Page 41 of All Bets Are Off

Addy steps closer to me with challenging authority, her perfect brows pinched together. “This weekend, here in Vegas, on my bachelorette party? Yeah, Evie, I do get to tell you what to do.”

“Maybe if your bachelorette party wasn’t so expensive in the first place,” I mutter under my breath as I walk away, because really, this weekend is only deepening the hole of debt I need to climb out of.

At the counter, it’s a chaotic scrum as everyone orders a variety of breakfast sandwiches, and I fall into the small gap by Jameson’s side, reluctantly, as he waits his turn.

“How about I turn that frown upside down by buying you breakfast?” he offers, despite the lethal flash of anger I look at him with. “Oh, c’mon. Don’t you feel like there’s a weight off your shoulders now that your secret thieving ways have been exposed? You can relax now.”

“Relax?” I repeat incredulously. “How can I relax when my sister has just imposed a drinking ban on me right before we go to a pool party? Thanks a lot for that. Last night when we stayed up chatting, I was starting to think you were actually a nice guy, but you know what? I take it back.”

Jameson nudges his arm gently against mine, an easy smile on his face as he attempts to soften my hardened demeanor. “You want a bacon, egg and cheese?”

Ugh. I do want a bacon, egg and cheese. Grudgingly, I glance up at him from beneath my lashes as my scowl eases. “Yes. And the truffle hash browns.”

“And the truffle hash browns,” he confirms with a saluting nod.

Five minutes later, when I’m shoveling those truffle hash browns into my mouth and they taste like absolute heaven, I decide I hate Jameson ever so slightly less.

19

Adelaide

We’re headed to see Marshmello at Encore Beach Club, located within the Encore hotel toward the north end of the strip, and although it doesn’t seem that far away, Hailey points out it’s a forty-minute walk. It’s already ninety degrees out and us ladies are wearing wedge heels. There’s no chance in hell we’re enduring such a trek, so now we’re all piled into three different Ubers.

I’m in the back seat with Liam on my left, Melissa on my right. Connor rides up front in the passenger seat, but it’s no coincidence he ended up in the same Uber as Liam and me. He’s keeping an eye on me, like he said he would, but it’s making me incredibly self-conscious.

“You look absolutely stunning,” Liam murmurs as he gives my thigh a squeeze, and when I turn toward him, he’s watching me with a soft, admiring gaze, like he so often does. “Forget Cancun. I’m so much happier right here with you.” His hand finds mine, threading our fingers together. “I can’t imagine anything better than an ice-cold beer by a pool with you by my side, Addy.”

“You know this is a Vegas pool party, don’t you, Liam?” Connor pipes up from the front seat, and it’s the first sign that, yes, he’s decided he’s going to be difficult today. “It’s going to be wild, and definitely not the peaceful kind of bliss you’re envisioning right now. You and Addy will not be relaxing on a cabana.”

“We’ll still have a good time,” Liam says with a squeeze of my hand. “Won’t we, Addy?”

“Absolutely,” I confirm, and I swear I catch Connor roll his eyes in the side mirror.

This is going to be a long day . . . A long weekend . . . A long lifetime, perhaps, of Connor Lexington being utterly convinced I’m marrying the wrong person. I care about him, but right now I really wish I could just tell him to fuck off—though maybe more politely than that.

Today is a new day. Last night with Liam, that was another small blip in our otherwise stable relationship. We’re going to have a fun day together; we’re going to enjoy the sunshine and the cocktails and a DJ wearing a giant marshmallow on his head. If I have anything to worry about today, it’s Evie—my apparent thief of a sister—and the random man in his thirties who has followed her in one of the other Ubers.

I have no idea why he wants to be around Evie after the stunt she tried to pull, and I’m not sure how much fun I’ll be able to have while overseeing what’s going on between those two, and Evie has planted a seed in my mind about Theo and Hailey . . . So maybe I’ll need to watch them, as well. And make sure Connor doesn’t say or do anything that will bring my private matters to light.

So, essentially, just another day in Adelaide Sinclair’s life looking out for everyone else around her and keeping things under control. Why is it always so exhausting?

Our Uber pulls up outside the grand entrance of the Encore hotel, and only moments later, the other two cars arrive. I do notice that despite no longer being handcuffed to one another, Theo and Hailey climb out of a back seat together. The most likely explanation is that Hailey just feels more comfortable around Theo than some of the others in the group. After all, she’s known Theo and Evie for as long as she’s known me, which is a hell of a long time. I’m not sure there’s anything more to it than that.

“Addy, there’s a problem,” Hailey says gravely as she immediately dashes straight to me, but any slight inconvenience is always an emergency in Hailey’s mind, so her panicked expression doesn’t concern me too much.

I grab hold of both her hands to calm her, offering a reassuring smile that whatever it is, it’s not the end of the world—because it never is. “What’s the problem?”

“The beach couch we reserved? It was only for up to four people . . .” She trails off nervously, like she’s just dropped a bomb and is now waiting for its impact. When I don’t react with the same panic she’s obviously feeling about this realization, she explains further, “None of the guys are going to be able to get in with us like they did at the club last night.”

I laugh, because as expected, it’s not really a problem at all. Well, at least it’s not a problem for us.

“What is it?” Liam asks, his hand finding my hip as he falls back into place by my side.

“You guys are going to have to wait in the general admission line, and it’s probably going to be expensive,” I tell him, somehow managing to keep my blatant smugness out of my tone. The guys have had an easy ride up until now, piggybacking on my bachelorette party, so it’s about time they were left to their own devices to figure things out for themselves. “Our reservation only covers admission for us girls, so you’re out of luck.”

Liam shrugs with an air of nonchalance. “We already knew Vegas was going to have our pants around our ankles just because we have dicks. It’s fine, babe. You go on ahead and get checked in, and we’ll meet you inside. You’ll invite us into your little VIP spot, won’t you?”

“Only if you ask us nicely.”