Disclaimer: I don't own the Gundam boys, they belong to Bandai, Sotsu and associated parties. I just borrow them from time to time and return them a whole lot happier. I have also used inspiration from the Cirque Du Soleil show 'Zumanity' for this fic without permission; also several of the hotels that will feature in this fic are real. No disrespect is intended to the show or the hotels. Written for pleasure not profit.
Rating: NC 17
Pairings: 1x2x1, 3x4x3
Warnings: Yaoi, Lemons, limes, angst, sap, OOC, AU, gambling
Summary: Duo is a multi millionaire having made his money in computer games and is working himself into the ground. Hilde, his secretary and best friend convinces him to take a vacation – to Las Vegas.
Dedication: To Leslie, not only for giving me the plot bunny and breeding said plot bunny by taking me to see the show but for also being a wonderful friend and excellent 'tour guide'. Hope you enjoy what Fred did with the idea, Les! *hugs*
Betaed by the ever patient Karina *snugs*
Commenced August 2015 - ShenLong
"High Rolling"
Chapter 24
The slide of a key in the electronic lock drew Duo from his contemplation of the proposal Quatre had given him and he glanced up at the clock to see that it was almost five in the evening. Seconds later, Hilde appeared in the lounge area and he blinked at her.
"Duo!" Hilde squeaked and jumped in fright.
"Uh, sorry?"
Having gotten over her shock, Hilde tossed her beach bag to the floor and dropped to the couch next to Duo. "It's okay, I wasn't expecting you there. How long have you been back?"
"A couple of hours, I think."
"Why didn't you come down to the pool?"
"I've been going through this proposal of Quatre's."
"Ah, I see." Hilde glanced around, noting the two empty bottles of beer, notebook and pen. Looked like Duo had been at it for a while. "Is it any good? I mean, will it be feasible and worth you signing up for it?"
"Actually, it's a damn good proposal, very thorough and covers pretty much everything..."
"But?"
"I've made a couple of notes for suggestions, changes, that sort of thing."
"But?" Hilde pressed, she could tell there was something else and she was determined to get it out of her boss at any cost.
Duo sighed, tossed the folder to the table and rubbed his tired eyes. "There's no provision there for me to continue to work on my own games." Duo turned to look at his secretary and best friend. "I don't want to give up on my games, I still want to come up with those, but I can't produce them on my own. You know what I mean."
Hilde did. To produce his own games, Duo needed access to the software and hardware, production teams and marketing. They'd had this conversation before.
"If I take this offer, I can't stay based in LA, I need to be here to put all this together. If I leave LA, that means giving up the arrangement with Khushrenada Holdings and that means no more game production." Duo sighed and rubbed his hand across his face again.
"Duo, I'm sure Mr. Winner doesn't intend for you to give up your gaming side of things if you take this offer. Look, why don't you ask him about it? I'm sure he'd come up with something, especially if he wants you onboard so bad."
"Yeah, I guess you're right, I need to speak with him about that." Duo glanced at the notebook on the table. "There's a couple of other things too so I suppose I should call Trowa and arrange a meeting."
"That is the sensible thing to do," Hilde said, rising from her seat on the couch and patting his shoulder. "I'm gonna take a shower, the pool was lovely but I need to wash my hair. You got any plans for dinner?"
"No, not really. I was going to head down to the New York, New York for when Heero finishes his show and grab a bite to eat then. What about you?"
"Pretty much the same. I told Wufei I'd catch up with him after the show and we'd go from there."
"Okay. I'll give Trowa a call now and then take my own shower."
"Give me a yell when you're ready." Hilde picked up her beach bag and headed to her room to shower, leaving Duo to make his call.
Watching the woman leave, Duo sat for a couple more minutes before shoving off the couch and grabbing the phone. He called down to the lobby and asked to speak with Trowa.
"Duo, what can I do for you?" Trowa's deep voice came down the line.
"I was hoping you might be able to fit me into Quatre's schedule somewhere for a quick meeting. I've read through the proposal and there's a couple of things I'd like to discuss with him as soon as it's convenient."
"Of course, Duo. Bear with me for a minute and I'll see when he's available." The sounds of Trowa clicking away came down the line. "Would tomorrow morning at nine be okay?"
"That will be fine." Duo winced at the time. Back in LA he would already be in the office and working away, nine being the usual time most people started their working day. Vegas though was known for its night life, people staying out until the early hours of the morning and then sleeping until around noon.
"We will see you at nine then."
"Thanks, Trowa."
"No problem, Duo. You enjoy the rest of your evening."
# # #
"So, other than those couple of things the proposal is a good one?" Heero asked, walking side by side with Duo along the strip.
"Yeah, it covers just about everything," Duo replied. "If you're still happy to, I'd like you to take a look at it and see what you think, see if there's anything more you can think of that should or shouldn't be in there."
Heero shrugged. "I don't mind, but I'm telling you now, I don't have much of a clue when it comes to things like that. Now Wufei, he's more up on that side of things."
"Really?"
"Yeah, really. You know, he was studying law before he decided to go in for martial arts and personal training," Heero shared with a smile. "I'm sure if you asked him he would take a look too and give you his opinion."
"Thanks, Heero." Duo's eyes sparkled and he increased the speed of his walk a touch to catch up to Hilde and Wufei who were walking a little ahead of them.
#
"That's the proposal," Duo said as he handed over the folder to Wufei.
"Thank you," Wufei replied and took the folder, opening it up and scanning over the first page.
"Anyone like a drink?" Hilde asked.
"Coffee would be good," Duo replied.
"Same for me, thank you," Heero stated.
"Wufei?"
"Hmmm?"
Hilde rolled her eyes. "Drink?" she asked again.
"Uhmmm."
"I'll take that as a yes, shall I?" Hilde looked pointedly at her boyfriend who was completely immersed in the folder. Duo and Heero snickered.
"Just give him a tea, Hilde. You won't get any sense out of him until he's finished reading," Heero advised.
"Fine." Hilde walked off into the kitchen area and started to make their drinks.
Duo grabbed the remote and turned the television on, surfing through the various channels. Hilde returned with their drinks, depositing the mugs beside each person and taking a seat herself.
Reaching the channels for the in house movies, Duo finally stopped flicking through and left the stations alone. "This okay?" he asked his companions.
"Fine with me," Heero replied and snuggled up a little closer. Duo draped an arm across his shoulders and Heero leaned into the warmth.
"Don't know why you bothered asking, you have no intention of watching it anyway," Hilde muttered, glancing out the corner of her eye at the pair who were now locked at the lip.
"You're just jealous," Duo teased before diving in for another kiss.
"Too damn right," Hilde sniffed. "It's your fault that my boyfriend isn't making out with me."
"That's right, blame me for everything," Duo shot back.
"Why not? Can't handle the truth?" Hilde fired off.
"Well, fuck me."
The banter abruptly ceased and three sets of eyes turned to look at the Chinese man.
"Shit, if you weren't already a millionaire, you sure as hell would be after signing this," Wufei muttered. The silence in the room was deafening and Wufei realized he'd spoken his thoughts out loud. He raised his eyes from the documents he was reading to find three pairs of eyes boring holes into his skull. "What?"
"Care to elaborate on that statement, Wufei?" Hilde asked with a raise of her eyebrow.
Somehow managing to stop the redness on his cheeks from deepening, Wufei thought it best if he explained. "The salary, along with royalties from this adventure have the potential to make Duo here a very rich man. Even if the game doesn't take off in the casinos, the salary alone would ensure he can continue to live in a very comfortable manner."
"I know it's a very generous offer," Duo replied, blushing himself when his mind reminded him of the six figure sum Quatre had proposed as a year's salary. Add to that the royalties and he'd be making roughly three times the amount he currently made in a year from a new computer game.
"Generous, I'd say a lot more than generous," Wufei muttered.
"Well, what do you think?" Duo asked. "Should I take the offer? What about the couple of suggestions for changes? And then there's the proposition for utilizing the equipment and staff for continuing production of my computer games."
Wufei thought for a moment. "The suggestions are valid and I think Winner will have no problem with those. As for using the staff and equipment to continue with your game production... If Winner is that desperate to have you onboard and is willing to pay you the amount specified to work for and with him, I don't think he will have a problem accommodating your request in regards to your continued game production."
"I guess there's only one way to find out for sure," Hilde said, "And that's to meet with him and talk it over."
"And that's why I have an appointment with him at nine in the morning," Duo said.
"Nine in the morning?" Heero said and looked pointedly at the clock. The clock read ten after midnight.
"Uh, yeah." Duo shrugged. "I think I'd better head for bed."
Wufei handed the folder back to Duo. "Good luck with it all, I sincerely hope it all works out for you."
"Thanks, Wufei." Duo took the folder back and stood up. He covered a yawn with his hand. "I'm gonna hit the sack."
"Do you want me to stay or would you prefer it if I went back to my room tonight so you can get your rest?" Heero questioned as he also stood.
"You'd condemn me to a night of tossing and turning?" Duo said, putting a hand over his heart. "Why, Heero, you wound me to the core. It's bad enough that I have to sleep alone when in LA, but to have my huggy toy taken away when I'm here in Vegas? Now that's a low blow."
"Then I'll stay."
"Good."
# # #
Knowing that Duo had an early meeting, the two men didn't do anything other than cuddle close, exchange a few kisses and sleep soundly in each other's arms. When the alarm went off it was lucky it was Heero who reached it first; Duo would have most likely pelted it at the wall.
"Ugghh, I don't wanna get up," Duo moaned petulantly.
"Come on, sleepy head. You have a meeting with Quatre in an hour." Heero snuggled closer.
"And just how do you expect me to get up when you're cuddling me so deliciously?"
"I thought you were already 'up'." To accent his point, Heero dragged his palm across Duo's groin.
Duo groaned. "No fair," he whined.
Heero chuckled. "Come on, I'll go start the shower for you and then put the coffee pot on whilst you shower." Pressing a kiss to those pouting lips, Heero rolled out of the bed and paused to stretch his well muscled body.
"You're such a tease," Duo grumbled, dragging himself from the bed.
"Don't worry, I'll take good care of you later," Heero tossed over his shoulder as he headed for the bathroom to relieve himself and turn on the shower.
"You'd better," Duo groused.
#
"Here."
Duo took the offered coffee and sipped greedily at it. "Romeo and Juliet still sleeping?"
Heero nodded. "Pretty sure they are."
"Not fair I have to get up early while everyone else gets to sleep late."
Closing the distance between them, Heero pressed a soft kiss to those pouting lips. "We can always have an early night tonight," he suggested.
"Will it involve lube, kissing and lots of touching?"
"Of course."
"It's a date then." Duo set the now empty mug on the counter top. "I'd best get going then. The sooner I'm there the sooner I can get through everything and get back to you." Duo grabbed the folder and his notebook from the coffee table and headed towards the door, Heero following.
"Good luck," Heero said and gave his partner one last kiss.
"Will you be here when I'm done?"
"Yeah. I don't have an afternoon show so I'll wait for you."
"Great. Now, I'd best be off." Duo stole one last kiss and left the suite.
# # #
"Good morning, Duo," Quatre greeted when Duo was shown into his office.
"Good morning," Duo returned, a smile on his face as he noted that the blonde businessman also appeared to not be a morning person.
"Would you care for some coffee?"
"Thanks, that would be good." Duo took a seat, folder on his lap and waited for Trowa to pass him his coffee.
"Ah, that's much better. I'm starting to feel a little more human," Quatre stated and smiled at Duo. "Sorry, I'm not used to being up and at work quite so early."
"I have to admit, I'm finding it a bit on the difficult side too, trying to adjust to the way of life here," Duo replied with a grin.
"Of that I have no doubt. Vegas tends to sleep until around noon and fit its work day in from around one to midnight, and later in a lot of cases,' the blonde chuckled. "But that's not why we're here. I take it you have looked over the proposal and possibly have some questions for me?"
"Yes, I do. I'll try to keep it brief as I know you're a very busy man." Duo went on to explain about the couple of changes he would suggest, Quatre agreeing with him on those. Then he confronted the real issue...
His computer games.
Quatre listened intently as Duo explained, a soft smile on his lips.
"So you see, I would naturally be working on the casino game first and foremost, but there will also be times when my muse will hit me with game ideas and although I will be working for you and with you, I don't want to give up my computer gaming side of things either."
"Duo, I don't expect you to give up your own business in the computer gaming side of things. Let me try and clarify a couple of things. It is my intention to employ you to take charge of the casino game project, both now and for future gaming machines; however, I also hoped we could cut a deal in relation to your computer gaming business too. By that I mean I would provide the equipment and staff you need to produce those games and market them for a percentage of the profits of those games."
"What sort of a percentage?" Duo asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.
"I'll take the same cut that Khushrenada Holdings currently does. I'm quite happy to do the same deal with you that you currently have with Khushrenada, but with one difference."
"And that would be?"
"You will be left to your own devices when it comes to the entire thing. I have no interest in producing sequels or anything else. In essence, all I would be is a silent partner so to speak, you would be entirely responsible for the whole thing. Does that meet with your approval?"
Duo had to admit, the entire deal was very tempting. He'd be paid as CEO of the new project and committed to designing and producing a viable and profitable casino game along with future ones and he got to keep his computer gaming company as well without anyone sticking their nose into it.
"There's no need for you to make up your mind now, Duo. As we agreed before, give me your answer on Friday," Quatre said.
"Quatre, I don't need any more time to think about it. I'd be very happy to come onboard. If you can have the proposal adjusted accordingly to cover the changes we agreed upon and also add in the computer game side of the business, I'd appreciate it. Once that's done, I'll go back over it, have my lawyer double check all is in order and sign the contract," Duo replied with a smile.
Quatre positively beamed. "That's wonderful news, Duo. Thank you." Quatre extended his hand and the pair shook on the deal. "Now that makes it worth getting up earlier."
Duo laughed. "I guess it does."
"Once everything is signed and finalized, how long do you think it will take for you to sort out your affairs in LA and make the move to Vegas?"
"That I would have to get back to you on. It's not just tying up loose ends, it's also finding somewhere here to move to, an apartment, house or whatever and I will have to give notice on my apartment lease. Oh, there's also the office lease, I'd need to sort that out too. Then I'll need to have furniture sent through and so on. Hilde will need to do a similar thing too. Given all that, I'd say we're looking at at least three weeks before we could start a move this way."
"You are more than welcome to stay here at the Bellagio until you find suitable accommodations. I also know of several storage companies where you can store stuff until you find what suits you," Quatre offered.
"That's very kind of you, Quatre. Thank you. Look, leave things with me and I'll speak with Hilde, no doubt she will also be willing to come onboard and I can let Trowa know tomorrow regarding Hilde's reply. I'll leave you now to the rest of your day and meet with you on Friday." Duo shook hands once more with the blonde before taking his leave.
# # #
"That is fantastic news!" Heero grabbed his lover in a hug and kissed him senseless. "I'm so happy for you, and for us."
"Yeah, I have to admit, it's all still sinking in for me. Never in my wildest dreams did I think anything like this would happen. I thought I was doing great with the computer games, even if I don't see eye to eye with Khushrenada, but now..." Duo's eyes took on a faraway look.
"Not only will you be a part of a new, ground breaking game, but you'll also be able to continue to produce your own games without any pressure. And it also means I'll get to spend a lot more time with you too," Heero said, his eyes shining with excitement.
"At least I'll be saving a fortune on air fares," Duo chuckled.
"That's got to be another bonus," Heero agreed. Moments later his face clouded over.
"Heero? What's wrong?" Duo asked, a touch worried.
"Nothing."
"Heero..." Duo warned. "I know that look, come on, spit it out."
"It's just... I hope you're doing this for the right reasons," Heero blurted out.
"Huh?" Duo was really confused now.
"I don't want you taking this deal if you're only doing it so we can be together. If you'd rather stay in LA and carry on as you are I want you to know that's fine with me, I can commute to see you..."
"Heero?"
Blue eyes looked into amused violet. "Yeah?"
"Shut up."
Heero closed his mouth and lowered his eyes. Seconds later a finger under his chin had his head lifting.
"Heero, let's get one thing straight here. I'm taking this deal for me. Not for Quatre, not for Hilde and not for you, but for me. It's something I'm good at, something I really want to try and the side perk is I get to move to a new place and spend my spare time with the man I love." Duo smiled reassuringly at Heero.
"Thank you," Heero whispered.
"No big deal," Duo said and closed the distance between them for a kiss.
"Have you told Hilde yet?" Heero asked when he was allowed up for air.
"I haven't. I know she will join up too though. Aside from the fact that her wages would be more than what I'm paying her, there's the added bonus of her spending more time with Wufei too."
"Well, when you put it that way," Heero snickered.
"So, when do you have a day off?"
"Umm, Sunday and Monday, why?"
"Want to look at apartments or houses with me?"
"Are you asking me for my professional input on what type of abode you need to purchase?" Heero teased.
"Well, considering it will be your home too I think it only fair you have some say in the purchase," Duo teased back.
For a moment, Heero was completely floored. "You... You want me to move in with you?" he whispered.
"A guy can hope," Duo replied, his tone a little uncertain, worried that he'd been too forward. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have been so presumptuous."
"No, no," Heero began and then realized what he was saying and took a breath. "No, you're not being presumptuous at all. Duo, I'd love to move in with you, if you think I won't drive you crazy."
"The only driving me crazy you will be doing is driving me crazy with lust," Duo purred.
"I think I can handle that," Heero chuckled.
"I want somewhere with a bit of a yard."
"It must have a hot tub." Heero gave his lover a leer.
"Maybe a pool?"
"How about a gym too?"
"Don't want much, do we?" Duo snickered.
"You know what?"
"No, what?" Duo asked.
"As long as it has a strong bed and lots of lube I'll be happy," Heero smirked.
"I'm pretty sure I can accommodate that."
tbc...