Seducing Zeb (Tarnished Saints Series) (24 page)

Cat listened to the message Zeb left her, not able to believe he was more or less breaking up with her over the phone and on voice mail yet. She’d given him the opportunity to tell her he was with another woman, but he didn’t do it. She’d also given him the chance to say he was sorry for trying to make dates with floozies when he was married to her, but instead he told her he was a bachelor so long that sometimes he couldn’t change his ways. And also that she should accept him. Hah! Like that was ever going to happen.

She left his office and made her way to her car, not knowing where to go now.
She wanted to go to Angel’s but that would only make her feel more miserable when they were all celebrating the new pregnancies. Besides, she didn’t want to ruin their happy moment by telling them the news that she and Zeb were no longer married and he was bringing home another woman.

She found herself driving aimlessly in the dark, and then before she knew it she spotted the light-up sign atop Burley’s Bar and pulled into the lot.
Isn’t this where single people down on their luck usually went? Maybe she’d just spend a few hours here drinking wine before she went back to her empty cottage and spent the night sleeping alone while Zeb was sharing a bed with another woman.

She went into the bar and sat at the counter, wondering what was taking Burley so long to wait on her. There seemed to be
a buzz among the customers tonight and she stopped a man walking past to ask him what everyone was talking about.

“Didn’t you hear?” the man asked. “Burley’s gone.
Some guy from out of town is going to buy the place and he’s already here right now.”

“Really?
Who?” she asked.

“Not sure what his name is, but I think he’s
from Vegas.”

“Vegas?” The blood froze in her veins and she had the feeling this was not good
. Then when the bartender walked up and lay a glass of white wine in front of her before she’d even ordered, she got a sick feeling in her stomach.

“White wine for my best black-jack dealer,” the man said
, and her eyes snapped up to see Denny Gianopoulos standing in front of her.

“
Denny!” she said, quickly vacating the stool. “What are you doing here?”

“Looking for you, sweetheart.”

“But how did you find me?”

“I had the tracking device on your phone activated years ago. Why do you think I bought you a phone to begin with?
”

The slimeball. Just like something he’d do.
“What do you want?” she asked guardedly.

“
I buying the bar, Cat. And I even managed to get the strippers back – care to dance again?”

“You know I never stripped and that I’d never do that so don’t bother asking.”

“I also found out that gambling is now legal in Sweet Water and the surrounding towns. I plan on turning this bar into a casino. We’re starting the gambling tonight and you, my dear are going to deal.” He grabbed her wine in one hand and walked around the bar and dragged her to a table he’d set up as a blackjack table. “Gather round everyone, as we have here a professional blackjack dealer straight from Vegas and the game is starting now so put down your money and phone your friends to join us.”

“Denny, I don’t work for you anymore,” she spat.

“You’re still mine, Cat and I plan on marrying you. And even if I no longer own the Diamond Dust casino thanks to your pretend husband exposing my employees cheating, I don’t care. I’ve managed to keep from being arrested and we’re going to start fresh right here in good ol’ Sweet Water.”

“You bastard
, let go of me before my husband has your head.”

“Stop the act, Cat. I know
you’re no longer married. You’re friend Bill at the county clerk office in Vegas told me they mailed you your finalization for your annulment days ago. I also know that Zeb Taylor is out of town and can’t come to your rescue, nor would he, since he’s got a reputation for not being a one woman man. Not sit down and deal.”

Cat saw a lot of Denny’s goons
standing around the table and not a single soul that she knew. She wouldn’t be able to just walk out of here without them stopping her. So she did the only thing she could. She sat down and dealt the cards, but there was no way in hell she was going to help Denny cheat the people ever again.

* * *

Zeb was on the phone for an hour trying to get an earlier flight back home, but everything was booked solid. He had an awful feeling that he screwed things up royally between him and Cat and just wanted to be able to hold her and tell her he was sorry. Maybe he should have just told her about her brother, he realized, but she wouldn’t answer her phone. And her voice mailbox was full and neither could he leave a message. And this was something he needed to tell her himself, or he would have just asked one of his brothers to relay the message for him.

“Is somethin
g the matter?” Lorenzo asked, sitting down across from him at the table.

“I don’t know,” he said, clicking off the phone. “Cat seemed pretty mad at me. I should have just told her
about you.”

“I’d hate to see things go bad between you two,” said Lorenzo.

“I need to get home, Lorenzo. I’ve decided I’m going to ask your sister to marry me.”

“I thought you said you were already married.”

“I’m going to do it the right way this time. If Cat will stay married to me I’m going to give her the biggest, classiest wedding and buy her the fanciest ring ever.

“Do you think she’d like that?” asked Lorenzo.

Zeb suddenly wondered if she would. Or would she say he was only using his money to try to buy her? After all, that was what she’d accused him of doing with everything else.

“I’m not sure anymore,” Zeb admitted. “But all I know is that I want to spend the rest of my life with Cat.”

“Then tell her,” Lorenzo urged him. “But knowing my sister, she tends to holds a grudge. Even when you say you’re sorry she somehow never believes it.”

“Then I’ll just have to show her,” Zeb said. “And I think we should start with you.”

“What do you mean?” asked Lorenzo.

“Y
ou said you wanted to work with another law firm rather than to be on your own. Well, I’m looking for another lawyer to work with me because I’m swamped and could use help. Why don’t you and your family move to Michigan and you can work for me? That way you will be closer to your sister. And if everything goes well and we both like it, I may even take you on as a partner.”

“I’d
love that, Zeb. And I think Maria would go for it too. You’ve got yourself a deal.” They clasped hands and shook.

“I’ve got to get back to Sweet Water right away. Can you give me a ride to the
airport? I’m going to fly stand-by. And it would be good if you came too. Maybe then Cat will see what I’ve been doing and believe me.”

“I’ll pack a quick bag and let’s go.”

They were at the airport half an hour later when Zeb’s phone rang and he picked it up to hear his brother Nate on the other end. There was loud music in the background and lots of talking and he knew that Nate was probably getting ready for a gig at Burley’s Bar.

“Nate, I can hardly hear you,” said Zeb. “What’s up?”

“It’s Cat,” he heard his brother say. “She’s here and she’s dealing blackjack.”

“What?” asked
Zeb, thinking he heard him wrong. “Did you say Cat is dealing blackjack?”

“It’s that new owner. I think he talked her into doing it. She doesn’t look happy.”

“What new owner?” he asked. “And why the hell aren’t you doing something about it?”

“What did you say, Zeb? I can’t hear you. This Denny guy is a real ass and he’s playing the music so loud that I’m not even sure
the band is going to get a chance to perform.”

“Denny?” Zeb asked. “Did you say Denny?” There was a lot of static over the phone and they started breaking up.

“Can’t hear you, Zeb, but if you can hear me, you may want to get home quickly. I don’t like this guy and I think he’s got the hots for Cat. Okay, gotta go.” The phone clicked off and Zeb just stood there staring into space. What would Denny Gianopoulos be doing there? He hoped that Cat hadn’t gotten back together with him because that would be the last thing he’d want to hear.

“Zeb,” said Lorenzo. “They say they have one seat open on stand
-by. You take it and I’ll phone you when I catch a plane.”

“Thanks, Lorenzo,” said Zeb, heading down the ramp to the plane and at the same time dialing
his brother, Judas’s number.

Chapter 21

Cat was still dealing blackjack three and a half hours and five glasses of wine later, with Denny watching over her like a hawk. She saw Nate and the band looking over to her while they played but she couldn’t even signal to him that something was wrong.

She finished the hand and Denny bent over and whispered in her ear. “You’re not doing your job, honey. Some of these men are winning too much. Now work your magic and g
et it back,” he said, sliding his hand onto her lap and giving her knee a tight squeeze. She reached down and shoved his hand off of her.

Cat picked up the discarded cards and was about to use her slight-of-hand routine, then realized that she couldn’t live this way any longer. “No! I won’t do it,” she said,
and threw the cards into the air and stood up.

“What the hel
l do you think you’re doing?” Denny growled.

“I’m not working for you
any more, and I’m surely never going to marry you. I want nothing to do with you ever again.”

His men started circling around her
like a pack of wolves and she never felt so alone as right now. The band stopped playing and she saw Nate whisper something to the other band members. She tried to leave the table and when she did, Denny’s hand snaked out and gripped her wrist tightly.

“Get your filthy hands off my wife!” she heard
, and looked up to see Zeb pushing through the crowd and jumping through the air, knocking Denny to the ground.

“Zeb!” she shouted, jumping out of the way, watching as the two of them threw punches and rolled around the ground. Then two of Denny’s men pulled Zeb off of him
and held him while Denny punched Zeb first in the gut and then in the face. Denny was left-handed and that meant Zeb took a punch to his good eye, leaving him now with two black eyes instead.

“No!” she cried, trying to run to Zeb, but another of Denny’s men held her back.

“No one is going to hurt our brother,” came a shout from across the room, and before she knew what was happening, Levi and Thomas shot through the crowd, pulled the men off Zeb and started fighting as well.

Cat was still helpless,
being held back by one of Denny’s men though she struggled to get out of his hold.

“
Your husband has a lot of brothers,” said the man.

“More than you think,” came another voice
, and this time Nate walked up and punched the man holding her, causing him to release her. Then the band members got into the fight and the whole bar was up in arms.

“Are you alright
, Cat?” asked Zeb, running over to her.

“I’m fine,” she said. “Watch out!”

Zeb turned just in time to block a punch and then continued fighting.

“The cops are here. Run!” she heard one of Denny’s men call out. And that’s when she heard the sirens and saw Judas and his deputy run in with their guns drawn.

“All right, everyone stop!” shouted Judas, holding his gun in his left hand since his right arm was still in a sling.

“Like your going to stop us,” said one of the men sarcastically, reaching for the money on the table.

Judas fired a shot in the ceiling just above the man’s head and a large piece of plaster fell and knocked him out.

Then, with the help of Zeb and his brothers, Denny and his men were all rounded up and cuffed and hauled out of the bar.

“Cat, come here,” said Zeb putting his arms around her.

Cat leaned into Zeb’s chest and just started crying. Everything in her life had been going so good and now every
thing had seemed to turn sour once again.

“Come on, I’m taking you back to the condo,” he said.

“No.” She stepped away and held out her hand. “I’m not going to sleep in that bed knowing how many other women have slept in it with you.”

“Fine, then we’ll
go back to the lake house, bet’s just get the hell out of here already.”

When they got back to the cottage and went inside, Cat was feeling sick. Her head was spinning from too much wine and she was nauseated from the smell of all the cigar and cigarette smoke in the bar. She didn’t miss her life working in a casino in Vegas and after tonight she never wanted to see a casino nor a pack of cards again.

“Cat, we need to talk,” said Zeb, sitting down on the couch and patting the cushion next to him. “Come sit with me, will you?”