“I’d have to clear out all of these charming leather-bound classics if I was going to fit my whole library in here,” Maxwell explained. “And then there’s my collectibles, like these.” He picked up a box from the shelf, handing it to her.
She opened it and found a set of dice. Instead of dots, they had images representing poker hands on the sides. “What are they?”
“Poker dice,” Maxwell said. “There was a brief fad for it, instead of using cards. That set was hand-carved by a woman under house arrest for running an illegal gambling den. I guess she didn’t learn her lesson.”
Chloe laughed, handing the dice back to him. “You know a lot about all of this stuff.”
“It’s somewhere between a hobby and an obsession,” Maxwell gave her one of those charming, self-deprecating grins. “My friends back home always teased me about it. It wasn’t enough to simply enjoy playing a hand or two; I had to know the whole history of the game.”
“That sounds kind of like me,” Chloe said thoughtfully. “Whenever I get a new contract, I always have to find out the history of the house, the original blueprints, the builders, past owners… But it helps when I’m finding a buyer.”
“Whereas I just do this for fun,” Maxwell said. “I’ve been reading this.” He picked up the book resting on a winged armchair by the empty fireplace. The title read A History of Las Vegas. “I’m amusing myself by finding all the mistakes. Of course, the author has a disadvantage, not having lived through it.”
“I didn’t really think it had a history,” Chloe admitted. “Just casinos.”
“Well, that’s a big part of it,” Maxwell conceded. “But it’s a fascinating place and has some real historical significance. The first non-segregated casino was built there, at a time when segregation was still disgustingly common.”
“I had no idea,” Chloe said, tilting her head. “You’ve spent a lot of time there?”
“I have,” Maxwell said, still shuffling the cards in his hands. “Especially in the early days. I was lucky – I bought a lot of land when it was still just a desert, and let’s just say it appreciated in value.”
“I see,” Chloe said. That explained why paying an outrageous amount of money for the Sanguis Estate hadn’t bothered him.
“It became an ideal city for vampires,” Maxwell went on. “So much is indoors, and it’s designed to be most active at night. There’s an enormous paranormal population, not least because anything unusual is simply accepted as part of the Vegas mystique.”
Chloe laughed. “So if someone shifted into their animal form, people would think it was just David Copperfield testing his latest effect?”
“Exactly,” Maxwell said. “People go there to get away from their everyday lives, be someone else for a while, indulge, and try out things they’ve never done before. Or just, you know, gorge on buffets, gamble too much, and get into debt. Everywhere has its downsides.”
“You’re making me curious about visiting. Maybe I can find a real estate conference there to justify a visit.”
Maxwell snorted. “Yes, you would have to find an excuse to work instead of simply going on holiday, wouldn’t you?”
“Am I that predictable?” Chloe screwed up her face.
“No, just…very driven,” Maxwell said. “I don’t think I’d describe you as predictable. I certainly didn’t think you’d know what I truly was when I first met you.”
“You were too busy looking at me with lustful desire in your heart,” Chloe teased, and then her breath caught in her throat because that had definitely been flirting. She could barely bring herself to look up at Maxwell. Had she gone too far?
“Can you blame me?” he asked, looking right at her.
There was an awkward silence, and Chloe checked her watch. “I’d better go,” she said. “Thanks for, um, showing me your collection. And telling me about Vegas. I don’t think I’ll get to go any time soon, but—”
“So long as you at least try to have a good time at my poker night, I’ll forgive you for that,” Maxwell said, speaking loudly and not looking at her.
“I’ll try,” Chloe said earnestly, and she meant it. One night of fun wouldn’t kill her, especially when she needed to take her mind off this curse business. “And Tilly should have the next ingredient soon. Hopefully, it won’t be another midnight trek.” She wrinkled her nose.
“Oh, it wasn’t so bad, was it?” Maxwell said. “I rather enjoyed it, actually. Maybe it’s because there’s not much going on in Crowley Lake.”
“Probably,” Chloe said. “We certainly don’t compare to Vegas.”
“Or maybe it was simply the company,” Maxwell said, and he gave her another one of those unreadable looks.
Okay, that was definitely flirting. Chloe wasn’t wholly oblivious; she could recognise when a man was flirting with her. She just had no idea what he meant by it. Maxwell was the kind of guy who flirted with everyone. She wasn’t special to him. Was she?
“I’d better go,” Chloe said again, making for the door. “You don’t need to see me out; I know the way.”
“I don’t mind—” Maxwell rose from the chair.
“No, it’s fine!” Chloe said, and she walked so fast from the room that he didn’t have the chance to catch her.
When she was safely back in her car, without any maddeningly handsome and altogether too charming vampires giving her unreadable looks, Chloe dialled up her best friend.
“Hey, stranger!” Julia’s voice boomed through the car’s speakers. “It’s been a few days. Are you too busy curse-breaking with the divine Maxwell to talk to me?”
“Work’s been crazy,” Chloe said quickly. “But I did track down another item for the ritual, so we’re making progress on the curse. How are you?”
“Good,” Julia said. “I took a group of backpackers up the mountain today to that lookout where you can see the lake. And one of them asked me where the concession stand was! He seriously thought we’d have an ice-cream truck or something, right there in the middle of the National Park!”
Chloe laughed at the image in her mind. “I’m sure he was very disappointed.”