I'll Take that Bet

***All characters are over 18 and are fictional. Any resemblance to any real-life persons or situations is purely coincidental.

...

"No."

"What do you mean, no?"

"That's my answer," said Aiden. "I don't accept your offer."

Krista was in shock. "You can't be serious. Do you understand what I just offered you?"

"I heard you, and I'm saying no," he replied.

Krista still couldn't believe what was happening. She had never met a man who turned down what she was offering.

"Just to be sure, I just offered you a bet where if you win, I'll show you my tits, and you're saying no?"

"I heard you, and the answer is still no," Aiden affirmed. "And don't pretend you don't know why."

Krista and Aiden knew each other for several years, since they started working together at Pastime Magazine, the nation's 7th best sports magazine. He was a reporter, mostly specializing in the NFL and college football, but occasionally reporting on other sports as well. Krista was the online content supervisor for the magazine's website.

They met through other coworkers who liked to get together after work for drinks and watch a game. They mostly went to the same sports bar, Maury's, because they had big screen TV's hanging in every corner, more than two dozen beers to choose from, and they made the best chicken wings in the state.

Everyone in their group enjoyed all areas of sports, even though most of them specialized in one or two areas. Aiden had some of the best knowledge of football that could rival most ESPN newscasters; he even knew things that couldn't be found easily on Google. Krista, who worked more on the tech side of the magazine, had a profound knowledge of basketball. She loved other sports as well, but she was better at basketball and even formed a women's basketball team with the other women at the magazine.

Krista tried her hand at writing articles for the magazine but found that she was a terrible writer. Aiden tried to help her with her past articles, seeing some potential in her writing. But she knew she just didn't have the talent to write, just like how everyone else at the magazine didn't have the talent to produce web content like she could.

Krista was a fun person that everybody loved. She was well-versed in sports, had a great sense of humor, was very spontaneous, and could out-drink most men she met. She was a beautiful woman, tall with long dark hair and a killer body. In fact, the body is something that everyone notices first, men and women alike.

She was well-known for wearing tops that showed off the cleavage of her large breasts. It doesn't matter what the occasion may be, what the weather conditions are, or if it's appropriate for the situation at hand, she had a shirt that showed off her cleavage. Sometimes it's just a little cleavage, but she had shirts that showed off plenty of it as well. To be fair, she did occasionally wear clothes that covered up her breasts, but even in those situations she would wear something that hugged her curves very tightly to show off her curves.

Of course, most of the men she works with don't care how she dresses. Some of the women at the magazine had made complaints, but a majority of the women there were OK with it because they liked her. Nobody really called her out on how she dresses; the few times someone did, nothing came of it. She knew men liked to look, but made sure that wasn't their focus. Mostly, people liked Krista more for who she was than for what she was showing off.

Aiden, of course, looked at her breasts whenever he got the chance. He figured if they were on display for all to see, he was allowed to look whenever he wanted. But he made sure to never overdo it so he wouldn't cause a problem. There was a famous funny quote from the show Seinfeld that summed up what a man should do when he sees cleavage, "Looking at cleavage is like looking at the sun. You don't stare at it; it's too risky. You get a sense of it, then you look away."

Krista was also a big sports gambler; she was always involved in some kind of sports-related pool, had a couple of sports betting apps she always used, and loved making bets with her friends and coworkers. She was very good at it, knowing the odds and specific details about each team she bet on so she could win. She did lose occasionally, but not very often.

Surprisingly, she was never good at games of chance like poker, blackjack, and so on. They once went together to a casino with some friends, and she lost a fortune in Texas Hold'em. After that, she stuck with the type of gambling she knew.

There was one kind of bet that Krista was known for. She liked to place bets with men, where if she lost, she would let them see her topless. Sometimes she would bet both money and the opportunity to see her naked at the same time. She often won, because she was better at sports betting than most people. She did bet money more often, but when she was really certain of herself, she would bet her tits.

She only did this move when she was very confident that she was going to win, and it was a good way to get the guy excited enough by that prospect to raise his bets just for the chance to see her naked. Because men were kind of stupid about that kind of thing and because she was good at sports betting, she had never once lost that bet.

Aiden fell for it plenty of times. Although he considered her a good friend, he was still a guy and wanted that opportunity to see her naked. He counted seven times when he fell for that kind of bet and had to pay out more money than he originally wanted to. He knew better than to bet against her when she offered to get topless for him, but he just couldn't help himself.

So, the day finally came when Aiden finally said no to her special bet. It wasn't planned; the opportunity came and he took it. They both found themselves leaving work at the same time and decided to go to Maury's for chicken wings together. They tried to see if anybody else wanted to come, but their other work friends had to stay late at work or had other plans, so it was just the two of them.

They got one of their favorite seats at the bar, and they got a waitress who knew them well. They ordered their drinks and the types of wings they wanted and sat back to watch the Braves/Nationals baseball game. Although they had other sports interests, they still liked a good ball game.

They sat close together; Krista liked to do that with the men she hung out with, so that random men who planned to hit on her would think she was with someone else and move on. She was wearing tight jeans that showed off the curves of her perfect ass and a shirt that showed off a good cleavage line. Dressed like that she knew she was going to be hit on a lot that night. She didn't mind being hit on; she was used to it and liked it. But when she wanted to just go out and have a chill night with a friend, she didn't want to be hassled.

Aiden didn't mind doing that for her; he had done that in the past for a couple of female friends. But at the same time, he couldn't help thinking that if she didn't want to be hit on by random dudes at a bar, she shouldn't dress in a way to invite them to hit on her. But Aiden wasn't going to say anything about that to her; despite everything, he wasn't going to be that kind of guy who tells a woman how to dress in public.

During the game, Aiden noticed how Krista was regularly looking at her phone and tapping away at it. He could tell she wasn't just texting people, but from a logo on her screen that he couldn't help noticing, she was on one of her sports betting apps she liked to use.

"Are you winning big?" he asked.

"Oh, yeah," she replied. "I've been having a good week. I don't have to worry about my rent for a couple of months."

"Good for you," said Aiden.

She noticed how intently Aiden was watching the game.

"You're really into this game," she said.

"I have some family in the Houston area who love the Braves," he replied.

"So, you're rooting for the Braves?"

"No, I'm a Nats fan," he replied. "I really want them to win so I can brag to my cousins about how much the Braves suck."

Krista laughed hard at that.

"That's hilarious," she said. "Unfortunately, the Nats will never win this game."

"They're tied 1-1 right now with six innings left. There's still a chance."

"But there's no way they'll beat the Braves," she replied. "Not with all the great hitters the Braves have and the terrible season the Nats are having."

"That doesn't mean there's not a chance they can win. This isn't the World Series; it's a typical regular season game. Bad teams beating good teams can unexpectedly happen. "

"Care to make a wager on that?" she asked.

"How much?"

"$300," she replied.

"Seriously? You have a serious gambling problem."

"It's only a problem if you lose all the time," she replied. "I've been on a hot streak for several weeks now."

Aiden thought about it for a moment. He could afford it, but he just thought it was a bit much for this type of game. But at the same time, he couldn't resist a challenge.

"Deal," he said.

They shook hands on it to make it official and resumed watching the game.

The Braves got two more runs in the fourth, but then the Nats surprised them with three runs of their own in the fifth. The Braves tied it up again at the top of the eighth; the Nats had the chance to take the lead with three men on base, but couldn't make anything of it. Nothing happened in the ninth inning, so the game was now going into extra-innings.

"Tough game," said Krista.

"I know. But the Nationals will take this."

"If you're so certain, do you want to raise the bet?" she asked.

"How much?"

"$500."

Aiden laughed. "You really do have a gambling problem, don't you? Are you really ready to give me $500 if you lose?"

"Well, I was hoping to give you something else instead of that money."

At that moment, Aiden knew what she was talking about and got ready to hear her offer.

"I think I have a feeling where this is going."

With a big smile on her face, she said, "If I win, you put up that $500, and if I lose, instead of money, I'll let you see my tits."

"That's $250 a breast," said Aiden. "For that much money, I can see a lot more naked women at an average strip club."

"Maybe, but trust me, it's totally worth it."

And there it was, her infamous go-to move. Something that would entice the person she's betting with to increase the wager. It was hard for most men to resist, and as far as Aiden knew, no one had said no to that offer. He was interested in the idea, but he didn't want to go through that kind of humiliation all over again.

"No."

"What do you mean, no?"

"That's my answer," said Aiden. "I don't accept your offer."

Krista was in shock. "You can't be serious. Do you understand what I just offered you?"

"I heard you, and I'm saying no," he replied.

He explained to her that it was basically bad luck for him when she raised any bet they made together with her tits. He fell for it too many times in the past, but not again. He also pointed out how unfair it was for her to use her body the way she does to get the men to raise their bets. She knows that men are going to easily take that bet when they should know better.

"You can't blame me for making a little money because some men are stupid enough to fall for it," said Krista. "But I only use that move when I'm very certain of the win and to get the guy to raise his bets. I win very often, so I don't have to do that."

Aiden continued, "I'm not entirely blaming you; we are dumb enough to fall for it, and I've been dumbed enough to fall for it seven times already. But I'm not falling for it again; I'm going to have to say no and keep the bet at $300."

Krista didn't say anything more about it, and they resumed watching the game. Nobody scored in the tenth and eleventh innings, but the Braves were very close both times while the Nats were striking out very quickly.

"Are you sure you don't want to take that bet?" asked Krista.

"I'm sure of it," said Aiden.

"So, you don't want to see me naked?" she asked.

"Of course, I do. Friend or not, I'm still a guy, and if I get a realistic chance to see you naked, I will take it. I just can't risk falling for that kind of bet again."

Nothing happened again in the twelfth inning, but again the Braves were hitting well despite not scoring any runs. Krista really wanted Aiden to bet more money because she was sure she would win. She thought about it long and hard and came up with an idea.

"Ok, I'll up the ante," said Krista. "I won't just get naked for you; I'll do a striptease for you."

"Say what?" he asked, surprised by what she had just said.

"I always assumed if I ever lost that kind of bet, I would just take my top off for the man and that's it. But for you, I'll do it as a show, with music and a little dance as I take off my clothes."

"All your clothes?" Aiden asked.

"Well, I'd like to keep my panties on, but yes, all of my clothes," she replied.

Aiden had to think about it for a moment; it was a good opportunity. Not only would he see her naked, but she would do it in a performance. But again, this seemed too good to be true for him. He had to suppress whatever sexual urges he had for her and be logical about the moment.

"As much as I hate myself for saying this, the answer is still no," said Aiden.

Krista was stunned. Even after raising the stakes that way, she still got a no out of it. Although, she had to admit she was impressed by how well Aiden was resisting her like that. She could tell how much he hated himself for turning down her offer, but she understood his reasoning.

The thirteenth inning still saw no runs despite how much the Braves were getting on base. Krista knew she could get more money out of Aiden, but he just wasn't biting. She kind of figured her tits were her good luck charms when she needed them; when she used them to make a large bet, she always won. She needed to do one more thing to raise the stakes, something she was sure Aiden could not refuse.

"Ok, this is my final offer," she began to say. "Not only will I do a striptease for you and let you see me in all of my glory, I will give you a lap dance."

Aiden was stunned and speechless. He did not expect his night to go the way it did. He was just happy to be hanging out with a friend watching a baseball game, but now it led to a long-held fantasy of his.

"And I don't mean just moving around a little on your lap," she said. "Ten whole minutes of me doing a full stripper-level grind on you, and I'll let you put your hands wherever you want."

"Wherever I want?" Aiden asked to be absolutely sure.

"Not exactly. It will be standard stripper rules in which you can't touch my pussy."

Aiden gave her an odd look, wondering how she knew about stripper rules for giving lap dances.

"Don't look at me like that; I have a couple of stripper friends. That's how I know," she told him.

He had to think about her offer some more. It was an opportunity of a lifetime.

"Are you sure you want to do all that for $400?" he asked.

"Actually, since I seem to be offering up a lot more, I think you should make it $600 on your end of this crazy-ass bet."

Aiden considered whether it was not a good idea since he always had bad luck when he accepted her special kinds of bets. But in the end, he decided he had to take the chance; if the Nats did win and he said no, he would hate himself for the rest of his life. It was still a risk, but a risk he was willing to take.

"Ok, I'll take that bet," he said. "I may regret it later, but I gotta take that chance."

They shook hands on it again and watched the game.

Nothing happened again in the fourteenth inning. But in the fifteenth, the Braves scored three runs to take the lead. Krista was excited because it was very rare that the other team would make up those runs that late in the game. Aiden was also sure he was going to lose and was already accepting the loss.

"Oh, this is going to be sweet," said Krista. "Just three outs from the Nats and it will be over."

Then a miracle happened. The first player at bat got a double, which was followed by another double to drive that first player home. The next player also got a double to drive the other one home again, bringing the Braves' lead to just one run.

It was becoming an intense game for both Aiden and Krista because anything could happen.

The Braves got a new pitcher, who struck out the next two players and walked the third, putting two men on base. The next player hit a home run, winning the game for the Nationals.

Aiden was so excited that he jumped out of his chair and celebrated. Krista, on the other hand, sat back in her chair looking very depressed. She was sure the Braves, a much better team, would beat an inferior team like the Nationals.

"Now when can I cash in that bet?" Aiden asked with a big excited expression on his face.

Krista thought about it for a moment.

"Listen, Aiden..." she began to say but didn't know how to finish her sentence.

Aiden could tell what she wanted to say. "You want out of the bet, don't you?"

"I can still match you with the $600 you put up," said Krista. "I just don't think I can... act so slutty."

"Yeah, I had a feeling it was too good to be true," said Aiden.

"I'm sorry, I just can't do it," said Krista, looking very sad.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to force you to do it," said Aiden. It would be wonderful, but I'm not going to be that kind of guy."

"Thank you," said Krista. "I hope you're not too disappointed in me."

"To be honest, I am very disappointed about it," said Aiden. "Not so much about not getting that lap dance, but about how you got me to accept this bet. I wanted to keep the bet simple, but you had to keep pushing and offering me more, and of course I was going to break and accept the deal, any man would."

"I admit it, I pushed too far," Krista replied. "Are we still good with each other?"

"Yeah, we're good," he assured her. "I'm just very disappointed, that's all."

Krista said she would stop by his place tomorrow afternoon with his money, and he said that would be fine. To show there was no ill will between them, Aiden bought both of them one last drink and paid both their checks.

The next day, he had the day off and was just sitting around his apartment watching a Hawks vs. Rockets basketball game. A knock came at the door, and he figured it was the Thai food he ordered for dinner and looked through the peephole to see that it was Krista on the other side of the door and opened it. He let her in and saw that she had a bag in her hand and was wearing a long coat and heels.

"Hey," she said, holding up the bag in her hand, which turned out to be the Thai food he ordered. "I ran into the delivery guy outside your building and took it off his hands since I was already coming up to your apartment."

"And he just gave it to you without asking if you really knew me or not?" Aiden asked.

Krista opened the top part of her jacket to show him the cleavage she was showing from whatever outfit she was wearing under her jacket.

"He was young, he didn't have a chance against me," she said, smiling.

"I'm glad you're not a bank robber," Aiden joked.

He took the food from her and invited her in. He set the food down in the kitchen, grabbed two beers from the fridge, opened them and returned to see her in his living room. He handed her a beer and they both clinked their bottles together and drank.

"So, I guess you're here to give me the money you owe me," said Aiden.

"I sure am," said Krista.

She opened her jacket and let it fall to the floor. She was now wearing a black, sleeveless dress that was cut halfway up her thigh.

"As you can see, I am going to fulfill the bet we agreed on," she said with a sexy smile.