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it needed to bump against the dock. Once there, a plank was lowered and more ropes were tied off.
    From the window in his room, Clint thought that several of the people watching the boat were chatting to one another. Now that he was on street level, he could feel the air for himself and could smell the tension crackling between the gamblers as if a storm was about to set in.
    The gamblers tended to stick to the groups they’d formed the night before. Clint noticed right away that the people who’d played at the same tables stayed together now. Their laughter wasn’t exactly friendly, however, since most of them were still sizing one another up. When they weren’t talking to one another, the groups were staring down other groups and exchanging a few guarded nods or tips of the hat.
    The door to the Boathouse swung open and Mia stepped outside. She was wearing a pale yellow dress with a white ribbon tied around her waist. “Did I miss anything?”
    â€œNo,” Clint replied, “but it seems like you weren’t the only one starting your game early.”
    â€œWhat’s that mean?”
    â€œI’d think twice about whatever you thought you learned from these people during last night’s game. They’re all circling each other so much right now, I’d be surprised if every last one of them isn’t dizzy.”
    Mia swatted Clint’s arm and said, “Oh, last night was just a friendly game.”
    Clint looked over to her and grinned.
    â€œWhat’s got you so happy?” she asked as some of his grin found its way to her face.
    â€œI’m just thinking about how I’m going to spend all that money I’ll win from our bet.”
    â€œKeep dreaming.” With that, Mia brushed her hair back behind both ears and strutted past Clint to make her way to the nearest group of gamblers. Like most of the others, she started off with the men she’d played against the night before. Unlike the others, she quickly moved along to introduce herself to the other groups.
    Clint had no problem staying where he was and watching Mia work. Her yellow dress wasn’t as expensive as the one she’d been in before, but it hugged her cute little body nicely. Knowing exactly what was under that dress made it even easier to watch her bounce from one group to the next.
    It wasn’t long before Clint was aware that he was being watched.
    That wasn’t much of a surprise, considering the company he was in, but Clint knew it was potentially dangerous to give folks the wrong impression at this early stage of the game. Thinking back to what Mia had tried to do in last night’s game, Clint kept his eyes on her and didn’t acknowledge the eyes that were on him until the last possible second.
    Twitching a bit in surprise as the man approached him, Clint thought he put on just enough of a show to make himself look distracted and possibly even a little nervous.
    â€œGood morning, there,” the man said as he approached Clint. He looked to be in his early thirties, but could have been a bit younger. A youthful face combined with an expensive, tailored suit made it tough to judge his age any better than that.
    Clint shook the man’s hand and said, “Hello. I didn’t see you coming.”
    â€œLate night?”
    â€œI think all of us at that saloon had a late night.”
    The man chuckled and took a cigarette case from his jacket pocket. He opened it and held it out to Clint. After he was refused, he took a cigarette for himself and struck a match to light it. “I’ve seen better places for cards, but you couldn’t beat the company.”
    â€œI hear that.”
    â€œReally? Then why didn’t you play?”
    Clint looked over to him and studied the man for a few seconds. There was an edge in the man’s steely eyes that said he knew he was being watched and didn’t give a damn.
    â€œI’m saving my money for the real