THE POOL SHARK

"Hey!  You got plans for Friday night?" he asked, obviously flirting.

"No.  Whacha' got in mind?" she coyly purred.

"Maybe go bowling."

"Sounds good.  I love to bowl but I'm not all that good."

He flexed a bit and offered, "I can give you a few pointers.  Pick you up at 7?"

"OK.  See you then, " she smiled.

They bowled, snacked, laughed and he gave pointers but still beat her score by a wide margin.  Then he spotted the pool table.  "Say, wanna try your hand at pool?"

"Well. . ." she hesitated.  But he quickly reassured her that he'd give her a quick lesson in that too.  He was such a gentleman, protecting her fragile ego.  He was a manly man and she was very feminine and it was back in the day when that really mattered.  He patiently explained 8 ball and showed her how to rack the balls.  Then he shot the cue ball and put the 1 right into the pocket.  She smiled.  He strutted.

"Now sometimes you can bank a shot," he explained then demonstrated as the 2 ball slipped into the pocket.

"Good for you!"  she clapped.  He beamed but then missed the next shot.

"Let me show you how to chalk and hold the pool stick," he offered.  His strong arms enveloped hers as they both held the stick, taking a few practice strokes.  She lingered there.  It felt good having an excuse to be in his arms. "Now go ahead and give it a try," he encouraged her.

She shrugged as she knocked the cue ball perfectly and put the 3 into the side pocket.

He cheered her on as she went for the 4 ball.  He nearly danced for joy at her shocked expressed when she banked that one then nailed it too.  He gave her a pointer about hitting the 5 ball.  "You're such a good teacher!" she bragged to him. 

But when she sank the 5 ball, his smile sank too.  Skepticism swept his swagger away and he dared ask, "Say. . .you've played this before, haven't you?"

"Yeah.  We have a pool table at home in our basement.  My two brothers and I play all the time."

He smiled sheepishly.  The man's man might have been scared off by the girly girl but his ego wasn't that fragile.  So about a year later he asked, "Will you marry me?"

And I said yes.  True story.  But I don't remember playing pool with Doug since!

After I wrote this post, I found this later shot
 of Doug in our basement. I'd even written pool
shark over it.  Untrue!  'Twas I!

Flirting in the same place led to. . .

. . .our engagement a year later!  I wasn't bluffing after all!