I never imagined doing what I did next.

One of the few lessons that remained with me from my three months stay at “The Erdemli Hilton”, is that our future is determined by our present actions. As much as I wanted to enjoy Mel at every level, I also wanted to help her. I tied my robe around me and took my glass to the tub, sitting on the edge, facing Melanie. She was leaning back into a designed cutout, the tub’s water jets pulsated against the soap bubbles around her, causing them to part in front of her.

“You are more beautiful than I thought, and I was thinking pretty high up there” I stared at her perfectly shaped breasts, watching the paths formed by the water slowly running down her curves.

“Barron, what are you waiting for?” The look on her face was somewhere between amusement and the road to concern.

“I hope you’re not playing hard to get”, she pouted.

“No, it’s pretty hard, right now. I want you to help me skim money from the casino”, I blurted out.

“YOU WHAT?”

“I want you to help me steal money from the Slots Department. I think you will be good at it. I’ve watched how you interact with the customers, especially when you work in the carousel. The managers there think well of you”

“How do you know all this after three months?”

“Why am I even talking to you about this?”

“I can’t risk them taking Suzy away from me. No WAY. You need to leave. NOW!!”.

Melanie jumped from the tub and raced into the bedroom, she paused at the door lone enough to tell me I could use the car service to get home.

I took a long cold shower and passed up the use of the car service. Things had not gone well and now I might have to forget everything. Mel could go to work tomorrow and tell the Slots Manager. I turned around and headed back to the condo. It was 3 o’clock in the morning before she finally let me in. She had changed into silk pajamas, deep burgundy, that were loose, but shaped to her body with her every

move. She had been crying, her eyes still red and puffy. I pulled her into a tight embrace, and gently
caressed her back and shoulders when she began to cry again. I could feel my body’s response to the
feel of her body touching mine and pulled away, lifting her chin to look in her eyes.
“I’m sorry to have upset you Mel, but I had to let you know what the situation was before we became
intimate. Regardless of anything else, I want to be your friend above all else. I picked you to be part of
the team before developing a romantic interest in you. The time we’ve spent together has been great
and it has confirmed that you are the right person for our little group. We have only tried our skimming
ideas once, and they worked as I thought, so we were going to start on a larger scale tonight.”
“I’m sorry for my reaction, but Suzy is all I have left, and I’m not willing to risk losing her. Besides, I don’t
know anything about stealing or skimming, or whatever you call it.”
“Look Mel, like I said. I had already made the decision to ask you to join the team, before we went out.
Everything that happened was real, and that is why I had to come clean before going any further with a
relationship. If you want me to leave and not speak to you outside of work, I will respect your wishes. It
would break my heart to have you think ill of me, but I totally understand if you don’t want any part in
this.”
“I have enjoyed spending time with you too. When I asked you to join me in the tub, I was baring my
heart and soul, as much as my body. I was ready for a possible rejection but this…”, Mel was at a loss for
words’
“Honestly, I came back to apologize and beg you not to turn me in’ I used a more subtle approach with
the rest of the team, but part of my attraction to you has been how I want to be completely transparent
with you, in everything. It’s like I want you to live inside of me, see and hear, and feel the world as I do.
That’s a bit much after two or three days, but it’s an accurate description of my feelings. I see you as a
strong, intelligent, beautiful woman. Two days ago, “love at first sight”, hit me like a ton of bricks, and I
am willing to forget all about skimming the casino, for the chance to be together.”
Before she could answer, I went through the whole process from the moment they first handed me a set
of keys, through our first practice skim, a few weeks ago. She was surprised at some of the names, and
the fact that I could boldly ask someone to join me in stealing from a major casino. I explained that I was
a good judge of character and that everyone had given a clear sign of being open to a conversation, like
the one we were having. The ways the skims operated gave everyone a clear and plausible explanation
for their role in any operation. I was always the fall guy, and I was willing to take that fall, which was the

the reason I took at least fifty percent of everything that came in. As I explained, Mel calmed down and
began asking specific questions. She was in. I knew underneath her prim, librarian-like, exterior was the
Bonnie to my Clyde.
“Okay I’ll do it, Mel exclaimed. “Are we going to do it tonight?”
“Yes, that’s the plan. I have to go in early for my 90-day evaluation and I will have time afterward to
look at the slot reports and confirm the machines we have targeted are still a go.”, I replied.
Melanie’s eyes widened in excitement, and she grabbed me and pulled me in for a kiss. “Are you ready
to make up for earlier?”
This time, I pulled her in close, and delivered a long soulful kiss, as our bodies pushed together in a slow
grind that left us panting for air.
“I’m afraid that will have to wait until after we get off. I want our first time to be special, not rushed. I’m
already behind schedule in contacting the outside people who are scheduled to be collectors tonight.”, I
said.
“You have got to be kidding me”.
“How long do you expect me to wait”?
She was trying to make a joke about it, but she was also serious. She had professed her celibacy since losing
her husband and now that she had opened herself up to me, it was as if I was rejecting her. I promised
to make it up to her but warned her against making the change in our relationship too obvious to the
rest of the slot workers. At least until we got things running smoothly. Casinos frowned upon
relationships between employees working together, especially if one of them was in a supervisory
position. The last thing we needed was to be put on different shifts. She called the service car to come to
pick me up and insisted on snuggling until the driver signaled his arrival. I refused to let her ride with
me. A man can only take so much, and this would be the third day of being aroused and not finishing the
act. Cold showers were becoming a nuisance. I was out the door with a final kiss and headed for a quick
shower and a little sleep before getting things ready for tonight. I dreamt of being with Melanie on a
secluded beach near Hoover Dam. We alternated between skinny dipping and making love until the sun came up. The damn alarm clock rang just as we were about to make love for the third time.