back at the other sad sacks who
remained on, looking at their chips in confusion. How had they lost so much?
How would they tell their wives, their husbands about what had happened there
that evening? I imagined the world beyond the glamor, beyond the high heels,
beyond the make-up; the world that had existed, for example, in my own home. It
hadn’t been beautiful. It had been lonely, desolate. We had had to make tough
decisions, like trading in televisions for food money or giving up on ideas of
vacations just to keep the house.
But I had to right my brain about it. I was pretty
smart about money; I was doing the best I could. I didn’t normally gamble. Sure,
I had lost my dance studio. But it had been through no real fault of my own. I
wasn’t going out and spending, spending, and gambling. I was simply treading
water in a wayward sea.
Drew, in this moment, was my rock. My pillar. I turned toward him as I walked away from the blackjack
table.
“How are you seriously so good at that?” I hissed at
him. I gripped his arm tight as I kept winding my head around, looking at
everyone else in the casino. Everyone else appeared to be losing. Drew had
mastered this game, this path.
But Drew looked at me with a harsh smile. “You’re
going to want to keep your voice down,” he murmured. “You want to know how I
win so much? ”
I nodded, my eyes large.
“Please. Tell me.”
Drew whispered in my ear. I could feel his breath
hot on my neck. “I count cards.”
My face grew bright with admiration. Drew was not
only cheating at this gambling situation; he was also a blissful genius. He
wasn’t really gambling at all—not like my father who blindly gave away our
things, our life. Rather, he had his money and he made it bigger.
“How do you do it?” I whispered back. I sipped on my
martini, loving the way the liquid rolled over my tongue.
“I’ll teach you, if you like,” he murmured back.
He rushed through the basics in the corner by the bar.
Girls continued delivering us drinks, as if on cue. “I just have them keep them
coming when I’m here,” Drew explained as he sipped from his whiskey. I was
already quite drunk; he was looking blurrier and more handsome every time I
sipped from my drink. Casinos were marvelous; high living was marvelous.
“Okay. So you know , you
need to beat the dealer. Yeah?” he began. I nodded. “Okay. When you count
cards, you have to remember; cards between 2 and 6 have a value of a plus one.
Cards between seven and nine have a value of zero. Cards between ten and ace
have a value of negative one.”
“Negative one,” I repeated, trying to keep it all
straight in my head. I had never been great at math, and my palms had begun to
sweat. Could I really do this? I couldn’t even keep funds to my name. “Wait—Can
I put up your tokens? I don’t have—I mean. I don’t want to bet any of my own
money.” My face burned as I asked this.
But Drew wasn’t embarrassed. He simply waved his
hand in front of his face, tossing it away. “Of course. Of course.” He cleared his throat and took another sip
of whiskey. “So. As you play, you add up the numbers.
You have to bet when the card count is higher than plus three. Do you
understand?”
I nodded. “Of course.”
“They’re playing with two decks over there, though. So. You have to divide the number you have by two to get
your true number count. Does that make sense?”
I nodded once more. “Two decks. Divide by two. Got it.”
“Do you think you want to try this?”
I spoke through the alcohol. “I’m willing to try
anything once,” I said saucily. His eyes met with mine, and suddenly we knew—we
knew we wanted to fuck. We were on the same page. I walked back toward the
blackjack table, feeling my ass move this way, then that as I walked. I knew he
was watching. I sat at the same seat that had been Drew’s and gave the dealer a
single nod in greeting. I flashed him a bit of cleavage. I wasn’t sure who
remained on, looking at their chips in confusion. How had they lost so much?
How would they tell their wives, their husbands about what had happened there
that evening? I imagined the world beyond the glamor, beyond the high heels,
beyond the make-up; the world that had existed, for example, in my own home. It
hadn’t been beautiful. It had been lonely, desolate. We had had to make tough
decisions, like trading in televisions for food money or giving up on ideas of
vacations just to keep the house.
But I had to right my brain about it. I was pretty
smart about money; I was doing the best I could. I didn’t normally gamble. Sure,
I had lost my dance studio. But it had been through no real fault of my own. I
wasn’t going out and spending, spending, and gambling. I was simply treading
water in a wayward sea.
Drew, in this moment, was my rock. My pillar. I turned toward him as I walked away from the blackjack
table.
“How are you seriously so good at that?” I hissed at
him. I gripped his arm tight as I kept winding my head around, looking at
everyone else in the casino. Everyone else appeared to be losing. Drew had
mastered this game, this path.
But Drew looked at me with a harsh smile. “You’re
going to want to keep your voice down,” he murmured. “You want to know how I
win so much? ”
I nodded, my eyes large.
“Please. Tell me.”
Drew whispered in my ear. I could feel his breath
hot on my neck. “I count cards.”
My face grew bright with admiration. Drew was not
only cheating at this gambling situation; he was also a blissful genius. He
wasn’t really gambling at all—not like my father who blindly gave away our
things, our life. Rather, he had his money and he made it bigger.
“How do you do it?” I whispered back. I sipped on my
martini, loving the way the liquid rolled over my tongue.
“I’ll teach you, if you like,” he murmured back.
He rushed through the basics in the corner by the bar.
Girls continued delivering us drinks, as if on cue. “I just have them keep them
coming when I’m here,” Drew explained as he sipped from his whiskey. I was
already quite drunk; he was looking blurrier and more handsome every time I
sipped from my drink. Casinos were marvelous; high living was marvelous.
“Okay. So you know , you
need to beat the dealer. Yeah?” he began. I nodded. “Okay. When you count
cards, you have to remember; cards between 2 and 6 have a value of a plus one.
Cards between seven and nine have a value of zero. Cards between ten and ace
have a value of negative one.”
“Negative one,” I repeated, trying to keep it all
straight in my head. I had never been great at math, and my palms had begun to
sweat. Could I really do this? I couldn’t even keep funds to my name. “Wait—Can
I put up your tokens? I don’t have—I mean. I don’t want to bet any of my own
money.” My face burned as I asked this.
But Drew wasn’t embarrassed. He simply waved his
hand in front of his face, tossing it away. “Of course. Of course.” He cleared his throat and took another sip
of whiskey. “So. As you play, you add up the numbers.
You have to bet when the card count is higher than plus three. Do you
understand?”
I nodded. “Of course.”
“They’re playing with two decks over there, though. So. You have to divide the number you have by two to get
your true number count. Does that make sense?”
I nodded once more. “Two decks. Divide by two. Got it.”
“Do you think you want to try this?”
I spoke through the alcohol. “I’m willing to try
anything once,” I said saucily. His eyes met with mine, and suddenly we knew—we
knew we wanted to fuck. We were on the same page. I walked back toward the
blackjack table, feeling my ass move this way, then that as I walked. I knew he
was watching. I sat at the same seat that had been Drew’s and gave the dealer a
single nod in greeting. I flashed him a bit of cleavage. I wasn’t sure who
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