A Player for A Princess: Dirty Players Duet #2 Read Free

knowing he knows everything. Everything we had, those moments with him were all stolen. It’s what I am. A thief.
    And now he knows.
    Seth grabs my upper arm, pulling me to his side. “I say, Miss Lampert, you must be my lucky charm.” The accent is still there, but ice is in his tone.
    The muscle in Cal’s jaw moves, and I see his anger flash at my partner in crime.
    “Cash me out.” I swipe my black clutch off the table, twisting from Seth’s grip.
    My hands shake as I collect my winnings. I don’t even bother to count them. I take the money and run. Seth will meet me at the dock like we planned. Noises are behind me, but I don’t stop. I practically sprint to the doors and out to the line of cabs. It only takes a moment for me to dive into one.
    “Grapetree Point,” I say, slamming the door.
    I fall back against the cracked vinyl seat as we speed off into the night, tears lurking in the corners of my eyes.

2
    Tracking
    Cal
    S he’s in St. Croix .
    In a casino, no less.
    I’m standing in the shadows of the run-down resort, watching the dim-lit area fill with gamblers, waiting in the wings for her to appear.
    Logan discovered the Divi on the largest of the U.S. Virgin Islands and decided to check it out. It was a long shot, but it paid off. We’d spent a day on Tortola, doing our best covert investigation, trying to adjust to “island time” despite our sense of urgency. We waited and waited, and neither Zelda nor Seth ever appeared.
    Visions of Helen Regis dead in a Miami bathtub flickered in my mind, and my fists came out. I took a few chances asking questions around Road Town.
    Harbor guards insisted no one matching her description had passed through any of the docks they monitor. I was on the verge of searching boat to boat when Logan suggested we try this place.
    The resort needs renovations. It’s nothing like the Royal Casino back home, but I suppose I grew up in the gold standard. It’s not an entirely fair comparison.
    A few green-felt tables for poker and blackjack are surrounded by brown leather high chairs. A wall of slots glows like a carnival, filling the air with their tinny music. In the center of the room is a roulette station.
    Zelda is a shark at blackjack. I remember the night I watched her turn one hundred euros into eight hundred without batting an eye, and I was such a love-struck fool, I accepted her “Daddy taught me” excuse. It won’t happen again. I’m wise to Zelda Wilder. According to Ava, she’ll head for that shiny brass wheel if Seth decides they need money.
    As much as I don’t want it, my stomach tightens at the thought of her with Seth. I’m simultaneously furious and over-protective. The first night I met him at the yacht party, I could see he made Zee uncomfortable. The way she flinched when he danced with her, the annoyance touched with fear in her eyes is on my mind.
    She belongs at my side. I’ll deal with her lies and her role in what happened to Rowan, but when the reckoning is over, Zelda is leaving with me.
    A thump pings my wrist, and I look down at the text on my smart watch. It’s from Logan: Target spotted. Making my move .
    Every nerve in my body sparks to life, and I sweep the room again searching for her pale blonde hair. A man in a dark blazer approaches the table just behind the wheel. I see Logan’s tall, beefy form casually approaching from the left. My brow furrows, and I don’t understand why I can’t find her. I watch as he walks around the group. His eyes are fixed on a woman with her back to me. She’s wearing a black dress with straps of fabric crisscrossed over her back. Her hair is a severe, dark bob like the woman in Pulp Fiction .
    Then it hits me—it’s her.
    I watch as Logan speaks to her, and I recognize the movement of her shoulders, the way she pulls away defensively. I hold the brass rail in front of me to keep from storming out there and grabbing her, throwing her over my shoulder and carrying her out of here like some