Robert Asprin - Dragons Luck

“You seem to have a bad habit of insulting women when I’m around. So are you jealous of me… or of them?”

“What are you implyin’?” Tail said, angry again.

“Nothing, nothing at all,” Griffen said.

His tone was full of false innocence, and no one at the table missed it. Margie looked up again, and Kane sniggered. Before Tail could respond, Griffen continued.

“But you should know that it takes more than this to get under my skin. You are just making an ass of yourself in front of everyone. Good thing Jay is your speaker, or you might be reflecting on all the other shifters.”

“ ’Cept us,” Kane said smugly.

“I—” Tail started.

“You are being an ass,” Lowell said, though surprisingly gently.

Tail stopped and looked around the table. He looked at Margie. For the most part she had remained calm, stiff but collected. He took in a long, slow breath.

“I apologize,” he said.

She nodded and looked back at her cards. Tail turned his attention back to Griffen.

“I’m used to being the biggest fish in the pond. Ain’t no shifter never who outdid me. Then you come and do nothing and get fawned over. So in that way, maybe I was jealous. I guess a part of me was hopin’ to draw you into a fight.”

Griffen was surprised once again. Tail was being honest, open, and—for him—eloquent. If this kept up, Griffen might have to reevaluate his whole situation. On the basis of a card game.

“I can understand that. But, Tail, I haven’t seen you do anything either, and I never challenged the respect you were shown.”

“Well, damn. You’re right. Guess you are better then me, without doin’ a damn thing.”

This time Griffen didn’t need a moment’s hesitation. “Not better,” Griffen said. “Just different.”

The delayed hand was finally played. Then another. It would have become nothing more than another card game. Though one where some peace was made. Would have been.

If Tammy hadn’t walked into the lobby.

She flounced in, scanning the room, about an hour after Griffen had sat down. He actually heard her before he saw her. She let out a tiny, girlish squeal when she saw him, and when he turned to look, she was already rushing his way.

“I’ve been looking everywhere for you, Grif—”

She stopped a few feet from the table, eyes fixing on Tail. He and the rest were watching her. Hard not to considering her enthusiastic entrance. Griffen caught a bit of tightness around Tail’s eyes, a bit of anger that was being suppressed. But suppressed well.

“Don’t worry, girl,” Tail said gruffly. “Still don’t like that you cheated, but it’s been pointed out to me that I’ve been being an ass. So let’s forget the whole thing and start over?”

“Come join the game, Tammy,” Griffen offered, nodding to a chair that could be pulled over.

The others exchanged glances. Griffen realized the hesitation. They were still major players, and Tammy a follower. Still, a truce of sorts had been made, and no one seemed willing to break it by excluding her.

She made it unnecessary.

“Oh… poker. No, thanks, but would it be all right to watch?”

This time Griffen glanced about, checking reactions. He didn’t want to upset things either, now that they were settling down. Everyone seemed to have no problem with that, having relaxed and refocused on their cards.

“Sure thing, Tammy. Glad to have you,” he said.

And turned to her to smile.

Which, from the sudden light in her eyes, was a mistake. She gave off another half squeal, and as Griffen turned back to the table, he felt her stand directly behind him. At first it wasn’t distracting. Till she leaned over to look at his cards closer. Brushing his shoulder with her breast might have been an accident. Whispering into his ear was not.

“Wow, you are really… good,” she said, in a tone that despite his best intentions made his temperature spike a bit.

“Thanks.”

Griffen was an experienced player, thought of himself as very good. He wasn’t one to let distractions change his expression, or mess up his game. He had played in harder, and hotter, situations before.

She bit his earlobe, and he almost dropped his cards. “Uh, Tammy, a little space please?”

“Sure thing.”

She leaned back, and laid her hands on his shoulders. He was too polite to suggest she move farther. Or perhaps take a chair.

Griffen watched his other players, and they watched him. For the most part they seemed… amused. Kane was practically leering. Margie had a smirk on her face. Lowell was looking a little too closely at his cards, in that way one did when he wanted to be obvious about not looking somewhere else. Even Tail had a glint in his eye that meant he was either enjoying Tammy’s show or Griffen’s discomfort.

Tink looked nervous. As if he would get blamed for the other changeling’s behavior. Tammy started to idly run a finger through Griffen’s hair.

So, Griffen thought to himself, this is what a gangster with a moll on his arm must feel like.

“So, Griffen,” Tammy said as the game went on, “I really like New Orleans. I was even thinking about moving here. Say… do you know where I might find a place to stay? Or, maybe have some place I could… sleep. For a while.”

No, if gangsters felt like this, they would shoot all the molls. Tammy was as subtle as a brick.

“I’m not sure that would be such a good idea, Tammy,” Griffen said.

Her hands tightened against him.

“What isn’t a good idea?” she said.

The card game had all but stopped. This was far better entertainment.

“Uh… would you excuse us? Tammy, can I talk to you, privately?”

“You can talk to me now! What isn’t a good idea? Moving, or being close to you? Don’t you like me?!”

He wished he had moved her away from the table earlier, but it was such a sudden shift that it caught Griffen flat-footed. He had forgotten how damn mercurial the changelings could be. And that last question was almost shrieked, and there just wasn’t any good answer to it.

Griffen, in the tradition of brave, i.e. stupid, men throughout history, tried to answer anyway.

“It’s not that, Tammy, but I already basically have two girlfriends as it is, and—”

It was not the time to think on whether or not Fox Lisa or Mai would mind the changeling girl for a night. Besides, with Tammy, he doubted it would ever be just “one night.”

“Two! Two?! Well, then what’s one more?”

“Tammy, relax, let me explain.”

“Explain… I thought you wanted… I thought we had… YOU BASTARD!”

Tammy slapped him, and it hurt. It actually hurt as if he had been hit with a baseball bat. He looked down and saw that her hand was the color of wood. Though there was a slight crack in it, and tears streaming down her face.

“Ow!” she said, whirled, and ran away.

Griffen instinctively started to rise and follow.

“Stop.”

Griffen looked over at Tink, who was shaking his head.

“I’ve seen her like this before. If you follow her, it will mean you love her, and you will never be rid of her.”

“I didn’t mean to…” Griffen said.

“I know. Nothing you did, or said, would have happened with a sane, normal girl. But our Tammy—she’s something special, even for a changeling,” Tink said.

He shook his head and stood.

“Cash me out, will you? I can follow her at a distance, and if she catches me… Well, it wouldn’t be the first time. Trust me, Griffen, you don’t want to follow, I learned that one the hard way,” Tink said.

Tink collected what was left of his stake and strolled out into the night. Griffen watched him go, knowing Tink was right but his instincts telling him what a brute and fool he had been.