A Hand Overplayed Ch. 01

Brittany fiddled with her phone again anticipating a response to her text, he wasn't late or anything but she had arrived 5 minutes early and he wasn't there. Typically the poor boy was so eager to see her he'd arrive almost an hour beforehand at times, her getting to the location before him was something new. She put her phone away and just assumed he was walking slow, a wooden bench with rich green paint lined the sidewalk out front of Bailey's, one of the most lavish restaurants in the city. On the top floor sat their patio section which offered one of the most gorgeous views of Vegas a person could ask for, at night it was especially majestic twinkling like a field of light that drifted off into the horizon, being a sucker for scenic photo opportunities Brittany loved coming here any chance she could get. Not to mention their baked potato and cheddar soup was to die for, albeit a bit expensive, thankfully with Lance now in the picture she was certain her tongue would be tasting the savory flavor of it quite often over the next few months.

The clock struck 7pm and still no Lance, not only had he not arrived early to see her but he wasn't even on time either? He swore up and down he "could throw a stone at Bailey's" from his house. Still, no reason to be agitated or worried, plenty of times throughout her career men had showed up late only to apologize and spend more extravagantly on her throughout the evening. She had met Lance's type a million times it felt like, the soft quiet boy who got walked over by his ex wife and is looking for someone pretty to spend money on so he can feel better about himself. Poor guy wasn't likely to even last 30 seconds inside of her with how sheepish he had been just talking on a few dates. She was impatient for a taste of that soup she wagered, hunger had always driven her to be a little irritable.

Lance gazed at Brittany from beyond a set of bushes about 2 blocks away, like an urban leopard stalking its prey through a concrete jungle. As horrible of a person she was on the inside there was no denying her outward beauty, rich soft skin glazed with a perfect tan. Her long legs were exquisitely toned, a result of all the yoga and pilates classes she enjoyed on the dime of her exes. A beautiful tattoo of falling autumn leaves cascading toward the ground adorned the side of her left leg running all the way down to the top of her foot, gorgeous work but a very daring move to have such a distinguishable tattoo for someone who made a living the way she did. A simple, but prominent detail that displayed her supreme level of overconfidence, Lance was immensely looking forward to finally dropping the pathetic schmuck act tonight. Taking a deep breath he emerged from behind the bushes, walking with a burst of speed as though he had never broken stride.

Brittany looked up from her phone and finally saw Lance coming down the sidewalk, a full five minutes late, she was absolutely starving now! No matter, at least they could finally get dinner started, and Brittany was terribly excited to get inside of his house later that night and finally scope it out. She put on her cutest smile she could muster, which given the rich dimples on her cheeks was laughably easy to do, and enthusiastically waved to Lance. He smiled, nodded to her, and continued walking at his current pace. A nod? Seriously? He was usually sprinting up to her at first sight, unable to wrap his arms around her waist fast enough. Tonight she gets a halfhearted smirk and a nod? She hoped he wasn't sick or anything. One time a mark had come down with the flu, causing her to waste an entire evening playing nurse just to get access to his bank account info and routing number. It was a terrible inconvenience for her, and one she hoped never to have to endure again, with Lance being late and acting slightly unusual upon first glance she was starting to mildly worry. Finally he caught up to the bench she had propped herself on, Lance stared deep into her eyes and smiled this time, though it was barely more than the prior smirk.

"Hey there, you look great, shall we?" before Brittany could even answer he had turned toward the restaurant's entrance and walked toward it, he hadn't even extended his arms for a hug. Brittany sat there a bit dumbfounded, this was by far the coldest opening to a date night she had received from Lance, granted that was a small sample size but still. She was slightly more worried now, this night needed to go well. Brittany only had the money to live for 3 more months and her other immediate prospects either didn't possess the income Lance did or would take too long to pin under her thumb the way a weak guy like him would. She noticed Lance had stopped at the entrance and turned back toward her, "Do you want to get a picture first or something?" he inquired.

Fetching back into her bag of charms Brittany smiled and shook her head, "just making sure I brought my wallet with me" she chirped as she walked her way toward the door. She had a jaw dropping stride to her, shaking her voluptuous hips side to side in a perfectly effortless manner. Lance smiled and imagined her excellent figure bound to a bench in his dungeon, folded back by leather binds with both holes stuffed full of erotic toys as the sounds of her screams filled the room around him. Brittany quickly noticed his smile and took it as a sign her chipper attitude was brightening his mood. "Um excuse me mr. man but you forgot something!" the playfully prissy attitude was such an easy mask for her to wear and the sweet words rolled off her serpentine tongue with no effort at all. She extended her arms for a hug, to which Lance chuckled and extended his arms back embracing her, unbeknownst to her seeing through every part of the act.

A grand dining room blossomed from the entrance inside, Brittany stared in awe of the shining crystal chandeliers and lush red carpet as she always did, taking her phone out to quickly snap a picture. A tall, older gentleman with glasses and a bright grey soul patch dressed in a fine tuxedo greeted them from behind an oak podium, "good evening to both of you, party of 2?" Brittany maintained her syrupy sweet smile while Lance took her by the hand.

"Reservation actually, should be under Lamden" he responded, the old man sifted through a tablet device laying atop the podium in front of him. "Ah yes, right this way sir" he blurted back within seconds before taking two menus and walking toward a staircase to their right. Brittany went to follow when she suddenly realized she was already being pulled in that direction by Lance, not in what one could say was an overtly forceful manner but enough that it was clear Lance expected her to follow him. His grip also seemed much stronger than it had the last time they were together, part of her was a little shocked given how she always led the way while he sheepishly followed. No matter though, it was a small detail and could easily be chalked up to his nervousness, perhaps he was officially going to ask her to be his girlfriend tonight? Before her thoughts were quite complete she found herself following along as he pulled her, speeding up if need be to keep pace. A small interaction no doubt but one that threw her off nonetheless.

The three of them ascended a spiraling staircase surrounded by pearl white walls with golden inlays, pictures of all sorts of celebrity covered the wall from Frank Sinatra to Dave Chappelle all enjoying some of their favorite Bailey's dishes. At the top a large golden archway led to a circular patio that wrapped around the whole building, beyond lay the glorious view Brittany had anticipated all afternoon. The server lead them to a secluded table right on the edge of the patio with a perfect viewpoint, Lance pulled her chair out as he always had done before sitting down himself, an encouraging sign he hadn't lost all his manners.

"May I get you both started with something to drink?" the gentleman kindly inquired, Brittany began to open her mouth to answer before she was abruptly cut off by Lance.

"Ice tea for me and a lemon water for the beautiful woman across from me" he smiled looking deeply into her eyes. Brittany was so blindsided by the act that before she could even confirm it to the server he had written the order and disappeared, did he really just order her drink for her? It wasn't like he hadn't bought her drinks before but it was usually ones she requested. Remarking that she was beautiful to the waiter showed it may have only been a well meaning gesture, but it was still strange for him to so flatly state what she was going to drink. Still, she assumed the intention was good enough so there was no point in making a big deal out of it. She could always get her glass of wine she wanted later in the evening after all, she looked over at Lance who hadn't broken his stare yet and gave a soft smile.

"So how's work treating you? I know with all that bullshit going on with senator Davis you've probably been crazy busy." she asked him, twirling her hair around in her fingers while hurling soft blinks from her emerald green eyes.

"Yeah, it's been a mess" Lance shook his head before continuing "but you know how it is with corruption; it never sleeps, hungers, or tires out" he continued further this time staring directly into Brittany's eyes "it's a terrible world full of terrible people isn't it?"

Expecting the customary "it was fine" or "nothing new really", despite the senators misgivings plastering the news pages, Brittany was taken aback by such a detailed response and pondered the implications of the final line he had spoken while staring at her so intently. Terrible world full of terrible people? Was that some kind of shot at her? No way, she was letting her paranoia get the best of her, the guy was a news producer. He's probably seen and heard plenty of terrible things that he doesn't feel like getting into, she needed to calm down and not get herself all worked up.

Before a response exited her deliciously plump lips the old server had returned with a tall glass of ice tea for Lance and to Brittany's surprise, a cool glass of wine for her. Lance began bursting out in laughter.

"Oh man you should of seen your face when I said lemon water ahahahahahahaha" the waiter chuckled and Brittany couldn't help but giggle either. "You're such a jerk" was the only response she could say, using her hand to hide the giggle fits she had caught. She had to admit that was by far and away the most hilarious thing someone has done to her on a date, for the first time with Lance she felt like she wasn't acting but genuinely intrigued and humored by him.

"Have you guys decided what you want?" the gentle waiter asked when Lance again spoke up for the both of them as Brittany sipped her wine.

"Two orders of steak and shrimp, medium rare on the steak my good man" again in what seemed like an instant the server had written the order down and left the two of them. Brittany found herself again slightly stunned, for starters she had been thinking about that soup all day. For second, did he seriously just order her food for her? Maybe with the classy setting he was trying to look like a gentleman, that is how it was done back in her grandma's time after all, but the way he was going about it was odd to her. Plus they had been to some pretty ritzy places with her already and had never done anything like that. It was to say the least a bit weird.

"Is he gonna bring me fried mozzarella with pesto now?" quipped Brittany to a still smirking Lance who sat relaxed taking a large gulp of his ice tea.

"Of course not" laughed Lance "only the best for you, right?" he gushed reaching his hand across the table and touching hers. Brittany gazed back into his warm brown eyes and actually began to feel herself blushing, who was this guy and what had he done with Lance?

Lance immediately noticed the blushing, as well as her dainty little nipples pushing out from the fabric of her dress. This whore didn't even wear a bra, so confident she had him wrapped around her finger she thought she'd put herself on display to finally seal the deal it seemed. She would soon learn what having her body on display was really all about, for now Lance seemed content to continue toying with her.

Sipping the last of her wine Brittany gently smiled at Lance, regaining her composure. "If you see the waiter call him over, ill need more lemon water" she said giggling. Lance's expression awkwardly didn't change, "he's right behind you" he stated flatly, "go ahead and call him over".

Brittany gave a half hearted laugh, "oh you too shy to order all of a sudden?" her snark brimming through the comment.

"While you're talking to him get me a refill too" he replied as if she had said nothing, placing his empty glass in front of her almost in perfect synch with the end of his statement.

Brittany stared back at him trying to not lose her cheery demeanor, was he actually trying to order her to get him a drink? He brushed off her quip as though she hadn't even spoke, and the way his eyes just stared right through her was causing a small quiver in her knees and lower back. Regardless her focus needed to stay on the prize, after all he was still the one paying for everything, what difference did it make if she indulged him? Tapping into his finances was all that mattered, so with that she turned and softly called for the waiter who shimmied over to the pair and politely took their glasses for refills. Lance smiled, relishing in her obedience, simple and brief a moment as it was.

"So" Brittany stammered, trying to redirect the conversation in a manner she desired, "what was the name of that neighborhood you bought your house in? My lease is up in four months and im probably looking to upgrade" she chimed.

Lance needed every ounce of willpower to not burst out in laughter, you almost had to admire the directness, he could only imagine how in control of this whole situation she felt. Shattering that belief was going to be a sweet moment indeed. "Oh, work treating you well?" he replied fighting to keep his face straight.

"Yeah" she began, "Well, like, my boss said if I keep doing well with my current clients he's going to give Coca Cola over to me when he retires in the fall." following her intricately woven cover story that she was a sales rep for a plastics company.

"Wow, Trin that's great!" Lance exclaimed, appearing genuinely excited for her, Brittany smiled at his apparent approval of the story before he abruptly continued "Didn't you talk about starting your own salon or something last time though?"

Brittany suddenly froze, she was 500% sure her cover story here was a plastics sales rep, Lance was clearly mistaken. Although she had used the salon story years back in Michigan, where she lived as Stephanie, an ambitious and bubbly hairdresser. No way that's what he was referencing though, that was close to a decade ago, she was barely over 18 at the time. That had to be a coincidence, she quickly regained herself.

"Ummmm no" she stated, feigning confusion, "maybe that's one of these other girls you're talking to around here?" she finished in light hearted jest making a circular motion with her flawlessly manicured finger. Lance smiled and shook his head.

"The only one I have eyes for is you" he replied.

As Brittany found herself in a confused state at the way Lance was acting the silence was interrupted by the dear old waiter carrying two hot plates. "Just what the doctor ordered!" Lance exclaimed in another out of character humorous outburst. Brittany looked up giggling and shook her head before cutting into the tender steak. Another waiter followed up with their drink refills placing them on the table, as he sat the wine glass in front of Brittany a beaming Lance requested a "take home bottle" which the waiters politely agreed to grab. An ear to ear smile shot across Brittany's face, realizing he was intent on taking her back home tonight. "You forgot to tell them extra lemon!" she cutely jested causing Lance to crack a smile that dripped with devious intentions. Intentions Brittany was too excited to consider or notice, the two sat there making small talk for the rest of the evening and enjoying a fine dinner.

Around 11:15 the pair left Baileys and began making their trek up the sidewalk, laughing and continuing to converse the whole way, Brittany had genuinely felt the tinglings of a connection being made albeit for a brief moment. She would almost feel bad draining the poor guy for so much money, perhaps she would take a couple thousand less from him as a kind gesture.

The lights of Vegas quickly began fading from around them as they walked up to a street with several decadent row homes and a gate guarding the front of the community. The stillness of the night filled Brittany with slight unease which quickly subsided when Lance produced a security card and scanned it at the gate for entrance. She had finally made it here.

Taking her by the hand as the electrically powered gate opened Lance lead her through "and here we are!" he excitedly exclaimed, almost as excited as Brittany felt realizing it. Taking the right sidewalk the pair walked down passed a couple of small houses before stopping at the first corner house and turning toward it.

"Look upon my work ye mighty and despair!" he laughed as he stood with outstretched arms pointed skyward for dramatic effect, it was indeed a nice house, despite his attempts at self degradation. Property was expensive in this city, so a house of this size could easily cost someone the price of a full family home anywhere else. Anyone who could afford such a place in Vegas clearly had some money to spend.

"This is a really nice place" she replied "quiet and tucked away from all the city's noise, it's almost like its own world" her eyes sparkled with devious intent. Intent that Lance fully picked up on and was looking forward to snuffing out, he had her so close to where he wanted. Opening a black trim glass screen door to reveal a keypad lock above the handle, Lance fidgeted with some numbers, too fast for Brittany to see despite her best efforts. He then opened the door to reveal a pitch black living room, reaching over to his left Lance flicked a switch bringing the room to life.

His furniture set was almost exclusively black leather; the sofa, recliner, all of it. Quite plain taste in furniture Brittany thought to herself, which usually meant the mark had a fair bit of savings so she didn't find herself very troubled over it. His beautifully polished hardwood floors did however draw her admiration, enough so she even began to unclasp her cream colored high heels to show them proper respect. She did appreciate the finer things in life after all.

"Where's your glasses at?" she quickly inquired holding up the wine bottle, not wanting to seem like she was analyzing the contents of his house too heavily, "always good to start the nightcap early!" her sweet voice stated. Lance nodding in approval began to walk to a large opening that with the lights on clearly contained a dining room set.

"Oh I can get it!" she quickly volunteered, more than happy to serve drinks now that she had found her objective she skipped up next to him and smiled still wearing the mask of innocence. "Just gotta see where the glasses and bottle opener are obviously" she finished with a ditzy laugh. Lance started back toward her.

"No complaints here" he pointed off to an opening beyond the dining room that led to a kitchen, "right drawer on the center island has the bottle opener, wine glasses are above it." she smiled and made her way into the kitchen.

With Lance out of sight she studied her surroundings with great detail, the kitchen was very impressive with a pearl white tiles and counter scheme. She also shot her gaze into the backyard which had a large pool housed in it, "oh your pool is gorgeous!" she exclaimed. Her voice radiating through the empty dining room.