As I sank the eight ball and won the third frame in a row, I felt a hot flush of pleasure course over me and not just because I'd simply won the match. Sitting at the bar was a rather pretty local lady - she'd been the object of the 'winner take all' bet - and I'd just won!
It had started earlier in the evening. I don't shoot pool all that often - after all I'm a Brit; our game, on a table that is, is snooker. Bigger table, ball, cues and more balls, but I'd played it a lot when I was younger. I'd even won a local tournament once, but that had been thirty years before and in a different country. This time I was in Indonesia, where I'd been engaged in finishing up a contract before flying home the following day. The night club was in the basement of my hotel.
I'd found it early on in my stay, it was a pleasant enough place to while away an evening without it costing either a fortune or someone either taking exception to you or fleecing you at whatever they were selling. As a sop to the Brits who worked in the country and stayed in the Hotel it had a darts board, for the others a pool table. Jack, the Club manager and I had played a few times over the weeks I'd been coming. I suspect he'd been or even was a hustler, but, he was kind enough to let me win a few games, while I got used to playing again after not being on any sort of table for a number of years.
The guy I'd just beaten was taking his loss through gritted teeth and a rather fixed smile. Given what I'd won, that wasn't too surprising. Jack had set it up. I hadn't been in for a few nights because I had been too busy writing up some details of my work on my laptop, so to make up for a bit of time Jack and I had been playing earlier. We had stopped for a beer break and to let someone else have a go.
You've seen the type. He was, I regret to say a 'Yank'. There were a few out here and most all the others were damn nice guys I know I worked and played with them. This jerk seemed to want to make up for all their good traits by having as many bad ones of his own you could ever wish for. There is, as they say, always one. He was the one - let's just say he was a loudmouth and leave it at that. Jack and I had watched from the bar with dismay as he proceeded to alienate just about every one in the club, which as Jack muttered, 'was a clever trick... but not good for business.'
Then to me, "Fancy taking him down a peg?"
"At what Jack?"
"Pool of course - you're quite a lot better than he is, if you're careful - but he doesn't know that and we can let him boast his way into it."
Jack was grinning as he spoke.
Jack knew what my game was like, the idea appealed , so what the hell! Even though I'd never met the guy before, I'd seen the way he'd upset some of the others, amongst them folks who'd become my friends. Yeah! - as they say these days 'Cool!'
Jack had gone over and was obviously proposing the match. Loudmouth glanced in my direction and, sneered "What the Limey?' Then added , "Well, I suppose I've got time to, but we'd better make it a bit more interesting..." then looking at one of the local girls, "We'll play for her."
Jack raised an eyebrow, but ever the urbane Manager, he shrugged his shoulders and said, "If you wish."
He went over to the girl, and a look of distaste appeared on her face. If Loudmouth noticed he didn't show it as Jack came back the short distance to me.
"May's father owns a fair chunk of this Hotel, but she's agreed at my wish. Just for her sake and the sake of my job - don't lose." The latter as he turned to rack the balls.
Jack palmed the chalk - Bill, loudmouth's name, chose and found chalk.
"Best of five?" He broke messily but still got lucky and potted off it. The table didn't really favour my style and he won the first frame. Having now sunk a couple of Bud's his second break wasn't so lucky, having been let in, I cleared and sank the eight without his coming back to the table. Bill glowered. May purred and put her hand on mine as I sat down while Jack racked them back up. Bill went off, still glowering and had a leak.
When he came back, Bill took another mouthful of Bud while I broke. Now my practising with Jack was paying off as I dropped a stripe off the break, then cleared all but the eight. Bill dropped three then left me an awkward cut, which again I got lucky with. Perhaps it was the fact I only drink tonic, ice and lemon - no gin! Perhaps not. Bill now looked worried for the first time. Now time for a little gamesmanship.
"Tell you what Bill, I got a bit lucky last time - you break."
He couldn't refuse the offer, even though it didn't really look good to the now fascinated bar.
From just behind my left ear Jack sniggered, "Christ you bastard! Hope he doesn't get lucky!"
I muttered back "So do I."
Bill didn't--poor break and he never got back to the table as I took the third game in a row and won the rubber. At least he turned out to be a relatively good loser, but that was probably because there were more of my friends than his in the place. May came over and kissed me full on the mouth. Bill started to say something, thought better of it and turned and walked away.
"May," I said , "the bet was not my idea - you really don't have to follow it through."
"Oh but Sven, I do. If it got round that I had welched on a bet..."
Jack, standing slightly behind her and out of her eye-line just nodded gently to me.
