Chapter 6

I gave a second jerk when I saw how Edwina was dressed! No wonder she was drinking -- she was in the same 'maid's uniform' as Irene! There was a gasp and a couple of audible gulps as the male contingent took in THAT surprise!

Apparently, everything necessary was in the drawers in the bedroom, not just the fishnet body suit and the skirt and petticoat setup or whatever you call it, because Edwina's legs, revealed as narrow and somewhat bowed -- both outward and back -- were encased in dark nylons to mid-thigh. The thighs in question were VERY white and had likely never seen sun -- not really a surprise. I found myself wondering about the area immediately above that -- was she wearing panties, or going without, like Irene? A pair of small pink nipples peeked through the red fishnet top, mounted on breasts that looked like someone had slid a couple of jelly doughnuts under the stretched skin over Edwina's ribs -- they weren't huge, but they were reasonably substantial, and didn't sag at all. Someone had removed the barrettes and combed out Edwina's hair fluffing it a bit around her pink, fearful face.

"Sure!" I croaked.

Edwina's eyes flicked from face to face -- looking for censure, no doubt. There was a LOT of surprise out there, but censure was lacking -- Hell, we were ALL male, after all, with the exception of Irene -- and Irene was clapping her hands, calling, "That's it, Baby -- work it! You OWN this place! WE own this place!"

Edwina essayed a rather tremulous smile. "We do?"

"You KNOW we do, Baby! Look at all those bug eyes! They're drooling on the carpet!" Irene declared. "How was that drink?"

"It was good..." Edwina came forward, wobbling a bit. Where had she gotten those heels? "What kind of poker are we playing?"

"Strip," Irwin announced himself. I glanced at him just as he realized that he'd spoken his thought, and a look of triumph slid over his face that he'd actually had the guts to come out with it -- even accidentally.

That hadn't been my plan, but Irene giggled. "Girl, do you REALLY think you haven't made an impression NOW?"

"I guess I have..." Edwina mused. Her eyes shifted to me. "Is that the game?"

I opened my mouth, but Elliott answered. "Yes," he hissed, licking his lower lip and looking predatory.

I shrugged. "It's Elliott's party..."

"I'm, uh, not wearing much..." Edwina muttered, licking her lips.

"We're SUPPOSED to lose, Baby!" Irene laughed. "Come here a second..." Edwina tottered over to Irene who spoke to her too quietly to be heard. Edwina's yes or no answers were discernable, but without the questions, I had no idea how relevant they were. In a moment, though, Irene rubbed Edwina's back and announced to the rest of us, "We're ready."

"I guess we ought to hit the table, then," Rudy rumbled. "Anybody for a top-off before we get started?" Everyone lurched into motion. Irene made Edwina another Cape Codder, even though I thought Edwina looked a little feverish and wild-eyed. The table really only accommodated eight properly, and there were nine of us, but no one complained -- particularly after Irene dragged over a barstool to sit on. Elliott got Irene on his left and Edwina on his right; clockwise, going around from Irene was Irwin, Jim, Rudy, myself, Robert and Rajiv.

"Okay," I suggested, after some thought. "Articles of clothing are worth chips, starting with shoes, say, at five bucks, to get things rolling. How's that?"

Irwin cocked his head, looking up and to his right. "Then what -- socks?"

"Yeah," I nodded. "Umm, we might want to give the girls ten bucks for stockings and garters..."

Irene pursed her lips. "Um, Pete, seeing a girl in stockings and garters is a display thing -- we might actually go for our skirts first."

"Good point," I agreed. "Nothing -- NOTHING -- is worth more than ten bucks. Once all clothing and money is gone, the guys are out -- but the girls still have something to wager. In Irene's case, it's seconds, because Elliott gets the first pass; Edwina can handle things as she chooses -- including backing out once nude." I eyed Edwina. "Is that fair?" Edwina shifted her glance to Irene, who nodded, so she turned back to me and nodded. "Yes."

"Jeez," Irwin grunted, "can I sell my pants now? I'm about to rip a hole in them!" Everybody laughed.

"I think we can wait," I chuckled. "Everybody feed the bank." I pointed at the couch. Everybody bent to remove shoes -- but there was a pause while we watched Irene.

This wasn't lost on Edwina, it turned out. "Um, can I sit on a stool?" she asked diffidently.

"Somebody get the woman a stool!" Rudy erupted. Several of us were taken aback -- including Edwina -- at this recognition of the fact that she was female. Jim snagged the stool and positioned it, and Edwina crawled atop it and removed her unaccustomed footwear -- and we all watched hungrily.

"Okay, then," I erupted, ending a pregnant pause. "Deal rotates left, starting with Elliott; Edwina cuts." I started doling out chips. "Twenty- five cent ante. Dealer calls the game."

"Fifty cent ante," Elliott amended.

That made sense to me. "Duly noted. Fifty cent ante."

The first hand was five card draw, which put Texas Hold'em on the skids. Edwina knew nothing at all about poker; we had to create a cheat-sheet for her with card rankings, which left a couple of the guys visibly licking their chops. The pot grew at a ridiculous rate; I, myself, blew in a buck and a half on busted junk, just to keep the calls coming in. Losers were down two-fifty when Jim hauled in the pot with his three queens. Nobody complained.

Irene called Seven Card Stud. Again, there were explanations to be delivered, but Edwina got it pretty quickly. Two pair netted Irwin an eighteen dollar pot -- which meant that, after the ante, both of the women -- and most of the men -- couldn't bet. "Jeez, THAT went fast, didn't it?" Irene asked brightly. She hopped down off the stool, moved to a point where everyone had a VERY good view by climbing up on the sturdy coffee table, turned her back to us and lowered the frilly skirt to the table before stepping out of it. There was a collective gasp; Irene was wearing no panties. She picked up the skirt, grinning widely, twirled it over her head, and flipped it to the couch. "Pete, Honey, would you do the honors?"

I snatched my eyes away from her pubic muff and counted out chips. "Certainly, m'dear..."

All eyes shifted to Edwina, who started visibly shaking as Irene resumed her stool. Somebody opened his mouth, but Irene held up a finger and whoever it was shut up. "Baby," she addressed Edwina. "You don't have to do nothing -- you can just walk away. But this is a hump -- after you do this, it'll all be downhill for a while..." Irwin, mesmerized, drew a finger along the outside of Irene's thigh; she eyed him placidly and said nothing.

Edwina looked beseechingly at Irene, who nodded, then shifted her gaze to Irwin and bit her lip. Slowly and carefully, she climbed down off the barstool and walked over to climb just as carefully onto the coffee table. She turned; as she was gathering herself to lower the skirt, Irene said, "Baby, once it's down, spread your legs and look between 'em to see who's watchin'. I forgot to do that..."

There was a LOOONG pregnant pause; as the seconds ticked away, I decided that Edwina wasn't going to do it. I didn't blame her -- if she wanted our attention, she'd done plenty to get it. But then her hands settled on the elastic waistband of the skirt, and it slid slowly to the floor. There was a reverent murmur and it became apparent that several of us had been holding our breaths. Edwina's bow legs kept the skirt stretched until halfway down her calves, but it finally fell free. She stood there for a moment, then stepped out of it one foot at a time, then did as Irene suggested and peered at us between her legs.

"Bravo!" Robert erupted and began to clap. Everyone took it up, cheering and whistling and Edwina's red face broke into a relieved grin. She stood and emulated Irene's whirling action and strutted back to her stool, red-faced, but grinning from ear to ear. "Yeah, Baby! Work It!" Irene encouraged.

Edwina had apparently never done a bikini trim -- she had a serious bush on her mound and the hint of a trail up to her navel. Nobody complained. By the time she got back to her stool, she was looking pretty serene; apparently, Irene was right about the hump. I pushed the chips toward her and she accepted them as if there was nothing at all strange going on, "Thank you, Pete."

Robert, Elliott, Rajiv, Rudy and I kicked in our socks for the relatively measly price of five bucks without anything resembling the fanfare the women got. Nobody wanted to see any of our feet. The deal moved to Irwin, who called for Five Card Stud. I got lucky and pulled in the pot with three jacks; raises were running fifty cents a pop, so I hit another eighteen bucks or so. Jim took the pack, grinned from ear to ear, and announced, "The game is Mexican Sweat! Deuces and Jokers are wild!"

Hell, I didn't know how to play THAT! Jim explained rapidly and we took off; basically, it was serious Stud Poker -- you turned up cards until you had the best hand and then you bet it, and play moved to the next guy. Rudy turned up an eight and everybody bet -- basically just fifty cents, which had become the minimum at some point. Then it was my turn; I turned up a four and a six before beating Rudy's eight with a Jack, and raised another fifty cents. Robert threw a King right away, and we went another fifty cents. Rajiv took four cards to come up with a pair of sevens -- and bet a buck. This put everyone into the pot for three bucks. Edwina managed a pair of tens -- triumphantly, she loaded the pot with another buck, which I thought was insane, given the results if she lost.

Elliott pulled off his shirt and I handed him ten bucks in chips -- then he went through his whole hand without managing to beat Edwina. Irene, who was still funded, took all five cards to turn up a pair of Queens -- which she decided was worth two bucks! Shirts came off all around the table so we could keep up. Play shifted to Irwin, who crashed out with busted junk for a hand. That put play to Jim -- who managed three Treys using a Joker on four cards. The price to stay in went up another two dollars!

Edwina sat there looking at the table for a while; she could cover this one, but the next ... She looked over at Irene, who grinned at her. "I need some money, Pete," she said softly, and started undoing the fishnet body suit. The thing snapped at the crotch, but the women weren't wearing it that way; instead, they had the tails wrapped around their garter belts. Edwina undid the front and turned to Rajiv, "Would you, uh, undo me?"

"S--sure..." Rajiv got up and unwrapped the back of the thing from around her garter belt with shaking hands, and Edwina pulled it over her head. Her breasts hadn't really been covered before, but that didn't keep a gasp of appreciation from floating from our mouths. Edwina smiled and arched her chest, then leaned forward to get her chips -- and everybody's eyes were glued. She tossed in her response to the call and sat back with a smile on her face the likes of which I'd never seen. At that point I realized that Edwina was going to go buck naked -- at least -- when the time came.

Elliott was out; so was Irene and Irwin. Rudy went out, too, and I went out right behind him. Robert, with four cards left, managed -- using them all -- to pull three sixes. The pot notched up another two dollars. Rajiv failed to beat Robert and play moved on to Edwina, who pulled a third ten. She raised another two bucks and Jim covered it. Somebody was going to be insanely rich...

It was Jim. He pulled a nine, which gave him a natural pair and a full house, nines over treys. Smiling, he nodded at Edwina as he raked it in. "Good play. DAMNED good play!"

It had been -- but she'd lost, and it had been expensive. She was far enough ahead of Irene that I wondered if she would run out of guts without the black woman's example. But she didn't seem bothered...

After the tension of that hand, Rudy was only up for Five Card Draw. I was just as pleased ... The pot was small -- but Edwina won it, to the consternation of a couple of the others.

I called Seven Card Stud -- and won the hand. Irene pushed things after just about everyone else had bailed, but lost -- deliberately, I think, since it cost her her top. Robert called Seven Card Draw and we went around twice, largely because Irwin decided that he was going to win. As it turned out, he was right.

Rajiv pulled in the pack and announced, "I want to play the sweat game." I rolled my eyes, but, hey ... The cards went out and Edwina led off with a six and bet fifty cents. Elliott pulled a nine and bet another fifty. Irene managed a ten on three cards and bet another fifty cents, then Irwin managed a pair of fours -- and raised a dollar. Jim went straight out.

Rudy and Rajiv had to part with their pants to stay in the game -- but Rudy pulled a Jack, a seven and a Joker, which gave him a pair of jacks -- so he bet a buck.

I went out. Robert took all five cards to pull three sevens, using the other Joker. Deuces hadn't been called, so the wild cards were gone. He eyed Edwina's chip stack and pushed two-fifty onto the table.

Edwina looked at the way things were shaping up and pursed her lips. I don't know anyone who wouldn't have tossed his or her cards at that juncture. The probabilities sucked. But instead, she reached for a garter tab...

Irene stopped her. "Baby, you really oughta use the table for that. Stand to start, while you unhook, then sit to pull them off."

Edwina actually dimpled! "Good idea!" And she went over and stood on the table and turned herself so we could watch every clip come undone, then sat and pulled them off before standing again to step out of the garter belt. I'm not ashamed to say that I clapped and cheered and whistled with the best of them. Edwina returned to her stool -- nude -- took her money and placed her bet, apparently happy and unruffled.

Ten seconds later, Irene followed suit. We all enjoyed the show and watched her match a bet on a hand that was equally impossible for her to win. The girls were game -- you had to give them that!

Rajiv went out. Edwina followed. Elliott and Irene did, too. It looked like Robert was going to pull the pot, but Rudy surfaced another Jack and won the hand.

Robert created a monster at that point by telling Rajiv, "If you don't get your nose out of Edwina's crotch, you're going to be showing HER YOUR genitals..." Rajiv glared, but everyone at the table had noticed his distraction. Edwina merely smiled at him benignly. Fact was, Rajiv was sitting there in tented underwear -- and was the worst off of the bunch of us.