Ride the Lucky by Kendric Neal

Author:Kendric Neal [Neal, Kendric]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-09-19T18:30:00+00:00

The two men took the measure of each other over the next hour and a half. Their game was careful and deliberate, and neither forced a showdown. Neely was expecting one, but the Belgian seemed hesitant to take him on. Instead they played conservatively, letting the other players' fortunes rise and fall as the game moved with the vicissitudes of the winds and no clear hand at the helm. The Spanish woman quit, disgusted, and went clanking off alone with her jewelry. A very young Indian gentleman won several large pots, largely through attrition, before flitting off to another table to lose most of it loudly at Baccarat. A 400-lb Hawaiian man with a stunning and much younger girlfriend joined the game and his buoyant mood was a refreshing addition to the now serious atmosphere. He drank half a dozen Mai-Tais and bet freely, losing steadily, but then winning a $100K pot with a pair of threes, which made the whole table laugh, including himself. He wasn't a great player but he was fun to be around and seemed to be a man so comfortable in his own skin he put everyone else at ease.

Although Neely was glad he joined in, it changed the flow of play dramatically. Neely had been thinking of stepping away and spending the rest of the night with Cara; the stalemate with the Belgian grown tedious and, although both men watched their stacks grow steadily, it was becoming routine and not quite worth the effort. Now things were different, especially after a middle-aged Kuwaiti woman joined the table and began engaging the Hawaiian man in head-to-head combat whenever either of them had two pair or better. The pots grew too large too quickly and Neely and the Belgian found themselves folding regularly. The Kuwaiti woman had a man with her, young and extremely handsome, also Middle-Eastern, and he often leaned in and whispered advice to her. She seemed to take his opinion seriously and bet accordingly, but it soon became clear he bet her money far too freely. Neely suspected she was married to money, too long neglected and caught up in the thrall of this handsome younger man who imperiled her judgment. It created an opportunity for the table though, as she seemed to have unlimited reserves and she grew more distracted as their little tête-à-tête turned into a distastefully public mating dance. She won two large pots in a row, delighting the both of them, and her betting grew even bolder. Neely took the next pot, outbluffing her, and it was the Belgian's turn next as he won a $145,000 pot on the strength of a Jack high.

The Hawaiian was feeling left out, his pretty young girlfriend growing bored, and Neely sensed an opportunity on the next round when he was dealt a King and Jack of Spades down, a 10 of Spades up. He stayed on the strength of the King and Jack, but was pleasantly surprised when his next two up were a 7 of Hearts and Ace of Spades.

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