‘If you know where to find him. And just how long do you want to wander around dressed-or rather undressed-like that?’
‘Are you daring to take advantage of my condition?’
‘That’s exactly what I’m doing.’
‘That’s blackmail.’
‘It’s what I’m good at. Now, shut up or I’ll toss you back into the water.’
I opened my mouth to tell him what he could do, but then shut it again. Not because I was afraid of his threats, or of him. I wasn’t.
But I’d seen a gleam in his eyes that undermined his words. He was laughing, challenging me not to laugh with him, and despite everything I found myself doing so.
That was the moment when it all began.
CHAPTER TWO
Jack’s Story
MOONLIGHT and roses. Trees waving gently in the Mediterranean breeze. Romantic music playing in the distance.
It was twenty-three-hundred hours and I was standing outside Monte Carlo Casino, ten grand richer than when I’d gone in.
Yes, that was the state I’d reached. Moonlight. Twenty-three-hundred hours. Ten grand.
But what else did you expect? I’m Jack Bullen. King Midas. Whatever I touch turns to ten grand. Or, if we’re talking real money, ten million.
But tonight was only gambling, so I made do with pocket money.
I blame my grandfather, Nick, and his cufflinks. When he gave them to me he said they were lucky and they would help me win. And, dammit, he was right.
I don’t win every single time. It’s not quite as bad as that. But I win often enough to come out richer. And it’s all his fault.
I blame him for a lot more than that. Starting with my father. Nick was a happy-go-lucky fellow, who loved his family, earned enough from his little grocery business to get by, and enjoyed a laugh. So, according to Sod’s Law, he was bound to have a son who thought he was feckless and worked night and day to ‘better himself’.