The Gambler

"Every gambler knows
that the secret to survivin'
is knowin' what to throw away
and knowin' what to keep.
'Cause every hand's a winner
and every hand's a loser
and the best that you can hope for
is to die in your sleep." The Gambler by Kenny Rogers.

Sunday morning, Jake and I stayed in bed. We unhooked the room phone and turned our phones off. We spent the morning cuddled up, talking.

"I don't wanna leave." I complained, resting my head against his chest.

"Then don't..." Jake replied, rubbing my back.

"Unfortunately, I have a job. That I didn't request time off from. Everyone knows I'm in Vegas. I can't play the 'I'm sick' card."

"Sure you can. We can go to the casino and work on our island investment. Then you won't need to work. " Jake suggested.

"I spent that investment on bottle service last night." I smiled. "How bout on the next trip, you give me a chance to get days off?"

"Where do you wanna go next?" Jake asked me.

"Ummm...my birthday is the first week of December. I've always wanted to go somewhere cold. With snow. Like a ski lodge. So I can make a real snowman and snow angel." I shared, excitedly.

He smiled at me. "You're so cute, you know that?"

"It's what you keep saying. I'm starting to think you're making fun of me."

Jake leaned in and gave me a kiss. "Only a little."

We finally got up and took a shower together.

I groaned as the hot water cascaded over me.

"Too hot?..." Jake asked.

"No. Just sore." I said, accusingly.

He laughed. "You weren't very gentle last night either." He said, turning to reveal the scratches on his back.

I gasped. "Jake, I'm so sorry." I apologized, tracing the marks on his back with my fingers.

"I'm not..." He said, turning around and holding me in his arms. He kissed me, hard and passionately. I wrapped my arms around his neck and massaged his scalp. He moaned and rubbed his growing hardness against me.

"Jake!" I panted, pulling away. "Stop. We're never going to leave the room.

"You say that like it's a bad thing." He grinned at me. When his lips tried to find mine again, I pushed him away.

I grabbed the soap. We washed each other up before rinsing and drying off. We got dressed and turned our phones back on.

We met up with everyone by the pool. We spent the afternoon relaxing.  Jasmine splashed around in the pool while Frankie, Tonya and Reggie hung out watching football closer to the bar. Kelly was feeling better, so she and Omar were able to join  Brandon, Rocky, Jake and I as we watched Colton and Malik hit on girls. We had a great time. I really didn't want to leave.

Jake rode with us to the airport. We kissed goodbye before Jasmine, Reggie and I headed to our terminal. While we waited, I uploaded pictures to my Facebook and Instagram. I also used that time to check out the pictures Amber uploaded.

They looked like they had a blast at the fair and the game. The girls looked adorable in matching yellow shirts and flowy skirts. Robbie looked too cute in a black Grambling shirt and khaki shorts. They looked like those adorable model families that you find in picture frames.

EJ looked too cool in a purple and gold Prairie View shirt that featured a black panther and a matching hat. The only picture that included Ethan was a shot of EJ making a face at the camera as Ethan watched the game next to him. It was just his profile, but Ethan looked good too in a purple polo and shades.

I went to Ethan's Facebook page. I didn't see any pictures posted on his page. Part of me wanted to request more pictures, but I didn't. I just liked the pictures on Amber's page.

I had a harder time falling asleep on the plane, so I stayed up for a while and mentally planned my week. With some major shuffling, I would be able to make Jake's actually birthday celebration with his family and friends. They were taking the boat out during the day Tuesday and Jasmine was getting together with Julissa to plan dinner.

When we arrived in Dallas, I left Jasmine and Reggie to grab a taxi home. My brother and Trevor both offered to give me a ride, but I declined. When I got to the apartment, Sammy wasn't home. I started to finish some laundry she left. I was folding clothes, listening to classic rock, with football on the TV when my phone rang. It was Jake. Fuck. I completely forgot to call.

"Jake, I'm sorry I didn't call-"

"It's ok. I figured you probably got some sleep."

Sure I did... If he was cool with that, no need to correct him.

We talked for a little while longer. They were going to a dinner and a comedy club so I let him go and went back to my chores.

Sammy came home a little after that. She was clearly doing the walk of shame in a tight red mini dress and way too big for her sweats rolled up and tied tightly around her hips to stay up.

She looked up at me, surprised. "Oh. Hey. I thought your flight left at 6pm."

"It did. To Vegas. It left at 4 from Vegas." I clarified as she walked in. "Had fun last night?" I asked knowingly.

"It wasn't Vegas that's for sure. I wanna hear all about it, but I have to get ready for work. I'm closing at Dave and Buster's." She said, heading upstairs.

"How's Corey?" I grinned.

When she didn't respond, I chuckled to myself. 30 minutes she came back down, hair still wet from her shower.

"Maybe I'll stop by so we can talk." I offered as she grabbed her purse.

"No. Cowboys game is tonight. It's gonna be crazy. I'm off tomorrow. We can chat then." Sammy answered.

I said goodbye as she left. I spent the rest of my Sunday cleaning and doing chores so I wouldn't have to worry about them during the week.

Monday morning, I left early to speak with Sandra. She didn't show up until 30 minutes after I got there.

"Kids missed the bus. I can't wait till my eldest can get her hardship license." She exhaled as she entered the office.

I nodded. "I don't need anything. I just wanted to run it by you before I reschedule a few appointments this week. I have-"

Sandra waved, cutting me off.

"If your patients are ok with it, so am I. Just keep your charts updated." She said.

"Ok. Thanks for letting me know." I smiled.

Most of my patients were ok with me pushing back their appointments. The golf instructor I was rehabbing asked me what was going on. He thought our scheduling conflict was resolved last week. I explained to him it was and I needed to reschedule for personal reasons. When he asked if everything was ok, I confessed to him it was for my boyfriend's birthday. He laughed and cancelled his appointment for Tuesday all together. I thanked him profusely.

Ultimately, all but two of my patients were ok with me moving around appointments. One was at 9am, and the other was at 10:30 am. It would be close, but I could make the boat outing at 2 then dinner at 6pm with Jake's family. The remainder of the week would be hellish, but I would do that for Jake.

When I got off, Sammy wasn't home. I tried to call her, but got no response. I left and headed to a jewelry repair store in Dallas. I wanted to get Jake's watch engraved. Jordan called Derek and he told me about a place that could do it without sending it out.

I found the jewelry repair store and told them what I wanted. They gave me a wait time of 2 hours. I left and went to Party City. I picked up a small, star shaped pinata.

Their flight from Vegas wasn't due to land for another hour, but I figured I'd rather be early than late. I left the watch at the repair shop, calling to let the clerk to let them know I would pick it up tomorrow.

I parked and went inside. I found a seat by the baggage claim. I pulled out my phone and went through all the pictures and comments from the Vegas trip. Rocky posted a great photo of all of us at Jake's birthday dinner. I made that my cover photo. My favorite picture of Jake and me was one outside the Luxor. Jasmine took the candid shot unbeknownst to us as we played around in front of the sphinx. I was leaning forward, laughing while Jake had his arms around me pulling me to him, smiling. I smiled at the memory and changed it to my profile picture.

When groups of people started to stand around the baggage claim, I stood too. I saw Rocky and Brandon first. I waved to them as I headed their way.

"Welcome back to the real world." I greeted them with a hug.

"Don't remind me Lily. I was planning to win big so I could tell my job to shove it." Brandon smiled.

"Weren't we all?" Rocky said, smiling.

"I already had my I quit dance ready." I replied. "Play "Fancy" over the intercom, then just dance out."

"I woulda been an asshole with mine. After reading my list of grievances, I would play "We're Not Gonna Take It", start a mosh pit, knock over some merchandise, then crowd surf out." Brandon fantasized. I laughed at him.

"You really spent time thinking about this?" Rocky commented.

"Pretty much every day." Brandon smiled.

Jake and the rest of the crew finally appeared.

"You came to pick me up?" Jake asked, smiling at me.

"Nope, I just hang in airports now. It's my thing." I said.

"Smart ass."

I smiled at him. After saying goodbye to everyone, I led Jake to my car. He saw the pinata sitting in my trunk.

"You really bought a pinata?" He asked.

"Yep, but it's not ready yet." I grinned.

He shook his head. "Can you at least put some good candy in it? No tootsie rolls."

"Eh, maybe on your 30th birthday."

We stopped and grabbed a bite to eat on the way to his apartment. He filled me in on the rest of the trip. He said the comedy show was ok, but the real fun was when they all went to a strip club together. Tonya threw a fit when Frankie got a lap dance. I commented that you would think they would have had that discussion before they went to a strip club together.

"Exactly. That's why I waited for you to leave." Jake winked at me.

"Whatever. I would have bought you 29 dances for your birthday."

"Really?"

"Of course. I love funding girls college tuition."

Jake laughed at me. "Yeah, I have a feeling they will be breaking up soon. Frankie was trying to get her to hang with you girls, but she just clinged on to him."

I nodded, so glad I didn't push the issue of going race car driving with them.

We went back to his apartment to spend the night. I woke up super early on Jake's birthday to make him breakfast. I ran to the store and bought ingredients for pancakes, eggs, bacon, sausages and hashbrowns. I cooked, grabbed both plates and went to his bedroom. The sound of Las Mañanitas playing from my phone woke him up.

"Happy Birthday Babe!" I greeted him, smiling.

His face broke out in a smile as he sat up. He rubbed his eyes as I set the food on the nightstand next to him. He grabbed my arm and pulled me on top of him.

"Jake!" I squealed, as he held me tightly. He hushed me by placing his lips on mine.

"Thank you Lily." He said, his voice deep and sexy with sleep.

"You are very welcome." I said, kissing him once more before trying to get up.

"Don't go. Stay."

"I told you I have to work..." I didn't tell him I was getting off early. If something fell through, I didn't want him being upset. I rather he be surprised than mad on his birthday. "I'm going to try to get off as soon as possible."

"Fine. Call me as soon as you get off."

"Absolutely birthday boy. See ya later." I said, kissing him one last time.



My 2 appointments seemed like they moved so slowly, but I was finally done and heading out by 12:00.

"Going to lunch?" Denise asked me on my way out.

"No. I'm done for the day."

"Oh?"

I nodded quickly.

"Wait up. Do you mind sticking around? The new guy is starting orientation today. Sandra is trying to get him trained today too so he can start taking patients." Denise explained.

"I can't. He wouldn't be able to shadow me without patients." I informed her.

"Sandra doesn't want him to shadow. Just monitored." Denise continued. "But if you can't,  I'll just let Sandra know that you had to leave." She said, hastily.

I wanted to roll my eyes so bad. So not only was she willing to kiss ass to get on Sandra good side, but she would throw others under the bus. She was so lucky I had to leave...

"I do have to leave and all she has to do is look at my charts. Have a good one." I said, coolly, before leaving. I rushed home, showered and put on the dress I sat out the night before. I had just enough time to blow dry my hair so it fell in waves around my shoulders and put on minimal make up.

I raced to the jewelry shop. I paid for the work on the watch and rushed back to my car. I looked down at my phone when I got there. It was 1:00 and Jake texted me.

Jake- Any idea what time you're leaving?

I dialed his number as I started the car. I told him I was heading his way. He told me they would wait for me. When I got off the phone, I drove 10 miles per hour over the speed limit the whole way. 45 minutes later, I pulled up at Jake's dad's house. I hopped out the car and walked to the trunk to pull out the pinata. I stuffed the watch box inside of it. As I closed the trunk, my phone rang. It was Jake. He must have been timing me. I answered it as I walked up the drive.

"I'm at the door." I answered, smiling.

I heard nothing but laughter and background noises in response. "Heeellllo?"

Nothing

"Hello?" I said again, before getting ready to disconnect the phone. I heard Jake say my name right before I pressed the end button.

"Jake?" I called.

"If Lily and I break up, you can be the first to tell me I told you so." I heard Jake say over the phone. It was a little muffled, but I knew it was Jake. My heart sank. Break up?

"When you breakup. I'm just curious how far are you going to let this go. Are y'all gonna live together? Wait for her to cheat on you? Maybe have a pregnancy scare? Then she'll really be just like Cara." said a voice I recognized as Omar. I felt my blood run cold. What the fuck were they talking about?

"Don't talk about Cara." Jake said.

"Why not? She's like Cara all over again. And I get that you want a do over, but when are you gonna stop fucking around and settle down? With someone you can trust? And who is loyal? And not running around with another guy every time you turn your back?-"

The front door opened, startling me. I gasped as I looked up, guiltily. Stephanie, Jake's dad's fiancee, came outside. I quickly hung up the phone.

"Hey Lily. Whatcha doing out here? C'mon in. Everyone is waiting on you." Stephanie said.

I heard every word she said, but I wasn't comprehending. My mind was still racing from what I heard. Jake lived with Cara? There was a pregnancy scare? He's just fucking around with me? Because I'm like Cara?

It didn't even register that Stephanie was still talking until she took the pinata away from me and started to lead me to the house. That snapped me out of it. I pulled away.

"I have to go." I said, turning back to my car. I hurried to it.

How could I go in there and face them, knowing how much Jake kept from me? Knowing what his friends really thought about me? I couldn't go in there and pretend like everything was ok. Jake would hate it if I made a scene in front of his family, especially on his birthday...

That thought is what finally brought me to my senses and it hit me. Like an epiphany. Fuck every single one of them. Why the fuck was I still worrying about how he fucking felt?  I tried so hard to be perfect for him. I did everything right this weekend. I did everything for him and it still wasn't enough for his friends to accept me.

His friends not accepting me I could have gotten over. My friends weren't exactly team Jake either, but I defended him because I thought we were in this together. But he didn't even tell me the whole fucking truth. He demanded that much from me before we even started dating, but didn't feel the need to tell me shit about his ex live in girlfriend and maybe baby drama? Fuck him!

I got back in my car, shaking with rage. At Omar. At Jake. But mostly at myself. I was disgusted by my actions. I strived to get out of my dad's house, to live my own life, to be independent and strong; but yet here I was again, letting another man dictate my life. Life was too short to always be worried about saying or doing the wrong thing. I wouldn't live like that for my dad. Why was I willing to do it for Jake? What the fuck is wrong with me?

I wanted to confront Jake. I wanted to fucking embarrass him as much as he did to me. But I already gave him too much of my time. I treated him like he was the master of the universe. From now on, he wouldn't fucking exist to me.

I started my car. I backed out of the driveway and left. I didn't look back once. Tears welled in my eyes, but I didn't let them fall. He wasn't worth it. No one was.