Gambling It All

Chapter Eleven

"I've never been to Portugal," Dixie said, closing her eyes and leaning back into the pillows of Cade's couch in his dimly lit motor coach. "I like it."

"You like seeing it with Mr. Superstar Rider Man," Cade shot back, and Dixie stuck out her tongue at him, eyes still closed. "I'd like Portugal better too if someone took me for a yacht ride then out to dinner at a restaurant they closed for everyone but me."

Dixie grinned, remembering the day before and her daylong date with Javier. He'd insisted on picking her up from her hotel near the Estoril track and sweeping her to the coast where they spent much of the day on a borrowed yacht on the Atlantic, lazily talking, eating, drinking, snoozing and puttering along on the water.

When they were both sun-drunk and satiated, Javier had insisted on taking her to dinner to his favorite restaurant – a small family owned establishment that did indeed toss out all the other customers so Javier could have total privacy.

Dixie had discovered that while Javier couldn't really travel incognito anywhere in Europe – they had already raced in France and England and the fans there definitely knew him – the closer he came to his home turf of Spain, the more rabid and intrusive his fans became.

She continued to marvel at his ability to smile at each one, to make each fan feel special as he signed countless autographs and posed for zillions of pictures with them.

She knew Nicky must deal with the same sort of scrutiny while on the circuit, and now that she was on tour, she wondered how he truly dealt with the intrusion into his privacy since she really hadn't witnessed it yet.

She vowed to pay more attention in the future.

In the meantime, she was more than happy to be the girl on Javier's arm, though she still hadn't figured out what on earth he saw in her.

And how he would react when she finally bore her body to him and saw that she wasn't all he thought she was.

"It doesn't suck, I'll give you that," Dixie said in response to Cade's observation. "And he's just so generous – with his time and with his..."

"His billions of dollars?" Cade finished for her.

Dixie sighed softly. "I know he's rich, but he doesn't act like it, he doesn't make a presentation out of it. I had some clients in California who would go out of their way to make sure you knew their net worth, knew they could buy and sell you. He isn't like that. He's like..."

"Like Nicky," Cade said easily.

"Yeah. Except that Nicky is the silent, I-might-hate-you-or-I-might-not type, whereas Javier tells me exactly how he is feeling."

"Just... be careful with Javier," Cade cautioned. "You know he has a reputation around the circuit."

"It's just a bit of fun, Cade," Dixie shot back. "It's not like I'm in love with the man."

As Nicky burst into Cade's coach, through the side door, he only heard 'in love with the man' from Dixie's lips, and his stomach turned a slow, painful somersault.

He knew Javier and Dixie were still seeing each other, but he sure as shit didn't like it any more than he had weeks ago on their first date. Since then, Javier had showered Dixie with attention, time and countless sparkly baubles and zillions thoughtful gifts.

God, Javier de Costa could go suck it, Nicky thought darkly, closing the door behind him, a little more forcefully than necessary.

"You will be, if he keeps sweeping you off your feet like this," Cade said with a teasing grin. "And if you turn him down, send him my way. I'm not gay, but I could pretend for a while if it meant getting pampered like a princess the way you are."

Dixie stuck her tongue out at him again, and then smiled at Nicky. "Hey, rider. How's it going? Haven't seen you much lately."

"I've been around," Nicky said softly.

Dixie could hear the gentle accusation implicit in his statement – I've been around, but you haven't.

"Doing okay?" Dixie asked, genuinely concerned and curious.

"Ducky," Nicky shot back shortly. "Cade, did you find the specs on the tires?"

"Yeah, I've got it right here..."

Dixie got up and quietly let herself out of the coach as the two men sat down and began reviewing paperwork and tire pressure points, oblivious to the fact she was even there.

She certainly hadn't been neglecting her duties with Nicky, indeed she was working him harder than before, but in their off times, she was spending most of it with Javier.

It was her life, and her choice, to see who she wanted to, but every time Nicky looked at her, it was as though he were condemning her choice.

Well, no one told Dixie Colson what to do, she thought, squaring her shoulders and heading for Javier's coach.

**

"I just think she can do so much better," Nicky grumbled, and Cade took a long drink from his longneck before answering.

"Why do you care so much? To you, she's just a trainer, right? I mean, she's my friend, but..."

Nicky shot him a long look. "Man, we've known each other long enough. You know me."

Cade nodded, knowing that was the only confirmation he was going to get from Nicky Gamble that he had a little crush on Dixie.

"She seems happy," Cade tried again and Nicky rolled his eyes.

"Yeah but I've seen this before from him again and again... he sweeps them off their feet, makes them feel special, and they are.... for a while. Then he gets bored and horny or whatever, and cheats or dumps them to go after the next girl. I don't want to see Dixie fall into that."

"She's a big girl."

"But she's being snowed by him and all his glitz and glamor," Nicky argued. "You have to warn her about him, about his tactics with women."

"It's not my place... I've said as much as I'm going to about his reputation to her. I don't know his M.O. the way you do. You warn her."

"Not a chance in hell. I'm not wading into that territory," Nicky shot back darkly. "If she wants to be an idiot, it's her choice, I guess."

"Well, then. Sounds to me like you need to put up or shut up with Ms. Colson, then," Cade said, and Nicky glared at him before taking another sip of his beer contemplatively.

Nicky admitted that when he saw Javier and Dixie together, it made him seethe – with anger, with resentment, and yes, with jealousy.

He just knew Javier was going to get bored with Dixie and want something shiny and new, and he didn't want to have to be the one to pick up the pieces.

He'd been there before, and he sure as hellwasn't going back, not even for Dixie Colson.