Page 11 of Desperate Pucker (Denver Bashers #6)

Ryker

Ipull my SUV up in front of a frat house on the edge of the Hollis University campus, kill the engine, and hop out.

I head up the porch stairs and through the front door. Music blasts through the crowded house.

“Yo! Someone’s dad is here,” a drunk guy yells.

I push past him and walk up the stairs, ignoring the surprised stares from the college kids surrounding me.

At the top of the stairs, I turn the corner and see my little sister Anna sitting in an armchair, sleepily looking at her phone.

“Hey, Anna Banana.”

She frowns when she looks up at me. “Don’t call me that. That nickname makes me feel like I’m in kindergarten all over again.”

I walk over and help her out of the chair. She wobbles on her feet as I study her face. Her eyes are sleepy, and her cheeks are red. She’s definitely had too much to drink.

“You called me for a sober ride home when you’re underage and shouldn’t be drinking,” I say. “I get to call you by your nickname.”

She closes her eyes and groans. “I don’t feel good.”

“Let’s get you out of here.”

I wrap my arm around her and lead her back down the stairs. She cradles the side of her head with her free hand.

She groans. “Ugh, I hate this music.”

“Why’d you go to a frat party then? All they play is shitty music.”

One of the frat guys frowns at me. I glare at him, and he turns away.

She trips when I walk her through the doorway, then starts to dry heave. I quickly take her over to the end of the porch, but she vomits before I can get her over the side into the yard.

I let out a heavy sigh.

“Dude, come on. Not on the porch.”

I turn and see a different frat guy shouting at us.

“Did you really just let her vomit all over our porch? What the fuck?”

I help Anna sit down, then walk over to the guy. His eyes go wide when I square up to him. He’s almost as tall as me, but I’ve got probably sixty pounds on him.

He holds up a hand as he stumbles back.

“Did you know you have a bunch of underage students at your frat party?”

“Uh…uh…”

“Did you know that if I call the cops right now, you’ll get arrested for giving out alcohol to people who aren’t old enough to drink it? And then your frat will get in trouble. You’ll get in trouble too. Maybe even kicked out of school.”

Panic flashes in his eyes. “Okay, sorry I went off on you…”

“If you don’t want people vomiting on your porch, don’t give them alcohol. Understand?”

He nods. “Yes, sir. Very sorry.”

I walk back over to Anna, pick her up, and carry her to my car. I set her next to my car, open the door, then help her in.

When I hop in the driver’s seat and turn on the engine, she’s sniffling.

“I’m sorry, Ryker,” she says in a wobbly voice. “You’re mad at me, aren’t you?”

I sigh and pull into the street. “I’m more mad at your friends. What were they thinking, ditching you at this party?”

She wipes her face on the sleeves of her jacket. “I don’t know. I just met them.”

“Wait, you didn’t go out with Kristin?”

She shakes her head. “I invited her, but she didn’t want to go. She doesn’t get along with Kayla and Molly. She says they party too much.”

“Looks like Kristin is right about that.”

Anna is quiet for a second. “I feel so stupid. They seemed really cool. I wouldn’t have gone out if I had known they were going to leave me stranded at a party where I didn’t know anyone.”

“How long have you known them?”

“A few weeks. I met them while watching one of Nick’s hockey games. Kayla’s dating one of his teammates.”

My jaw goes tight thinking about what he’s up to. Probably getting shitfaced at some other party on campus.

“He didn’t think to come out and accompany his twin sister to her first frat party?” I mutter.

Anna shoves my arm. “Don’t talk about him like that. He’s your brother too. And he didn’t know I was going to a party. It was last-minute. Besides, I don’t need him to babysit me, Ryker.”

“No, that’s my job, right?”

Her eyes water, and her bottom lip trembles. She looks away at the window. Guilt hits me in the gut. I shouldn’t have said that.

My twin sister and brother are polar opposites.

Nick is a typical hockey bro. All he cares about is playing for his college team, partying, and hooking up.

Anna is a brainiac. She’s on a full-tuition academic scholarship.

She’s always been more interested in reading and studying than parties.

She never drinks. The fact that she let herself get this drunk worries the shit out of me. She’s never done this before.

I’m quiet for a while.

“You’re not going to take me to Mom and Dad’s house, are you?” She sniffles again.

“No. You can stay at my place tonight.” If I take her to our parents’ house and they see she’s drunk, they’ll flip out. I can already tell how awful she feels. She doesn’t need to be told off by them too.

“Oh my gosh, thank you, thank you, thank you!” She hugs my arm. “I promise, I won’t ever drink again. Ever.”

I let out a breath. “Anna, you can drink, you just need to pace yourself, okay? You’re small, and you’re not used to alcohol. It doesn’t take much to get you drunk.”

“Yeah, I know,” she says in a sad voice. “I just wanted to keep up with Molly and Kayla. They drink a lot more than I do.”

“That’s not something to be proud of.” I take the exit off the freeway toward the RiNo neighborhood of Denver, where I live. “Did they tell you they were leaving?”

She shakes her head. “They were playing beer pong with these guys, and I started to feel like the fifth wheel, so I went into the kitchen and drank in there by myself for a while so I wouldn’t feel so awkward.

By the time I went back out there, they were gone.

I looked for them all over the house, but they weren’t there.

Someone said they left with the guys to go to another party.

I tried texting and calling them, but they wouldn’t answer. ”

“Wow. Great friends.”

She wipes the tears from her face, and I feel bad for my sarcastic quip. I’ve already given her enough shit.

I pull into the driveway of my townhome, kill the engine, and turn to look at Anna. “Listen. I won’t lie, I’m not happy that you drank too much. But I’m glad you called me. I always want you to call me, whenever you need me, no matter what. Especially if you’ve had too much to drink. Okay?”

She nods. Her light brown hair falls in her face, and she pushes it away. “Okay. Thanks, Ryker.”

“And I’m sorry I made those smart-ass comments. I’m just mad that your friends ditched you.”

She looks down at her lap. “It’s okay. I’m mad at them too.”

I go to hop out of the car, but she stops me.

“Ryker, wait. Are you sure you’re not mad?”

“I told you, I’m more mad at your friends.”

She shakes her head. “No, I mean…are you ever mad that Nick and I rely on you so much? You’re our older brother, but sometimes it feels like you’re our third parent. You take care of us almost as much as Mom and Dad do.”

My parents got pregnant with me when they were in college.

Money was tight, but they made it work. And when they saw how much I loved hockey as a little kid, they sacrificed so much so I could play.

For most of my life, we lived in a small, run-down two-bedroom, one-bathroom house in a not-so-nice part of the city so they could pay for my hockey training camps, equipment, and extra coaching.

When they had the twins, my mom gave up her job to be a stay-at-home parent and take me to all my hockey games and tournaments.

My dad worked two jobs to support our family.

So when I got drafted into the NHL and started making insane amounts of money, I vowed to take care of my parents and my siblings.

It was the least I could do after all they did for me.

“I’m not mad, Anna. I’m your big brother. It’s my job to take care of you.”

She offers a sad smile. “I know, but you do a lot for us. You bought me and Nick brand new cars when we graduated high school.”

I let a smile break free. “Because you spent your childhood in hockey rinks supporting me. It’s a fair trade-off.”

I climb out of the car and help her out. As soon as we’re inside, I flip on the lights and lead her to the couch. She flops on her side and closes her eyes.

I grab a big glass of water and aspirin and bring them to her. I help her sit up and make her take both.

Her eyes are half open when she looks at me. “Do you have Coke? I’m craving one really, really bad.”

I walk over to the fridge, grab her a can, and crack it open. When I hand it to her, she guzzles half of it before setting it on the coffee table and lying back down on the couch.

When I look at the can, I can’t help but think of Maddy.

I grab an empty trash can from the hallway bathroom and set it next to her, in case she has to puke again. I cover her with a blanket and head to bed, wondering if Maddy ended up liking the drinks I got for her.