by P. G. Van
“I call,” I declared and added more to the pile of chips in front of me.
“I can’t wait to see your hand, Meera.” Ann said giggling and added, “And I can’t wait to see Nick’s face when he loses all the money.”
“What happened to my loving supportive sister?” Nick teased winking at Paul.
Ann, Raj, and Sam all had small but decent hands and ended up getting booted out of that round.
“What do you have love?” Nick asked and I responded, “You first.”
He smiled and asked with confidence, “So, do you have a straight or a flush?”
“I have a flush,” I declared victoriously.
Nick smiled and said, “You got me.”
“What? You really were bluffing?” I asked for my clarification and he responded shaking his head, “You will never find out.”
Seven rounds later, Nick, Srini, and I spilt the pot with me at first place, and Nick and Srini tied at second place.
“Now I know I need to watch out for my tigress,” Nick whispered in my ear as he got up to get a drink.
“Who is in for another round of poker?” I asked cheerfully.
“I am in if we are all playing for a hundred bucks,” Nick called out from the kitchen.
“I am in,” Sam declared, and I jumped in agreeing to play for the higher amount with the confidence that I could win again.
“I have one condition for this round,” Nick said as he sat down next to me and added, “We only play for the first place. We fight it out till there is one and only one winner.”
The group cheered and agreed and I added, “We need a limit on the pot.”
“No, we don’t,” Nick objected.
“Nick, stop being a bully. We need to stop cash bets after a certain amount,” I urged and added, “How about we stop at five hundred dollars.”
“We stop cash bets at two grand,” Nick declared.
“Oh no, that’s too much. A thousand dollars and that’s still way too much,” I suggested and the group agreed that a thousand dollar limit was reasonable and at that point we would decide to split the pot.
Three hours and over twenty hands later, Nick and I were back to reading each other on what was the final round for the night. As Nick distributed the cards for us and set the pack aside, Ann got up to come sit behind me and said, “I want you to beat the crap out of my baby brother, Meera.”
“Hey are the women ganging up on me now for being good at the game?” Nick teased.
I slowly picked up my cards and was thrilled to see that I had pocket queens. I silently placed my cards back on the table and chose to check the game, and Nick immediately raised twenty dollars and I gave in to the bet.
He then drew the three cards, and I had a tough time containing my excitement as Nick turned over a queen of hearts and two tens. I contained my excitement that I already had a full house. I slowly lifted my gaze to find Nick looking at me with an enigmatic expression as if he was trying to look through me.
By now, all the men had gathered around Nick hoping to catch a glimpse of his cards, but Nick would not let anyone touch his cards.
“I check,” I said finding it hard to maintain a steady voice.
Ann leaned in and said, “I can tell you have a decent hand, why aren’t you raising?”
“I want to see what he has,” I whispered back smiling at her.
“I raise,” Nick said and added a hundred dollars to the pot.
The group gasped at the bold bet right after the flop.
Encouraged by the combination I had and the confidence I got from the high pile of chips sitting in front of me, I said, “I’ll see your hundred dollars and raise you two hundred dollars.”
“Way to go, Meera,” Nick’s mom cheered from the sidelines.
“Now it is getting very interesting,” Nick said as he matched my bet and said in a teasing tone, “Sweetheart, don’t hold your breath for the next card.”
I looked in disbelief when another queen showed up on the turn. I took in a slow and soft breath to calm down my racing heart when I realized I had a four of a kind and with queens.
The pot was starting to get very close to the max limit of a thousand dollars that we had agreed as Nick turned the last card of the community cards.
Even with the jack of hearts that Nick had overturned, I was very confident that I had the best hand possible and based on how Nick was betting, I guessed that either he was playing with a flush of hearts or at best a full house with the two queens and the tens.
“Nick, we are at a thousand dollars in the pot and we can no longer put in any bets. Let’s turn over our cards and split the money,” I suggested.
“That’s not what we agreed to do. We need to play till we have one winner,” Nick objected.
“We can’t have any more bets so we have to split,” I clarified.
Nick chuckled and said, “The deal was that we could not place cash bets after the pot is a thousand dollars, but we can have other kinds of bets, right?”
I looked at him with a puzzled expression.
“You can have non-cash bets like, you could throw me into the pool on a day of your choice,” Nick offered.
“I like these bets already,” Ann chimed in and encouraged me to continue.
“You go first,” I urged.
“Okay, here is my bet on top of the thousand dollar pot,” he said in a teasing tone and added looking at Ann, “Ann can throw me into the pool once on a day of her choice.”
Ann shrieked with joy hugging me and said, “You have to win this for me.”
“What is your bet, Sameera,” Nick teased.
“You can throw me into the pool twice on one day,” I said looking into his eyes.
“Did you just raise the bet honey?” Nick mocked.
“Maybe, what do you have next?” I mocked back.
“I will watch three back-to-back chick flicks with all you ladies,” Nick suggested.
I shook my head and said, “Three Bollywood movies with no subtitles.”
Nick’s dad cheered and said, “That’s a better bet.”
“I agree to the three Bollywood movies bet,” Nick confirmed.
“I will perform a dance of your choice at Sam’s and Reetu’s wedding,” I said in a firm voice looking into Nick’s voice.
“Correction, you will dance with me for four songs of my choice at the reception,” Nick pushed back.
“It’s getting really hot in here,” Nate chuckled.
“I agree to dance with you,” I confirmed.
‘Oh my, this is getting to be so interesting,” Ann said looking at me and added, “Who is keeping track of these bets.”
“I am writing them down on a sheet of paper,” Reetu said and Raj confirmed that he was writing the bets down as well.
“My next bet is that I will accompany mom to the temple once,” Nick said sending shock waves through the room.
“Nick, really?” Nick’s mom asked with excitement.
“Hang on Mom; it needs to be better than that,” I said looking at Nick’s mom and added, “You will accompany mom to a classical dance performance.”
“What?” Nick said in disbelief and I added, “A classical dance performance of her choice.”
“Meera, you are the best beta (child),” Nick’s mom said putting her hand on my cheek.
“Thanks mom. Anything for you!!” I said looking at Nick with a devious look on my face.
“I agree, what is your next for your bet?” Nick prompted.
“I will make dinner for everyone all by myself with no help,” I declared.
“No deal. I know you can do that. I will accept the bet if Ann is to cook dinner without any help,” Nick challenged.
Before I could tell him not to pull Ann into our bets, Ann said, “You have a deal, and I will make Indian food.”
Paul let out a low whistle and said, “Nice, honey. I like your spirit.”
“Are you ready for my next bet?” Nick asked looking
at me and said, “I will stop riding my motorcycle.”
“Meera, you have to win this hand,” Nick’s mom said with excitement.
“What do you have to match that bet?” Nick challenged me.
I looked at him wondering what would match up to his love for riding the motorcycle. Nate and Ann had a few suggestions around having me watch the Lord of the Rings trilogy or me having to take continuous shots of tequila.
Nick leaned in closer to me and said, “I have a suggestion and if you don’t agree to that, all bets are off. We go back to scratch without non-cash bets” and added in a husky voice, “This is the last round of bets as well.”
“What is your suggestion?” I asked suspecting that he had thought about something devious.
“The bet is for me to be able to kiss my wife anytime anywhere,” Nick said and paused looking at my expression.
“Why is that a huge bet?” Ann asked curiously.
Nick smiled and repeated, “The bet is for me to be able to kiss my wife anytime anywhere and she should not object. Do we have a deal?”
I took a deep breath feeling my cheeks on fire. Nick looked at me and said, “If you agree to the bet, you need to state the bet in your own words.”
“Meera, this is the easiest bet by far. Please agree and think about his expression when he goes into the pool,” Ann shrieked with excitement.
I leaned over to Nate and Ann and whispered, “I have a four of a kind with queens so I am pretty confident that I have a better hand and from his expression, it does seem like he is bluffing but with this kind of bet, I am wondering if he really has a better hand.”
“I doubt it,” Ann whispered and added, “The only thing that can beat your hand is a straight flush and based on the community cards, he is playing with a flush of hearts or at best a full house.”
I bubbled with confidence when Ann echoed my reasoning and decided to take the risk especially with the bets he had placed were a lot more tempting than what he was asking for in the latest bet.
“I agree to your bet, Nick,” I said in a bold voice.
“I need to hear it, and the scribes need to write it down,” Nick mocked.
I took a deep breath and said in a soft voice, “My husband can kiss me anytime, anywhere he likes, and I will not object.”
“Yes,” Nick said victoriously and asked, “What do you have sweetheart?”
I looked at him and slowly flipped one of the two queens as I looked at Nick’s face.
The group cheered and said in unison, “Full house.”
“Oh no there’s more,” Ann said with excitement.
“Nick, you are doomed bro,” Srini declared when I turned over the other queen and smiled at Nick. Nick’s face was expression-less, but his eyes had a very enigmatic expression that I couldn’t decipher.
“Nick, when are we going to the dance performance?” Nick’s mom teased when she saw Nick’s expressionless face after I showed my hand.
‘Sorry, Ma. Not happening,” he said and he flipped his cards, and I looked in disbelief at the pocket ace and king of hearts. He had the royal flush, the best hand anyone can have.
The room erupted into a loud cheer as I stared at Nick’s cards in disbelief and the next instant, I felt Nick gripping me by my shoulders as he pulled me to him. His lips came down on mine with a deep longing and domination. I gasped for air as his tongue cut through my lips to find my tongue.
My heart pounded in my ears, blocking out every sound around us. I felt Nick’s victory as he flicked, lapped, and nipped on my lips setting my being on fire. I ran my fingers through his hair and pulled him closer to me enjoying his victory kiss.
“Get a room you two,” Ann giggled.
He released me gently and said against my lips, “Good game, babe. I am going to enjoy my victory for life.”
Chapter Thirteen
“How was work, Sameera?” Nick asked as I slid into the back seat of the Range Rover next to Nick.
“It was good, and my team was actually glad to have me back,” I said smiling at Nick as he reached to his side and took his lips to the side of my neck. The simple gesture kick started my pulsations. I froze as I felt his cool lips against my warm neck and giggled, “Easy, Nick. My cheek is up here.”
Nick laughed as he sat back and teased, “I wonder why I need to keep reminding people about my victorious poker game on Friday.”
“Hi, Mitch!!” I said completely ignoring Nick and his penetrating eyes.
“Ms. Nick. Hope you had a good day,” Mitch said politely.
“I did Mitch, and you need to stop calling me Ms. Nick,” I said smiling at Mitch in the rear view mirror.
Nick laughed and said, “I don’t see that happening.”
I rolled my eyes ignoring Nick’s comment and said to Mitch, “I am counting on you to get me home on time. I promised everyone a special dish for dinner.”
“Sameera, what’s up with your obsession with cooking,” he said shaking his head and added, “This is your first day back to work, and I am pretty sure you are tired. You know PammiMa would love to get the recipe from you and make it for us.”
“Nick, it’s not an obsession. This is the only way we can get everyone to the dinner table and you know how much mom loves that,” I said beaming at him.
Nick looked at me in surprise and said, “Very interesting, and I also liked the poker night last week” and added smiling, “I had a great time.”
I blushed and said, “I feel blessed to be part of the family, Nick,” he smiled at me with pride in his eyes. I smiled remembering the fun times I had with Ann and Nick’s mom.
“Mitch, what’s wrong?” Nick asked looking at Mitch, and I wondered why Nick said that suddenly.
“Just a hunch, Nick. We are good,” Mitch said to Nick.
“Nick, what is it?” I whispered.
“Mitch took the wrong exit home, and I wondered if something was wrong, but I think he was just clearing out his doubt,” Nick said coolly.
“What doubt?” I asked Nick and he smiled and said, “I am not the one with a hunch. You need to ask Mitch.”
“Mitch, what is it?” I asked in a worried tone.
“Nothing to worry about Ms. Nick. I felt like there was a car following us, and I remember seeing that car a few days ago as well, but it looks like I was just over reacting,” Mitch said in a flat tone.
“Which one?” I asked turning around to look at the cars behind us.
“It’s gone now Ms. Nick. Not to worry,” Mitch said in a calm voice.
“Sameera, you can take Mitch’s word when he says there is nothing to worry about,” Nick said placing his palm on my cheek. He added, “Oh, I almost forgot.” He reached inside his jacket pocket pulling out a familiar blue box and placed it in my hand.
“Now what and why?” I asked looking at him suspiciously.
“You asked for these, not my idea,” Nick said smiling at me.
I gently opened the box and almost squeaked in surprise when I saw matching yellow gold wedding bands inside the small box.
“Nick,” I said with excitement in my voice putting my arms around him and putting my lips to his with all the heated passion pent up inside me. Nick groaned deep inside as if surprised by my sudden outburst of emotion. I slowly released him looking into his smiling eyes and said, “I love the rings.”
“Happy birthday, baby,” Nick said in a husky voice.
“Nick, it’s not my birthday for another two days but thank you. This is perfect,” I said smiling at the rings. I looked closer at the rings and noticed the engraving on Nick’s six-millimeter wide ring. My breath trapped in my throat when I realized my name was engraved in beautiful cursive writing on the ring. I looked at the other ring, which was the feminine version ring and noticed something engraved on the inside. I looked closely and it read ‘Yours forever’.
I looked at him unable to speak as he smiled and held his hand out for me to put the ring on his finger.
“Nick, Now? H
ere?” I asked in surprise.
“Yes, now. I don’t need another ceremony for this,” Nick said laughing.
I laughed and took the ring from the box and slipped it on his finger taking his palm to my lips.
“My turn,” Nick said and took my ring in his hand and waited patiently as I removed my engagement ring. He slipped the wedding band and my engagement ring back on my finger and whispered, “Nothing beats the gift you gave me.”
I smiled and ran my palm over his chest and felt the familiar chain that I had put around his neck the night of the mehendi under his ultra-soft silk shirt.
“You don’t have to wear it every day. I know you are not used to wearing anything around your neck,” I said looking up at him.
“I can’t think of not wearing it,” he said nuzzling my ear and said, “This chain reminds me of you with every breath I take.”
“Silly, Nick,” I said and I asked in a soft tone, “How do we find out what happened to the original owner of this chain?”
Nick looked at me puzzled and before he could say anything, I said in a determined tone, “I just feel like there was something that happened that we don’t know and not that it would matter now, but I want to know why RajaRam abandoned his family.”
“Why and why now, baby?” Nick asked softly.
“I refuse to believe that RajaRam abandoned Jasleen’s love for no reason, and my heart tells me that he did not pass away in an accident,” I said confidently.
“Where do you think we should start?” Nick asked almost as if he knew that I had already started thinking about how to start the research.
I smiled at him and said, “I was hoping we could talk to your family in India to see if we can get clues from their search operations, and we need to start our own search,” and added in a teasing tone referring to the search he had launched when he was looking for me, “Another Vaasi search.”
Nick laughed with a twinkle in his eye and shook his head almost in disbelief that I wanted to find out about someone who went missing over a hundred years ago.
