Jim leaned down and whispered in Leo’s ear that this game is one card down, three up, and one down. Lars said, “No coaching,” as he finished dealing everybody their first card down.

“It’s his maiden voyage,” Jim said.

Leo wished he hadn’t put it that way.

“His birthday, too.” Ryder winked at Leo and sipped the Pabst he was keeping between his legs.

“Well Happy B, Einstein. Sweet sixteen, yet?”

“Eighteen,” Leo said, and he took a pull off his beer.

Lars dealt them each their first card up. “Jack bets.”

“That’s you, son.”

Leo looked around the table. The second-highest card to his jack of hearts was Lars’s nine of spades. Leo dropped a blue quarter chip onto the red chips in the middle of the table.

“Ooo, look out,” Lars said. “High roller.”

“What?”

“You did fine, Young Buddy.”

Jim leaned closer and told Leo you generally want to start out slow.

“Don’t listen to him, Einstein. Hell, throw us all your money.”

Everybody threw in a blue chip and Lars dealt the second up card. Leo got a nine of diamonds. He lifted his down card and took a look, a queen of clubs.

“Pair of fives bets.”

Ryder dropped a red chip and a white chip onto the table. “Fifteen big ones.”

“I see it and raise you a ten spot.” Lars reached behind him, opened the fridge, and got a beer. Cody dropped a blue quarter chip on the ante pile. Leo glanced over at Ryder, then up at Jim.

“Ten and fifteen means twenty-five to you, high roller.” Lars took a short pull off a Budweiser quart bottle. Leo dropped in a blue chip and watched his father do the same.

Lars dealt the last up card. Leo got an eight this time, an eight of spades, though Lars called Leo’s eight, nine, and jack “nothing” as he dealt Jim a four, Ryder a king of clubs, and a ten to himself. “Oh boy, pair a tens. I’m new boss on the block.”

“So long.” Jim turned his cards over and pushed them to the side. Cody too.

Leo looked over at Ryder’s king and pair of fives. Even if Ride had two more kings, Leo was pretty sure a straight beat a full house, though he wasn’t positive. The thing is he needed a ten, what he’d heard them all call “drawing an inside straight,” and Lars already had two tens right in front of him. Jim had had a four, an ace, and a seven. But damn, Leo hadn’t even glanced at Cody’s cards before he folded.

“Twenty to you, Einstein. Are you with us?”

“Be nice, it’s my birthday.”

Ryder laughed. Leo threw in two white chips and asked if he could raise. Jim said yes so Leo added a nickel to the pile. Ryder rubbed a blue chip between his thumb and forefinger. His eyes went from Leo’s cards to Lars’s nine and pair of tens. Ryder picked up a dime chip and dropped it in with the quarter.