“Damn, that is an apple I’d love to take a bite out of,” Shaw whispered to me.
“Down boy. This ain’t the place to out yourself.”
Shaw wasn’t completely in the closet by any means, but he wasn’t prancing around with a rainbow on his shirt either. Living in a small farming community made it a little bit hard for Shaw to be completely comfortable in his skin. The pool hall was full of burly bikers and ignorant macho men who wouldn’t think twice about trying to kick a gay guy’s ass.
“Yeah, yeah. I know but if it happens, oh well.” Shaw brushed it off and I let it go.
“Invite them over. Who knows, you might have just found the love of your life.” I teased but Shaw was already taking a few steps over to the guys.
“Hey, would you guys want to play two on two?” Shaw called over.
The men looked at each other and then back at us, shrugging. “Sure, why not?”
“Twenty bucks a game?” I asked, batting my eyelashes at them.
The one Shaw had his eye on snickered. “Sure, little lady. We’ll even let you break.”
Wrong move.
I giggled a little. “Oh, gosh. That’s so nice of you.”
It was so funny to me when men thought that since I was small and somewhat pretty, I was a delicate little flower. I was rough around the edges, and probably tougher than they were at the end of the day.
I broke, sending the seven right into the corner pocket.
“I guess we’re solids.” Shaw smiled over at me as I leaned against the high-top behind me.
“That we are, sir.” I waved over to Rhonda, signaling for another drink.
Shaw was sneakily eyeing his crush as he lined up a shot like an amateur. “When shooting over another ball, you have to jack up your cue,” Shaw advised as I laughed a little.
The other guy came over to me. “Y’all from around here?”
I cocked my head to the side. “Guessing from your drawl, you’re not.”
He dug his hand into his pocket to get his pack of cigarettes out. “Gave it away that easy, did it? I’m Willie.”
“I’m Olive. Everyone calls me Liv, and I’ve been coming here since I can remember. So, to answer your question, yes, we grew up here.” Otis got right in between my legs. He didn’t like it when strangers, especially men, got close to me.
Willie took a step back. “Gorgeous Cane!” He kneeled down to try to pet Otis, but the dog was not having it. With teeth showing and nostrils flaring, Otis was not a happy camper.
“He’s a little protective. Give him a bit to warm up to you.”
I glanced over and saw a sight I hadn’t seen in ages: Shaw was lip-locked with Willie’s friend at the other end of the table.
“Well, I guess our friends are having a good time.” Willie put his hand on my arm.
I giggled, taking a step back. “That they are.” Otis was still on alert, and I was thankful for his cock-blocking skills.
Rhonda brought over my drink. “Here you go, Liv. Can I get you boys anything else?” she asked, grabbing a bucket of empty beer bottles from the table.
“Another round please, and this little lady’s number.” He winked at me and I threw up a little in my mouth. It wasn’t that Willie wasn’t decently attractive—he was about six-foot and had a full head of hair, a decent smile, and all of his teeth—it was the fact that he assumed I wanted to jump his bones just because I had a vagina and he had a penis.
Rhonda scoffed. “Nice try slick.” She turned to me. “You good?”
I nodded, petting Otis on the head. “I’m covered, Rhonda.”
“I’ll be right back with another bucket of Bud for you guys.”
