Prosecco & Paparazzi (The Passport Series Book 1) Read Online Free Page A

and finally found our friends. We pried them free of their newfound lovers and pleaded with them to go search the casino and report any sightings of Brynn or Des.
    I was thrilled to no end when our newly-made friends offered to help. Feeling confident that there would be no table left unsearched, no corner left unlooked, we ventured forth.
    After half an hour passed, all seemed hopeless.
    I posted myself near the women’s bathroom because I felt faint. I continued to berate myself for not taking advantage of my earlier opportunity while trying to remain positive. (Very tricky.)
    Then Hillary came dashing over. “We’ve got him! You can do this! Tidy your lipstick, and off you go!”
    En masse, we all casually yet purposefully approached Des and Brynn. They were at a table together, playing blackjack. I was close enough to hear them arguing about whether she should take another card from the dealer.
    “Take one,” I sagely suggested. Suddenly, I was an expert at the game.
    The bluest eyes I’d ever seen looked up at me, and that carefully constructed smile that I’d seen in so many movies was directed at me. My heart almost stopped, but my brain kicked in at the last moment and reminded it to beat.
    “Excellent! Tell us, are you an authority on blackjack? On whose word should we accept such an opinion? Do you make a habit of giving advice to perfect strangers? And, if you’re decided to be said expert, why only take one card instead of doubling our bets, or perhaps even playing two hands?” He fired questions at me in much the same way that Tom Cruise cross-examined Jack Nicholson in A Few Good Men . Could I handle the truth..? Maybe not.
    “Actually, I’m not, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night!”
    He looked at me in utter confusion.
    “Clearly you don’t watch much American television,” I added.
    “Ah, that’s the explanation. You’re an American.” Des’s blue eyes glinted with superiority when he zinged back at me, poking the air with his finger.
    While I had been playful, the superior tone of his voice instantly put me off. “I hope that not all people buy into stereotypes. For example, should we assume that, because you’re English, your teeth need straightening, capping, or whitening?” I inwardly cursed myself for my temper.
    At this point, I received a genuine smile and chuckle from Des that evaporated my anger.
    “Darling, it’s time to go!” Brynn stood up and possessively placed her hand on Des’s shoulder. Clearly, his sharing a laugh with someone else was not on Ms. Roberts’s agenda.
    “Well, it was charming to receive such useful advice from such a learned traveler! Good evening. Enjoy your stay at the Holiday Inn Express.” With that, Des Bannerman departed from the table, taking his companion with him.
    The universe reconfigured, the clouds re-gathered, the sun faded, and with them went my hopes.
    Hillary, Kathleen, and the rest came thundering over. “How’d it go? What’d he say?” they asked in unison.
    It was a bit embarrassing, considering that Des and Brynn were only about two feet away. “For the love of God and all that is holy, could you at least wait for them to be out of hearing range?” I whispered loudly.
    The flash of white passing by at waist level reminded me of “The Grand Plan.” I had forgotten to tell him about his fly. I still had a way into the sphere of Des Bannerman’s world. All hope was not lost, and Brynn’s agenda be damned: I was going in for another play.
    “I’ll be back!” I said with the same determination as the Terminator.
    I returned immediately. They’d disappeared, again. “What is it with these people? They disappear instantly! I need help finding him! Go! Find him!” I felt like a general sending her troops into battle.
    Thankfully, the troops returned unscathed, and quickly. Des and Brynn had made it only as far as the bar. That seemed like an exceptionally reasonable place to reacquaint myself with him.