Page 1 of House Always Wins

CHAPTER 1

THE FIRST DAY

Today was Tori’s first day working at the casino, and it was raining outside. The rain was something she despised. She knew that the rain would make her hair frizzy and her clothes look unpressed. Making a good impression, especially on her first day, was extremely important to her.

Butterflies churned in her stomach as she thought about him. The attractive man that interviewed her stirred feelings in her she was unfamiliar with. Not that she was a virgin or that she’d never felt love, but the desire he caused in her was strong and unfamiliar. Just the thought of him in that suit was enough to cause her to come undone. He was older and attractive in a way that she’d never found a man attractive.

Truthfully, Tori wasn’t sure why he hired her. She was plain compared to the other women in the casino. Of course, she didn’t think she was ugly, but her hair was a long brown color, mostly one length. Her eyes were a beautiful hazel color that transitioned between green and brown, mostly contingent on lighting and her choice of apparel. But she wasn’t kept the way these women were.

Compared to them, she was a librarian. The outfit she wore to the interview was slacks, a long sleeve button up dress shirt and flats. She opted for a minimal amount of makeup; She didn’t get her nails done, she always wore her hair down or pulled back in a ponytail, and she didn’t dress like the women she saw in fashion magazines. In truth, she wouldn’t have picked herself amongst them.

She felt that even though the casino’s chief business was cards, gambling, and selling hope; the hope of winning big. There were also elements of sex appeal when it came to their waitresses. That much was obvious from the tight uniforms and heels the ladies wore. Tori didn’t know if she would be comfortable in such attire, but she knew one thing for sure and that was that she needed a change from her current lifestyle and in her gut, this felt right.

Despite her surprise at being hired, Tori couldn’t grasp why Sarah thought working at the casino was such a big deal. Sarah strongly disagreed with the idea and expressed her protest before Tori’s initial interview. Tori shook her head and specified that the girls at the casino wore tight clothes, but she assured she had no plans to become a showgirl. Sarah continued her argument, stating that it was like a gateway drug and that entering that environment would completely change her. Tori felt Sarah was being unreasonable and went to the interview anyway.

Tori had been a server back home at the diner where her uncle and aunt served breakfast every morning for fifty years. How could this be any different? She thought as she checked her hair and makeup in the mirror once more before heading out the door.

“How do I look?” Tori asked Sarah just as she walked into the room.

“You look fine. I still think this is a terrible idea. Your dad is going to flip,” Sarah warned.

“Dad will be fine. He will not find out,” she said, shooting a look at Sarah in the mirror that showed that she expected Sarah not to tell everything she knows.

“And see, that’s how I know this is a bad idea. If your dad knew you were going to work at the casino, he would be down here and dragging you back home in a flash.”

“And that’s exactly why he better not find out, Sarah. I mean it. Don’t go blabbing to your big mouthed mother about it either.”

“I don’t tell her everything.”

“You sure do. But it’s fine. If my mother was still alive, I’d tell her things too. But I mean it. I need this job if I am going to be able to afford to stay here. I can’t rely on my dad to send me money forever and the movie place just wasn’t paying enough.”

“Okay. I understand Tori. I just still think it’s a bad idea.”

“You worry way too much. It’s just a job.”

“Sure.”

Tori spared a glance at her watch and, realizing what time it was, said, “Damn! I have got to go or I’ll be late. I can’t be late on my first day.”

“You could just come back to the —.”

“Don’t even finish that sentence. I love you Sarah, I do. But I am not working at that sleazy theater anymore.”

“Fine! Good luck today. I hope you get lots of big tips.”

“Me too!” She said as she turned to pick up her purse and coat.

Then, just before running out the door, she turned back to Sarah and threw her arms around her.

“I love you too,” Sarah said.

“I know.” And with those last words, Tori was out the door of their small apartment and in the elevator.