A Fool Stumbles Into Love

After three games Maureen asked, "Want to make this a little more interesting?"

Cal knew he was a lousy pool player, but Maureen was worse. It wasn't in his nature to take advantage of any one, especially a girl. He wasn't built that way, "No. It wouldn't be fair."

Maureen insisted, "Oh come on, just a dollar a ball."

Cal was not only poor at pool, he wasn't a gambler. He'd have felt funny playing for a nickel a ball, "No Maureen let's just play for fun."

Maureen answered, "OK."

Cal and Maureen knocked off two more games. Cal won both of them.

All the while Warren, Sandy, and Annie were partly watching, partly talking and arguing, and partly listening to the band.

Maureen asked again, "Let's play a buck a ball."

"Cut it out Maureen. I feel like I'd be cheating or something."

Maureen contributed a different idea, "Look, you get a ball I'll pay you a buck. If I get a ball you pay me two. That's more than fair."

Cal hesitated. It sounded better, but he'd won every game, and the last game he'd won by five balls. He wanted to be fair, "Look let's make it one for me and three for you. That's fairer maybe."

Maureen answered, "Sure, I get a ball you pay three dollars, you get a ball I pay one."

Cal kept trying to offer Maureen a chance to back out, "Well maybe, but that's the only way I'll play you for money, but I'd really rather not try to take advantage of you." He didn't want to do it; he sort of liked Maureen. It wasn't fair to her.

Maureen laughed, "Don't worry, it's only money. How I piss it away is my business."

They played another game and Call won by four balls. He was deeply chagrined having to take Maureen's money, but she insisted.

They played another game and he won again.

Maureen volunteered to up the ante, "Look let's make $5.00 a ball, even Steven."

Cal answered, "Certainly not, but I will agree to pay out $5.00 for every ball you get, but I'll only take $1.00 for mine, regardless of the difference." Then he added, "Look Maureen, I'm not very good at this, but you're worse. I don't want to cheat you. Come on, let's just play for fun."

Sandy, Warren, and Annie had been watching a little more closely. Warren was a little worried about the direction of the betting, but Sandy thought it was fun.

In fact Sandy offered to change the stakes again, "Why don't you make it $10.00 a ball Cal?"

Cal listened. This was Sandy, the girl who'd been his date. She'd kissed him when he'd protected Maureen her friend. He thought if he let the stakes go to $10.00 for each of Maureen's balls, that would really impress her, "OK," he said, "Maureen, for every ball you make I'll pay out $10.00."

Maureen giggled, "OK Fast Eddie, rack the balls."

Cal, gentleman extraordinaire, racked the balls. He insisted that he break so Maureen would get the second shot. He even made it a loose rack so the balls would spread around more easily. He racked and took his first shot. The balls, just as he hoped, rolled all over the table. None went in.

Cal looked the table over. Maureen would have a clear field. He felt a keen sense of true nobility.

Maureen looked the table over too, "I think I'll try the low balls." She started shooting. It didn't take long before a pretty nice crowd was around the table. Maureen wasn't a lousy pool player, she was a pro. It took her about five minutes to clean the table; all seven low balls, plus the eight ball. She didn't miss a shot.

Maureen smiled at Cal, "Let's see that's eight balls, at ten dollars a ball, I think that comes to eighty dollars."

Cal was stricken. He'd been hustled! He'd seen it happen to others, but never to him. He looked around the tavern. People were all laughing, laughing at him. He reached in his pocket, pulled out his wallet, and counted out the money. He handed it to Maureen, "Here you go. You won it fair and square."

Maureen took the money, "Thanks Cal, want to play again?"

He answered, "No, that's all right."

Everybody in the bar had a good laugh. Call looked around. Maureen had made a fool of him. No, actually, he'd made a fool of himself. This was his fault. He'd remember in the future to trust his initial instincts, "I think I'll go have a beer."

Sandy sidled up and put her arm around him, "She took advantage of you. I'm sorry."

Cal looked down at her. She was so gosh darn pretty, and so sincere, "That's all right. That's how we learn. It was only money after all."

Warren didn't think it was so funny. He watched Sandy and Maureen. They were both in on it. He was sure.

They retreated to their table, all five of them. Maureen used Cal's money and bought everyone a round of drinks.

Everyone at the table was having a good time, everyone but Cal. He knew he'd been swindled, and he knew he was made to look like a fool, by a girl even. After a polite interlude he quietly announced it had been a long day, he was tired, and needed to get to bed.

Maureen watched Cal leave the tavern. She thought of the Broadway play Chicago and one of its better songs, 'He had it coming'.

Sandy walked him to his truck. When they got there she handed him a piece of paper, "Here's my number. Don't forget you promised me a boat ride."

He was surprised she remembered. He figured she'd had enough of him, and would want to find another guy, a winner. He answered, "Sure, I'll call you tomorrow and we'll set up a time."

Sandy reached up, put her hand on the back of his neck, and kissed him, "Don't forget." She turned and skipped away.

Cal got in his truck, a dark blue Dodge diesel, started the engine and pulled away. He thought, he'd lost a lot of money, but things hadn't turned out too bad. He'd met a nice girl and her shitty friend. Maybe something will come of it? He drove home, a little depressed but hopeful.

Later that evening after Annie and Warren left, Sandy and Maureen got in Sandy's car and drove off.

Sandy said, "That guy Cal is a real fool isn't he?"

Maureen answered, "Why do you say that?"

"Look Maureen you got him for nearly $100.00."

Maureen answered, "No you got him for nearly $100.00. He wanted to be a gentleman, but he wanted to impress you with what a nice person he was. He knew he was lousy at pool; he just thought I was worse. I may have set him up, but you lowered the boom. He didn't want to bet."

Sandy replied defensively, "That makes him a real asshole doesn't it. Any normal man would have seen the chance to make a quick dollar, but he was too sappy to see the chance."

Maureen rebutted, "Oh he saw the chance. He was just too nice a guy, at least until you backed him into a corner. He only did it to impress you."

Sandy changed the topic, "Did you know I made another date with him?"

Maureen responded, "Really?"

Sandy, "Yeah, he has this homemade boat. He wants to take me out on the water."

Maureen chided, "You better watch it. He probably likes to fish."

Sandy laughed, "Don't worry; we know who the fish is."

The two girls drove off into the night.

Part Two:

Cal had everything planned for their first real date. They'd use his boat and go fishing. He called her up, and the first thing she said was, no fishing. Well OK, they could just go out for a boat ride, he'd pack a lunch, and they could pull in at a spot he knew. She said that was great, but she'd meet him at the public put in. They set a time, and Cal was on his way; a date with a great girl, a girl who really liked him.

Around mid-morning Sandy called Maureen, and told her where she'd be, and who she'd be with.

Maureen asked, "Are you sure he's ready for you?"

Sandy laughed, "Is he ready for prime time? No I don't think so, but I'll have some fun."

Maureen admonished, "OK, just remember he's Annie's and Warren's friend. Have fun, but don't let him down too hard."

Sandy giggled, "Don't worry, this one's too stupid."

Maureen wasn't so sure. She thought 'Stupid', her name for Cal, was too much of a gentleman, too much of a romantic, for the likes of Sandy.

Sandy found the boat put in. Cal was already there, and he had his 'vessel' already in the water. He looked good, she thought. Better than she had a right to expect. He was pretty muscular, no Adonis, but pretty well built. He still hadn't found a comb for his hair, but out in the sunny sky it didn't look half bad. He had on a wrinkled white T-shirt, a pair of equally wrinkled up khaki shorts, and of all things a pair of work boots, at least they were low cut; a real Beau Brummel.

She took one look at the boat and nearly gave up. He'd said it was homemade and a hybrid and he wasn't kidding. It was a very homely looking glorified rowboat with an outboard motor strapped to the rear, or aft, or whatever they called the back end of a boat. It did have a small windshield, and he'd fashioned some sort of stupid looking umbrella thing to the middle, but otherwise it had more the look of a miniature Titanic, something ready to sink.

She smiled as she got out of her sports car, "Hi, are we all ready?"

Cal beamed, she'd actually come, "We sure are. Since you didn't want to fish, I made a picnic lunch. How do you like fried chicken, potato salad, and beer? I brought a bottle of white wine just in case you didn't like beer."

Oh great she thought, grease, starch, and a carbohydrate drink, "Sounds wonderful," she said, "I just love it."

He helped her climb aboard. She looked marvelous, but a little under dressed. She had on one of those tight fitting summer T-shirts. It was a beautiful pale blue that matched her eyes. She had on a neat looking pair of white shorts, and tennis shoes, "Do you have any sunscreen? It could be a hot one today."

Shit she thought, "No I forgot."

He grinned broadly. He figured she'd forget, "Don't worry I have mine."

He settled her in the front of the boat. Gave her his bottle of Coppertone, and scampered aft to the motor, "I'll get us started, and we'll ride down the bay. I know a great place where we can stop for lunch. He reached down and pulled up a big plastic bag, "Look I brought a blanket!"

Great she thought; I've got Wal-Mart sun lotion, and a scratchy army blanket to look forward to. He's going to pay for this, "This is terrific Cal!"

He started the outboard motor, untied the rope that held the boat to the landing, and started down the channel. In no time they were cruising along at a terrific clip. He knew how fast the boat could go, and he knew the places in the water to avoid. Sandy sat up front, and as he powered the boat to go faster she got a good whiff of spray and a real taste of the breeze.

In a few moments Sandy forgot she was with a jackass on a stupid old homemade boat. The wind and the water were delightful. Soon she was soaking wet, hair flowing outward, and cheeks aflame. She was enjoying every minute of it.

True to his word Cal knew a great place. It took them about thirty minutes to get there. He drove the boat right up on the beach, hopped out, and plopped the metal anchor on the sand.

He ran back and held out a hand, "Here Sandy let me help you out."

She eagerly took his hand. The boat ride was more fun than she expected. Most of her past boat trips had been on much larger and much more elaborate craft. She never imagined she could have this much fun on anything this cheap.

"Want to go for a walk?"

"Sure," responded Sandy, "is there anything around here to see?"

Cal answered, "It's a surprise."

He held her hand and together they walked along the short beach till they came to a path, "This way," he said.

Sandy followed, but wasn't much impressed.

He walked her around a short bend and pointed, "Look."

"What," Sandy asked?

"Look there," he said.

All she saw was an old graveyard, "That?"

"Come on over and look," he said.

Sandy walked over and checked out the headstones, "So what."

"Look how old they are,"

There were four stones, two were large, and two were much smaller. She read the dates and the inscriptions. It was obviously a mother and father and two children. The dates on the graves placed them in the mid Eighteenth Century, "Yeah," she said, "I see four graves from the 1700's."

Cal was looking at them like they were sacred treasures, "I found these graves when I was a boy. You're the first person I've shared them with. I don't think anybody else knows they're here. I think its kind of sad, two children and two parents, and they're so old."

She looked at the stones with no interest, "Yeah sad, and old." Was this supposed to be something special? Sandy had been all over Europe, a place Cal had obviously never visited. It wasn't unusual to find graves eight even nine hundred years old in the cemeteries in Europe, "I'm hungry. You said you had chicken?"

Cal was a little disappointed. He thought for sure Sandy was the sentimental type, and she'd be impressed by the graves. He guessed she wasn't as sentimental as he'd thought. That was OK though, "Sure come on back to the boat. I'll get the grub out, and we can chow down."

Sandy was incredulous, did he say grub? Did he say chow down?' She smiled, "Yeah, let's eat some grub."

Cal's smile covered every inch of his face. He led her back to the boat. Spread the big brown army blanket, and placed the picnic basket and cooler in the middle.

Sandy looked at the spread; unbelievable! She saw a picnic basket. She thought of the musical Oklahoma. She was with Judd Fry, "Great, you brought everything but the ants!"

Cal whispered. He put his finger to his mouth, "Careful, don't let them know we're here." He smiled.

Jesus thought Sandy, "Oh boy real paper plates, paper napkins, and plastic forks. You brought the works. Let's dig in!"

Cal was so proud of himself.

Together they ate the chicken, potato salad, and both had a beer.

Sandy thought, in spite of everything the chicken was really good, not greasy at all, and the potato salad had just the right mixture of mayonnaise, mustard, and sesame seed. The beer was icy cold, and a great domestic brand, "This is great Cal. Where did you buy the chicken?"

"I didn't buy it. I cooked it myself last night." He was so proud. He'd done all that for her. He didn't understand why she only ate one more piece.

Sandy acknowledged how good everything tasted, but to think his fingers had been handling everything she ate was a turn off. Though it wouldn't have been as good, she'd have preferred some greasy KFC, "It's delicious Cal, but I have to watch my weight."

He looked her over. Her clothing had dried. Earlier he was able to see everything she had, her boobs, her brown aureoles, even her puss had shown through, "You look great to me just the way you are. I wouldn't try to lose any weight."

Sandy hoped she looked great. She spent enough time and money at the spas, "Thank you Cal," she said sweetly.

They sat side by side on the blanket. She talked a mile a minute about anything and everything. He had trouble keeping up. Half the stuff didn't make any sense anyway. He stretched back on the blanket, putting his hands behind his head, "I really like it here."

Sandy leaned down beside him, "I do too." She started kissing him. While she kissed him she took her hands and started playing up and down his body, down around his legs, on the insides of his thighs, around the nape of his neck and along his rib cage.

Almost immediately he felt his manhood stirring. He returned her kiss, but felt self conscious about the condition of his pants.

Sandy saw what was happening, and started moving her fingers closer to the site of his embarrassment. How backward could one man be she thought? She crept her hand closer and closer to his crotch.

Cal rolled on his side facing her and tried to touch some of her body parts. He wrapped his arms around her, but every time he got anywhere near her breasts or inner thighs, she pushed him away. It pleased him immensely that she fended him off. It confirmed his earlier impression that she was a very good girl; probably a virgin even. He'd known she was a good girl all along.

They kissed, giggled, and laughed for quite a while. Then, like an alarm going off Sandy sat up, "What time do you think it is?"

Cal looked around, "Maybe 2:00, why?'

Sandy stood up, "I have to get back. My mother will be expecting me."

What a great girl Cal thought she was concerned about her mother, "OK, You tidy up while I pack up the debris and get the boat back in the water." In no time he had everything stowed away, the boat in the water, motor running, and powering back up the bay.

All the way back Sandy sat under the makeshift umbrella, glad it was there.

When they got back Cal helped her out, "Can I see you again?"

Sandy answered, "Sure, call me. We can go to a movie."

"Great," answered Cal, as he hoisted the boat back on its trailer, "I'll call you tomorrow."

Sandy was already halfway to her car, "Don't call too early," and zoom, off she went.

Cal drove home the happiest man alive. He and Sandy had had one great day. She liked his boat, ate his chicken, and they'd made out. What could have been better? When he got home he went straight to the newspaper to see what was playing. Cal was falling in love!

On the way home Sandy called Maureen on her cell, "Maureen you'll never guess."

Maureen responded on the other end of the line, "No tell me."

Sandy went on about how the fool had made his own chicken and salad, taken her to look at some stupid graves, and how they'd played like two teenagers on the beach. It was all too surreal!

Maureen listened. She laughed at the appropriate times. She thought what a fool the man was, wasting his time on Sandy. He must really like her, and that was too bad. He sounded pretty backward, but pretty damned sincere too. He might not know what he was doing, but she figured some girl was going to find him. Whoever it was they'd be pretty lucky. She knew one thing, that girl wasn't Sandy, and it sure wasn't going to be her.

Two More Dates!

Cal got the newspapers and found the entertainment section. He checked out the movies, found a pretty good PG-13, and called Sandy the next day. She was ecstatic!

He picked her up at the tavern in his freshly washed and waxed truck two evenings later. They went to the movies. She wanted popcorn, and insisted he put the container between his legs on the seat. All through the movie she ate popcorn, breathed in his ear, and rubbed up and down the insides of his legs. Three or four times she found his manhood and rubbed that too.

Sandy seemed to enjoy the movie. It was a romantic comedy starring Paul Rudd, an honest hardworking kind of guy, and Reese Witherspoon a rich babe who fell in love with his honesty and sincerity. In the end everyone knew they were meant for each other.

He dropped her off back at the tavern, and asked if she'd like to go out again. She said sure. He asked if she'd like to go out to eat. She thought that would be a great idea.

Two nights later he was with her again in his truck. He'd made reservations at one of the nicer restaurants in town. They drove down, and after a brief wait were seated.

Sandy ordered lobster, so he had to stick with something on the less expensive side of the menu. She asked if the lobster was too expensive, but he decried the cost. He said he had plenty of cash. Actually he was strapped. He was on a tight budget owing to some college courses he was planning to take in September, and Maureen's fleecing had left him kind of dry.

Still it was a great meal. Sandy took quite a few liberties with Cal's thighs under the table. He worried if this kept up he'd have to give his little soldier a dishonorable discharge one of these nights.

Once dinner was over, though Cal had hoped they'd sit and spoon in the truck a while, Sandy insisted she had to get home early. Her mother needed her, so Cal got her back to her car at the tavern by 9:00, and drifted on back home alone.