It's easy to imagine a scene where an attractive woman does something completely ridiculous in the face of all logic. However, it's apparently much harder to convince people of the truth, especially when that truth seems stranger than fiction. What I hope is to paint the picture of what happened to me and let you, the reader, decide what to think. If I'm successful, you might find yourself placed in the scene, experiencing what I experienced and feeling what I felt. Good luck...to me.
The night started off as it always did. The group of us meeting for cards, alcohol the ever-present lubricant to our social gatherings, available in good supply as many were too dispassionate, shy or pretentious to be trusted without it. I would tell you that our gathering was the run of the mill set of friends: pleasantly forgettable in out physical attributes, notwithstanding the mix-matched gifts of our genetics. A nice smile here, beautifully sculpted calves there and the odd assortment of broad shoulders and kind eyes. Yes, those are mine if you were wondering.
What may have been different was the additional company that night. One of our patrons, Melissa, had taken it upon herself to invite a colleague from work, Jenifer. As we were down one player, Paul (sick with the crud), this was met with acceptance as well as a bit of interest. New blood would either swell our ranks or, if things went sour, our anecdotes during later retellings of the travails of card-playing. Either way, it would turn out well.
Jenifer was fashionably late, 15 minutes past our typical bewitching hour. Whatever comments might have been had by our resident curmudgeon, Derek, were quickly washed away as she entered, a brief knock at the door our only warning.
"Hello." She said simply, no apologies for her tardiness. She swept into the room with such a vibrancy we all stumbled through the customary greetings.
"Everyone, this is Jenifer, she works across the way from me in IT." Said Melissa, with a gentle wave of her wine-laden hand. "Please, help yourself to the bar."
Jenifer offered us a quirky smile and wave of her own before spinning in place and landing at the bar. As she was now directly across from me I had more time to take in the rarefied creature. I must also warn you of my sad state: I am a perpetual bachelor, some of it self-infliction the rest self-preservation. I know you are heartbroken for me at this point but relieve yourself of your burden. I promise you, I manage somehow.
As the woman fashioned her first drink, I saw a deftness that bespoke of familiarity with the tools of the bartending trade. This was either due to her nature as an alcoholic, or -perhaps more aptly- the fact that she had once upon a time been a bartender. With a flourish she took the shaker and flipped it once, then gave it the old what-for above her shoulder. I looked around and was amazed to see I was the only one who had taken notice. The rest of my card fellows were already wrapped up in the mundane conversations of the over-30s: house, kids, and medical diagnoses.
Pouring her drink into a delicately turned glass, she perfected her masterpiece, a very dirty martini, with the addition of a pick burdened by no less than three olives.
This was a woman indeed.
She met my gaze as she took her first sip, sauntering over with the look of a panther. Although I knew the ecstasy in her eyes had far less to do with my visage than with the heavenly concoction she had just imbibed, I love to fool myself as much as possible. Coming around the side of the table she eyed the only vacant seat, the one to my right.
She ignored me completely as she sat, either too into herself or her drink to seemingly care about the plebian taking up air next to her. We were in a strange dance though as she scooted her chair in, our legs somehow knocking knees.
"Sorry." I think I managed, although it may have been more of a short, meandering, 'scuseme, pardonme' that actually came out.
I was surprised to see her smile and the mood lightened like a ton of bricks dropped on someone else's toes. Her eyes were lovely up close, as was her dress, a much less than conservative mini skirt made of some slick, black material. I could call it a cocktail dress about as much as I could call a parrot Liberace. My eyes followed her legs up until I thought they might get tired of travelling or she hit me. I took them off course, back to my friends around the table.
"Alright everyone, Gin Rummy tonight house rules, as agreed upon the last week. And don't even try to argue about the voting, Roger. House rules on that as well." Melissa said in a wave, cutting the man off, still open-mouthed in the attempted coup. The cards began to march their way into formation at the hands of their generals, our hosts, Melissa and Derek.
"Jenifer." My sidemate said, her voice calm with a hint of humor.
"Marigold." I told her back, not making eye contact.
There was a slight pause and then, "Really? Are you joking?"
Then I turned and looked at her winking as I said, "No, as I just told you I'm Marigold, but please call me Dan. It's the only acceptable part of the name my parents so finey crafted for me."
She had a look as if she wasn't quite sure what to make of me, then burst into a delightful peal of laughter. The others, five in all, looked at us with a quick glance, then went back to their conversations. Jenifer hummed her laugh into her glass as she took a small sip of her drink.
"I'm impressed by both your choice and your ability." I said, a quick nod to her glass before reaching out to collect the cards now being swiftly doled out by Derek.
Jenifer did the same, tilting her head slightly. "Bartending paid the bills when I was in school. Good money, fun people, and so many drinks to try." She said, putting the emphasis on the 'so'.
"I bet. I love trying new things myself. Got me into the challenging job I'm in now."
"Oh? What's that?" she asked, hiding her cards from my view in an expert fashion, yet turning her upper body to me just slightly.
"Life coaching." I said.
"Like a therapist?" she asked.
"More like a step ladder, helping folks reach what they're looking for in life."
"You enjoy being stepped on then." she stated, her crooked grin appearing again.
"Only as much as you like fixing ID 10 T problems." I quipped.
"Oh, very slick. I see what you did there."
Her legs had been crossed and she slowly uncrossed them before exchanging the one for the other. In the act, her skirt hiked up just enough to be distracting. She caught my gaze and smiled as she took another sip of her martini.
"Alright, focus up, all. Dan, you start as you are to Dealer's right." Said Derek who sat to my right as part of the funny table we sat at. Two people were seated next to one another on two sides, while the perpendiculars sat three.
I remembered then the cards in my hand, quickly making an inventory and reached for the draw pile.
"No problem.". I said, "As long as there are no hard feelings when I go out in the first round."
A collective groan went up and I smiled. Gin Rummy was one of my few talents in life and the whole gang knew it.
Unfortunately for me, my threat came up empty and I simply discarded, turning play over to Jenifer. With a practiced hand, she drew a card and laid out a full 8 card run, Deuce to 8 of Hearts, then spoke up, "Do you all play with floating?
This looked like a challenge alright.
Helen, our perennial scorekeeper let out a whistle and scratched down Jenifer's name and something else only she could decipher. "Way to start the night, Jenifer. House rules on floating." She peaked over her reading glasses, a feature that dated her youthful face, at Melissa.
"Although we can no longer be friends, yes, we play floating." Melissa said, mock disdain in her voice.
"Especially if any of us want to keep our scores low this hand." Muttered Derek, shuffling through his cards like he hoped their faces would wipe off.
Jenifer made a quiet chuckle then peered over at the cards in my hand. At least that's what anyone else would have thought, had they looked. I however followed her gaze a bit more directly and it landed squarely on my lap. As if it had a physical weight, I felt myself respond to it, jolting to attention. As I was wearing a pair of relaxed, light exercise pants, my state was quickly affirmed. I attempted to sit back further in my seat and lean forward to disguise the change, but to no end. My birth blessing was just big enough to be a burden at times.
Play continued around the table and small words came with it. No big plays came about though which allowed Jenifer and I to have find our own private game more entertaining. As no one else had any direct line of sight to what sat below the tabletop, we could pester one another with some impunity. My gaze slipped down again after stopping briefly at her eyes and I noticed her skirt had once again crept up. This time however I was pleased to find more was being showcased than before. Red lace curved delicately over something I had a sneaking suspicion I could identify. I had seen a few in my day, after all.
