Love By Chance (Gambling On Love Book 2)

By Cara Marsi

An accident-prone woman
A hotshot radio star
What happens in Vegas...

In Sin City, a couple, unlucky in love, gamble on each other. Win or lose?

Holidays have never brought Las Vegas hotel concierge Laney Sikora anything but bad luck in the romance department. The worst was her fiancé dumping her on Valentine’s Day. Via text. She’s determined to spend New Year's Eve alone with no romantic entanglements. But when her hunky new neighbor locks himself out of his apartment, she can’t leave him standing in the hallway. What's a girl to do?

Las Vegas is just a pit stop for Chicago native and radio personality Chance Carlisle while he waits for his agent to land him something bigger in L.A. But in the meantime, he keeps bumping into—literally—his adorable, but accident-prone, neighbor. Their private New Year’s Eve celebration leads to a plan: they’ll become the Bad Luck Partners, dating only on holidays and special events, avoiding holiday heartbreaks and matchmaking mamas.

But Fate might have something else in mind for the klutzy cutie and the hotshot talk show host. Can their temporary partnership become a forever deal?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Cara Marsi
• Release date: Jul 9, 2019
• ISBN: 9780463219928

Cara Marsi

An award-winning and eclectic author, Cara Marsi is published in romantic suspense, paranormal romance, and contemporary romance. She loves a good love story, and believes that everyone deserves a second chance at love. Sexy, sweet, thrilling, or magical, Cara’s stories are first and foremost about the love. Treat yourself today, with a taste of romance. When not traveling or dreaming of traveling, Cara and her husband live on the East Coast in a house ruled by two spoiled cats who compete for attention. Read excerpts of all Cara's books and sign up for her newsletter at www.caramarsi.com

Book preview

CHAPTER ONE

You can’t sit home on New Year’s Eve, Laney. You’ve got to come to the party.

Laney Sikora’s best friend and co-worker, Amanda, pushed aside her empty coffee cup and rested her elbows on the table to lean closer, her eyes meeting Laney’s.

Laney waved a hand. Stop with the puppy dog eyes. It doesn’t work on me. If I go to the party dateless, I’ll be a drag on you and Ben. Go. Have fun. Don’t worry about me. You know my luck on holidays. I won’t tempt fate.

It’s just coincidence that all those things happened to you on holidays.

"Coincidence? Au Contraire. Let me get us more lattes, then I’ll refresh your memory about my so-called coincidences." Scraping her chair back, Laney stood. And plowed into something hard. With a yelp, she jumped away.

Whoa! a male voice, very close, said. Are you hurt? he asked in a softer tone.

Raising her gaze, she connected with sapphire blue eyes. "I’m okay. I’m the one who bumped into you. Sorry. Are you hurt?"

He smiled, and Laney thought she might swoon. Not only did he have delectable, kissable lips, he had dimples. Dimples!

His muscled chest covered by a dark green T-shirt didn’t hurt either. She slid her gaze to his tight-fitting jeans that molded to his muscular legs. Swoon-worthy for sure.

I’m a big guy, he said. It takes a lot more than a bump by a pretty woman to hurt me.

You sure are a big guy. And hot!

I am sorry, though. Hoping he couldn’t read minds, she smiled and scooted around him to head toward the counter to order the lattes. Taking her place in the long line, she glanced around the crowded coffee bar. Mr. Hunk had taken a seat at a table overlooking the Vegas Strip. Forcing her mind from the erotic lane it had been about to go down, she took in the other patrons. As usual, tourists mingled with the natives. After five years living in Las Vegas, Laney could pick out the tourists. They were the ones wearing shorts, T-shirts, and sandals at the end of December. She shivered. Today the high temperature registered fifty degrees. If Laney were back in her hometown of Philadelphia, she’d consider fifty comfortable. After years in the desert heat, she couldn’t tolerate any temperatures under sixty.

Balancing the lattes in her hands, she went back to where Amanda waited. As employees of the nearby Augustus, a luxury hotel and casino, Laney and Amanda liked to come to this coffee shop on their breaks. The smirk on Amanda’s face told Laney her friend found the accident with the blue-eyed hunk amusing.

Handing Amanda her latte, Laney sat. Wipe that smirk off your face.

Amanda burst out laughing. Her laughing fit over, she grinned at Laney. That guy’s smokin’. We don’t usually see the likes of him in these parts. With a gleam in her eyes, she said, You realize you’re a klutz around guys? Hot guys make you nervous.

Laney sipped her drink before answering. Seriously? How could I be a klutz around hot guys when I hadn’t even seen that one before I hit him?

Your hot-guy radar was up so you knew one was nearby.

When Laney started to protest, Amanda held up a hand, stopping her. Enough about Mr. Hottie whom neither of us will ever see again. Please go to the New Year’s Eve party with me and Ben. I know there will be eligible guys there.

Now I get it. Wrapping her hands around her ceramic coffee cup, Laney gave Amanda a cutting look. You’re trying to fix me up with someone. No way. Especially not on a holiday. Hello? The Halloween party in October.

Darren was the worst kind of jerk to make out with that bimbo in the closet during the party. You’re better off without him. Consider yourself lucky you hadn’t dated him long. You found out his true colors before you invested more time in the relationship.

Laney sipped her coffee, as if the warm liquid could dissolve the knot in her chest. Setting down her cup, she said, Maybe I didn’t have a lot of time with Darren, but Chris was another matter. Valentine’s Day the year before last. Ring a bell?

Amanda reached across the table and put her hand over Laney’s. Honey, I’m sorry. Chris always seemed so nice. What kind of jerk calls off your engagement by text?

My fiancé, that’s what kind of jerk. He didn’t have enough respect for me or the guts to break up to my face. Then he eloped with that lawyer from his firm. On Memorial Day. Darren was a rebound relationship. I learned. No more relationships for me, not for a long time. And I’m definitely not starting anything with any man on a holiday.

CHAPTER TWO

Chance Carlisle sat at a table by the window and sipped his coffee, his attention on the sexy number who’d bumped into him. Good thing he’d had a top on his Styrofoam cup or they could have both been burned.

He’d been in Vegas one month now, and he’d seen a few beautiful women among the hordes of natives and tourists along the Strip, but none like the beauty who’d collided with him.

Maybe she wasn’t supermodel beautiful, but her navy blue business suit couldn’t hide her slim body with its lush curves. Her mahogany mass of softly curling hair trailing down her back and those black-lashed amber eyes had his libido revved up. She could run into him any time.

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Driving home from the bakery the following morning, Chance hummed along to a Beatles tune on his car radio. The sweet, delectable, smoky scents of glazed donuts and coffee made his stomach rumble. He normally made breakfast for himself, but had run out of coffee and eggs, which had sent him to the coffee bar yesterday for some much-needed caffeine on his way to work. With very little free time, he hadn’t had a chance to go food shopping lately. Although his radio show started at two in the afternoon, he got to the station by eleven every morning to prepare. Tonight after work, he’d join some co-workers for dinner and gambling at one of the casinos. He didn’t enjoy gambling, but this was Vegas.

Waving to the guard at the gate of his condo complex in Henderson, Chance went through the opened gate to the parking lot. And nearly collided with a car backing out of a spot. He slammed on the brakes and hit his horn. The other car, a silver Honda Accord, stopped. Shaking his head, he passed the car, and did a double take. The driver, the same beautiful brunette from the coffee shop yesterday, put her hands up in apology.

Hot or not, the woman was an accident waiting to happen.

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Laney carefully pulled out of her parking spot. Crap. The guy in the black SUV she almost hit couldn’t possibly be the gorgeous guy from the coffee bar yesterday. What were the chances? Must be someone who looked like him. Yet, there couldn’t be two seriously smokin’ guys around. This wasn’t Hollywood.

She drove to the Strip and the