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Vegas Ch. 1

By: Ukin



The flight, steady and calm. The sun was beating down as I left San Francisco, I was smiling, nervous but happy. The nerves, not from the flight, not at all, but from the thought that at last, the day had arrived. The day I was going to meet the blonde I had exchanged words with over the screen these past few months. The blonde that had brightened my life, the blonde I loved chatting to, laughing at, laughing with, smiling at, smiling with, the blonde I had made love to, made love with, the blonde I had fucked, licked, the blonde that fucked me, sucked me. Yes, the day had finally arrived.

I sat in my seat, my thoughts during the short flight, causing a familiar stirring in my Levi's, wondering if you were as nervous as I? Wondering if you were having a similar feeling? Wondering if your nipples ached, if your pussy ached, just like my cock ached? I wonder. I wonder indeed.

Eyes closed, the thoughts, the images, the smiles all coming back. Thoughts of the first sighting, thoughts of the first kiss, thoughts of the first touch, the first smile, the first time for everything. The thoughts, bright, light, happy tinged with a little trepidation but also with the knowledge that we will be fine, we will be happy we will have fun.

The seat belt sign flashed, that didn't concern me, mine had remained on, but I sighed and smiled. I was arriving, I was nearly here and so would you be in less than an hour. That hour would give me time to relax, have a beer or two, settle the nerves. 

The landing smooth and soft, as smooth as I envisaged your skin, as soft as your hair, hair that I would, over the weekend, during the relaxation time, during the rehabilitation time, be stroking as you lay there, on my lap, watching the television. As soft as the skin I would be stroking, fingers idly tracing over your soft body, idly running over your nipples, your breasts, your hips, relaxing. Yes, that soft and smooth.

The luggage glided around, I spotted my small weekend case, smiling at the cute blonde as my arm, unintentionally, brushed the swelling of her breast. Thoughts turning directly to your breasts, the 34C breasts that soon, so soon would be mine to see, touch, kiss, fondle and later, fuck. Breasts that would be adorned by hard nipples, nipples that I would stroke, kiss, twist, suck, tug, roll, nipples that would be, at sometime over the weekend, be covered with my cum, splattering your breasts, nipples, lips, face, hair.

I smiled as I made my way to the nearest flight information screen, looking, heart racing, for details of your flight. I smiled, no delays reported.

Taking the bottle of Budweiser, I drank, thirstily. Maybe it was the nerves too? Maybe because I knew that within 45 minutes, your sliver bird would be landing, big black tires screeching along the asphalt runway, coming to a halt, bringing my blonde to me, bringing to me a sweet, beautiful, sexy, slim blonde, the blonde who will be sharing the bed with me, the blonde that will be held close to me during the night, the blonde that would be awoken with my cock gently easing into her pussy as I wake. The blonde whose pussy I will be filling with the explosion needed, craved, wanted. An explosion that she would feel, the pent up explosion, powerful.

The second bottle, drunk at a more leisurely pace, savoring the cold liquid, the cooling liquid, settling the stomach churning, the nerves. I look around, looking at the milling of the people, the weary people, the happy people, but surely, surely no-one is happier than I at this moment in time. I am at the top of the world, at the top of Everest. I am happy, so happy, but nervous too.

The clock approaches the hour, the flight screen tells me your silver bird is still on time. Just 10 minutes from now, that bird will be landing, bringing you to me, me to you, us together. I order a Jack and coke, pay the tab and turn on the stool, trying to spot your plane arriving, so many to choose from though. I smile as I take a deep drink of the whisky.

I see the aircraft pulling into the designated gate. Draining the glass, wiping my lips, I move to the gate in question. My nerves, jangling, stomach churning. Negative thoughts. What if she isn't on the flight? What if she tuned away at the last moment? What if she suffered last minute nerves? What if?

The what if's left. I smiled as I saw the vision, the blonde hair, the smiling sweet face, the slim but full body. I smiled, you smiled. I looked, you looked. Our lips met, even before a word was said. Our kiss, short, but lingering. "Hi" I said as I took your luggage, feeling the weight and laughing. "Hi" you replied. We stood there until I said "Ready?".

The cab ride gave us chance to chat, to talk about the flights we had, the fun we will have. Pulling up at the jointly chosen hotel, I looked at it in awe. I have seen many hotels in many countries, but none like this. This was like you, beautiful. The room, taking my breath away, was perfect. The large kingsize bed, dominating. The bath, sunken, marble, the large TV screen. Perfect, perfect for the weekend we were about to have, the weekend of our desires.

I could sense we were both nervous. Taking you into my arms, I lowered my lips to yours, the kiss was gentle, building up to one of intensity. My tongue, your tongue, touching, pressing, dancing. The kiss, the first real kiss, releasing the anxiety, the nerves.

As we broke the kiss, I stepped back, looking at you, then stepped into you again, unzipped your dress, smiling as I unclasped the brassiere, watching your wonderful breasts fall loose, the hard nipples. Taking your hand, I lead you to the bathroom, to the large shower. You smile as I lead you to the double headed shower, I smile as I stand there, turning both showerheads on, the cooling warm water jets out. I undo my shirt, slip it off of my body, the Levi's follow. You in your panties, me in my boxers. My cock, swelling, your nipples, solid. Taking your hand again, I lead you into the water, it hits our bodies as I take you in my arms again, as I press my bare upper body against yours, feeling your hard nipples pressing into me, feeling my hard cock straining under the now wet boxers, straining against your panty covered pussy. 

We kiss as the water cascades over us. Our bodies meet, my fingers roam over your body, over your nipples, down to the waistband hiding your pussy from me. Hooking my fingers, I pull them down, my tongue, my lips trace down your body, sucking your nipples, licking them, kissing your breasts, down, down over your stomach. The panties around your ankles, my eyes spot, for the very first time, the sweetness of your pussy, the freshly shaved lips, the tiny tuft of blonde hair above those wonderful lips. My tongue traces down, running through the blonde tuft, down to your lips. Bringing my fingers up to you, I open your lips, revealing the pink insides, revealing the hard nub of your clitoris. My face, my mouth, my tongue, an inch away.

I lean forward, my tongue touches your clit, your hands grip my hair, pulling my mouth onto your pussy. I feel your thrust, the thrust of your hips as you grind your pussy onto my hungry mouth. Parting your lips wider, my tongue slides inside you, tasting the wonderful sweetness, a sweetness I knew would be there, one that I wanted for so long, one I wanted so long to taste. Heaven, my tongue at long last, in a place I craved for. Licking you deep, sliding the tongue up and down your slit, licking you, taking the clit into my mouth, sucking it deep, taking your pussy lips, taking them into my mouth as my hands reach around, cupping your ass, parting your ass as I drive my tongue deep, deep into your pussy, your fingers gripping my hair, pulling me tight and deep, your hips moving from side to side, grinding your pussy onto my tongue. 

Your body, shaking, your moaning spurring me on, driving my tongue in and out, my fingers moving into your ass, pulling your ass cheeks open, my finger, wet finger, pressing against your tight hole, driving it inside your ass as my tongue continues to fuck your pussy. I feel your body shuddering, I hear your groans as the first wave hits you. Faster, licking you faster, driving my finger into your ass deeper, sliding it in and out, feeling your orgasm, feeling, tasting your juices as they flow. "Yes baby, yes Carol, cum for me" I growl as my finger drives into your ass, as my tongue licks you. "Yes baby, cum for me".

Your orgasm subsides, you smile as I stand, as I take off my sodden boxers. My hard throbbing cock springs free. Kicking the boxers away, I take your arms, turn you round, push you against the white tiling, pushing your against it, your breasts squashing against the wall a I open your legs, as my fingers run along your slit, sinking them deep into your wet pussy before taking them out, replacing them with my cock as I move in behind you. Slipping my hands around your body, cupping, squeezing your breasts, taking your nipples in my fingers, pinching them as I pound in deep and hard into you, driving in deep, deep and hard. 

The months of chatting, the months of playing, all coming to the boil. Fingers gripping your nipples as my thighs stiffen, as the orgasm build up, as my balls ache. "Yes Carol..nowwwww" I growl as I feel my cum rising from my balls, as my cock twitches, as I cum deep inside your pussy, spurting long and hard, shooting it deep and powerful.

Our first of many orgasms, joint powerful orgasms. I whisper to you "Welcome to Vegas Petal."

Vegas Ch. 10



It has been pointed out that some text from the final part of chapter 10 was missing when posted. This is the full transcript of that final piece (excluding the poker commentary). 

CHAPTER 10: KATHERINE IS TAKEN 

Despite the early finish, Daniel had still slept soundly but when the morning call that he had booked roused him, he felt an alarm go off in his head when he realised that Grace was not in the bed beside him. And from the look of the bed, she had not returned that night. Feeling a sense of apprehension, he had jumped out of the bed, only to find a note pushed under the door.

The last such note was from Katherine but this one was in Grace's handwriting, briefly explaining that she was staying at Lisa's hotel that night and would see him later. He felt all kinds of an idiot. Of course, she had been performing with Lisa Welles last night and such was his focus on his poker, the thought had not occurred to him. And with his early finish, he could have gone to the club to support her!

He cursed himself all the way to the Rio, but as he sat down at his table, he pushed Grace out of his mind and quietly reflected on the fact that after three, tough, exhausting, days of play, he was still here. 

Despite his early morning shock, the relatively premature finish yesterday had allowed him to recharge his batteries and he felt relatively fresh and ready for the twists and turns that awaited. His main objective was to stay out of trouble in an effort to finish in as high a position as possible, but to play the cards aggressively when they came his way.

He had drawn a tough seat including chip leader, Ollie Willson, an amateur from Ohio, but then at this stage, he knew there were no easy tables. There were three professionals at the table, the delightful Gavin Smith and Humberto Brenes, and the brash Josh Arieh. He had no thoughts of lasting out the day as that would be almost impossible. Instead, his focus was partly on staying alive for as long as possible but also on proving to himself, let alone others, that he belonged in this company. 

The amateur from Ohio controlled the early action as would have been expected as his chip stack of 645,500 was around 150,000 ahead of his closest rival. That was Annie Duke, and the possibility of a woman winning the Main Event had sent a major buzz around the poker world. And with Annie generally being acknowledged as the best female player among a talented bunch, her hopes were high. 

At this table, Wilson had Daniel almost two and a half to one in chips and was at least three to one ahead of everyone else. The man from Ohio was in seat seven and it appeared his strategy was to play just about every hand from the start, betting three times the big blind seemingly irrespective of the cards he was being dealt. It was powerful stuff, stealing blinds, punishing raises, and for a while it seemed that the table was unable or unwilling to prevent his march to glory. 

Daniel was amongst those keeping a low profile. Until he caught pocket tens, that is. He made a small raise of 15,000 chips. For some reason Wilson decided to sit this one out and it was Humberto Brenes who re-raised the same amount. Brenes was a quirky, well liked Costa Rican who often wore loud, colourful scarves and he raised his card protector as Daniel looked at him, waving the small shark at Daniel.

"Careful, my friend. The shark is going to get you!" he boomed out in his deep voice.

He stood up, walking around, sliding his spectacles down low on his nose and staring at Daniel over the top of them, a bright smile lighting up his face. 

The flop was Queen-Eight-Three.

After Daniel checked, Brenes raised again. He pushed in 20,000 this time and again, Daniel called.

The turn was the five of clubs. That was no help to either it seemed, but this time Brenes pushed his sleeves up in his now familiar gesture and waved his chips into the middle of the table.

"All in!" he theatrically announced, a big smile adorning his face.

Remaining standing, he immediately waved his shark through the air again, clicking on the light in its mouth as he teased Daniel with the small toy.

"The shark is going to get you! The shark is going to get you!" he repeated, waving a finger in the air as if in admonishment.

Daniel smiled back but attempted to ignore the traditional Brenes sideshow. Even so, his mind would not fully focus as out of the corner of his eye he caught Brenes wandering across to the rail to talk to his two brothers in their native language as if he was out for a walk. Daniel's issue was that whilst he had no idea where he stood, his instinct told him he was ahead. 

He agonised before reluctantly throwing his cards in, pretty sure he was doing the wrong thing, but feeling it was too early for such a confrontation. Brenes nodded knowingly from his position beside his two brothers before sauntering back to the table and, picking up his cards, flicking them over to reveal two black Aces. He waved an admonishing finger in the air again. 

"Good fold, my friend. Good fold. Stay away from the shark!" he said.

With a biting motion into the empty air, followed by a big smile, Humberto sat back down, ready to play the next hand. It was to prove his last. Remarkably he picked up Aces again, but Gavin Smith hit a set of threes on the flop. He re-raised Brenes all-in and the shark was on its way home.

Daniel had been struggling from the start of play and the pot he had lost to the Costa Rican had not helped. His chip stack was steadily reducing and he realised that he would have to raise his game. It was as they approached the break that he became involved in three hands that turned around his day. 

In the first, he made a big raise with pocket Queens, four times the big blind. Willson immediately called and Daniel's prayers were answered when the flop brought rags: Three-Five-Eight. 

Daniel raised again, 60,000 this time. Willson called again. 

The turn brought a Jack. Daniel had half his chips in the pot and the instinct that had proved incorrect against Brenes, told him he was ahead again. But although he tried, he was unable to put Willson on a hand. Impetuously he pushed the rest of his chips in, immediately cursing himself for his action when he received an immediate call.

Willson flipped over Jack-Five. He had two pair. 

Daniel cursed inwardly. That rash move was about to end his tournament. 

He stood up in time-honoured tradition, his chair squeaking on the floor as the back of his legs pushed it away. The Chip Leader was about to take him out with a Jack-Five unsuited and other than stroke his crystal, he could only watch the final card being dealt. His fate was now out of his hands. Only a five, eight or queen would prolong his tournament.

The river was the Five of spades. 

A gasp ran around the table and amongst the army of observers. Willson just shook his head in frustration and Daniel shook his in disbelief. The card gave him a better two pair and his suck-out kept him alive.

The very next hand brought the King-Jack of diamonds and having just doubled his chip stack, he decided to speculate. He raised 75,000. Gavin Smith had been quiet up to that point, other than hitting his set against the Costa Rican, but he called. 

Again, the flop brought rags: Nine-Six-Three, with two diamonds.

Daniel pushed in another 75,000. The amiable Canadian did not even think. He immediately re-raised him, making it 150,000 in total. 

Daniel had little to go on, other than the hands he had seen Smith play whilst watching the World Series on television. Certainly, he had given away very few clues at today's table. Instinct told him that he was ahead, but that had proved incorrect on his two previous reads. And he knew that with nothing better than King high, he had better not be wrong. Yet he could not lay it down. 

He thought of pushing all-in but if he were wrong, he would be badly damaged. His mind wandered back to one of T J Cloutier's sayings: Sometimes you can send boys out to do a man's work.

That convinced him. He saw that Smith was observing him closely as he re-raised, pushing 175,000 into the pot. Staring down at his cards, Daniel could feel his chest about to burst, but only momentarily as Smith immediately tossed his cards in. 

"Guess you had something after all," he said, looking for information. 

Daniel just smiled as he raked in the chips. His stack was now above 600,000.

Half a dozen hands later and Daniel, confidence high, again became involved with Willson. The man from Ohio had been squandering chips of late and seemed to be feeling the pressure. Daniel had position and with Ace-Four of spades called Willson's strong pre flop raise. 

The flop was Seven-Eight-Nine, all different suits but not a single spade. Willson surprised Daniel by checking after his earlier raise.

Daniel took that as a sign of weakness, knowing that Willson could have raised preflop with just about anything. He checked too. 

The turn was a six and Willson made a 15,000 raise.

That really confused Daniel. He had not seen Willson play this conservatively in the few hours they had been at the table today and struggled to think what he might have. He doubled the raise, knowing it would not take Willson out of the hand, but thought it might buy some information. It did not. Willson thought about it for some time, a long time, and then re-raised, but only another 15,000. 

This was strange, powder-puff poker and Daniel felt he had to do something. Either fold, which was not an option he was considering, or a big raise. 

He pushed in 100,000 chips. Willson thought about it a long time and out of the corner of his eye Daniel could see the man from Ohio staring at him. But he kept his eyes down, glued to his hole cards.

When he heard the words, "Okay, I call," Daniel's heart sank. 

His betting had taken him down to a little over 400,000 in chips and Willson had around half his remaining stack in the pot. 

The river was a Ten, which would have made either of them a straight if they had a seven or a Jack.

Willson checked, telling Daniel that either he was slow playing the straight or, more likely, that had very little, possibly a small pocket pair. Daniel was close to checking too, but felt that with Ace high, that would almost certainly hand the pot to Willson. He had too much invested, to do that, but any small bet would invite a call. 

Crunch time, he thought, and pushed all-in. He knew that if Willson called then he would be crippled, but then a wrong call and Wilson would be out. Daniel could do no more. He had put the pressure on the former chip leader. 

"What the hell," he heard Willson say and looked up to see him prepare to push his remaining chips in the middle. 

But the move was a feint designed to produce a reaction, and whilst Daniel's heart jumped inside his body, on the outside he managed to stay motionless. Not getting the reaction he wanted Willson sat back. He placed his hands on the back of his neck for a few moments, then looked at his hole cards again and casually tossed them into the middle, displaying pocket threes. 

"I guess you sucked out and hit the straight," he ungraciously added.

Daniel turned over his Ace-Four without speaking and the table gasped at seeing this young, solid player having risked so much with so little. As for Daniel, his confidence soared further at pushing Willson off the pot and in the knowledge that by showing the bluff, it would confuse the others as to his style of play. 

Hell, he had confused himself. He had played three hands badly at the table and was still ahead.

There were twenty-three players remaining when they reached the dinner break, the field having been almost halved from the position at the start of play. Daniel checked with Norman Chad, who had for some reason taken an even friendlier interest in him over the previous twenty four hours, and the little man gleefully informed him that he was in eighth chip position. 

Even if he was knocked out now, Daniel was guaranteed another excellent payout. But his mindset had changed. He wanted to reach the Final Table. 

*

Unknown to Grace, Katherine had watched her performance with Lisa at the Club last night and had found the experience intoxicating. This was not just Daniel's girlfriend, this was someone who was on their way to becoming a star. And it was clear that Grace was bi and that she found Katherine attractive. For the first time in a long while, it was Katherine who had been seduced rather than the other way around and that was a situation that she had found exhilarating.

When she returned to her room after today's promotional event, she had found a note stuck under the door. When she read it, the feelings of arousal that had been simmering away since her session with Grace in the dressing room were immediately brought to the surface again. It seemed only five minutes ago that she had been slipping a note under Daniel's hotel room door and now Grace was doing the same with her.

She had only just finished her shower when she heard Grace's soft knock at the door and she quickly wrapped the big, white towel around her curves. The note had said that Grace would call out to her room that afternoon, after rehearsals, and here she was. 

"Perfect timing," she said, standing to one side and allowing Grace to enter. 

She still felt unsure of herself and was not yet certain of her feelings other than she knew she was under the spell of this brunette. And the fact that Grace was still with Daniel only added spice to her imagination.

She was a highly sexed woman and after the voyeuristic and frequent sex with Daniel, she needed something else. But even in her wildest fantasies she had not expected this. And not only had Grace stepped into the gap, but she had done so in a way that brought Katherine alive with feelings she would never have dreamed that she would experience. Sex with another woman. And mind blowing sex at that. 

She shivered as Grace embraced her in a big bear hug and sensually bit onto her lower lip, gently pulling it downwards. But as she began to react, the brunette pulled away.

"Champagne, anyone?" she said, twirling the neck of the bottle in her hand. Then looking Katherine up and down she deliberately licked her lips and added, "And I'm so pleased that you dressed appropriately!"

Katherine's hands immediately went to the towel, looking down at herself in embarrassment. "Oh, I..."

Grace's shrill laugh stopped her. "Oh Katherine, I'm just joking! I'm feeling really good. I had a fantastic evening singing with Lisa, and now Joshua tells me you are going to stay as part of Samuel Smith's team. Let's celebrate!" 

Grace popped the cork and poured the bubbling drink into the two small glasses on the dresser. They sat on the bed for a short while, just talking as they sipped their drinks. Katherine told Grace she had seen her performance and how wonderful she had been. But she found it difficult to concentrate as the singer had put a slim hand on her head and kept stroking a strand of her red hair. 

Grace was wearing a very short summer dress and no bra. She knew that much would be obvious and the way Katherine's eyes kept glancing at her breasts only served to increase her arousal. She had spent a quite incredible night of lovemaking with Lisa and they had only parted at lunchtime, with the blonde diva needing to get involved in some interviews before flying back to New York that evening. 

When she left Lisa, she had wondered whether she could go through with this. Her body was sated after their night together, but curiously enough she quickly found her arousal returning with the thought of seeing this redhead again. Partly as it was the final step in breaking her and Daniel's relationship, but also because the incredibly sexy girl had seemed to have developed a real passion for pleasing Grace.

She knew that she had to return directly to the Club from Katherine's hotel, but Mario was on hand to drive her there and she was determined to enjoy her short time with this freckled stunner. She eased herself off the bed and refilled their glasses, before slumping back down, her head resting on the clean, white pillow, her legs sprawled out in front of her. 

She knew her dress was very short, way too short, but then Joshua had bought it for her, deliberately chosen for this occasion he had said. Katherine remained at the bottom of the bed, staring up at Grace. The singer could tell the passion building up behind the green eyes and it turned her on, too. She slowly and deliberately eased her long, tanned legs slightly apart, watching Katherine's eyes.

They were following her movements, her sparkling eyes widening as Grace displayed herself. She heard the redhead emit a small gasp. That was just the effect she wanted.

"Grace...." Katherine started to say, only to pause as Grace laughed.

The singer provocatively eased her legs further apart. 

"Well, I did have my panties on earlier, Katherine," she softly whispered. "But I took them off in the elevator. I thought you would appreciate the little surprise."

Grace closely watched the stunning, green eyes as they narrowed in desire and she slowly and teasingly slid her tanned hand down across her stomach, onto her bare thighs and between her legs. Her gaze remained fixed on Katherine as she began to move her immaculately varnished fingernails in slow stroking motions, her index finger seeking out her unfurling clitoris.

The redhead could not help herself. For a moment she sat mesmerised, but then gently placed her glass on the carpet beside the bed. She slowly eased herself onto the bed linen and crawled on her hands and knees across the few feet between them. Her eager hands ran along Grace's legs and up to the inside of her thighs as her long tongue began licking, kissing and sucking its way to the natural valley. 

She felt Grace move her masturbating hand away and place it on the top of her head, slowly stroking her hair before guiding her head forward. After the urgency of yesterday's lovemaking, Katherine was determined to please this woman for longer this time and slowly took her time, her tongue running along the soft skin of the pulsing vulva as she ever so gradually built up the pace. 

Grace's soft moans of approval encouraged her in her efforts and the singer raised her knees to allow Katherine easier access. The hand that had remained on her head now took an insistent grip on the red hair, her hips pushing upwards in response as Katherine's tongue found and began to pleasure her aching clitoris. As she sucked and licked the delightful bud, Grace's moans of appreciation grew louder in their intensity and her grip on Katherine's hair tightened further.

Katherine's nose was flattened against the soft cushion of brown hair as she intensified her efforts, her probing tongue moving more rapidly as Grace's moans grew. The singer was responding wildly as her sensations spiralled, thrusting upwards with her hips and grinding herself into Katherine's mouth. She gripped the red hair with both hands now, moaning loudly as she drove herself on the willing face, her movements becoming less controlled as her orgasm began to overtake her.

Grace thrust her moist sex into Katherine's face one final time as the powerful tremors of her orgasm racked through her body. Such was the intensity that Katherine had difficulty in breathing and tried to pull away, but Grace was determined to hold the redhead's face tight against her until eventually, the intensity of the spasms in her body began to soften.

*

Within an hour of the restart, the number of players had reduced to eighteen and they were down to two tables. It was then that Daniel ran into a big confrontation with Josh Arieh. Daniel drew a pocket pair of fives, and called Arieh's 50,000 raise. Arieh was well known for playing any sort of hand and also for playing with aggression. Daniel had watched him carefully and knew he had to be careful. 




Vegas Ch. 10



The flop came Eight-Three-Four.

Arieh checked and Daniel, wanting to take the initiative, raised 100,000. Arieh did not have the best manners at the poker table and made a comment about rookie kids not knowing what they were doing. He seemed genuinely irritated, almost as if he had hit something, bottom pair perhaps, and wanted to see another card. 

He eased himself up on his chair, staring Daniel down, before pushing all-in. As soon as he did, he made his way over to his cheering section along the rails, still mumbling about new kids on the block.

Daniel was stunned. This was power poker. He had 150,000 in the pot and instinctively felt that he was ahead. The more he thought about it, the surer he became. If Arieh had the better hand, why would he raise all-in? That made no sense, and smelt like him trying to push the amateur out of the hand. 

For a few minutes, Daniel debated his move. The easy thing to do was to fold. And given the state of play, that was probably the most sensible thing to do. The trouble was, he felt he was ahead.

Arieh came back to the table. "C'mon, kid. Fold them and we all move on."

Daniel decided that if he were going out, it would be like a lion. 

"Call," he said.

He knew he had made the correct decision when he saw Arieh throw his head back. Daniel was right, Arieh had Jack-Three for bottom pair and when he saw Daniel's hand, his dark eyes glared at him across the table, before he turned back to his supporters behind the rail. 

"He called with a pair of fives. What a joke! A pair of fives! That's so sick!" he shouted.

Annie Duke let out a gasp and said, "That's either the best or the worst call I've ever seen."

The turn was a Queen, and the King on the river ended Arieh's tournament. 

True to form, he left the table complaining about Daniel's bad play but at this stage, Daniel was in the zone. Arieh's behaviour might well have affected him earlier in the tournament, but definitely not now.

A few hands later, Annie Duke's hopes of being the first female winner ended. She departed in sixteenth position after a brave fight against the odds, having been card dead for most of the day. But when the amateurs from Copenhagen and then Sweden went next it appeared as if, at long last, the professional poker players would be restoring their pride with the first victory in the Main Event since Carlos Mortensen won in 2001. 

Daniel was one of only three amateurs remaining and the odds against any of them winning were considerable.

*

Katherine was sprawled back onto the bed for longer than she knew, exhausted by the force of Grace's orgasm. But she was soon to learn that the attractive brunette wanted more. This was the final time Grace would be with this attractive, freckled woman and she wanted to make sure that the redhead remembered the experience. She would not go down on her, that much she had promised Lisa last night. But the blonde had shown Grace an alternative.

Katherine's towel had fallen from her naked body some time ago and Grace pushed the freckled body flat on the bed, working herself around so that she could ease her own body between the red haired woman's long, tanned legs. She manoeuvred their bodies so that her sex rested against Katherine's and began ever so gently to rotate against her. Lisa had taught her well and after only a delicious few seconds of pleasuring, she heard the redhead begin to gasp.

Smiling through her lust filled face, Grace continued to gently rotate her hips, allowing the pleasure to build. It did not take her long to position her shining clitoris so that it rubbed just the right way against Katherine's labia and the redhead woman was now breathing in soft, panting gasps. Grace had found the right movement and rhythm and as she did, she built up the speed. 

Katherine let out a low, guttural groan as the sensation built inside her, her own hips beginning to fervently respond to the pace set by Grace. The two women's movements increased in intensity as they rocked their tanned hips back and forth, sticking to the rhythm they had quickly established. Grace undulated faster against the redhead, eliciting even more moans as Katherine became lost in the moment. 

Grace watched the freckled face as it contorted in pleasure, her eyes tightly closed in her urgent search to find release. Her eager hands grabbed the redhead's bottom, digging her fingernails into her soft flesh as she pulled her closer in her efforts to maximise both their pleasure. She was rewarded by an increased urgency in Katherine's gyrations against her and each woman was growling now.

Unbeknownst to either, the hidden cameras installed in the room by Joshua were catching every wild movement. But even had they known, each was so close they could not have stopped. Katherine let out a long shrieking sound as her thighs began to shake, whilst Grace emitted a series of small yelps. Like two wildcats, the women fucked against one another as their climax approached and then overtook them. 

They began to shudder against one another, Grace's body vibrating on the bed and Katherine's head bobbing uncontrollably as their simultaneous orgasms racked through them, release flooding their bodies.

Joshua was closely studying the two women on his monitor in the office and had been masturbating himself for the last ten minutes as he watched Grace take control. As they came, so did he, and he gave himself a good few minutes to recover and clean himself before he made the call.

Katherine jumped when Grace's cell phone rang. She heard her answer and exchange a few brief words before feeling the kiss on her neck. She turned to embrace Grace but found that the brunette had jumped up and was slipping on her dress. Grace smiled into Katherine's eyes before checking herself in the mirror. 

"Katherine, I've got to go. I'm sorry, but I've got to go..." 

The red haired woman's mouth fell open in surprise and what genuinely looked like despair. Grace felt a moment of concern and turned back. Leaning down, she slid her soft lips against Katherine's, her soft tongue sliding into her pretty mouth as her insistent kiss pressed the freckled head back into the soft pillow.

Gently licking her way to Katherine's ear, she whispered, "But don't lock the door. The night isn't over yet."

As Grace left, she smiled ruefully to herself. It was such a shame that she would not see the girl again. 

Meanwhile, Katherine had begun to feel alive again at Grace's words and as the door closed, she lay back and began to masturbate herself until she came for a second time. She closed her eyes and fell asleep hoping that Grace would return soon. She knew she needed even more relief than her own hand could provide.

*

Phil Laak had been the next to leave the championship, making it a good tournament for him and his actress girlfriend, Jennifer Tilly, who had also lasted into the top thirty. He had called an all-in after the flop with top pair, against a flush draw, and sure enough, the amateur from California hit his flush on the river. He was soon followed by Joe Awada, a victim of runners which cracked his pocket Aces.

That left two tables of six, with the three amateurs joined by Gavin Smith, Minh Nguyen, Dan Harrington, David Sklansky, Sam Farha, Allen Cunningham, Marcel Luske, Hoyt Corkins and Huck Seed. Remarkably, there were two previous champions still in the field. Harrington had won the 1995 Main Event whilst Seed was the rather anonymous champion the following year. 

It appeared that everyone was playing much tighter than usual as they attempted to get down to the nine players who would form the final table, although Gavin Smith at one table and Sammy Farha at the other were taking advantage of the conservative play and slowly advancing their chip stacks by doing so.

Eventually, at around two thirty in the morning, the amateur from West Virginia was the next to go, overplaying his pocket Jacks when Sammy Farha hit a set on the flop. Huck Seed went half an hour later, having been gradually ground down and pushing his remaining chips in with an Ace-King that failed to improve. 

With ten players remaining, they all sat down at the same table, just this one table, with the sole requirement being to play on until one more player went bust, allowing them to break for the night.

That resulted in even more cautious play, with no one wanting to be the last player out before the Final Table. For everyone it was a big deal to make it to the Final Table, but in particular for the professionals in view of the prestige that went with it. Reputations were built on outlasting the thousands of starters and reaching the Final Table and everyone was playing accordingly, even Farha and Smith it seemed. 

The only occasional change to this sequence was when a short stack moved all-in and ended up taking the pot with that move, or infrequently they would be called by a big stack with their hand holding up. Every time this happened Daniel's shoulders sagged. He was so close, unbelievably enough, to reaching his impossible dream and all it needed was for one of the small stacks to misstep. 

But although time was advancing, and people were getting tired, they were no nearer their destination. Players were flagging, unusual calls were being made, cards were played that normally would not be and vice-versa. Daniel's only consolation was that whilst he was unable to make any kind of advance, he was finding it relatively easy to stay out of trouble and maintain his chip stack.

That suited him in the circumstances. That was until he peeked at his hole cards. He saw the Ace-King of clubs.

He raised 80,000. Marcel Luske called, as did the Californian amateur who having just lost two successive pots was now the small stack. Daniel glanced at his watch, saw it was twenty past four and wondered if this was the hand that would decide the Final Table. He picked up his crystal as they awaited the flop, his thumb rubbing along the side in what was now a familiar action. 

The dealer tapped the green baize as he turned over King-King-Queen.

Daniel's heart missed a beat. Unless someone was slow playing pocket Queens he was ahead by a distance. The thought went through his head that his first objective was not to be knocked out and the second was to take another player out. He almost checked, but instead raised another 80,000. Luske and the Californian would expect him to follow up on his pre flop raise, whether he hit or not. 

Luske thought for some time, singing to himself as he did so, then threw in his hand. Damn, thought Daniel, believing that he was not going to get any action. Perhaps he should have checked after all? 

He glanced at the Californian, who was staring intently at him. For some reason Daniel did not look away. This time he stared back, as if it was a battle of wills. Then the Californian stood up and smoothed down his crumpled light blue Abercrombie and Fitch t-shirt.

"Okay," he said in a matter of fact tone, as if asking for a beer. He pushed his remaining chips into the middle. "I'm all-in."

A buzz ran around the table and all nine pairs of eyes were on Daniel. Again, the thought of facing a pair of Queens went through his mind, but he had only one move. 

"Call," he responded, turning over his cards.

The noise around the table grew louder when the other players saw his hand and the Californian stood tall, his eyes closed in disgust. He took a huge gulp and wearily reached down, picking up his cards and flicking them over. Ace-Queen. He was virtually dead and only runners could help. Queens would win the hand for him and Jack-Ten would split the pot. 

The noise around the table was huge, everyone realising they were on the verge of reaching the Final Table. The Two of diamonds on the turn confirmed that fact. Daniel walked around, putting one hand on the Californian's broad shoulder and shaking his hand with the other. 

"I'm sorry," was all he could think of to say. 

The Californian just nodded, accepting handshakes and commiserations from the other players in a zombie like state before sadly walking away from the action, looking back over his slumped shoulder as he did. 

In the meantime the other players were slapping each other on the back, shaking each other's hands and congratulating themselves on their achievement. Daniel modestly accepted the congratulations being showered on him and felt a curious mixture of elation and anticlimax. Even in his moment of triumph, he was feeling sorry for the Californian.

The final act of the evening was to bag his chips and register them with the tournament organisers. There were two million, one hundred and twenty three thousand of them. Not only had he made it to the final table but that last hand had taken him into a sizeable chip lead. He kept shaking his head to himself through the entire process. This was unbelievable, quite unbelievable.

It was quarter past five when he took a taxi back to the Treasure Island. As he sat silently on the short journey, exhausted, ignoring the attempts at conversation from the cab driver, he told himself that this could not be happening to him and that he was living a dream. A glorious dream in which, even if he was quickly knocked out tomorrow, just about everything about this trip to Vegas had gone right. 

He was about to find out that was not quite the case. 

*

It was late evening when Katherine was roused from her sleep by a knock on the door. She jumped up. It must be Grace, she excitedly thought. Picking up the towel from where it had lain on the floor for several hours, she wrapped it around her and opened the door. But it was Mario, not Grace. His eyes seemed to smile at her as he walked past her, carrying a small package in his hairy hand.

"Hello Katherine," he said, his eyes checking her out hungrily. 

Katherine suddenly felt conscious of her state of undress. Mario had never looked at her in that way before. There seemed to be an arrogance about him together with, well, almost lust in his eyes. 

"Joshua has sent me to give you this package, as a gift for your good performances whilst working for him," he said, his words sounding almost scripted. 

He walked to the table and set the package down. Katherine stared at him and then at the package. It was a simple cardboard box with a piece of ribbon fastened across the middle.

"What time is it?" she asked, rubbing her weary left eye.

"Midnight," he calmly responded.

Midnight, she thought? How long had she been asleep? 

Mario simply stood there and his narrow eyes indicated the box. Katherine knew she should dress but he seemed to want her to open the gift. Holding the knot at the front of the towel with one hand, she walked across to the table and unfastened the bright, red ribbon. She opened the lid and found that inside was a bag full of white powder. Her heart raced as she realized what it was. 

Mario had been feeding her this since she had commenced her promotional work, but had not provided any since he had taken her to see Grace at the Club yesterday. She felt a surge rush through her veins as the pleasant memories of the drug's effects coursed through her brain. She also knew that she would be seeing Grace again, soon. Perhaps they could both imbibe?

Her skin felt flush and she realised that just seeing the tightly packed powder and thinking about Grace was enough to make her feel aroused again. Mario broke her train of thought as he stepped back from the table and stood there, his eyes trained on her face. It was apparent that he wanted her to do something but in her confused state, Katherine was not sure exactly what that was.

"Please accept this as an expression of Joshua's appreciation," he calmly stated. 

Although he smiled at her, she realised that his eyes continued to wander up and down her body. She must get dressed, she thought again, before returning her bewildered gaze to the white bag. The realization of being here alone with him, dressed like this, and with the expectation of Grace suddenly returning, all flashed through her mind. She picked up the box and closed its lid, looking up at him.

"This is very generous," she said, trying to keep her voice steady.

Mario did not move, his eyes now locked on hers. 

"Joshua would like you to sample his gift before I leave," he slowly drawled.

Katherine looked back at the box, her hand brushing across its surface. She felt torn inside, unsure of what exactly to do next. It was clear that Mario was not going to leave until she sampled the present, but she wanted to wait for Grace. As she hesitated she noticed out of the corner of her eye that Mario was shifting his weight, apparently growing impatient with her. 

Against her better judgment, she opened the lid of the box again and took out the surprisingly heavy bag. Perhaps a quick line of the coke, she thought? Then Mario would leave and she could prepare herself for Grace's return.

Mario moved a step closer and took the bag from her hand, gently easing two lines of the drug onto the table. Returning the bag to the box, he pinched one nostril and lowered the other to the table, inhaling the line in a few seconds. He looked up at her, then at the powder, and then back at her. His black eyes narrowed further and he stared coldly at her as he waited for her to do as he bid. 

She felt confused, not recognising the man who had taken care of her so well over the previous few days. Nevertheless she lowered her face down to the table and sniffed up the line, feeling the coarse powder go up her nose and down her throat as that same burning she was beginning to know so well hit her again. 

"And the rest," she heard him say.

Looking back down, Katherine saw that there was still some excess powder on the table. Hunched over the table, she lowered her face again to inhale the residue, the dizzying effects of the high suddenly hitting her. As she sniffed in the rest, she thought she heard Mario move behind her followed by a noise that sounded like a belt being unbuckled. 

Almost instantly, as the last of the powder disappeared up her nose, she felt rough hands yank the towel away from her body and felt a hard, naked penis pressing against her buttocks. She tried to swing her head around to look at Mario but everything seemed to be happening so fast. 

He grinned at the camera that was had hidden in the room as he eased his hard penis against her buttocks and spread her strong, shapely legs wider with his foot. Despite the situation, the powder, her sex with Grace, and the anticipation of more to come, had all served to heighten her arousal. 

Even in the state she was in she knew that this was wrong, but she could not help herself push back against his hard body.

"You want me to fuck you?" he asked.

Katherine hesitated. She certainly did, and yet she did not want to confess to that fact. As she began to shake her head, she felt Mario slowly slide his long, thin shaft along her heated furrow. She groaned aloud. God, that felt so good. 

Mario smiled to himself. Joshua had promised this exquisitely delicious creature to him and this was his reward. But he did not want to just take her. He wanted to hear her ask him. He wanted her to want this.

"Well?" he asked again.

As he spoke, he ran his shaft against her soft vulva again, gently rubbing as he felt her involuntarily widen her stance. She nodded, but that was not enough for him.

"Tell me," he instructed. "Tell Mario."

She groaned again as she felt the bulbous head of his penis at her entrance, ready to slide inside. God, she wanted him inside her.

"Yes," she gasped.

"Yes what?"

"Yes, Mario. Fuck me. Please...."

At her words, he again rubbed himself along her wet opening, eliciting a groan. She felt him place his grasping hands on her hips, holding her there against the table, her full breasts pressing hard into the wood. She should have felt repelled... but instead she felt herself incredibly turned on as her deep rooted fantasy of being taken by a relative stranger was coming true.




Vegas Ch. 10



She eased her hips back into him and felt his blunt purple tip slide into her glistening vulva. Whimpered helplessly, she felt him rock forward and part her further, easily sinking into her hot, tight body. His strong hands tightly held her shapely hips as he gently thrust in and out of her, fucking her slowly and effortlessly, her tight body thrusting back at him as he worked rhythmically inside her.

She eased her legs wider and bent further over the table in her efforts to extract every last drop of pleasure and moaned as she heard the slapping sound of his thrusts against her firm buttocks. He slid one hand into her red hair, pulling her head back as he increased his strokes. His other hand slid around to her breast, kneading the pliant flesh, his fingers squeezing and pulling at the bullet like nipple.

Bending lower, his urgent lips begin to slide over the soft skin of her neck, whilst his hips continued to thrust in machine like motion. She slid a slender arm backwards and around his hard neck, pulling him closer as she dimly realised that she was consciously abandoning herself to him. The sound of his breathing indicated he was close now and she felt the hand leave her hair and run around to her waist, settling on her vulva so that his fingertips could flick her aroused clitoris.

That was sufficient to bring Katherine to her climax, her bobbing head arching all the way back as her fabulous body shuddered against him. Mario eased his movements until her trembling lessened, but then picked up at the same machine like pace again, his hips and buttocks rhythmically pumping into the willing body in a continuation of his machine like motions.

Katherine groaned aloud as he began to fuck her again and after attempting to match his pace, she began to wheel her hips in circular motions, generating a greater degree of delicious friction between them. She heard him growl with her new movements, clearly feeling the impact all the way through his long, thin shaft until suddenly, he was close too.

As his thrusts came faster and faster, slapping against her, Katherine reached second orgasm and her shuddering body sparked his, too, and she arched her orgasmic loins to meet his one final thrust, before his jerking body uncontrollably exploded violently inside her. 

It took them both a few seconds to recover and then, without a word, Mario stepped back and pulled up his shorts and trousers, fastening them quickly. Checking his hair in a nearby mirror, he headed towards the door, turning back towards her as he got there.

"I will tell Joshua that you greatly enjoyed both his gifts, Katherine. Grazie," he said, stepping out almost as quickly as he had entered. 

Katherine felt woozy as she slowly stood up, completely in shock over what had just happened. Feeling a bead of sweat move down her forehead, she scooped up the box in her hands and carried it with her into the bathroom. Stepping into the shower, she let the water wash over her as she wondered when Grace would return.



Vegas Ch. 11



A number of the situations have been inspired by some of the small band of authors whose work I immensely admire. I have attempted to occasionally incorporate a flavour of their imagination in this story, in tribute to them. Without their inspiration, this story would not have been told.

This is the final chapter....



CHAPTER 11: THE FINAL TABLE

Daniel woke up with a king sized headache. How long had he been sleeping? He checked the time. An hour and a half's sleep before the biggest day in his life. He already knew he was going to be a poker millionaire, reaching the Final Table had guaranteed him that. The question was, how much could he win? He was aware that the higher he placed the more the prize money, culminating in the ten million dollar first prize. 

But that was not all at there was at stake. Not only would the winner take that gigantic first prize, but the sponsorship and spin off actions promised to double that at the very least. And then of course there was the prestige of being the World Champion, the history associated with it, the rubbing of shoulders with the true poker greats. If not as an equal, it would at least be as someone worthy of consideration for entry into the big league. 

The thoughts race around his head as he lay on top of the covers, still wearing his clothes from the previous day. His achievement in reaching the Final Table had been the greatest of his life. The amount of money he had earned was life changing. The potential rewards for further success were mind boggling. Yet all of that had paled into insignificance when he had returned to his hotel room.

What he found had simply resulted in the most devastating feeling he had ever experience in his life. On walking through the door, he could immediately see that all of Grace's clothes were gone. The empty closet and vacant open drawers reinforced that point all too clearly. But that shock was nothing compared to what he found next. A videocassette on the bed, with a note simply saying, 'Play Me'.

And so he had. His heart had dropped when he saw himself and Katherine on the screen. Somehow their lovemaking session that first night at Samuel Smith's had been captured in vivid technicolour. His initial reaction had been to turn off the recording. But after doing so, he realised that he needed to understand exactly what was on the tape. So, reluctantly, he had played it again.

His original feeling of horror at being captured this way had been compounded by the thought that Grace had almost certainly seen this, and that was why she had moved out of their room. There could be no other explanation. He cursed himself for being so stupid, so weak. He knew he had been playing with fire during his sessions with Katherine and he was aware he had no one to blame but himself.

But even as the thoughts went through his head, the video had cut to a view of Grace in the dressing room, the same room that he and Katherine had just been recorded in. Daniel quickly realised she was with Samuel Smith, who was explaining to her how he was going to make her a star, painting a picture of success as he took her hand and laid it on the bulge in his trousers. 

"What I'm looking for right now, is evidence of your desire. I need to know just how committed to your own success you are, Grace," he heard him say. 

And as the next part of the video unfolded, it quickly became apparent that not only did Grace want it enough, but she put her heart and soul into pleasing this man. How could she have done such a thing with someone she had never met before? It was when Grace had gone along to her first rehearsal, it had to be. All the time he had been experiencing such guilt over his and Katherine's activities, Grace had been cheating on him. She had been attending what she termed as rehearsals every day. 

Some rehearsal he had thought, the anger building in him. No wonder she seemed happy to keep him away from the Club.

But as he watched, even that had not been all. As the video had continued he had watched stone-faced as each dirty little scene unfolded. He saw Katherine enter Grace's dressing room and felt physically sick when he watched her seduction and exploitation. This was the independent red haired woman who had manipulated every part of his mind and had caused so much angst as he had struggled to come to terms with the guilt he had been feeling.

And now it seemed she was being controlled by Grace? How the hell had that happened? And as he had continued to watch, the video faded into a second session between the two women, this time in Katherine's hotel room, the same room in which she had fucked Daniel whilst she trapped him on the phone to Grace. And then, finally, he had to watch some bastard take Katherine from behind, whilst she begged him to fuck her.

He had lurched to the bathroom and been physically sick, retching into the toilet bowl as the images invaded his mind. What the he had he got himself into? What sort of sick City was this? What had happened to Grace? Where was she now? And was this really what Katherine was all about?  The thoughts had reverberated around his mind and he had slumped to the bathroom floor, sitting there feeling sorry for himself until he had been sick again.

After some time he had summoned enough mental energy to climb to his feet and had returned to the bedroom. He had removed the videocassette and attacked the tape until his hands were red from his exertions. He had ripped it to shreds, impossible for him or anyone else to view again. And then he had lain on top of the still made bed for a long time, the same thought echoing around his mind. Why?

It was not until eight o'clock in the morning that he had fallen asleep, and now it was half past nine. He felt tired, but wide-awake. The scenes on the destroyed video were again playing through his mind, albeit a little faster, more fuzzy than the real thing that he had watched playing out before him.

Almost in slow motion, he stumbled up from the bed, making his weary way back to the bathroom. His body ached all over and his mind did, too.  Everything took him twice as long to complete and he stood under the shower for a long, long time, allowing the cleansing water to cascade down his body. He managed to shave despite his shaking hands and when he finished he suddenly found that he felt better, fresher, and was able to gain a different perspective on what had happened. 

He had probably known in his heart that his time with Grace was coming to an end, and he actually surprised himself in that he did not feel too bad about that, it was more the way it had happened.  He was also aware that his brief relationship with Katherine was as a result of their individual sex drives, nothing else, there had never been any chance of the relationship developing. So he convinced himself that was fine, too.

And after seeing the video, he decided that these two women deserved everything they got. The very least he deserved from Grace was a chance to talk through the situation and end their relationship in a different way, and any way would have been far more preferable than this. He momentarily wondered how much of this was known to Lauren, but then decided it made no difference to him. 

He decided that if Grace and Katherine were happy with what they had done and where it would lead them, then so be it. Now, it was all about him. He would think about number one and not about pleasing anyone else. He was now rich and even if he did not win the event, he was guaranteed some poker fame. And if he did win the darn thing, that meant poker immortality. He had to turn his feelings about what he had seen on that video to his advantage. 

From this very moment, he decided he was going to be fully focused on the day ahead, the poker he had to play. That deserved, and would get, his full attention.

He dressed slowly, attempting to refocus his mind. He wore his light chinos and black Practically Poker shirt. At least he would look good, even if he did not feel that way. He sat quietly on the edge of the bed, gently closing his eyes and breathing deeply, allowing the last of the negative thoughts to drift out. 

It was only when he was eventually able to replace the pictures in his mind of Grace and Katherine, with image of the Rio card room, memories of some of the other players, recollections of hands played and won, did he feel ready to leave. He knew that he must have sat there for over half an hour, willing himself into a positive state of mind and one focused on the day ahead. Finally, he was ready.

Before leaving, he packed his case. He had no intention of returning to this room, or this hotel, again. He queued to pay his bill, a little more than he thought but a drop in the ocean compared to his combined winnings so far. He asked reception to ring the Bellagio and see if they could book him a room. They did, at twice the cost of his Treasure Island room.

When he arrived there by taxi twenty minutes later, he immediately upgraded to a suite. That act alone had a positive impact on his psyche. He left his bag with them, immediately grabbing the same taxi that somehow had agreed to wait for him. He gave instructions to head for the Rio and when they arrived, the cab driver received his biggest tip of the week. 

*

It was arranged that Mario would drive Grace to the airport. Her flight to Hollywood would allow her an evening's rest before her big day. At first she had not believed Joshua when he told her that she would be making her album, but his smiling face and the contract he had shown her had confirmed the fact. This was her big break and if the album was successful, she would have made it into the big time. 

Then he showed her the itinerary they had arranged for her promotional tour, with performances in all the major cities across America. This was a fantasy, a dream come true, and at long last she was going to reap the rewards of all her efforts over the years. Thanks to Lisa, Joshua and Samuel, her life was changing for the better and would never be the same again.

She packed early and rang Mario, asking him to collect her two hours ahead of the time they had previously arranged. She knew it was a good half an hour's drive to the tattoo parlour and she had one outstanding piece of business. She had thought about it long and hard the night before and decided that this would square the Vegas circle. When she told Joshua, he just laughed and gave her his blessing.

Although Grace's request was unusual, Mario followed her directions and he remained an interested spectator in the limousine as Grace headed through the familiar door, which appeared as if it had been the subject of one or two repairs since her last visit. The bearded giant of a man looked up from behind a counter as she walked a couple of paces across the wooden floorboard, a smile on her face.

"Hello, Sam," she huskily purred.

His eyes were wide open in surprise and he put down the magazine he was flicking through and returned her smile.

"Hello, Missy," his deep voice rumbled. "Now this is a surprise."

She stopped halfway between them and swiftly turned back to the door, swinging around the 'Closed' sign before turning the key to lock the door. 

"You told me that Samuel didn't allow you to fuck his Angels," she softly said. "But you didn't say anything about an Angel fucking you. Has that ever happened, Sam?"

He slowly shook his head, his tongue flicking across his large, thick lips.

"Good, I want this to be a first," she purred, her smile broadening.

She turned away from him again, but this time it was in a different direction. Her sandals made no noise as she walked across the bare, wooden floorboards towards the black curtain at the rear of the room. As she was about to walk through, she paused and turned back to look at him.

"Coming?" she softly said, raising her right eyebrow before turning back and walking through into the back room.

She smiled to herself as she heard Sam's heavy footsteps on the floorboards as he hurried to join her. She had dressed specifically for the occasion and by the time he entered, she was naked. She watched his eyes widen again as he saw her, and crooked a welcoming finger indicating that he should come closer. When he did, he attempted to reach for her but she shook her head and took a step back.

The momentary puzzlement on his grizzled face disappeared when she stepped back to him and pulled up the same sleeveless t-shirt with its faded design that he had worn during her previous visit. For his age, his exposed, muscular chest was in good condition. She ran her soft fingers down the tattoos on both arms and then deftly unfastened the top button of his faded black jeans. Maintaining eye contact, she unzipped him and slid to her knees as she gently tugged the jeans down his legs, allowing him to step out of both them and his boxers.

Throughout his undressing his penis had been steadily reacting to the situation and Grace could not help but smile to herself when she saw the size of him again. He was just as she remembered. She pushed him down into the wooden chair behind him and lowered her red, glossy lips, her small cheeks billowing as her eager mouth enveloped his thick shaft. She heard him gasp in pleasure as she closed her full lips around him and allowed her expert tongue to commence its work. 

Sam watched the incredible sight of her head gently rotating in his lap as she coated his entire shaft with her saliva. The suddenness of the situation had increased his arousal and he snaked his right hand down onto her moving head, his fingers tightly gripping into her silken, brown hair. She pleasured him for a few minutes, easing back until just the bulbous head of his penis remained in her mouth before taking his entire length again. When she felt he was close, her mouth left him and nibbled up his chest as she rose to her feet. 

Without a word, she leaned in and kissed him, his thick, bearded face tickling her skin. As she did, she raised first her right and then her left leg so that she straddled his body, pushing him back into the chair as she felt the round tip of his heavy erection rest against her opened vulva. She eased herself down on him, and both sets of breathing were replaced with helpless whimpers as she slowly accommodated his exquisitely, full girth into her hot, tight body. 

She looked down to see his mouth open as she fucked him, grinding and rotating her needy hips against him as she began to raise and lower herself on top of him. She dug her nails into his muscular chest as he hungrily squeezed her naked buttocks in his big hands, and looking down she saw the bearded face contort as he felt his own climax building. That encouraged her to increase the pace. After all, she had a plane waiting. 

She increased the intensity of her downward thrusts, her hips loudly smacking against his naked thighs, and she could tell from the throbbing of his penis that he was close. She loved the eroticism of what she was doing, providing this older man with an experience he would remember forever.

"Is this good, Sam?" she breathlessly asked, continuing the pace she had set.

"Yes. Yes, Missy," his dry mouth responded.

Her breath was warm and soft as she pulled his head down to hers for a lingering, caring kiss, her active tongue running around his mouth.

"Good," she whispered. "You like fucking Grace?"

As she teased him with her words, she made a point of rotating her shapely hips in small circles, eliciting a long gasp before she began to simply hump him again, rising up his shaft and then plunging back down on him again. She was in control and determined to make this large man cum inside her.

"That's good," she hoarsely rasped, feeling her climax approaching. That was not supposed to happen, she wanted to make him orgasm first.

"Oh fuck," she gasped. "That's so good, Sam, so good...."

She realised that she could not hold back and with a cry, she reached her shuddering orgasm a few seconds before old Sam climaxed too. His big, bulky body trembled as he came, his hands tightly gripping her firm buttocks as her hands tightly wrapped themselves around his neck.

Ten minutes later she was back in the limousine and Mario was driving her to the airport. She purred contentedly as she glanced at her watch. It was just before eleven.

*

One hour before the noon start and Daniel had sat down for coffee with Norman Chad. He had explained to his new friend a little of what had happened that morning, though naturally enough without any of the detail. Chad had been a great help, talking him around from his still befuddled state and providing a few pearls of wisdom, forcing into him the need to blank everything out of his mind. For as many hours as it took, he had said, focus on only one thing. 

Daniel had quietly thanked the television commentator for helping him put things in perspective and felt that where he had once been anxious and on edge, he was now calm and focused. Whilst his life away from poker had been turned upside down in the space of a few hours, that very fact brought with it the benefit that he had nothing left to focus on other than his poker. 

Right now, peeking at the first hand dealt to him, Daniel pushed everything else out of his mind. He kept telling himself that he was the Chip leader going into the Final Table of the Main Event at the World Series of Poker. This was everything he had dreamed of and that was all that mattered. The pace of play continued as it had been in the final two hours of the previous day, tentative and slow. And that was exactly as Chad had told Daniel it would be. Patience, he had counselled.

It stayed that way throughout the first session and all through the second session too. Four hours into the day and there had been little real action. But it began to change soon after the start of the third session. The Alabama Cowboy, Hoyte Corkins, was on the button and raised with Ace-Ten of hearts. Minh Nguyen called in the small blind, as did Daniel with Seven-Six of diamonds in the big blind. The flop gave him a pair of sevens and a six on the turn gave him two pair. 

The Cowboy went all-in when he paired his Ace on the river and Daniel had increased his chip stack further whilst eliminating the first of his eight opponents.

David Sklansky was the short stack and two hands later he went all-in against Marcel Luske. He left when his pocket sevens failed to hold up and the worst Daniel could finish was now seventh. Play slowed as they approached the dinner break and Daniel was sitting on three million in chips. But so was Marcel, and both Gavin Smith and Allen Cunningham were also in good shape. 

Although Daniel decided not to tangle with Marcel at this stage, when the Dutchman made a small raise, in early position, Daniel called with Ten-Nine of hearts. Dan Harrington called behind him in the small blind, not something Daniel was expecting, as Action Dan was pretty low on chips. 

The flop came Nine-Five-Two, giving Daniel's top pair.

Harrington checked and Luske bet another 100,000. Daniel tried to put the Dutchman on a hand but somehow failed to do so. Luske was an affable character and he hummed again to himself and the table in general as he dropped his upside down sunglasses over his eyes. Daniel was not going to lay top pair down but as a result of his uncertainty, he simply called. 

To his chagrin, so did Action Dan behind him.

The turn was a Five, pairing the board. Harrington went into action, immediately pushing all his chips into the middle. Luske called. Daniel was sitting with two pair, but knew he was behind and folded. 

Harrington turned over pocket Fives, for a set. Luske flipped over his pocket Twos for a full house. Unless he hit another five, or the board paired, Harrington was out. The Ace on the river confirmed the fact. Now there were six.




Vegas Ch. 11



As each player was knocked out, the table took a short break to accommodate the ESPN television crew. That allowed the remaining players to take a breather whilst the departed player was interviewed. At each break, Norman Chad made a point of talking to Daniel, making him laugh with some quip or other whilst all the time telling him to relax and play solid. Daniel didn't tell the little man how much that meant to him, but knew how invaluable it was.

After talking to Chad, Daniel stroked his crystal six times. That was the same number as there were players remaining. He had no idea as to why, but once he did so after Hoyte became the first player to fall, he decided he had to continue until, inevitably, he was knocked out. 

Three hands after the restart, Sam Farha left in sixth place. The 2003 runner-up tried to push Gavin Smith off a hand and the Canadian called with a lot of outs, hitting both a straight and a flush on the river. The crystal received five more strokes.

After almost six hours of play, the blinds had reached 20,000-40,000 and with the increasing antes, that meant a significant starting pot in each hand. Smith made a small raise on the button and Daniel, in the small blind, called with King-Ten. Cunningham, whose stack had been reducing in line with his run of cold cards, was in the big blind and he pushed all-in. 

Smith had been making a move and immediately folded. Daniel pushed himself back in his chair, looking closely at Cunningham who was displaying nothing other than the now familiar nervous twitch of his nose. He was caught in two minds. King-Ten wasn't the best of hands, especially against an all-in. But with his low chip stack, he knew that Cunningham could be making a move with almost anything. 

He tried to work it through in his mind as he stared at Cunningham, who was casually sitting there in his usual style, making it simply impossible to read a single thing into his deadpan exterior. If he called and was right, Daniel would be back in the chip lead. Call and lose, and he would be in fourth chip position. The easy, perhaps sensible move would be to lay the hand down. 

But with the odd exception, Daniel felt his instincts had proved fairly accurate so far and they told him he was ahead. He gave a sigh as he almost reluctantly called, turning over his cards as he did so. The flicker in Cunningham's eyes told Daniel what he needed to know, even before the professional turned over his Jack-Ten. That was even better than Daniel hoped. Cunningham had only one live card.

The flop was Queen-Jack-Two. Daniel's eyes narrowed as he stared at the cards. Cunningham had only three outs and he had hit one of them. You would not have been able to tell from Cunningham's demeanour. He sat quietly, not moving at all, other than that familiar twitch of the nose. 

Daniel called out "King" before the turn, only to see the two of diamonds. He felt his chest tighten slightly as they awaited the river, thinking, King, King, King. 

It was a Nine.

Damn, thought Daniel. He should not have made that call. He looked up at Cunningham who had stood up and was shaking hands with Gavin Smith, before doing the same with Marcel Luske. Daniel looked back down at the cards and it took several seconds to register. The nine had given him a straight. He had sucked out and Cunningham was out in fifth position.

It was another hour before the field was reduced further. Minh Nguyen, the short stack by quite a distance, pushed all-in on a stone cold bluff and Gavin Smith's pocket fives held up to reduce the field to three. It was six o'clock in the evening and they had been playing for six hours. And Daniel, Gavin Smith and Marcel Luske were all thinking of only one thing...... 

*

The clock struck six in the background but Lauren was not aware of the time. At that moment a strawberry blonde was lying between her legs using her tongue in a way that even Kay and Ming had not quite been able to. She was getting more used to the cameras around her now and the feelings the blonde was engendering had her in her own little world, eyes tightly shut, moaning words of encouragement whilst she wrapped her feet around her lover's slim back.

She could not quite believe how much she craved sex. Of course, she had always loved the act, but never in such an aggressive, constant, lustful, animalistic sort of way. She loved sex and she craved sex. And thanks to Kay, she now had the best of both worlds. This was her very first adult film and to star in it was beyond her wildest dreams. The money was fantastic, much more than she would have anticipated, and she knew that a certain type of fame would go with it.

But it was the sex that was the key ingredient. This was a way of fulfilling her sexual cravings, with a variety of people and in a variety of ways that she had never previously dreamt of. And if she performed well, Kay had told her, she had the potential to become of the adult film icons, earning mega bucks and living a mega lifestyle. And she knew she was performing well. There was a little acting involved, but if getting and giving orgasms was the key, she was up for it.

Ming was also starring in the movie, though with a smaller part to Lauren, so Kay had told her. But she had found that having Ming with her on set was a great comfort, settling her nerves and guiding her through exactly what was expected. This morning she had fucked the brains out of an apparently well known porn star and size of his penis had been impressive, as had his stamina.

But right now, this sweet, delightful, nineteen year old strawberry blonde nymph was intent on providing Lauren with an altogether different kind of pleasure. She produced a vibrator from somewhere and turned the base. Lauren stared at it as she heard the low buzzing sound and watched as the shaft started to vibrate. The teenager slid it slowly in and out of her mouth to lubricate it, but they both knew that was for effect as Lauren's body was already well oiled. 

She gently caressed the vibrator around Lauren's labia, deliberately teasing her, gradually building up the sensation. The moment the tip touched Lauren's clitoris, she let out a low groan and that was a signal for the strawberry blonde to increase the power and begin to ease it inside the writhing woman. As she did, she dipped her head to allow her sweet mouth take hold of Lauren's hardening clitoris, alternating between flicking and sucking the shiny, red bud as Lauren's hips undulated against her face. 

Just as Lauren felt her orgasm approach, her lover eased herself away, reaching beside her and replacing the vibrator with a long dildo which sported a rounded, bulbous head on each end. She gently rubbed one end along Lauren's vulva, eliciting little moans as she moved the head in and out of the aroused woman. Lauren moved her hips back and forward as the strawberry blonde slowly took her time to gradually slide the dildo into the wet body opening up to her. 

Satisfied, she moved her head forward and began tracing her tongue all over the other end of the shaft, before wrapping her lips around it, beginning her sucking motions whilst her fingers found Lauren's shining clitoris. She timed her hand and mouth movements for maximum effect as Lauren's lust-filled eyes followed every movement. It was only when she heard the growling noises that indicated the blonde's impending orgasm that she pulled her head away.

She immediately directed the other end of the dildo to her own labia, carefully easing it inside her nineteen year old body. She took Lauren's hand and placed it on the dildo shaft, both women sighing with the sensation as they pushed themselves forward and closer to one another. The young girl settled a hand beside Lauren's and demonstrated how to move to achieve maximum effect.


The teenage blonde began to rhythmically pump her hips and her flashing eyes met Lauren's, encouraging her to follow her movements. As she did, the two women began to push and pull on the long snake-like tool as they began to fuck each and Lauren could not help but let out a long groan of arousal. 

"Is that good, baby?" the strawberry blonde murmured, her eyes alight with her own arousal.

"Fuck, yes, Leanne," Lauren gasped.

She watched through half closed eyes as the dildo worked between their bodies, the delicious sensations building inside her already lubricating body. Leanne was working Lauren so well that there was no need for any direction from the director and the two cameras moved around to capture every movement as the pace increased. She slid a hand to the back of Lauren's neck, pulling her head closer to take an urgent kiss, their tongues fighting between their mouths as their hips increased the speed of their thrusts.

Both sets of superb, young breasts were bouncing deliciously and Leanne took one hand and cupped Lauren's right breast, before lowering her head to suck on the hard, long nipple. Lauren threw her head back as the delicious sensations coursed through her and let out a long moan as she felt her orgasm approach. Leanne knew she was close to bringing this new star to a third orgasm that afternoon and slid her lips from her breast to her neck, licking the sweat forming from their movements.

"You gonna cum again for Leanne, baby?" she asked.

Lauren could only moan again in answer as she thrust her hips in some abandon.

"Good girl," Leanne encouraged, returning her lips to suck on one hard, expectant nipple and then the other. 

Lauren wrapped her long arms around Leanne's slender neck to heave her closer and deeper into her as the end quickly approached, sweating wildly now as she felt herself begin to shake as she climaxed, whilst Leanne continued to thrust urgently against her, eager to encourage every last ounce of sensation from the out of control woman beside her. 

Then Leanne climaxed too, her first of the day, and she screamed out as she felt her orgasm overwhelm her, her fit young body trembling violently against Lauren.  

*

For the first time at this stage in the history of the World Series of Poker, the tension had left the table. Smith had a tremendous personality with a real sense of the ridiculous and Marcel Luske was a good-natured Dutchman prone to little bursts of singing. The two of them began a conversation about various songs that were appropriate for a poker table and the genial banter had the two of them chuckling away as they played. 

Daniel was caught up in the humorous, teasing repartee and could not help but laugh along. He had been feeling the pace over the last hour or so. The tiredness was catching up with him and thoughts of Grace and Katherine were starting to flick through his mind, affecting his concentration. But remarkably, with these two cracking jokes either side of him, he found that the pressure, anxiety and stress had suddenly left him completely and he found a sense of serenity, an inner peace. 

After all, the worst that could happen was that he would finish third in the main event, and the two and a half million dollars that went along with it.

A few hands later Daniel became involved in a hand with the genial Canadian. In the small blind, he limped in with Ace-Eight off-suit. The flop was Ace-Queen-Eight. 

Daniel bet the minimum and Smith called. Daniel put him on an Ace or a Queen, though the amiable Canadian had shown he was capable of playing just about anything.

The turn brought a six. Surely that could not help him, Daniel thought?  He raised his bet to half the pot and again, Smith called.

The river brought a King. Daniel checked, hoping to entice a bet and Smith obliged, raising half the pot again. Despite playing for the raise, Daniel found himself in two minds and cursed himself for handing Smith the initiative. He stared at the Canadian who stared back, winking at him as he did so.

"Think I got you this time," Smith said, his eyes sparkling mischievously.

"Just think?" asked Daniel.

"I'm pretty sure," came the response, whilst Luske's eyes followed both players.

"Probably," replied Daniel. "But my check on the river was supposed to elicit a bet and now that I've got one, I'd better call."

Smith immediately turned over his King-Queen, having hit two pair on the river, but winced when he saw Daniel's Ace-Eight.

"Nice hand, kid," he sighed, reaching down and taking a long sip of water from the bottle beside him.

That hand took Daniel to a little over four million in chips with Smith around half a million behind. Luske had a little over half a million and Daniel decided to go after him. When both Smith and Luske checked, Daniel saw a shiny black Ace. That in itself was worthy of a raise but squeezing out his other card, he found that his prayers had been answered. It was another black Ace. 

Generally speaking, Daniel went with the theory that you won a little or lost a lot with pocket rockets but in this situation, with just three players remaining, there was no doubt that they were huge.

He led out with a 150,000-chip bet, hoping that one of the two players who were watching his every move would think that he was trying to steal. That way, they might try and come over the top and he knew exactly what his next move would then be. After the Canadian tossed in his cards, Luske thought a while and then just called.

"Okay, I'll play with you," he said in that soft, accented voice of his, his smile as warm as ever. He dropped the sunglasses he always wore upside down, over his eyes.

The flop brought Ace-Three-Seven; two diamonds. 

Daniel's heart skipped a beat. Trip aces! Those diamonds meant he had to push hard but he would have done that anyway. He bet the pot. Luske looked at him, still smiling. His next move was unexpected and stunned Daniel. He pushed all-in. Daniel called immediately, knowing he was ahead, and believing Luske had a flush draw, but hoping it was Ace-Seven. 

His saw that his expectation was correct as the Dutchman turned over the King-Queen of diamonds. Now it was in the lap of the poker gods and they chose not to prolong the suspense. The turn was the two of diamonds. 

Unless the board paired then Daniel's set of Aces was a distant second. The five of clubs confirmed that fact. The Dutchman had doubled up and Daniel had been on the wrong end of a race for the first time in a while.

But unfortunately for the Dutchman he gave back half the chips he had won only two hands later, when Daniel flopped a straight, but despite both Daniel and Smith pushing at him, Luske managed to maintain his stack at between half to three quarters of a million. Still, Daniel felt it was only a matter of time and he badly wanted Luske's chips to give him a small lead when it went head to head. 

An hour later and Daniel hit top pair with Nine-Eight and a flop of Nine-Two-Four. Luske pushed all in and Daniel went through all the combinations in his head. The two and the four were clubs and he hoped he was right in putting him on a flush draw as he called the bet. He was. 

"I always hit my flush against you," said the good natured, Dutchman, pushing the sunglasses to the top of his head as he stood up, legs astride his seat. 

"Not this time," Daniel responded, more in hope than any real conviction. 

The turn was the five of hearts, no good to either man, and when the river brought a diamond, Luske was out of the tournament in third place. 

"You were right," he said to Daniel. "Not this time!" 

He stood up and shook both players' hands like the gentleman he undoubtedly was, wishing them both the best before waving to the crowd and leaving to be interviewed. 

*

Daniel took a walk away from the table, away from the room. This was all a dream. Grace, Katherine, the World Series of Poker, the Final Table, the final two. All a dream. He walked from one room to another to try and stop his suddenly throbbing head from bursting. As he walked along a short corridor, a very attractive older woman waved at him for the nearby bank of phones.

He smiled at her, but she waved him across. Clearly a poker fan. He headed over, thinking this could be the very first time he was asked for an autograph. As he approached, he saw her fingers fiddle with the top button of her already half unbuttoned blouse. Against all the odds, he felt his penis respond. That was quite a cleavage.

"Hi," she cheerily greeted him. "You look lonely?"

He smiled, thinking of how he was alone in the great sea of people in the Amazon room. "You could say that," he softly said.

"I thought so," she said, returning his smile. "I can always tell."

Daniel nodded politely and began to turn away. She stopped him in his tracks.

"Wanna fuck?"

His mouth dropped open and his penis reared in his pants. 

"I... I don't have time," he stupidly said, adding. "I'm playing poker."

"That's all right babe," she responded, grabbing his hand. "We won't take long."

He looked around as she pulled him into the ladies restroom. It was empty and she pushed him into the nearest stall, locking the door behind her. Her experienced hands unfastened his belt and unzipped him. Dropping to her knees, she looked up into his face.

"You got two hundred bucks?"

He nodded and she smiled, a soft smile that lit up her face. She must have been in her late thirties but she had certainly retained her looks. Pushing a strand of black hair from her forehead, she lowered her head and licked her tongue down his shaft, and then began to lick his testicles, urged on by his harsh intake of breath. Then she used her hands to cup his testicles as she returned to his shaft, planting soft wet kisses on his hardness. 

He knew he was over-running but this experienced woman was an expert and instead of thinking about leaving, he instead started stroking her hair. Encouraged, she took his purple helmet into her mouth, swirling her tongue around it as he started to groan.

"That good, honey?" she asked, but was not expecting an answer.

Instead, she increased the friction as she sucked him in and out of her mouth, stroking him with her soft fist as her other hand cupped and gently caressed his testicles. As he watched her head bob up and down, he felt himself shudder and then he whimpered aloud as she licked down his thick shaft and took his testicles into her mouth, one at a time, tenderly sucking on them.

She smiled up at him as she returned her tongue to the head of his erection before swallowing him into her mouth again and beginning the now familiar bob of her head. She continued stroking him with her hand, sucking harder as she felt him shudder and cry out before firing into her sweet, enticing mouth, swallowing everything he had to offer.

"That worth two hundred baby?" she asked, rising to her feet.

He pulled his pants up and tidied himself, before pulling a five hundred dollar note from his wallet. As her eyes widened, he kissed her soft lips.

"I gotta get back," he gasped.

As he rushed to the table, he wondered if this was the first time one of the head to head contestants at the final table had ever marked their achievement in such a way. Smiling to himself as he hurried back, he realised his headache had disappeared.

*

"Thought you'd conceded," the genial Canadian said as he returned.

Daniel just smiled. He could think of nothing to say.



"Okay, you and me, kid," Smith continued, with that ever present smile beaming at Daniel. "Why don't we save a little time and toss a coin for it?" 

"That's probably my best chance," responded Daniel, as the event was halted whilst the ten million first prize was brought out and neatly stacked in a pyramid of one hundred dollar bills on the table next to them. 

"Half of that is going to be yours," Smith quipped, referring to the second place prize.

"Probably," responded Daniel, with a wide grin, thinking that for most of this day he would have settled for that amount. 




Vegas Ch. 11



They played for another hour without either being able to establish any sort of advantage. Both were tired, not just from the day but also the immense mental strain of the situation. Daniel had the pressure of trying to beat one of the best, but then no-one expected him to win. Smith had the added pressure of playing against a rookie, but had the advantage of being much the better player. In the end, it was fate that decided the outcome and in the cruellest way possible. 

Daniel was dealt Ace-King, both hearts. He made a sizeable raise and Smith flat called. The flop came King-King-Eight and Daniel knew this was his chance, probably the best chance he would have, to win the title. Unless Smith had pocket eights he was the massive favourite and the odds of him holding that pocket pair were not great. Daniel made the same sized bet as he had done pre-flop and Smith thought for a while before he made the call.

The turn card was a three, no good to Daniel and unlikely to help Smith. Daniel briefly wondered whether to check and allow Smith to take a shot at it, but that would be a wasted opportunity if Smith checked behind him. Instead, he went the other way and bet half the pot. As Smith thought, Daniel tried to put him on a hand. A pocket pair perhaps, giving him two pair? Or more likely the other King? With an inferior kicker?

As he thought, Smith looked up. "Okay, kid. It's time," he said, his smile hidden behind a deadpan exterior. "All-in."

The buzz of anticipation around the room was unbelievable, impossible to describe. Despite the lateness of the hour, the room was packed and as he glanced up, Daniel saw Johnny Chan sitting next to Scotty Nyguyen. His mouth went dry. Those two greats were watching him at the final table and not the other way around. That seemed so weird.

He looked back at the cards and was unsure how to feel. This was the position he had wanted to find himself in. There was no doubt that he was going to call, but what on earth did Smith have? The three gave a possible flush draw but it was unlikely that Smith would risk the entire tournament with that. 

Daniel had the advantage in chips, so a successful call would win the whole event. And if he lost he would still have around a million chips, but he would be unlikely to be able to fight back from that position against someone of Smith's quality. Some instinct told him what Smith was playing and he shouted it out as he made the call and turned over his own cards.

"King-Queen," he shouted. "Show me King-Queen."

He knew from the triumphant look on Smith's face that he was in trouble, even before the little Canadian immediately turned over his pocket eights. He had hit his full house on the flop and the poker gods had given Daniel just about the only hand guaranteed to lead to an all-in confrontation. Daniel felt devastated and felt his entire body slump. 

Smith, on the other hand, stood there quietly, showing what a class act he was.

"Nice hand," muttered, Daniel managing to find the words from somewhere.

"It's not over yet, kid," Smith replied, his face still deadpan.

He was right. The river was another three. That gave Daniel a superior full house.

It seemed like the whole room erupted, everyone either cheering or groaning apart from the two protagonists. Smith looked at Daniel and a smile flickered across his face. Daniel shook his head. It must only have been a few seconds whilst they stared at each other but to Daniel, it seemed much longer. Then Smith made his way around the table and firmly shook Daniel's hand.

"I'm so sorry," Daniel said. "I sucked out."

"Yes," responded the Canadian. "But you know what, kid? You played great."

*

Daniel woke up in his Bellagio suite around noon the next day. It had been in the early hours of the morning before he had returned to the hotel. He had a huge feeling of satisfaction at what he had achieved and for a few moments after he awoke, whilst he lay there peeking out across the room through still sleepy eyes, he recalled the key moments of play at the Final Table.

But just as he began to smile to himself, his mind jumped to Grace. And Katherine. And Lauren, too. The satisfaction was replaced with an intense feeling of emptiness. This was not how it was supposed to be. 

He felt a stirring in the bed beside him and jerked his head to the side. It was the woman that had serviced him in the ladies rest room. How the hell...?

He lowered his head into his hands, wondering what the future held.

If only he knew.......



THE END



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