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"Twenty."
"You're so bluffing. Call."
"I'm not that rich. I'm out."
The tall blonde flipped over her pocket cards to reveal the flush.
"Damn!" Her pale opponent scrapped her cards onto the pile. "The curse of pocket Jacks strikes again!"
The blonde paused her chip counting and smirked. "Whadaya expect, Snow; they're men!"
All three laughed, and there was an echoing laugh from the kitchen.
"You would say that, 'Zel." The other blonde teased. "Too bad your prince didn't have a sister."
"Too bad yours wasn't a control freak." She shot back.
"Ladies, let's not go there," Snow cautioned tiredly.
"Alright," Rapunzel replied quickly. None of them really wanted to ruin the evening.
"Right. How're those martinis coming, Cindy?"
"For the last time," the strawberry blonde pushed open the swinging door, carefully balancing a tray of glasses and a pitcher, "do not call me Cindy."
She deftly stepped over the long blonde braid trailing across the floor and placed the drinks on the table."But it sounds odd to call you by your full name," Snow protested.
"My name isn't Cinderella! That was my step-family's nickname for me when I became their servant! I have a birth name that I never hear, you know!"
"But Cindy suits you so much better than Evangeline."
"How would you like it if I called you Sleeping Beauty instead of Aurora or Briar Rose, huh?" she snapped back.
Briar Rose flushed. "Point taken."
"Come on," Snow pleaded. "I didn't call you three up to get together and fight. I get enough of that crap at home."
"Sorry," the three chorused.
"Now are we going to fight all night, or are we going to drink and play poker until dawn?"
"Poker."
"Poker."
"Drinking."
The other three spared Cindy a quick glance before returning to the table. She quickly set the tray down on a folding stand beside her chair and then sat down, handing out the first round of drinks.
"So, if I can ask," Rapunzel asked cautiously as she dealt the cards, "what has started this recent drinking binge of yours? It didn't use to be so bad."
"It isn't a binge!" Cinderella protested half-heartedly.
"Dish." Aurora ordered.
"Fine," she sighed. "You know the liquor store down by the market?"
The others nodded, and Snow White quickly tossed a ten into the pot.
"Well there's a new man who works there-"
"Oooh!" Snow squealed. "What's he look like?"
"Like a Prince Charming?" Rapunzel's jaded question made the other three glare.
"Like a Hawaiian surfer," Cinderella admitted.
Aurora hummed appreciatively as she folded. "I wouldn't mind a guy like that."
"You wouldn't just 'have a headache' with him, too?" Cinderella teased.
"Not as long as he didn't take away my car keys and wallet every time I tried to go out," she replied quickly.
"Well at least you finally got a new cell phone," Snow said quietly. "I hated calling the house line and having to explain myself to Phillip. It's bad enough having to explain my every move to eight men, I really don't need a ninth."
"Raise." Cindy threw another ten into the pot and then downed the rest of her martini. "How are things going with all the boys, Snow? You sounded pretty desperate when you called."
Tossing away her cards, Snow White sipped at her martini. "Florimond still refuses to pay for any kind of help, so I've got to do all the cooking and cleaning. It's not like we can't afford it; he's even taking rent from the boys, even though I told him not to."
"Has he at least agreed to give you a pocket allowance?" Briar Rose asked.
She frowned. "Would I be folding so often if I had more than coupon-clipping scraps?"
"Point taken." Rapunzel flipped over her pocket Aces and the other girls groaned.
"Why do you always win the big pots, 'Zel?" Briar Rose complained half-heartedly.
"Pure living," she teased, passing the deck to her.
"Just because you don't actually sleep with your husband doesn't make you pure by any stretch of the imagination." Snow retorted.
"Because you're an expert on purity, right, Ms White?"
"Oh!" Cinderella gasped, pouring herself another martini. "Did I tell you who I ran into at the liquor store?"
"The hot employee?" Aurora teased.
"Nooo! Gretel!"
Aurora frowned as she dealt the flop. "Gretel? Is she still living with her good for nothing brother?"
"Yep. She tried that Atkins diet thing, and she's actually lost about 20 pounds-"
"Not that you'd notice twenty against the four-hundred-odd she's got left," Repunzel snarked.
"Yes, well, we can't all throw up every other meal like you," Cinderella shot back, ignoring the other girl's glare. "Anyway, she tried to get Hansel to diet too, but she caught him cheating."
"Call." Briar Rose tossed her money into the pot "Let me guess, he claims he didn't eat anything, but the counter is missing a chunk or something."
"Window sill, but close enough," Cinderella mucked her hand. "She called him on it, and he tried to blame it on her. He said that she slept-ate it."
"Please tell me that she finally kicked that free-loader out on his giant behind!" Aurora pleaded.
"Didn't even let him pack a bag!" Cindy crowed.
"Alright!" Snow White cheered. "Oh, and strait flush, ladies."
"Damn!" Briar Rose threw her cards down. "Oh well, at least this way you won't have to clip any coupons this week."
"Cheers to that!" Rapunzel added gleefully.
All four girls toasted and then downed their martinis. Snow White shook her glass enticingly. "Alright, Cindy, refills first, and then it's your turn to deal!"