“Excuse me!” she said, then realized she was staring at Errol Hightower. “Oh, Mr. Hightower, hello!”
“Mrs. Bell, how nice to see you again.”
Just then the ladies’ room door opened, and a beautiful woman in a black, skin-tight dress stepped out and walked straight to Errol. He linked arms with her and then turned back toward Lynn. Her gaze shot between the two of them, uncertain of how to react.
An almost imperceptible wince crossed his face, but the discomfit was quickly erased. “Mrs. Bell, may I introduce my sister, Carla. Carla, this is one of the couples just married at Cupid’s Chapel.”
“How lovely to meet you,” the other woman said, her voice smooth as silk, belying the bored expression on her face.
Lynn locked her smile firmly in place. With a slight nod, she turned and headed into the ladies’ room, gasping once the door was closed. That was not his sister! Sally had specifically mentioned to Nancy that there were no children or siblings that would be considered beneficiaries if one of them died. Hurrying into the stall, she quickly finished her business and washed her hands. Rushing back out, her mind was in a whirl. She caught a glimpse of them moving through the crowd, Errol’s hand resting low on Carla's back, his fingers drifting over her ass. Sister! Who does he think he’s kidding? Isn’t he afraid of somebody seeing them wondering why his hand is on his sister’s ass?
Torn between getting back to Nolan and following Errol, she decided to follow the couple to see where they were going. She looked toward the direction of the coffee station but was too short to see Nolan. This’ll just take a moment anyway.
Blending into the crowd as she walked, she followed Errol and Carla, stopping at a distance behind them as they accepted drinks from one of the servers. Chatting with another couple, his hand once again rested on Carla’s ass. Having no idea why she thought it might be important, she pulled out her phone and pretended to be texting as she held it up and snapped a picture of them. Maybe Nancy can use this if Sally wants evidence of what else he’s doing besides mishandling the money.
She watched as Carla and the other woman stepped away from the foursome, leaning over one of the gaming tables as they laughed and chatted. Jerking her attention back to Errol, she tried to disappear in the throng of people, hoping to get closer. A wide, tiled column flanked by two potted plants was next to the men and she managed to slip around behind them.
Putting her phone on record, she wondered if they would say anything important.
“… hundred thousand…”
“… made a transfer… account…”
“… came in on time… taken care of…”
With only snippets of their conversation audible it still sounded suspicious, but she knew nothing definitive would come from continuing to sneak around.
Coming out from behind the plant, she looked up in time to see Nolan stalking toward her. His expression was worried until his gaze landed on her and changed to a narrowed eyed glare. “Lynn! Where the hell have you been?”
Not wanting to draw the attention of Errol, she darted through the crowd and rushed over to him. Without giving him an answer, she grabbed his hand and continued toward the exit, attempting to drag him with her. When his feet stayed planted, she jerked back, leaning against his chest. Looking up, she whispered, “Come on! I don’t want him to see me!”
Nolan’s brows lowered and he growled, “What the fuck are you talking about? Don’t want who to see you?”
Still whispering, she pleaded, “Come on. I’ll tell you as soon as we’re out of here.”
Instead of walking, he looked around as though searching for a threat. Jerking on his arm, she brought his attention back to her face. “Please!”
This time he gave in and they battled through the crowd toward the exit. She breathed easier once they were out of the casino.
“Lynn, you’d better start talking. You scared the shit outta me back there when I couldn’t find you.”
“I’m sorry! It’s just that I ran into Errol and a woman when I was going into the ladies’ room. He introduced her as his sister, but she was not his sister!”
He opened his mouth, but she continued talking right over him. “I know it wasn’t his sister because Sally told us there were no children or siblings in case there was a death instead of divorce. But I also know it wasn’t his sister because his hands stayed on her ass!”
At that, his head jerked back, and he stared in incredulity.
Still not giving him a chance to speak, she continued, “When I came out I decided to follow them, and they stopped to talk to another couple. The two women walked away and I hid behind a plant to try to see if I could find out what they were talking about. Oh! I almost forgot that I snapped a picture of his hand on his not-sister’s ass! I thought maybe Nancy could use it. I turned on my phone recording and it sounded like the two men were talking about something important, but I just couldn’t hear enough of their conversation to know. That’s why I was trying to get you to not draw attention to me so that we could get out of there.”
She had not considered what Nolan’s reaction to her activities would be, but her eyes widened as he crossed his arms over his chest and stood to his full height, which meant she had to lean back to hold his gaze. And considering his gaze was more of a glare pinned straight on her, she regretted sharing.
