"So, enchanting Anya, what brings you to town?" Jasper asked as he handed her a beer.
"We're heading to a tournament in Vegas tomorrow morning," Anya said. She toasted Jasper but licked her lips at me.
It was going to be a long night.
#
I felt as if I had just shut my eyes when my alarm went off. I had set it early so I could spend what little time I had in the morning getting ready for my tournament appearances. When I locked myself in the bathroom, I saw Anya had left her black lace bra hanging provocatively over the shower curtain. I plucked it off and tossed it in the corner.
She and Jasper had flirted all night. In order to maintain my facade of amusement, I had drunk way too many beers. I was exhausted from fending
off Anya's many advances. Finally, I had escaped to my room and actually locked the door. I wondered if she had ended up in Jasper's bed.
By the time I was showered and dressed, the blankets and pillow I had left on the couch were neatly folded. Anya was making breakfast and Jasper was nowhere to be seen.
"Sleep well?" I asked.
"Wouldn't you like to know. Poor man, drank a little too much?" Anya asked. "Here. I made you coffee."
Before I could sit down, there was a knock at the door. I opened it to see Quinn and her father. "Good morning?" I asked.
"He's just dropping me off on his way to see a client," Quinn said. She said goodbye, but her father followed her inside.
"Oh, how cute! Is your dad driving you to the tournament?" Anya asked.
"Yes. I've been told I need to see her play," Mr. Thomas replied.
"You can meet me there," Quinn said. "I don't want to get in the way of your work."
Her father took out his phone and sent a quick message. "It’s rescheduled. Now, how about you introduce me to your friend?" he asked me.
"Mr. Thomas, this is Anya. She is another player on the gaming scene and one of my oldest friends in the business."
"Friends?" he asked.
Anya laughed. "I'm also one of your daughter's biggest rivals. At the tournament, I mean. I'm the obstacle she's going to have to defeat if she wants to be anything but a newbie the rest of her life."
"You volunteered?" I asked Anya. I ground my teeth as she nodded and tossed her hair.
"Somebody has to put the upstarts in their place, don't you think?" she said.
"Can I use your bathroom?" Quinn asked me.
"Sure," I pretended to show her the way. "I had no idea. She just showed up last night and Jasper invited her to stay."
"It’s fine. I just need a minute," Quinn said.
She shut the door in my face. In the main room, Mr. Thomas had taken the coffee Anya gave him and was looking out the picture window. I went to the kitchen to tell her to back off.
"It’s so nice that you are taking Sienna's little sister under your wing," Anya said.
I tried to grab her arm and whisper to make her stop, but Anya spun away.
"I mean, Sienna was so distraught when you broke up with her that it’s no wonder you feel guilty. You have to know it wasn't your fault, Owen. What Sienna did was her choice. It had nothing to do with your breakup," Anya said.
I was rigid with anger when Quinn reappeared in the main room. "Should we go?" she asked brightly.
"A go-getter. Now, that's the right attitude," Anya said. She breezed to the door and grabbed her things. "I'm ready when you are."