Chapter 8: The Poker Game

As she started down the street, she noticed Mr. Johnson’s garage door was open. Next to it, she saw Mr. Johnson and three men who must have been close to the same age as him. They were sitting around a picnic table, just getting into a game of Texas Hold ‘em. Mr. Johnson had the seat that faced the street, and he noticed her as she started jogging by, and he smiled Sonya’s way. She smiled back and gave him a little wave, which he returned. His friends noticed him waving to someone and soon Sonya had four guys staring at her as she jogged past. She blushed for no real reason of which she could think and then turned her head forward to go on with her run. She thought that a cool breeze must have hit her because she suddenly felt her nipples harden against the tight material of her sports bra, and goosebumps rise on her arms. The nipples poked through as little dots under her top. She looked down and saw this, and she hoped that no one would notice before they went away. At the same time though, she thought it was a rather daring thing to do, and she thought again that if someone noticed, it might not really be that bad.

Back at Mr. Johnson’s, his card pals watched little Sonya head down the street and then turned back to Bob when she was gone. “Pretty girl Bob, who was that?” his friend Al queried, a curious look on his face.

“Oh, she lives next door” Bob replied. “I guess she is a little cutie, I never noticed really. Martha and I used to babysit her a couple of times while her parents were at work or had a date night.”

“Never noticed?” asked his other friend Ray, incredulous. “How could you not notice how pretty she is? I mean we’re old and all, but we’re not dead for god’s sake. I bet the boys in her school are all over her, eh guys?” He looked at the other players and they all nodded and chuckled in agreement.

“Come on you guys, don’t talk about her like that.” Bob scolded them. “She’s a really sweet girl. She used to come steal cookies from Martha when she was just little. Just a few days ago she even mowed my lawn for me. Doesn’t it look nice?” He gestured to the lawn, and his friends looked out of instinct in that direction before turning back to him.

“Looks like she missed a spot over by that tree, Bob,” Ray replied with a mischievous grin. “Settle down, I didn’t mean anything by it, I’m just horsing around, you know that. But I still don’t think you missed how pretty she is ... I raise 300. Denial ain’t just a river in Egypt, as they say.”

Bob looked back at his old friend and frowned a bit. He was starting to get annoyed with Ray. “Denial, what am I denying? I said she was pretty, I just hadn’t noticed, really.” His eyes looked back to his cards as he made the last statement. He tossed some chips onto the table. “I call ... your bullshit.”

Ray squinted at Bob and prodded him some more. “Bob, you’re as easy to read talking as you are playing cards. I saw the look on your face when you saw her, you know she’s a little doll. I’m not saying you’re going to drag her into your basement and do dirty things to her, I’m just saying she’s pretty, and you know it.”

“Oh for Christ’s sake Ray, just shut up and play cards. Fine, she’s pretty. Can we move on now?” Bob snapped.

“All right, all right, sheesh, get testy about it why don’t ya? I’m just joking for god’s sake.” Ray looked down and concentrated on his cards. After a few minutes of awkward conversation, the old friends settled back into the game and moved on.

About 15 minutes later, Sonya was coming up the sidewalk on the return from her run. As was her custom she slowed to a walk for the last block or so to cool down before stopping altogether. As she came into sight of Mr. Johnson’s garage, the picnic table. She looked to see if the guys were still playing their card game. She saw they were, and thought it was nice that Mr. Johnson had some friends over for a change; he seemed so rarely to get out. However, after thinking about it, she realized that lately, she had seen him outside quite a bit more than she had in the past couple of years. She also hoped he might come up with another odd job for her to do. He paid well for the lawn mowing, and she wouldn’t mind getting another forty bucks or so to put towards a nice little shopping spree. With school coming up soon, she wouldn’t mind getting a new outfit or pair of shoes, something she didn’t need to go through her mom for. Maybe even her first pair of heels. The thought of asking him if he had anything for her briefly passed through her mind, but she quickly dismissed it. She’d feel silly asking in front of all of those guys she didn’t know. It seemed she barely knew Mr. Johnson at this point. So instead, she just strolled along the sidewalk in front of his driveway and headed towards her house.

Ray was the first to spot her and he made a throat-clearing noise that got the attention of the other guys. They all saw the direction he was looking in, and they turned and saw Sonya, her sweat-soaked, toned body was strolling by. They all stared for a bit. Al and the fourth man, Joe, turned back to their cards, losing interest in her quickly. But Ray leaned back in his chair and stared at Sonya’s backside rather unabashedly, and Bob turned his eyes from Sonya’s butt to Ray.

“Jeez Ray put it back in your pants for once, she’s like fourteen! I swear sometimes you act like a fifteen-year-old boy.” Bob growled at Ray.

Ray looked over at Bob and was taken aback just a little, “Oh for god’s sake Bob, there’s nothing illegal about window shopping, she’s pretty.” Ray replied, finding a small bit of amusement in Bob’s suddenly delicate sensibilities. “I tell you what, if I was fifteen again, I know exactly what I’d be doing with that little lady.” He turned to Joe and Al and looked for their acknowledgment. “Huh? Huh? You guys know what I mean, right?” And he burst into a loud laugh. Al and Joe chuckled at the banter that they were so used to by all these years.

“All right Ray, I’ve had it. She’s a nice girl, don’t be such a pervert!” he practically yelled at him.

“Ok, ok, I’m done. I’ll quit talking about your girlfriend.” He said as he sat back in his chair, and then suddenly leaned forward, addressing the other two guys. “But answer me this, did you guys see those little nipples trying to push through that top of hers? Holy God!”

Ray let out a big laugh again and the other two guys just shook their heads and chuckled at their friend. Just as Bob was about to really let Ray have it, he held up his hand in a signal of resignation. “I’m done, I’m done, I swear. Come on buddy, I’m just talking shit. Aren’t you used to that by now from me?” He grabbed his old friend’s shoulder and slapped it in a friendly gesture. “Let’s play some cards, I’m about to take the rest of the money you old bastards have on you.”

The rest of the game went on without incident, and afterward, Bob was thinking about his reaction to Ray and his crude jokes about Sonya. He wasn’t sure why it had made him so angry. After all, it wasn’t like he’d never heard Ray talk about women of just about any age like that before. In fact, if he admitted it to himself, he had many of those same thoughts about the girl himself. And her nipples certainly did show through that little top she was wearing, and those leggings complimented her shapely bottom so perfectly. Maybe he was just feeling protective of her ... or jealous? The one thing Ray said that Bob knew was correct; he’d never really act on any of these thoughts he’d had for her. It’s not like she’d ever find a guy as old as he was attractive in THAT way, and he’d certainly never force her to do anything.

A couple more days had passed and Sonya hadn’t seen much of Mr. Johnson since the card game, just a brief wave when he’d happened to be outside as she did her daily runs. She found it funny that he always seemed to go back inside shortly after she got back from her run. She guessed they must somehow be on the same outside mental clock. She giggled to herself and wondered if that was even a thing. This day as she started out of the house to begin her jog, Mr. Johnson was outside again. But when she waved to him as she was passing, he beckoned her to stop and come over to him. She paused and jogged up his driveway as she pulled her earbuds out.