After beating me yet again, Tony grinned wide and gave me a hard time as he gathered my money. "Cold streak, Chris?"
I just rolled my eyes. The last four or five weeks had been miserable. I really was on a cold streak. I hadn't won once but, honestly, that was the least of my concerns. I felt uncomfortable every time we got together for our weekly poker night. I didn't know how to act or what to think. Mr. Harris was acting as if nothing had happened and I was trying to do the same. Normally I would be stealing glances at Mr. Harris, but for the last several weeks I had been avoiding all eye contact.
Tony kept cleaning house in the game, taking Dave's money next and eventually winning his dad's as well. As the night concluded, Tony walked me and Dave to the door and we said our farewells.
"See you in a couple weeks!" Tony reminded us. Next week's game was off because Tony was out of town for a big company conference in California.
"Enjoy your conference!" I was happy for him as he was definitely excited about his first real business trip. "Later, Dave!" I nodded my head as we walked our separate ways to our cars and headed home.
A couple of days later, I saw an envelope on my doorstep. Intrigued, I picked it up and opened it as I stepped inside. It was an elegant card with an invitation to a "black tie" casino night. Near the bottom was an instruction to wear my finest attire, followed by an address. The Harris home. My heart took off like a gunshot as my mind raced. Tony was out of town, obviously, and I realized that meant his mother must be out of town as well! They worked for the same company so she must be going to the conference, too.
I instantly thought of what I could wear, suddenly feeling lots of pressure. The casino night was a couple days away and I was restless - my mind racing with ideas. I had a nice suit for interviews that my parents gave me at college graduation. I also had a really nice dress shirt that I had bought for a friend's wedding. I didn't want to spend a bunch of money, but I had a decent outfit coming together.
Finally the day came. I had tried to focus on other things otherwise time would crawl, but as I drove home from work I let my mind go. I imagined how the night would unfold, who was invited to attend, and Mr. Harris dressed up in his best attire. I grabbed a quick dinner and got dressed. I looked pretty sharp, but I was still worried I would be underdressed. My dark suit was still pretty new and fit my young, athletic frame. I had on my fancy dress shirt, a black belt and nice loafers that I had bought for the interview circuit. In anticipation of the night, I did buy a nice black silk tie and a white pocket square. I used some extra hair product to make sure my hair was well styled and tried to subtly apply some cologne.
I pulled up to the Harris home and tried to slow my heart rate, taking deep breaths. As I walked from the car to the door, I re-tucked my shirt and straightened my tie and finally knocked on the door.
After a moment, the door swung open to reveal Mr. Harris in a full tuxedo. I froze. I was stunned at how attractive he looked and I instantly started to get hard. His full frame was complimented by the tailored, black tuxedo with shining lapels. The adorable old man was wearing a smart, black bowtie, too. His white dress shirt was pleated in the front with classy black and gold buttons running from his neck to his pants. His look was finished with a gold pocket square to match his cufflinks and buttons. He looked so sharp in his tux and his hair, like my own, was more carefully styled to match. His eyes shone and his smile topped it all off as he welcomed me inside.
"You look nice," he said as we stepped inside. I smiled and returned the compliment, but not to the extent that I truly felt. A bolder me would tell him that he looked more incredible than anyone I had ever seen.
I couldn't tell what it was, but the home felt different. The lighting set a mood, but it was more than that. I took a seat at the poker table and he offered me a drink. Normally, we had beers but tonight was champagne in a nice glass. I was the only one there, but maybe I was just the first to arrive.
I sipped on my beverage and stared at Mr. Harris who took his own seat at the table, champagne in hand.
"Shall we get started?" He started shuffling the deck, so clearly it was just the two of us after all. He dealt the cards and held up his left arm as he undid a cufflink and placed it on the table. I shrunk as I realized that I was not only underdressed, but at a clear disadvantage with less accessories to wager.
I took off my belt and set it on the table and looked at my cards, revealing a king and a six. We both checked and he flipped the first three cards - queen, king, four. An ideal flop for me, I decided to wager my tie. He added his other cufflink and flipped over another king. I was surely going to take this hand, so I didn't hesitate to slide off my shoe and add it to the table. He seemed to be reluctant but eventually folded and threw his cards to the middle. I gathered the pot of winnings and the cards.
It was my turn to shuffle and I debated whether or not I wanted to use my secret skill in rigging the deck. I decided to let it play out without cheating. I had a feeling the night was going to turn out how I'd want regardless of the outcome of the game and I wouldn't have to risk him finding out my secret.
We played for a while and enjoyed some casual conversation and champagne, but the ice was yet to be broken. We were both definitely holding back.
Both of us had won a few hands and stayed pretty even, but I was starting to make some progress. I now had his cufflinks, bowtie, golden pocket square, and shoes. And my next hand was a good one. I was dealt an ace and a king. I placed one of his cufflinks for the ante and he bent over to add his sock. Before the flop, I raised the ante, adding another cufflink and his bowtie. He matched my bet, removing his other sock and then adjusting in his seat to take off his jacket. I was amazed as he revealed his suspenders underneath which I was unaware until now was a major turn on. His elegant pleated dress shirt was also now more visible and prominently displayed his round belly and pecs. His clothes fit so well and made it easy for me to admire his body once more. He flipped over the three cards, which included another ace and made my hand even stronger. So I added both of his shoes. He was going to have to offer two items to match and he was running out of things to bet. He took off his suspenders and his pants and placed them on the table. He now sat in his beautiful dress shirt and his briefs. I stared at his pouch in his briefs, eager to meet again what lied beneath. He flipped another card and I evaluated what threats there were to my hand. There were two hearts on the table, so there was a small flush threat, but it was unlikely. He would need a two pair or a three of a kind to beat my hand. I thought about it and decided the odds were in my favor. So I added two more items to take him all in. After a while, he decided to call and began unbuttoning his shirt. I was not hiding my stares like our previous match. All night long, I was admiring his body and face and we were now reaching the good part. I shook my head in disbelief as his unbuttoning revealed an undershirt. Just one more advantage for him.
He laughed as he could tell what was on my mind. "I came dressed to play."
I chuckled back and apparently became more emboldened by my lead. "So, what are we playing for?" I broke the ice.
