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“No!” Sarah replied, turning to face her. “No way. This is his problem. I don’t know what’s going on with him. This is pretty douchey even for him, but whatever this is, it’s his problem. Not yours. You’re more than welcome here, Daisy. Really.”
“I didn’t think it was such a big deal,” Daisy admitted.
Sarah shook her head again. “Me, neither,” she said. “I can’t understand it. I mean, no offense Daisy, but Jimmy’s been around the block more than a few times.”
Abby snorted. “More like around the country. Very possibly internationally.”
Daisy grimaced. Being one of a few was okay; being one of hundreds was a bit disheartening, even if she didn’t like him that much.
“So, whatever this is,” Sarah told Daisy, “it’s not you.” She grabbed a stack of bowls and handed them to Daisy. “We’re going to have a nice dinner and take the boys’ money afterwards. If Jimmy doesn’t want to join us, well, that’s not exactly anything new to me.”
She nodded as much to herself as the other women in the room and ushered Daisy and Abby into the dining room to set the table. Daisy was surprised when the men wandered in and lent a hand. She deliberately chose a seat as far from Caleb as she could get. Even if this didn’t work out long-term, she could get a hot meal and maybe make some money at the same time. Losing a little bit, as long as she still had a good time, would be fine as well. A few hours later, her stomach was pleasantly stuffed, and her wallet was hot on its heels.
“Read ‘em and weep, gentlemen,” Daisy she as she laid down her small straight.
“God damn it,” Tex growled and threw down his own cards. “Okay. That’s it. New rule. No women at the table. Period.”
“Oh, hey now,” Hawk argued, and gripped Tildy, who was sitting perched on his lap, a little tighter around the waist. “I need my good luck charm.”
Daisy smiled. Apparently Tildy couldn’t play for shit, but she was nice, if not a little sheltered, it seemed. She blushed at everyone’s off-color jokes.
“Well, they can’t play,” Tex ordered. “They’re all too damn good.” He eyed Daisy across the table. “Your sleeves aren’t long enough to stuff cards in them,” he observed. “Where’d you learn to play like that?”
Daisy laughed. “Ricky Snell’s basement. And you had to learn fast,” she told him. “‘Cause Ricky had a rule of his own: Only Strip Poker.”
Tex snorted. “Typical Ricky.”
Daisy laughed again. She had to admit that for guys who’d undoubtedly seen the worst of what humanity had to offer, they’d sure held on to their own. Even Easy, who may have lost a good bit of his sense of humor (assuming he’d ever had one to begin with), cuddled Sarah and Shooter’s baby in a way told her that somewhere in there was a decent guy.
“So I had to stop losing fast,” Daisy told them. “Because there was no way I was sitting around bare assed in a crowded room.”
Abby sipped her martini and nodded. Thankfully, she’d sat out this round, because the girl had skills of her own. “I can relate,” she said. “With Adam looking down at my ass for over an hour. Not comfortable.”
“Who’s Adam?” Tildy asked.
Tex leaned toward her. “Yes,” he said. “I think I need to know who Adam is, too.”
Abby blushed. “The tattoo artist.”
Tex’s jaw flinched. Apparently he hadn’t given too much thought at this point about exactly how that tat ended up on his girlfriend’s ass.
“Whew, yeah,” Daisy agreed. “I don’t know if it’s better or worse for a semi-toothless guy named Old Joe with a ZZ Top beard to be looking or a guy as fine as that.”
“I still want a tattoo,” Tildy announced as she wrinkled her nose. “But I don’t want a guy looking at my ass, toothless or hot.”
Hawk looked at her, perplexed. “Why do you need a tattoo?”
Tildy shrugged and sipped her beer. “I just want one.”
Hawk groaned and rolled his eyes. “You don’t need a tattoo. And especially not one on your ass. And doubly especially if a hot guy is going to be giving it to you.”
“I’m still trying to get over the idea of a hot guy looking at my woman’s ass,” Tex grumbled.
“It’s okay, baby,” Abby said, leaning into him. “I don’t need any more tattoos. Plus, he’s totally into Daisy.”
Daisy rolled her eyes and looked away. “We were just talking shop. It wasn’t a big deal.”
“Wait a minute,” Tex said, shifting in his chair. “Is this the scraggly guy at the bar the other day?”
“He’s not scraggly!” Daisy and Abby protested at the same time.
Daisy held on to her indignation, but Abby backed down. “Not that I care,” she said quietly.
“Damn right, you don’t,” Tex told her.
