good for them. Did your sister go too?” That had been my goal all along. If I was going to be returning to Texas, I had to make sure Olivia wouldn’t be anywhere nearby.

“Yeah. It’s too bad. I’m sure she would have loved seeing you while you’re back in town.”

A mixture of disappointment and relief slid down my spine. I held out my shot glass for another refill. Knowing I wouldn’t be running into Olivia would make being back in Texas a whole lot easier, though there was a part of me that would have given everything for one more glimpse of her gorgeous face. “We’ll have to catch up next time I come home.”

Ethan laughed. “Yeah, right. At this rate, the next time you come back, you’ll be bringing the missus and a brood of kids.”

My gut clenched. He might think I aspired to the American dream, but that had never been my goal. The only woman I’d ever been able to picture standing by my side for any length of time had always been entirely off limits.

“What’s it like being the owner of the hottest dating app out there? I guess you’re always hooking up with supermodels and movie stars, huh?” Ethan was halfway to sloppy drunk with nothing standing in his way. He’d always had a hard time holding his liquor. Too bad he hadn’t seemed to learn how to handle himself better over the years. It would be easier to humor him than crush his warped fantasies of what my actual life as CEO of the most popular hook-up app on the market looked like.

“Not nearly as exciting as you’d think.” I gulped down another shot. “Now tell me where we’re headed. You know I don’t like surprises.”

He leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees. “Curvalicious. It’s a gentleman’s club on the way out of Austin. If things go your way tonight, you might just get lucky, not that you need any help in that department.”

The last thing I wanted to do tonight was sit around with guys I hadn’t talked to in fifteen years while women I didn’t give a fuck about shook their tits in my face. But I didn’t want to hurt Ethan’s feelings. So, I sucked it up and held out my shot glass for another pour, determined to do what I did best: keep my feelings to myself and do what needed to be done to get through the evening ahead.