plural

I arrived at the casino, had a glass of champagne
and sat down to play, we played for an hour.
the game went delightfully
obscene sums of money passed back and forth
[not my money thankfully]
I was offered the bank
but realized i would be unable to cover
the amounts being bet and passed with a coy smile

we broke for dinner at eleven
I was up a small amount and in good cheer

dinner was nothing short of magnificent
better even than fairly decent sex

I started with seared asparagus in a delicate herb sauce
followed by a lamb moussaka that was simply to die for
lamb as tender and smooth as that small dimple
in the uppermost thighs of a delicious women

followed by an exquisite sampling of cheeses for desert
an orgasmic brie
an almost violent roquefort
and a most subtle reggiano

all accompanied by
a most suble but divine beaujolais

I insisted on paying

granted it was my hosts money
which I used to pay the bill
[the dinner for four, his wife and daughter accompanied us]
[probably cost more than your rent]
[as it used up much of my winnings]

I excused myself for a brief moment
to check my email as the markets had recently closed
back home and I wanted to see if a deal
I had been working on closed today or not
[it hadnt so more thumb twiddling for me]

then it was back to the table for another hour
only this time it was just my host and I

we played a back and forth game
tossing chips of inordinate value
[my perspective only of course]
back and forth accross the table
neither of us gaining much ground

until after an hour or so
the game nearing its end

my host offered to raise the stakes
above what I was able to cover

i must apologize but i dont have five zeros
to gamble carelessly, even on baccarat

so I made him an offer
[of the sort he could not refuse]
[of course]

i put up my Ducati
against his hand but refused his money
[if I am going to risk something which means much to me]
[i will not accept a bet which means nothing to my opponent]

instead I insisted on his permission
to take his daughter out dancing for the evening
[i am a gentlemen, nothing other than permission was wagered]

"information is not power
those who say so are either naive or scurrilous
power is power
and information is particularly useful to those with power"

on this one occasion
I would prove that maxim incorrect
you see
i had the information
[that his daughter was particularly precious]
[and he was excessively protective, as he should be]
where as he had an excess of power

and on this particular occasion
i felt reckless

he raised his eyebrows seeing through my play
to bring the game to the next level
one of personal consequences
[of course if I had not been a person]
[of appropriate breeding, such a bet would be beyond question]
[actually it would never have come up]
[as I would not have been at the table]

as is my habit with hands I cant afford to lose
[a superstition perhaps]
I refrained from looking at my hand

my opponent smiled broadly
turned over an ace and a seven [an eight]
I swallowed hard and flipped over my first card
a jack of spades [zero]
a soft curse might have escaped my lips
although I am sure it was really
just a simple prayer to bacchus

i flipped my second card and shook my head
my stomach churned, my opponent smiled
and i reminded myself that I really shouldnt gamble with things
I am not prepared to lose

even if the fates had decided to be kind to me this day

my second card
a nine of diamonds [natural nine]
[best hand in the game]

We shook hands, my stomach calmed itself
and retired to chambers for a drink
an exquisite brandy
[of more than three times my years]
which i could never afford
[or more accurately justify]
given my current circumstances
but of course i wasnt paying

permission already granted
I asked his daughter out to the disco
[thats what they call them on the continent]
[nightclubs tend to be of an entire different sort]

she accepted
and we hit the clubs

it had been some time
since I entertained a debutante
[i use the term loosely]
[as she was nearly my age]
[and had her coming out years ago]
but
the appropriate skills
were still in working order
although it did exhaust the remainder
of my winnings

all things considered
a delightful evening was had by all
even if it was a bit more
exciting than I usually prefer

we danced until dawn
and parted with a chaste goodnight kiss
and I retired for the night.