“Oh.” It was the only thing Maisie’s toasted brain cells could come up with to say.
“Have you played before?”
“Uh… does a sorority event count?”
“Sure, why not?” Drew laughed. “I should’ve guessed you were a sorority girl in college.”
Until I had to drop out,Maisie thought, but she maintained her smile. “Refresh my memory.”
“Okay.” Drew turned to the table, switching from seduction mode to something approaching businesslike, focused on the task at hand. “The white chips are a buck. Reds are five. Green’s twenty-five. And black are a hundred. You need to place a bet on the ante and blind.”
“How much?” Maisie asked because her other question—Huh?—wasn’t nearly as eloquent.
“Three reds each.”
Maisie did the math in her head. Three times five was fifteen, times two was thirty. It was way more than she would ever bet of her own money on anything, but Drew had given her the chips, so she did as instructed rather than risk getting scolded. Maisie had to stop her jaw from dropping as Drew put three green chips on each. “Hey! That’s a hundred and fifty dollars. Must be one helluva ranch you’ve got.”
“As my daddy says, go big or go home.”
“Your daddy, huh? Is he named Daddy Warbucks?” Even though part of Maisie was horrified by the prospect of anyone losing so much money, she couldn’t deny it was a little bit thrilling, too. She wondered how much the winnings would be, if Drew won.
At that moment, Drew made eye contact and winked. Maisie could feel the impact of it zinging all the way to her core.
Holy shit.
None of those guys in the bars had come close to causing a reaction like that. What it meant, Maisie didn’t particularly care. She was too busy enjoying how it felt to think about anything else.
The dealer gave each player two cards. Maisie checked hers, spying a two of hearts and a black queen. The dealer placed five cards facedown on the table. Maisie checked her cards again to ensure she remembered them.
“Now what?” Maisie whispered out of the side of her mouth. When it came to gambling, she wasn’t exactly a smooth operator.
“You need to decide if you want to bet more. Do you?”
Maisie shook her head. “I don’t want to risk more of your money.”
“I wouldn’t have given it to you if I was worried, but you can check to stay in, not raise the bet.”
“Sounds good. I’ll do that.”
Drew chuckled. “You’re a lot more conservative without a fruity rum drink in you.”
A cocktail server appeared, not the one Maisie knew, but Drew appeared to be on good terms with her, taking the beer she offered and setting a generous tip on the tray.
“Did you want something?” the server asked, but Maisie held up a hand to indicate no. She needed to keep a clear head when there was this much money on the line.
“Time for the flop.” Drew sipped her beer.
“I’ve never heard beer called that before.” With as much as Maisie giggled, no one would believe she hadn’t had a drink. It was almost like being in Drew’s presence made her tipsy.
Drew flashed a smile. “No. The flop is the first three cards.”
As if to demonstrate, the dealer flipped over three cards.
“What should I do?” Maisie whispered.
With the patience of a preschool teacher, Drew studied Maisie’s cards. “You have a pair of twos. You can raise now, but only two times your ante bet.”
Two times… what? Maisie had lost track. Her heart went pitter-patter as she asked, “Should I?”