Will looked over at the table, meeting my eyes. And, oh, shit. In a rush I burst out laughing, understanding dawning. Johnny had totally f**ked with us, and from the second the woman found him, Will knew exactly what we’d done. The gauntlet had most definitely been thrown.

“That son of a bitch,” Max swore. But I didn’t have time to ask because it looked like Red was ready to put the moves on Will.

We all watched in rapt silence as the escort leaned in, whispering something in his ear. Her hand was big—bigger than my own—and she placed it against his chest, fingers twisting in the fabric. Will laughed, shaking his head before nodding to us at the table.

With a seductive grin, she gripped his shirt and pulled him forward, kissing him hard on the lips. Damn.

He stepped away in a daze and made his way back to the table. As he took his seat we each looked at the other, unsure of what had actually happened. Will was silent for a moment, blinking several times before reaching for his drink. He drained it in one pull and then took a deep breath.

“You’re a bunch of ass**les,” he said, leaning back in his chair and popping a shrimp into his mouth. “But as far as kissing a dude went, that actually wasn’t bad.”

Honestly, that one really had ended up in the Win column for Will. I glanced across the table to where he perused the dessert tray, still wearing the same smug f**king grin.

“Am I really really drunk or did we accidentally hire a male prostitute to distract our friend?” I asked Max.

He didn’t answer, just held up his phone displaying his most recently delivered text message: a picture of Johnny’s hand, middle finger extended. Perfect.

I laughed, putting my drink down with a bit more of a crash than I’d intended. “I’m not going to say I told you so but for the record, I definitely did.”

“Fuck you.” Max slumped back in his seat, pushing his hands into his hair. “This isn’t over. He’s going to bide his time, and then completely ruin us. Do you have any idea what I’ve done tonight to be with this woman? I snuck out on my best friend’s stag weekend. I stole a limousine. I hired my other best friend a drag queen, Bennett.”

Maybe it was the alcohol buzzing in my system, or the absolute absurdity of the situation, but I started to laugh, and then I couldn’t stop.

“I think Ben’s finally lost it,” Henry said. “Who called today?” He pulled a wrinkled slip of paper from his pocket, presumably with the bets they’d each taken earlier in the day. “Damnit. It was Max.”

I sat back in my seat and scrubbed my face. Max was right: this definitely wasn’t over.

Six

Max Stella

The din of voices in the bar, glasses clinking, and sounds of ringing slot machines all around us was occasionally disrupted by the loud bursts of laughter by the world’s biggest wanker, Will.

“Wonder what it’d be like to get head from a male prostitute?” he mused. “Like, okay, assuming of course it wasn’t illegal, and you didn’t even know it was a guy. I bet that would be some good suction.”

I shrugged, feeling the humor of the situation bubble up inside me and burst out. “I bet it would be bloody fantastic.”

“Strong grip,” Bennett agreed, laughing.

“Bigger tongue for the equipment if you know what I’m saying,” I added.

“Well, f**k. Now you’re making me wish I’d given him a go.” Will picked up his empty drink glass and raised it for the waiter to bring another. “Where are we headed next?”

“Thought we could hit Tao, at the Venetian,” I suggested. “Or head back to the Bellagio?”

“Does anyone actually know where Henry is?” Bennett asked, looking around for only a few seconds before seeming to decide he didn’t care enough to get up.

But then Chloe and Sara appeared around a corner, arms linked and making a beeline for a blackjack table only about ten yards from the bar. Bennett straightened instinctively, drawing Will’s attention.

“You’ve got to be f**king kidding me,” Will groaned, following Ben’s gaze. With mumbled thanks, he took his drink from the waiter. “They don’t even know you’re here, do they? Oh my God, they do. That’s why you’ve both been idiots all night. It’s like the four of you have subconscious homing devices implanted in your genitalia.” He sighed. “It all makes sense now.”

I stood at the same time as Bennett, stretching my arms over my head before tucking my dress shirt back into the waist of my trousers. Will could give me all the shit he wanted. I was going to Sara.