She shot Annie a warm look that caused liquid fire to spread to all Annie’s important parts and ignite them to an uncomfortable level. She told herself that Bristol was somebody who really needed a friend and not another person with a crush on her. Besides, she was Bristol Baines, who could have her pick of anyone in the entire world. Annie wasn’t the kind of person she would date.

“You’ve got this,” Bristol said.

Annie vaguely remembered Charley, on the other side of her, cheering her on. How she started rolling was all a blur. Somebody told her the rules, and after Bristol’s run of bad luck, she was standing with dice in her hand and about eight people shouting numbers they wanted her to roll. She had three good rolls, and suddenly all eyes were on her.

Annie turned to Bristol. “I don’t even know what I’m doing.”

“You’re winning,” Bristol said.

Annie licked her lips when she saw how close Bristol was. She could smell the orange blossom of Bristol’s shampoo and the sweet amaretto on her breath.

“Roll the dice, Annie,” Bristol said.

Was the alcohol getting to her? Was it stronger in Vegas? She’d had only a few sips of champagne and one amaretto sour in the span of three hours. Why did everyone else seem to fade away when she looked deep into Bristol’s eyes that were so dark, they reminded Annie of molasses? “What?”

“You need to roll the dice, or you’re going to upset a lot of people,” Bristol said.

Annie looked back at the table. “Oh. Oh! Okay. Here we go.” She threw the dice on the table and held her breath.

“Eleven!” the dealer yelled.

The table erupted with shouts and high-fives. Bristol pulled Annie into a hug and squeezed her. The entire night had felt like this. Spending time with Bristol was as amazing as she thought it would be. She was winning on the table and winning in life. Bristol was friendly, fun, and Annie hadn’t stopped smiling since they got to the table.

“You won! You won!”

Annie leaned into Bristol. “I won! How much did I win?” She watched as the dealer counted the chips and pushed the giant pile toward her. “I don’t want to play anymore. I feel like we should stop.”

“You’re on a roll. Keep going,” somebody said.

“No. I think I’m done here,” Annie said.

“We’re going to cash out.” Bristol pointed to the chips, and the dealer nodded.

“How much money is there?” Annie didn’t realize she was squeezing Bristol’s hand.

“A lot.” Charley leaned in closer to glance at the stacks. “I’m guessing like seven or eight thousand.”

“No!” Annie was shocked.