"Another Martini," a man says. I start to make one and the man scowls at me. "Hurry it up would you?"

"Sorry, sir," I say through gritted teeth. I hand him his drink and he walks away. "Fucking prick," I mutter. I look around to make sure no one's watching me before taking a shot of tequila.

I look over and Dahlia, the card dealer, looks at me and nods. I nod back and make the drinks of the men sitting at her table. I sigh and walk out of the bar. I pass out the drinks.

There's one man who's not drinking. Liquor clouds judgment, makes people less rational. It's exactly what my boss wants for the poker players. If they're tipsy, they're less likely to play smart.

"Anything for you, sir?"  I ask the man. He looks up at me, his dark eyes meeting mine. He doesn't say anything. "Sir?"

He shakes his head and I walk away. I go behind the bar and look around again. Everyone's focused and not paying attention to me. I take another shot of tequila.

"Nell?" My boss says. She sits down at the bar.

"Yeah?" I ask. 

"You see that man over there?" She looks at the man with dark eyes. "I want you to bring him a drink."

"I just asked him," I tell her. She goes by Grey. "He just shook his head."

Grey shrugs. "You're very pretty, Nell," she says. "I'm sure you can charm him."

"I'll try again," I say. Grey nods. "Is he new? I haven't seen him before."

Grey smiles. "His name is Kane Pierce. He's ridiculously rich," she tells me. "But he doesn't take risks. He's very smart in the way he plays."

"And you want him to loosen up." I look over at him. "What do you think he drinks?"

She looks him over. "Double scotch." I pour one. "Good luck. Oh, and Nell?"

"Yeah?"

"Wear red tomorrow night," she says. I nod. 

I grab the drink and bring it over to the man. I set it down next to him and he frowns. "I figured you could use a drink, sir," I say. He doesn't say anything. He just shoves the drink forward. I roll my eyes as I walk back to the bar. 

"Jackass," I mutter as I grab my coat. "Hey, taking a smoke break," I say to John, one of the security personnel that Grey has positioned at the doors. He nods. 

"Have a good break, Ms. Nell," he says. I smile and take the elevator to the first floor. I go out the back door and lean against the wall. I pull out a pack of cigarettes and light one, putting it to my lips. 

I inhale the smoke and lean back into the wall as I release it. My cigarettes are cherry flavored. They don't smell as potent as regular ones.

"You really shouldn't smoke," a deep voice says. I look over and see the man with dark eyes. 

"That so?" I ask as I blow out more smoke. 

He smirks. "So I've been told," he says. His voice has a rough southern edge to it. "Can I use your lighter?"

I toss it to him. He catches it and lights a cigarette. He tosses it back to me. I look over him warily. He's wearing a dark dress shirt and black slacks. His hair is black and there's stubble on his jaw. Everything about him is dark and sexy. 

"Thanks," he says as he blows out smoke. "I'm Kane."

"I know," I say. His lips pull up into a smirk. 

"You're not going to tell me your name?" he asks. I shrug. 

"No." I release smoke. 

"Well, why not?" 

"I'm not impressed by you," I tell him. 

He grins, revealing dimples.  "You only tell your name to people you're impressed by?"

I throw my cigarette down and crush it under my heel. "I tell my name to people who aren't rude."

"You find me to be rude?" he asks as he inhales some of his cigarette. 

"Is that really a question?" I ask. He frowns slightly. I smirk as I walk by him. "See you around."

I take the elevator back up and smile at John as I walk by. I hang my coat up and walk back behind the bar.  

Dahlia walks over to the bar and smirks at me as she leans forward. "You see that new guy?" she asks as I hand her a water. 

"He's an asshole." Kane walks in, his dark eyes briefly meeting mine before he returns to his seat. 

"You met him then?" Dahlia asks as she takes a drink of her water. 

"He crashed my smoke break," I tell her. She tosses her glossy black hair over her shoulder. "His name's Kane Pierce. Apparently, he's rich."

"Of course he's rich," Dahlia says. "He's playing in Grey's game after all."

Grey runs one of the most exclusive poker games. You can't buy a seat, she picks you. You can't buy her or any of her workers. All of her employees are female, except for security. Every player is rich beyond belief. 

"He's boring," I say. Dahlia smirks.

"If you say so," Dahlia says. "He certainly plays boring. Nothing risky, every move is calculated. The other players are pissed because they keep losing."

"Maybe he'll get in a fight and get kicked out," I say as I pour two shots of tequila. I slide one to Dahlia. We both knock it back quickly. 

"That'd be a shame," she says. "He's certainly sexy."

I roll my eyes. "I'm supposed to wear red tomorrow. You?" I ask. Grey likes us to wear certain colors for certain events. 

"Yellow," she tells me. Dahlia has dark olive skin, so she could actually pull off yellow. 

"Interesting," I say. "Watch out for Kane. I have a bad feeling about him."

Dahlia grins. "Of course I'll watch out for him," she says. "Don't take too many more shots. Was that your third?"

I shrug as I lift up a shot glass, catching my reflection to make sure that my matte lipstick hasn't smeared. "It's better to feel nothing."