Persuasion

Carson chuckles a little. "Ah, a card player, eh? Been a long time since I've been at a table for a good round."

He twirls his beer bottle with his fingers, spreading the wet ring on the bar. "I'd offer to play, but I would assume you'd want a bigger group than two." He takes another sip of his drink, his eye catching movement by the door.

A slender, petite woman with long dark hair slips into the bar and glances around the room, one hand on her shouldered purse, the other running through her hair. She spots Jess and a flashy smile forms as she approaches. "Hey, Jess!" She leans on the counter between Jess and Carson. "I wasn't sure if I'd make it tonight. The bossman had one of his bad days and was intent on keeping me at work all night, but I ended up...persuading Sean to stay for me." She giggles. "Not hard to do that with him." She throws Jess a wink.

As if suddenly realizing there's someone behind her, she turns around and sees Carson. "Oh, well hello, hello. So sorry for interrupting."

Carson gives her a nod and a slight grin. "You interrupted nothing and I was enjoying hearing about your persuasion."

The woman's cheeks flush slightly as she smiles slyly and she studies Carson's eyes for a moment. "Well I'm glad I wasn't interrupting...but even if I was, I think it was worth it to meet you." She extends her hand. "Velvet Michaels."

Carson takes her hand in a firm shake. "Carson Banks. You with Jess here, I'm assuming."

"Oh, we go way back." Velvet laughs and looks to Jess again. "Don't we?" She nods to the empty table. "So you setting up tonight or what?"