Jack tried not to break out sweating as he looked again at the matched aces in his hand. Another ace and a pair of deuces in the turn cards gave him the best hand he had ever held. For seven years, he had been losing money at the weekly poker game. Although he never lost more than he could afford to lose, those losses added up. Most of those losses went to his nemesis, Derek.

All of the other players had folded one by one. Only Derek remained. The pot had nearly ten thousand dollars in it. That would barely start to make up for the money Jack had lost. Still, it was time to sweeten the pot, and take something from Derek.

"I can go all in, and if you called, you would still have quite a bit left," Jack pointed out. "Let's go big, or go home," he said.

He tried to give Derek a confident smile, but he knew it only came off half as well as the smiles Derek always had. Derek turned on his confident smile, mostly just to upstage Jack yet again.

"I've got an awfully good hand," Derek stated. "You should quit while you can. What do you propose?"

'I propose to kick your lying teeth out of your skull,' Jack thought. Derek couldn't possible know that Jack had learned about the affair Derek was having with Jack's wife.

"Vouchers," Jack said to the dealer. It was not uncommon for the players in this game to put up cars and motorcycles in side bets. They had taken to writing down the stakes.

"I'll put up a night of sex with my wife against all that you'd have left," Jack said, trying to sound confident.

Derek's shit eating grin grew bigger.

"She ain't worth half of that," he said, making it sound like Jack was at fault. "Bet or fold," he demanded.

Jack sweated it out for half a heartbeat. No matter what happened with this hand, he had already won. "All in."

Derek didn't even flinch as he immediately said, "Call."

With everyone watching, Jack turned up his aces. Nothing beats a full house in a game like this. Derek sadly shook his head, and flipped his pair of deuces. Jack stared in shock at the four twos on the table.

---

"You fucking bastard," Jack's wife yelled as she threw her wine glass at his head.

"You're a fucking loser," she shrieked. "We had plans for that money, and now you've all but given it to Derek. You're a fucking loser at everything!"

'Huh', Jack thought. 'Even when it's gone, she thinks that money was hers.'

His wife turned an angry look on his mute arguments. "Fine, asshat. I'm gonna go find him, and I'll do whatever I have to do to get that money back. See if I don't enjoy myself!"

She didn't even bother to slam the door as she happily ran off to meet her rich lover.

---

Jack sat on the bed looking at the small handgun that he held. For a moment, he allowed himself to feel sorry for the kids. His wife hated their children. 'His demon offspring' she often said. If he worked it out right, she would be left with nothing. He had gambled everything on a pair of aces. Maybe someday someone would explain it to the kids.

He checked the gun to make sure it was ready. The person at the bedroom door arrived much earlier than he expected. It wasn't who he expected either.

Derek's wife Gillian stood there, looking perfect. Jack had always admired her. Certainly she was beautiful and lustable. But she was also a great mother, a caring friend, and a generous person. There was no reason on earth for her to be at his bedroom door.

Gillian seemed to be shocked by what she saw. She dropped the duffel bag that she had been holding and big bundles of cash fell out. Jack barely noticed the money as he tried to understand why this perfect woman was there in his house.

"Did you bring enough bullets to share," she asked with a sad smile.

All Jack could do was stare at her and swallow.

"Can I tell you a few things before we do it?" she asked.

"We?" he asked.

She gave him a sad smile, nodded, and then walked as if to sit on the bed next to him. She stopped before she sat.

"Before we talk, will you do something else for me?" she asked.

When he nodded, she said, "Stand up."

Jack was puzzled, but he set the gun on the bed and stood up. Gillian stepped close and put her hands on his shoulders. She seemed to take his measure as she smoothed his shirt at his shoulders and chest. Stepping even closer, she reached up and pulled him down into a kiss.

For a moment, Jack thought he might die. This perfect woman was kissing him. Her lips were soft and warm. They gently demanded that he prove himself to her while offering him endless pleasure in return. Without forcing it, he took her in his arms, and let her lips know what he was made of. Her body melted into his in approval. His body ached for her as she ended the kiss, but she didn't push away. Her eyes sought his.

He knew he would ruin the moment, but he had to ask. "Why would you do that?"

She actually smiled. At him. He couldn't remember the last time his wife had smiled at him.

"I came here to set a trap, but I was too late," she said. "I was going to show her how much money he has won using marked cards, and then twist the words he said about her worth to make her angry. She would have defended him, taken the money, and then they would have run off for a week like they did last August. By the time they got back, I would have finished locking him out of my house and my money."

"You can't get rid of a spouse that easily," Jack commented.

"Thank god I never married the cheating bastard," she said bitterly. "I swear he charmed me into getting pregnant the first time. I kept letting him have money and cars and toys, hoping that he would be a good father. It's time for the bastard to go."

There were very few tears in her eyes as she looked at Jack.

"I think that my hatred and despair are nearly equal to yours, but not really enough to put a gun to my head," she said.

"I think I was close, though. The look you gave me just now has made me reconsider."

"I wasn't..." he started to say, but she kissed him again, and he forgot what he was going to say.

Her lips demanded his attention. His lips gave her the response she needed until they finally breathlessly parted.

"What were you thinking when you saw me just now?" she asked. Before he could answer, she added, "Derek never looks at me that way. He looks at money like that, and shiny new cars, and expensive watches."

Jack blushed as he finally answered. "I was thinking about what a perfect woman you are. You are truly beautiful, and not just on the outside. I have seen how well you are raising your children. I have seen how much you enjoy helping others and doing charity work."

"I'm not that perfect," she insisted with a smile. "There was more than admiration in that look."

Jack was afraid to reply. He was sure that if she wasn't perfect, she was nearly a perfect woman. She was everything that his wife had failed to become, and he could admire her for all that she was. He didn't trust himself to tell her that there was some lust in that look. The lust he felt for her now threatened to overwhelm his good sense.

"Are you lusting me for who I am, or for what I represent?" she teased.

There was only one answer he trusted himself with. He gently kissed her again. His lips explained to her how beautiful she was to him, and how he could desire her for who she was. Her lips asked him to explain why he wasn't talking. His lips responded by showing her how deep his immediate lust for her was becoming.

Her hands were under his shirt, and suddenly he had to feel her skin on his own. She eagerly helped him as their shirts flew off. His fingers easily managed the front clasp on her bra and he filled his hand with a breast as they kissed again.

She moaned and pushed him away. Her eyes bored into his soul as they demanded the truth.

"When we are done, will you still lust me like this?" she demanded. "Will you still lust me like this tomorrow?" she begged to know.

"I would lust you like this always," he promised.

She kissed him hard while her hands worked their magic at his belt. As his clothes fell away, he realized he had done the same for her, and she nakedly pulled his body over her own and onto the bed. They both gasped in pleasure as his cock filled her and her sheath held him tight. Their eyes locked and held.

"How can this be so perfect?" she asked quietly. "Would I have felt this way if your aces had made you the winner?"

"Did you come here with ill intent for me, or to seduce me?" he asked.

She was puzzled by his question. "No?" she replied.

"Then you have made me the winner," he said. He ended the conversation by kissing her gently.

She started a new conversation by rolling her hips and digging her heels into his ass. He replied by lifting his ass against her heels and then driving forward to fill her again. They both conversed at the same time as she increased the intensity of the kiss and he increased the power of his thrusts. Their bodies were laughing in joy as she raked her fingers up his back and he bent to eagerly kiss her nipple.

She pulled his face back to her own, and with joy in her eyes, she watched his face as she started to cum. He smiled back at her and the heat of his pleasure pulsed up his surging cock and filled her dancing pussy. They both watched the other enjoy the pleasure they were sharing. A gentle kiss nicely ended things. They held each other and waited for the universe to acknowledge their choice.

In the pile of clothes on the floor, his cell phone rang. He smiled an apology as he slid off of her to answer it. The conversation he had was very brief, and the person on the other end did all of the talking.

Gillian questioned his sad smile with a raise of her eyebrows.

"My soon to be ex-wife and her lover will be spending the night in jail," he said with a wry smile. "Apparently she did not like being served papers while having sex with her lover. They assaulted the marshal. She will probably have difficulties raising bail money."

"His only access to money is in that bag over there," Gillian observed. "There are a few other things I better go take care of while he is on ice."

Gillian's eyes jumped to the gun on the bed. "Why were you going to end it all if you were already divorcing her?"

"I started to tell you, that wasn't for me. I was prepared to ensure that they left quietly when the two of them came to demand what she feels she is owed. I probably would have ended up in jail, but I was willing to pay that price for the future of my children."

She stood and brushed her hands on his shoulders again, taking his measure for the second time.

"I like how you think, dreaming of the future," she said.

He looked her up and down, measuring her as well. He had gambled on a pair of aces, knowing they would give him a clean break. He and Gillian both knew it was too soon for anything new. Yet she seemed to preen as she displayed herself for his scrutiny. He wanted to tell her how perfect she was for him, but he was afraid they were moving too fast. She smiled as she reached for his growing cock.

"This is going to be complicated," she cooed, "but I like how you keep your promises."

She gave a quick glance at the bag of money by the door. With a wry smile she asked, "Don't you even care how much of his money is there?"

"Complicated is an understatement," he agreed as he pulled her naked body close. "At least I will never have to explain to you like I have tried to explain to her- Life isn't all about the money."