Read Rarities Unlimited 02 - Running Scared for Free Online

waist, “you’re not in costume.”
    Shane looked down as though surprised to find himself in the same leather jacket, open-collar cream shirt, and black slacks he had worn to the meeting at Rarities. “I’m in costume.”
    “As what?”
    “Normal twenty-first-century male of the species Homo sapiens sapiens .”
    Gail laughed. “Point to you. The last thing anyone would accuse you of being is normal.”
    He looked over the crowd with a practiced eye. No matter how unlikely their costumes, he easily spotted the security guards. They were the only ones not drinking. It was the same upstairs, on the catwalks hidden behind ceiling grilles and one-way mirrors surrounding light fixtures. Security people walked overhead and manned each Eye in the Sky while the cameras worked. At the Wildest Dream, as at other big casinos, every bit of the action was captured and put into digital storage. Though the records were accessed as bytes on minidrives more often than on videotape, everyone still referred to the records as “tapes.”
    “Great crowd. Who’s on God duty tonight?” Shane asked idly, referring to the security people upstairs.
    “Whoever lost the toss.”
    Gail must have signaled a server, because one left a hole in the crowd getting to Shane to offer him whatever his heart desired. He waved off the leggy girl whose breasts bobbed like waterlogged coconuts above her low-cut neckline. Other than an eyeful, Shane couldn’t decide what her costume was supposed to represent. Chartreuse and silver kitty-cat, maybe.
    And maybe not.
    “You’re not going to stay long enough to eat or drink anything, is that it?” Gail asked when he waved off the server.
    “I just got in from L.A. I’m way too tired for your crowd.”
    She didn’t believe it for a second. She knew just how much energy and stamina the man had. What she wanted to know was how to get him back in her bed again. It had been too many years.
    At first she had thought it was the age difference that made Shane stop calling her. Gradually she had realized it was worse than that. He simply didn’t want any more from her than the enjoyable affair they had already had.
    If there was no other choice, she could live without him in her bed. There were plenty of energetic males in Vegas. But it really chapped her ass that Shane couldn’t see what a perfect business match they were. He was the only man she had ever met who could crunch numbers as fast as she could, whether or not the computer was up and running. He could speed-read a balance sheet and know instantly if things were kosher or in the toilet. So could she.
    Together they could rule Vegas.
    And whoever ruled Vegas controlled the biggest little money laundry in the world. When you controlled that laundry, all kinds of delicious opportunities came knocking on your back door.
    The broad, powerful figure of a Celtic warrior in full—and quite imaginary—regalia appeared out of the crowd behind Shane. As though he had eyes in the back of his head, Shane turned and took in the full effect of helmet, leather shirt, gilded metal armbands, earrings, sword, and the hairiest thighs this side of a sheep pen.
    “Hi, Carl.” Shane held out his hand. “Nice helmet. You swipe those horns off a Texas Cadillac?”
    Carl Firenze grinned as he shook Shane’s hand. “Gail picked it out for me. Said she wanted to be able to find me in a crowd.”
    “Crowd, hell. She could find you in a stampede.”
    With a bark of laughter Gail’s head of security released Shane’s hand and looked toward his boss. “Call waiting for you, Ms. Gail.” He checked the window of the small computer unit that kept him in touch with the most important things that were happening in the Wildest Dream. “Berlin.”
    It was the signal Gail had been waiting for, but suddenly she was reluctant. Even when she was positive she wouldn’t ever take a certain road again, she hated burning bridges behind her.
    On the plus side, she was used to it. She