One Last Wish in Vegas~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Total Vaughn Lover
A/N: SO SORRY I HAVEN"T UPDATED IN FOREVER, hope you will forgive me! Thanks to the six people who reviewed! Thanks so much! I hope you'll like this more in the next part! More of your familiar characters show up, and things are about to get very~~strange. Keep reviewing and I'll definitely update again
Without further ado~~~~~~
Part III
Danny rushed down the stairs as quickly as he could, pulling up the waist band of his nicely ironed slacks as he did. He sighed, even having a six pack didn't help him find a good fit for his other wise model thin figure, which meant his pants were always a bit baggy and the hem of his pants had a tendency of dragging on the floor, a fashion faux pas that Ed and his daughter always took note of, very unprofessional. Not to mention the possibility of him falling on his face if he ever had to go after a fast-running criminal was even higher than if her were just plain clumsy. So he knew he had to have them hemmed, but unfortunately he never had the time being on Ed's clock and his girlfriend had now turned into an ex, and even if she was still seeing him, that didn't really help matters any since she was not an avid seamstress.
He hurried past other security men commiserating in the hallway and then nonchalantly exited a door that was actually not visible to the gaming floor since it was secluded in the wall. He looked into the camera that shot the area directly outside of him and then used the exit as soon as the coast was clear and then hurried over to the gaming floor.
He only hoped Mike would have good news for him. He'd already gotten on the bad side of Ed with the whole last wish thing and he really didn't feel like staying anymore hours than he needed to.
"Hey!"
Danny stopped in his tracks when he felt a huge load jump onto his back and lock the heels to her boots into his sides. He cringed but refrained from elbowing her and waited for her to get off. He knew who it was, nobody else would dare to do such an unrespectable thing, no one else lived to tease and taunt him every chance she got.
Okay, they did, but Samantha Jane's methods were to put in simply: unique.
"Sam," Danny said dryly, trying to look at the beautiful casino hostess out of the corner of his eye, trying to keep up his all business expression. "Didn't you see coming, which is the norm."
"I know. I just have this element of surprise to me, don't I!" Sam giggled like the time when she'd acted as a very blond reception when he'd gone by to find a whale named Sam at a near by casino who was stealing their whales. He rolled his beautiful eyes as Samantha gave him a very wet smooch on the cheekbone before plopping off.
"Ugh!" Danny grimaced as he back off and laid a hand on his cheek to rub off whatever she'd put there. "Sam, did you have to do that?"
"Don't sound so disappointed," Sam teased back, doing a perfect imitation of Delinda Deline. Danny gave her a look that was a mixture of disbelief and even more disgust. No, not this, not now. Not from Sam! "I'm sorry Mr. McCoy, I thought you would feel better about that whole situation with Ms. Deline if you knew you were still worthy of receiving a kiss from a female life form. You're our best security man here and we don't need you having another bad hangover," she continued in a taunting tone, mischief lurking within her shining brown eyes, her glossed lips pulled into a radiant but sarcastic smile that she somehow made look very genuine. "Though I'm not as raunchy as Delinda who I heard gave you tongue at the dinner table, right smack in front of her father, which would be~~~your boss."
Danny just stared at her, anger and irritation growing within his being. "Sam, what, don't you have anything better to do then get into my business by luring it out of my best friend?" he demanded, his eyes narrowed and his mouth a tight line. "Or are you and Mary already friends too?"
Sam just gave him a grin that really didn't say anything at all.
God, he hated when woman assumed guys could read lips that didn't even move. It was almost as bad as hearing the "we can be friends," line after breaking up with a very sexy girl who looked like she'd just come off the runway.
"Fine, don't answer me then. I guess I just have to accept that my romance life is on public display as long as I'm friends with Mary Connell," he sighed, looking very bothered. Sam had a way of getting under his skin and he didn't know why. But it was starting to bother him, a lot.
"Well, I am so sorry that you think so low of me. I guess you don't' want to be friends with me anymore," a cold female voice interjected, and Danny felt shivers go down his spine, as though she were the ice queen and her breath could literally freeze the soul of him.
Danny had a second to register Sam's teasing expression before he realized what else was going on behind him and turned around, only to see Mary who gave him half a sad glance and began stalking off, giving him the back bone.
He didn't give Sam an explanation or even a glance and went after his best friend who had one hand up to her face, carefully wiping tears away so as not to smudge her mascara. He shot out his arms and twirled her so he could hold her before she went off to casino parts unknown and murmured, "Mary, sweetie. I'm sorry, honey, I didn't want you to hear that. I mean, I didn't mean to word it like that."
"Well~you did, Danny," she told him crisply, thought half of her was relieved that he had cared enough about her to come after her and capture her in his heavenly embrace.
"I know, it's just," he pulled his head back just enough so he could glance back and gestured to Sam with his head. She was standing there in her nice form-fitting black pants and white halter top, looking bored. She came to life and waved at Mary when she caught her pal looking at her. Mary tossed one back and then gave her best male friend a half-smile. "She knows I'm having a bad day, as the rest of the casino probably does, and you know Sam, especially Sam~~~she likes to rub things in and make them worse than they really started out to be."
Mary could argue with that. Samantha did like getting Danny into trouble, or strike a sensitive nerve. It was known throughout the girls, Delinda, Sam, Mary and herself that she took advantage of any opportunity to take a verbal jab at him. And she would never admit it but she couldn't help but think that Sam wouldn't do that unless she was actually secretly falling in love with her lifetime crush. And as beautiful as Sam was, she just didn't think she could compete.
"Mary? I'm very sorry, you know you're my best friend and you're all I've got right now. You will forgive me, wont' you?" Danny said, breaking into her thoughts, and immediately all her concerns and doubts were erased and all she could see was Danny with his passion-filled hazel eyes, pursed lips and raised eyebrow.
She tried to give him a hard stare to let him know he couldn't just do what he did and get away with it but she found she couldn't hold it up the moment she gazed into his suddenly green-looking eyes that were filled with genuine concern. He was giving her an honest apology and he deserved points for that.
She made him wait a moment longer than said, "Y~yeah, of course, Danny. I don't' think I've ever been really able to stay mad at you for long. I am to blame for talking to Sam in the first place."
"N~no," he objected immediately, brushing her shiny red strands behind her ears. "They're your friends and I know girl friend talk, about everything, including what hell your best friend is going through. It's not your fault that Sam can't get off wanting to make my life miserable."
Mary felt heat creep into her cheeks and for that moment, the rest of the casino floor disappeared and all she knew was she was there with Danny, nothing else mattered. "Aww, Danny, your understanding is going to make me blush," she complained as he put a hand to her rosy cheeks.
"I don't' mind," he shrugged, tossing her a boyish grin. Then they were back to being on the gaming floor and the sounds of slots and cheering from near by poker tables filled their once heavenly silence. Danny looked as though he'd just caught himself from doing something he'd wanted strongly to do and Mary couldn't help but wonder what that was. She decided against asking him, not sure if she wanted to know then created a diversion as she placed a small bottle in her hand, his gaze followed her.
"What's this?"
"The aspirin," she informed him with half a grin. "I got one of my girls to switch twenty minutes of their shift with me and I swigged it from the first convenient store I could find. Though you don't' seem to need it anymore, the color is even returning to your cheeks," she added, half disappointed as she pinched his supple cheeks.
"You must have cured me just because your concern and devotion for me is so deep, Mary," Danny proposed then took hold of her hands, pushed them away from his face and leaned in to give her a kiss on the cheek. "Thanks Mary, for always being there for me."
Mary felt herself going back into the day dream land where she went so frequently she had already a married life and three kids, and two dogs running in a nice big backyard, all with Danny but stopped herself. Danny cared about her but at this time she didn't know how he really thought of her and divulging that information might make things a bit~~~weird. "Y~Yeah, sure."
There was an awkward silence and Danny was the one to break it with his usual way. "Well, I've actually got to run. Seems like we have someone trying to break in and I'm sure Ed's just itching to give me a phone call and make sure that I'm on top of things."
"Break in?" Mary scoffed, looking around the gaming floor. "How does that happen in a casino?" She knew security was tight but all their doors were open, heck they were practically a resort and they welcomed people in.
"I'm not exactly sure myself, as always Ed doesn't say much of anything, only that he has a hunch," Danny sighed, but looked around in habit, he knew Ed was probably able to hear everything and anything he said, especially if he didn't want him to hear it. "Tell you the truth I watched the same screen and personally, I think it's a joke and that this is a waste of our time but Ed is certain something is going to go down. The only thing I can hope for is that I am right and this time I'll be able to prove it by checking it out and showing him that nothing is happening."
Mary chuckled. "Oh well, nobody says no to Ed." She dabbed her finger on her tongue then slicked down a strand that was curling out of place. "And he's been in the business longer than you have, as well as the most prestigious intelligence agency of the world."
She was referring to Ed Deline's career in the CIA.
"I know," he said with another sigh, knowing that Mary was right. As usual.
"But, he's also been around long enough to know who's good at what he does and you, Mr. Protégé, you are definitely good at what you do and you have an excellent track record to prove it."
Danny gave Mary one of those, "yeah, right," laughs. But it felt good nonetheless, knowing that if he ever needed an ego boost he just had to come to his best friend who always knew exactly what to say. "Thanks for the medicine, Mary, and for being the only female trying to make my day better and succeeding."
Mary grinned. "Anytime, Danny."
What he said next made that grin even bigger. "In fact, after I'm done with this case~~~I'm going to come and find you for a "thank you best friend," lunch. And it's on me so you know I mean it."
Mary's bright brown eyes shined hopefully at her handsome childhood friend who just got better looking each day. "Really?"
"Yeah," Danny promised with a smile. But when Mary didn't reply he paused to add, 'unless of course, you have other plans."
"No!" she said a bit too energetically which was perfectly fine with Danny but made her feel just a tad embarrassed and felt a bit too revealing. "I mean, of course I'd love to go with you." Since I've been trying to for weeks, she added to herself, wondering if Danny had finally picked up on the subtle hints she'd been dropping for weeks.
Danny smiled as if to say, "great, it's a date then."
"It's just, are you sure you can keep it down?" she teased him, her expression half-serious, worried about Danny's present hang over condition.
To reply to this, Danny gave her a glance that made women feel they were the queens of his world, and for Mary, it gave her the extra oomph she needed, just by knowing that Danny was HER best friend. "Since this is a lunch to pay back for all the times I missed out on, I am certainly going to try."
Aww, Danny was so sweet. No wonder she loved him.
"So, let me go and take care of what Ed wants me to do and then, I will see you, later," he said with a lot of innuendo, leaving Mary feeling that confusion of whether he liked her as a friend or ~~~more.
"O~Okay," she beamed, flashing a million-watt smile and Danny was sure she was standing taller as she stalked off to take care of her business so she could go to lunch with him as well.
"So, guess you swung by Mary," Sam cooed behind him as she joined in step with Danny who was giving her the "Leave me alone," vibe. If she had been a guy, he would have gladly introduced her to the "leave me alone," fist.
"Come on Danny. Your flattery won her over, congratulations," she chirruped. Danny would have acknowledged her if he'd had an inkling that she was being genuine.
"Yeah, thanks," Danny murmured, despite his better judgment.
"Hey if you actually try, you might get a date with some other hot chick by the end of your shift," she added and Danny rolled his eyes. She just had to add that. She couldn't just say something genuinely nice for once in her life.
He didn't say a thing and continued walking toward the entrance, hoping his coldness and the disappointment in his expression would urge her to get a move on. Only when he was about to slide through the automatic doors, he realized the pretty and annoying casino hostess was still standing by his side.
"What are you doing?" Danny complained, looking very irritated. "Didn't you get my subtle "you're annoying," me signs? Or do you just disregard anything that doesn't comply with what you want?"
"Don't flatter yourself," she giggled in her signature Deline mimic. She couldn't resist.
Okay, girl or guy, this girl was going to be pounded. He grabbed her in a headlock and brought his other fist close to her jaw.
"Hey, okay. I get it," she whimpered, actually sounding a tad bit frightened. She didn't relax until he dropped his other hand and loosened the grip on her body. "I'm not stalking you or trying in any way to pick you up, Danny, if you actually thought that."
"With you, I'm not sure of anything," he retorted as he felt her neck and made sure he hadn't dislocated anything within the delicate neck of hers. "What are you doing here, with me, then?"
"Well, I actually got a call from Mike, said something about how he's got a high-rolling customer who should be offered the V.I.P treatment," Sam explained, shaking her head. "And he told me that I had to babysit too. BABY SIT!"
"Mike?" he inquired and then put a hand to her shoulder to tell her to be quiet while he answered a call from Ed. "This is Danny McCoy."
"Danny, tell me I'm wrong. The security cameras are showing me that you're still on the premises. I thought I told you to go out and meet up with Mike in the valet area, OUTSIDE!" he boomed and Danny actually had to pull the phone away from his face to save his poor eardrums.
"Yeah, I know. But I'm not playing around. I had a run in with our wonderful casino host," Danny explained, adopting a serious expression to worry the already slightly worried Sam.
"Well, Sam or no Sam, I want you out there, now!"
"Yeah, we're heading over there right now," Danny assured his boss in his most alleviating tone, all the while, shooting Sam a glance to hint to her that he was discussing her.
"No, actually, change of plans," Ed said abruptly and Danny paused in his steps.
Great, just what he needed. More chaos.
"Okay. What's up?"
"What's up?" Ed demanded, probably offended that his protégé felt comfortable enough with him to use slang with him. Ed was former CIA and he liked that he could intimidate people. "I'll tell you what's up!One of the valets on the other side of the casino saw who they believe is our underage girl enter the casino through "our," door because you won't get up and do your job instead of flirt with other girls now that my daughter dumped your sorry ass!"
Ouch! Danny heard Sam stiffle a giggle. Mm, nice, Ed's voice had probably been loud enough for Sam to hear. "Right, like I said, I wasn't flirting~~~" he began but then cut himself off, knowing Ed, like Sam, had selective hearing. "What's Mike's situation?"
"Do I sound like a person who knows what's going on in every inch of my casino?" Ed barked. "Go over there and find out!" he commanded him angrily.
"Going," Danny promised as he got ready to shut off the cell phone.
"Oh and Sam doesn't need to accompany you. Mike gave me a call and he says he no longer needs her help. The high-roller has left the premises. Besides, I've got another job for her."
"Okay, shoot."
"I want her to do the casino hostess thing inside the casino host. That way she can be on the look out for our underage criminal," he reasoned with Danny, speaking slow as though there was no other way Danny would be able to comprehend it.
"You got it. I'll take care of the girl if she's here. You got the rest of the casino?"
"For now," he said with a grumble. "But don't' be surprised if I give you a call or two~~~or three."
"Got it."
"Find that girl, Danny," Ed said in a lower tone that meant that he was not joking in anyway, not even to make his life more miserable. This girl had Ed freaked.
Danny gave the nearest security camera a nod and a thumbs up. Sam still stood next to him, still in suspense. He then shoved the phone off and placed it in his pocket.
"So?" Sam prompted, folding her arms, trying to like the whole call hadn't bothered her but she wasn't pulling it off very well. Danny saw right through her and he was enjoying the hell out of it.
"Oh, that was just Ed on the phone," Danny informed her very nonchalantly while making it obvious that he had other business on the mind. "Love to chat with you but, I've got to go."
"Hey, wait, I'm coming too!"
Danny turned around and held a hand up before her face. "N~No, Ed wants you to stay on the gaming floor. Watch for suspicious girls." He was being vague on purpose. He then began to walk off again only to have his wrist snatched by Sam's very nice and sharp fingernails.
"Danny, wait, what did Ed want with me?"
"Oh, don't' worry about it," he assured her, gave her a wink and then took off for the front door.
Ugh! Sam hated Danny when he pulled that kind of crap with her, making his job as security more top secret than it probably really was. She almost called Ed to discuss the matter with him but she didn't think Ed would tell her anything if he didn't. Maybe it was on a have-to-know basis. The next minutes were a blur. She turned to one of the more rich V.I.P's and flashed a pleasant smile. She heard him give her a request but her mind was barely on the business at hand as she jot down a memo.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hey! Thanks for reading this far! Lots of love for ya'll Las Vegas fans! Hope this'll hold you out till the next chappy! And groan, LAS VEGAS is not showing tonight. Mondays are so mundane, I need my JOSH DUHAMEL FIX!
Anywho, please review. If I get five reviews I'll update as soon as I get the chapter up. If I get less than that, you'll probably be waiting at least a month, (evil cackle) nah, probably not, just review so I know you all are reading okay!
Lataz,
Total Vaughn Lover
A/N: SO SORRY I HAVEN"T UPDATED IN FOREVER, hope you will forgive me! Thanks to the six people who reviewed! Thanks so much! I hope you'll like this more in the next part! More of your familiar characters show up, and things are about to get very~~strange. Keep reviewing and I'll definitely update again
Without further ado~~~~~~
Part III
Danny rushed down the stairs as quickly as he could, pulling up the waist band of his nicely ironed slacks as he did. He sighed, even having a six pack didn't help him find a good fit for his other wise model thin figure, which meant his pants were always a bit baggy and the hem of his pants had a tendency of dragging on the floor, a fashion faux pas that Ed and his daughter always took note of, very unprofessional. Not to mention the possibility of him falling on his face if he ever had to go after a fast-running criminal was even higher than if her were just plain clumsy. So he knew he had to have them hemmed, but unfortunately he never had the time being on Ed's clock and his girlfriend had now turned into an ex, and even if she was still seeing him, that didn't really help matters any since she was not an avid seamstress.
He hurried past other security men commiserating in the hallway and then nonchalantly exited a door that was actually not visible to the gaming floor since it was secluded in the wall. He looked into the camera that shot the area directly outside of him and then used the exit as soon as the coast was clear and then hurried over to the gaming floor.
He only hoped Mike would have good news for him. He'd already gotten on the bad side of Ed with the whole last wish thing and he really didn't feel like staying anymore hours than he needed to.
"Hey!"
Danny stopped in his tracks when he felt a huge load jump onto his back and lock the heels to her boots into his sides. He cringed but refrained from elbowing her and waited for her to get off. He knew who it was, nobody else would dare to do such an unrespectable thing, no one else lived to tease and taunt him every chance she got.
Okay, they did, but Samantha Jane's methods were to put in simply: unique.
"Sam," Danny said dryly, trying to look at the beautiful casino hostess out of the corner of his eye, trying to keep up his all business expression. "Didn't you see coming, which is the norm."
"I know. I just have this element of surprise to me, don't I!" Sam giggled like the time when she'd acted as a very blond reception when he'd gone by to find a whale named Sam at a near by casino who was stealing their whales. He rolled his beautiful eyes as Samantha gave him a very wet smooch on the cheekbone before plopping off.
"Ugh!" Danny grimaced as he back off and laid a hand on his cheek to rub off whatever she'd put there. "Sam, did you have to do that?"
"Don't sound so disappointed," Sam teased back, doing a perfect imitation of Delinda Deline. Danny gave her a look that was a mixture of disbelief and even more disgust. No, not this, not now. Not from Sam! "I'm sorry Mr. McCoy, I thought you would feel better about that whole situation with Ms. Deline if you knew you were still worthy of receiving a kiss from a female life form. You're our best security man here and we don't need you having another bad hangover," she continued in a taunting tone, mischief lurking within her shining brown eyes, her glossed lips pulled into a radiant but sarcastic smile that she somehow made look very genuine. "Though I'm not as raunchy as Delinda who I heard gave you tongue at the dinner table, right smack in front of her father, which would be~~~your boss."
Danny just stared at her, anger and irritation growing within his being. "Sam, what, don't you have anything better to do then get into my business by luring it out of my best friend?" he demanded, his eyes narrowed and his mouth a tight line. "Or are you and Mary already friends too?"
Sam just gave him a grin that really didn't say anything at all.
God, he hated when woman assumed guys could read lips that didn't even move. It was almost as bad as hearing the "we can be friends," line after breaking up with a very sexy girl who looked like she'd just come off the runway.
"Fine, don't answer me then. I guess I just have to accept that my romance life is on public display as long as I'm friends with Mary Connell," he sighed, looking very bothered. Sam had a way of getting under his skin and he didn't know why. But it was starting to bother him, a lot.
"Well, I am so sorry that you think so low of me. I guess you don't' want to be friends with me anymore," a cold female voice interjected, and Danny felt shivers go down his spine, as though she were the ice queen and her breath could literally freeze the soul of him.
Danny had a second to register Sam's teasing expression before he realized what else was going on behind him and turned around, only to see Mary who gave him half a sad glance and began stalking off, giving him the back bone.
He didn't give Sam an explanation or even a glance and went after his best friend who had one hand up to her face, carefully wiping tears away so as not to smudge her mascara. He shot out his arms and twirled her so he could hold her before she went off to casino parts unknown and murmured, "Mary, sweetie. I'm sorry, honey, I didn't want you to hear that. I mean, I didn't mean to word it like that."
"Well~you did, Danny," she told him crisply, thought half of her was relieved that he had cared enough about her to come after her and capture her in his heavenly embrace.
"I know, it's just," he pulled his head back just enough so he could glance back and gestured to Sam with his head. She was standing there in her nice form-fitting black pants and white halter top, looking bored. She came to life and waved at Mary when she caught her pal looking at her. Mary tossed one back and then gave her best male friend a half-smile. "She knows I'm having a bad day, as the rest of the casino probably does, and you know Sam, especially Sam~~~she likes to rub things in and make them worse than they really started out to be."
Mary could argue with that. Samantha did like getting Danny into trouble, or strike a sensitive nerve. It was known throughout the girls, Delinda, Sam, Mary and herself that she took advantage of any opportunity to take a verbal jab at him. And she would never admit it but she couldn't help but think that Sam wouldn't do that unless she was actually secretly falling in love with her lifetime crush. And as beautiful as Sam was, she just didn't think she could compete.
"Mary? I'm very sorry, you know you're my best friend and you're all I've got right now. You will forgive me, wont' you?" Danny said, breaking into her thoughts, and immediately all her concerns and doubts were erased and all she could see was Danny with his passion-filled hazel eyes, pursed lips and raised eyebrow.
She tried to give him a hard stare to let him know he couldn't just do what he did and get away with it but she found she couldn't hold it up the moment she gazed into his suddenly green-looking eyes that were filled with genuine concern. He was giving her an honest apology and he deserved points for that.
She made him wait a moment longer than said, "Y~yeah, of course, Danny. I don't' think I've ever been really able to stay mad at you for long. I am to blame for talking to Sam in the first place."
"N~no," he objected immediately, brushing her shiny red strands behind her ears. "They're your friends and I know girl friend talk, about everything, including what hell your best friend is going through. It's not your fault that Sam can't get off wanting to make my life miserable."
Mary felt heat creep into her cheeks and for that moment, the rest of the casino floor disappeared and all she knew was she was there with Danny, nothing else mattered. "Aww, Danny, your understanding is going to make me blush," she complained as he put a hand to her rosy cheeks.
"I don't' mind," he shrugged, tossing her a boyish grin. Then they were back to being on the gaming floor and the sounds of slots and cheering from near by poker tables filled their once heavenly silence. Danny looked as though he'd just caught himself from doing something he'd wanted strongly to do and Mary couldn't help but wonder what that was. She decided against asking him, not sure if she wanted to know then created a diversion as she placed a small bottle in her hand, his gaze followed her.
"What's this?"
"The aspirin," she informed him with half a grin. "I got one of my girls to switch twenty minutes of their shift with me and I swigged it from the first convenient store I could find. Though you don't' seem to need it anymore, the color is even returning to your cheeks," she added, half disappointed as she pinched his supple cheeks.
"You must have cured me just because your concern and devotion for me is so deep, Mary," Danny proposed then took hold of her hands, pushed them away from his face and leaned in to give her a kiss on the cheek. "Thanks Mary, for always being there for me."
Mary felt herself going back into the day dream land where she went so frequently she had already a married life and three kids, and two dogs running in a nice big backyard, all with Danny but stopped herself. Danny cared about her but at this time she didn't know how he really thought of her and divulging that information might make things a bit~~~weird. "Y~Yeah, sure."
There was an awkward silence and Danny was the one to break it with his usual way. "Well, I've actually got to run. Seems like we have someone trying to break in and I'm sure Ed's just itching to give me a phone call and make sure that I'm on top of things."
"Break in?" Mary scoffed, looking around the gaming floor. "How does that happen in a casino?" She knew security was tight but all their doors were open, heck they were practically a resort and they welcomed people in.
"I'm not exactly sure myself, as always Ed doesn't say much of anything, only that he has a hunch," Danny sighed, but looked around in habit, he knew Ed was probably able to hear everything and anything he said, especially if he didn't want him to hear it. "Tell you the truth I watched the same screen and personally, I think it's a joke and that this is a waste of our time but Ed is certain something is going to go down. The only thing I can hope for is that I am right and this time I'll be able to prove it by checking it out and showing him that nothing is happening."
Mary chuckled. "Oh well, nobody says no to Ed." She dabbed her finger on her tongue then slicked down a strand that was curling out of place. "And he's been in the business longer than you have, as well as the most prestigious intelligence agency of the world."
She was referring to Ed Deline's career in the CIA.
"I know," he said with another sigh, knowing that Mary was right. As usual.
"But, he's also been around long enough to know who's good at what he does and you, Mr. Protégé, you are definitely good at what you do and you have an excellent track record to prove it."
Danny gave Mary one of those, "yeah, right," laughs. But it felt good nonetheless, knowing that if he ever needed an ego boost he just had to come to his best friend who always knew exactly what to say. "Thanks for the medicine, Mary, and for being the only female trying to make my day better and succeeding."
Mary grinned. "Anytime, Danny."
What he said next made that grin even bigger. "In fact, after I'm done with this case~~~I'm going to come and find you for a "thank you best friend," lunch. And it's on me so you know I mean it."
Mary's bright brown eyes shined hopefully at her handsome childhood friend who just got better looking each day. "Really?"
"Yeah," Danny promised with a smile. But when Mary didn't reply he paused to add, 'unless of course, you have other plans."
"No!" she said a bit too energetically which was perfectly fine with Danny but made her feel just a tad embarrassed and felt a bit too revealing. "I mean, of course I'd love to go with you." Since I've been trying to for weeks, she added to herself, wondering if Danny had finally picked up on the subtle hints she'd been dropping for weeks.
Danny smiled as if to say, "great, it's a date then."
"It's just, are you sure you can keep it down?" she teased him, her expression half-serious, worried about Danny's present hang over condition.
To reply to this, Danny gave her a glance that made women feel they were the queens of his world, and for Mary, it gave her the extra oomph she needed, just by knowing that Danny was HER best friend. "Since this is a lunch to pay back for all the times I missed out on, I am certainly going to try."
Aww, Danny was so sweet. No wonder she loved him.
"So, let me go and take care of what Ed wants me to do and then, I will see you, later," he said with a lot of innuendo, leaving Mary feeling that confusion of whether he liked her as a friend or ~~~more.
"O~Okay," she beamed, flashing a million-watt smile and Danny was sure she was standing taller as she stalked off to take care of her business so she could go to lunch with him as well.
"So, guess you swung by Mary," Sam cooed behind him as she joined in step with Danny who was giving her the "Leave me alone," vibe. If she had been a guy, he would have gladly introduced her to the "leave me alone," fist.
"Come on Danny. Your flattery won her over, congratulations," she chirruped. Danny would have acknowledged her if he'd had an inkling that she was being genuine.
"Yeah, thanks," Danny murmured, despite his better judgment.
"Hey if you actually try, you might get a date with some other hot chick by the end of your shift," she added and Danny rolled his eyes. She just had to add that. She couldn't just say something genuinely nice for once in her life.
He didn't say a thing and continued walking toward the entrance, hoping his coldness and the disappointment in his expression would urge her to get a move on. Only when he was about to slide through the automatic doors, he realized the pretty and annoying casino hostess was still standing by his side.
"What are you doing?" Danny complained, looking very irritated. "Didn't you get my subtle "you're annoying," me signs? Or do you just disregard anything that doesn't comply with what you want?"
"Don't flatter yourself," she giggled in her signature Deline mimic. She couldn't resist.
Okay, girl or guy, this girl was going to be pounded. He grabbed her in a headlock and brought his other fist close to her jaw.
"Hey, okay. I get it," she whimpered, actually sounding a tad bit frightened. She didn't relax until he dropped his other hand and loosened the grip on her body. "I'm not stalking you or trying in any way to pick you up, Danny, if you actually thought that."
"With you, I'm not sure of anything," he retorted as he felt her neck and made sure he hadn't dislocated anything within the delicate neck of hers. "What are you doing here, with me, then?"
"Well, I actually got a call from Mike, said something about how he's got a high-rolling customer who should be offered the V.I.P treatment," Sam explained, shaking her head. "And he told me that I had to babysit too. BABY SIT!"
"Mike?" he inquired and then put a hand to her shoulder to tell her to be quiet while he answered a call from Ed. "This is Danny McCoy."
"Danny, tell me I'm wrong. The security cameras are showing me that you're still on the premises. I thought I told you to go out and meet up with Mike in the valet area, OUTSIDE!" he boomed and Danny actually had to pull the phone away from his face to save his poor eardrums.
"Yeah, I know. But I'm not playing around. I had a run in with our wonderful casino host," Danny explained, adopting a serious expression to worry the already slightly worried Sam.
"Well, Sam or no Sam, I want you out there, now!"
"Yeah, we're heading over there right now," Danny assured his boss in his most alleviating tone, all the while, shooting Sam a glance to hint to her that he was discussing her.
"No, actually, change of plans," Ed said abruptly and Danny paused in his steps.
Great, just what he needed. More chaos.
"Okay. What's up?"
"What's up?" Ed demanded, probably offended that his protégé felt comfortable enough with him to use slang with him. Ed was former CIA and he liked that he could intimidate people. "I'll tell you what's up!One of the valets on the other side of the casino saw who they believe is our underage girl enter the casino through "our," door because you won't get up and do your job instead of flirt with other girls now that my daughter dumped your sorry ass!"
Ouch! Danny heard Sam stiffle a giggle. Mm, nice, Ed's voice had probably been loud enough for Sam to hear. "Right, like I said, I wasn't flirting~~~" he began but then cut himself off, knowing Ed, like Sam, had selective hearing. "What's Mike's situation?"
"Do I sound like a person who knows what's going on in every inch of my casino?" Ed barked. "Go over there and find out!" he commanded him angrily.
"Going," Danny promised as he got ready to shut off the cell phone.
"Oh and Sam doesn't need to accompany you. Mike gave me a call and he says he no longer needs her help. The high-roller has left the premises. Besides, I've got another job for her."
"Okay, shoot."
"I want her to do the casino hostess thing inside the casino host. That way she can be on the look out for our underage criminal," he reasoned with Danny, speaking slow as though there was no other way Danny would be able to comprehend it.
"You got it. I'll take care of the girl if she's here. You got the rest of the casino?"
"For now," he said with a grumble. "But don't' be surprised if I give you a call or two~~~or three."
"Got it."
"Find that girl, Danny," Ed said in a lower tone that meant that he was not joking in anyway, not even to make his life more miserable. This girl had Ed freaked.
Danny gave the nearest security camera a nod and a thumbs up. Sam still stood next to him, still in suspense. He then shoved the phone off and placed it in his pocket.
"So?" Sam prompted, folding her arms, trying to like the whole call hadn't bothered her but she wasn't pulling it off very well. Danny saw right through her and he was enjoying the hell out of it.
"Oh, that was just Ed on the phone," Danny informed her very nonchalantly while making it obvious that he had other business on the mind. "Love to chat with you but, I've got to go."
"Hey, wait, I'm coming too!"
Danny turned around and held a hand up before her face. "N~No, Ed wants you to stay on the gaming floor. Watch for suspicious girls." He was being vague on purpose. He then began to walk off again only to have his wrist snatched by Sam's very nice and sharp fingernails.
"Danny, wait, what did Ed want with me?"
"Oh, don't' worry about it," he assured her, gave her a wink and then took off for the front door.
Ugh! Sam hated Danny when he pulled that kind of crap with her, making his job as security more top secret than it probably really was. She almost called Ed to discuss the matter with him but she didn't think Ed would tell her anything if he didn't. Maybe it was on a have-to-know basis. The next minutes were a blur. She turned to one of the more rich V.I.P's and flashed a pleasant smile. She heard him give her a request but her mind was barely on the business at hand as she jot down a memo.
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Hey! Thanks for reading this far! Lots of love for ya'll Las Vegas fans! Hope this'll hold you out till the next chappy! And groan, LAS VEGAS is not showing tonight. Mondays are so mundane, I need my JOSH DUHAMEL FIX!
Anywho, please review. If I get five reviews I'll update as soon as I get the chapter up. If I get less than that, you'll probably be waiting at least a month, (evil cackle) nah, probably not, just review so I know you all are reading okay!
Lataz,
Total Vaughn Lover
