Fair Catch

by Ruddick, Jessica

  I steadied Rachel as she shot her friend a dirty look. “Sorry,” she said to me.

  “No worries.” I grinned. “So did you break up with that guy?” I figured she had since she’d texted me, but I wanted to confirm.

  “No, because that would require him to be my boyfriend, remember? But to answer your question, I’m done with him.”

  “His loss.”

  She laughed. “Well, it certainly isn’t mine.”

  We reached the booth, and I gestured for her to slide in next to Carson. He scooted over.

  “Where’s what’s-her-name?” I asked Carson as I sat next to Rachel.

  He shrugged. “Gone.” He didn’t seem the least bit concerned.

  “Jake gave me a ride in your car last week,” Rachel said. “It’s awesome.”

  He leaned in closer. “You’d think it was even more awesome if I was driving. Jake favors the brake, but I’m all about the gas.”

  Rachel failed to suppress her grin. “You don’t say?”

  Carson frowned. “Shit. That didn’t come out right.” He chuckled. “Good thing I’m not trying to impress you. Jake already called dibs.”

  Christ. Carson made it sound like Rachel was a choice cut of meat we’d fought over. Thanks, dude. Way to make me look good.

  Rachel gave me the side-eye. “Oh, did he now?”

  I was saved from having to answer by the arrival of Wyatt and Katie. That was the fastest service I’d ever seen at a bar. But if anybody could get served quickly, it would be the hotshot quarterback and the former child star.

  Katie set a glass containing a pink girly drink in front of Rachel then slid in next to Carson. He shifted down to make more room for Wyatt, shoving Rachel right up against me until our thighs were pressed together.

  Rachel took a sip of her drink. “This is good. What is it?”

  Katie shrugged. “I don’t know. I told the bartender to surprise me.”

  Rachel nodded in appreciation. “Good surprise.”

  I wanted to tell her that her text was a good surprise, but I wasn’t too rusty to realize that would probably be one of the cheesiest lines she’d ever heard. Plus, I didn’t need to take the inevitable shit I’d get from Carson if I dropped that bomb of a line. But there was a veiled vulnerability to Rachel, so I wanted to let her know I was glad she was there.

  “Where’s your date, Carson?” Wyatt asked. “Weren’t you with someone when we walked in?”

  “Scared her off,” he replied. “But it’s cool. I’m sitting pretty right now.” With a grin, he stretched his arms out and wrapped them around Katie and Rachel. They laughed, but Wyatt did not look thrilled.

  The light dimmed, and the music blasting out of the speaker hanging above our booth became deafening. Peak bar hours. Too bad the music made it impossible to talk. I was forced to sit quietly and simply enjoy the feeling of Rachel’s thigh against mine, which was even more enjoyable with the way she bounced it to the beat of the music.

  After way too many minutes spent people watching, she cupped her hand around my ear and yelled something indistinguishable. I shook my head and motioned that I couldn’t hear. She pushed me gently out of the booth and followed suit. Then she took my hand and led me toward the pool tables, which were in a separate alcove. As soon as we left the main bar area, I could hear again.

  “Sorry,” she said. “It was too loud in there, and—oh!”

  I looked around in alarm. “What?”

  “Look!” She pointed to the corner of the room. “Air hockey. That’s new. They didn’t have it the last time I was here. That’s about the only sport I’m good at.” She laughed.

  “Wanna play?”

  “If you think you can handle this.” She pointed to herself with both hands. Given her pointing fingers, I didn’t even feel bad as my gaze skimmed over her body.

  I wanted to handle her, but not on the air hockey table. Hopefully, there would be time for that later. But now it was time to kick her ass.

  “It’s on.”

  ***

  Rachel

  JAKE SHOVED A bill into the change machine and returned with two handfuls of quarters.

  “Holy crap,” I said. “I guess you’re serious about playing.”

  “Never challenge an athlete to a game unless you’re serious. We’re competitive by nature.”

  I snorted. “Sweetheart, I’m the middle of five children. I know all about competition.” That was a bit of an exaggeration. The older my eldest two sisters got, the demurer and more agreeable they became, which didn’t lend itself to competition. But I was plenty scrappy on my own.

  Jake divided the coins and put them into separate pockets. At my raised eyebrows, he explained. “Gotta keep the weight evenly distributed so my balance isn’t off.”

  I shook my head. That was some next-level shit right there. I slung my cross-body purse around to my back and picked up the paddle to inspect it. I had no idea what I was looking for. Once upon a time, I had been good at air hockey, but it had been years since I’d played. Hopefully, it would come back to me so I could back up my smack talk.

  “Which side do you want?” Jake asked.

  “It doesn’t matter. You can choose what side you want to lose on.”

  He chuckled. “Should we bet something?”

  I had a whole hoard of things I’d like to win from him, starting with the shirt off his back, followed by his jeans. When I’d been pressed against him in the booth, I’d felt nothing but a firm wall of muscle. I wanted to inspect it further, but that wasn’t something I was willing to say out loud.

  “Pride is enough for me.”

  “Okay.” He put four quarters in the machine, and air started blowing from the little holes in the tabletop.

  I positioned myself and took a few practice swipes with the paddle. Oh yeah. It was coming back. Time to relive my middle school air hockey glory days.

  Jake slid the puck down to my side. “You can go—shit.”

  I smirked as the puck sailed into his goal.

  He gaped at me. “I wasn’t ready.”

  “Are you ready now?” My first goal might have been a cheap shot, but I sure as hell wasn’t admitting it. Strike early and often. That was my air hockey motto.

  “I see how it is. You play dirty.”

  I stared at him. “You have no idea.”

  Even from across the table, I could see his eyes darken, which pleased me immensely. Since I’d been with Adam for two years, I hadn’t flirted in forever, and I’d forgotten how fun it could be, especially with someone like Jake. He gave as good as he got. Just the way I like it.

  The game went quickly. For every point I scored, he matched it, until the end when he overtook me.

  “Best two out of three?” I asked before he could gloat.

  “I don’t know. It’s tempting to quit while I’m ahead.”

  Carson, Wyatt, and Katie walked over, so I turned to them. “Do you believe this guy? He’s too scared to accept a rematch.”

  He wagged his finger at me. “I see what you’re doing, and it’s not going to work. I’m immune to peer pressure.”

  I stuck out my lower lip and batted my eyes. I probably looked ridiculous, but it was worth a shot.

  Katie laughed. “She’s pulling out the big guns.”

  Jake hung his head. “You’ve found my weakness. Let’s go. Maybe if you’re lucky, I’ll really take pity on you and let you win.”

  “You won’t need to do that,” I said. “I was just getting warmed up before.”

  Except I totally wasn’t. I’d given it my all the last game, but I wasn’t going to let him know that. When he quickly beat me in the second game, he probably figured it out, though. So much for reliving my middle school glory days.

  Jake dug into his pocket and piled a stack of quarters into Wyatt’s hand. “You two can play.” Then he found a pair of stools and dragged them next to the hockey table. “Do you want another drink?” he asked.

  I thought about it for a
second. “No, I’m good.” When he didn’t move to leave and get one for himself, I added, “but you can get one.”

  “I’m good too,” he said. “I’m happy enjoying your company.”

  It was such an honest and open statement. While I appreciated flirty banter, I appreciated his directness even more. I was done with bullshit. We had chemistry, and I wanted to explore that. There was no reason to play hard to get.

  “Do you want to do something later this weekend?” I asked. “Maybe Sunday?” I had a huge project due Monday, so I needed to get that out of the way first.

  His gaze met mine, and my stomach did an acrobatic routine.

  Then he smiled. “Tell me when and where.”

  CHAPTER 6

  Jake

  THIS TURNED OUT to be the best night I’d had in a long time. Drunk Carson didn’t even put a damper on my good mood.

  “You should have invited her back to your place,” he told me. “Then she could be sitting here instead of me.” He pointed to himself in the passenger seat. “Although I’m just as pretty as she is.” He gripped his pecs. “My tits aren’t as nice, though.”

  Normally I rolled my eyes at Carson’s drunken chatter, but I was in such a good mood that I laughed. “We’re getting together on Sunday.” Hopefully. She was going to text me later to confirm because she had to finish a project first. I had half a mind to offer to help her with it to make sure she finished it in time to hang out. But that would cross the needy line and go straight into pathetic territory.

  “Dude… does she have a friend?”

  “Yeah. Katie.”

  “Fat lot of good that does me,” Carson muttered.

  “Yeah. I doubt Wyatt is willing to share.” And if Carson even suggested it, Wyatt wouldn’t be like that guy talking to Becca in the bar and back down.

  I dropped Carson off in front of his apartment and waited until his drunk ass made it inside before leaving. As I turned out of the complex, my phone rang, but I didn’t want to dig it out of my pocket while driving Carson. Seconds later, it vibrated. Then it vibrated again with another text.

  Several more texts came in during the ten-minute drive home. As soon as I put the truck in Park, I checked my phone. The messages were all from Ben.

  Ben: Ashley just got home, and she’s passed out. What do I do?

  Ben: She won’t wake up, and she’s really pale.

  I didn’t read any of the other texts and called Ben immediately.

  He answered on the first ring. “Jake, thank God. Something’s wrong with Ashley.”

  “What?” I tried to keep the panic out of my voice. “Give me details.”

  “I think… I’m pretty sure she’s drunk. How do I tell if she has alcohol poisoning?”

  Fuck. There were so many things wrong with that situation. Ashley was twelve. In all my years in college—and high school for that matter—I’d never known anyone to actually get alcohol poisoning. I doubted she’d consumed enough for that. Then again, she was tiny. It wouldn’t take much.

  But I didn’t understand why the hell Ben was calling me about this. I was hours away, so he shouldn’t be reaching out to me for help. “Where’s Aunt Christy?”

  “She’s working a night shift.” My aunt was a nurse at the local hospital, so it wasn’t uncommon for her to work odd hours.

  “What about Uncle Brian?”

  A pause filled the line. “He’s sleeping.”

  “Then wake him up!”

  “No, I can’t do that. He’ll kill her.”

  “Don’t be ridiculous. Wake him up.”

  “You don’t understand, Jake. He hates us. If he finds out she snuck out and came home dr—shit! Not on the floor! The trash can is over there! Here.” Ben sounded disgusted. She must be puking. Good.

  “Once she gets done with that, make sure she drinks some water.” Now that it seemed Ashley was only at risk of having a nasty hangover, I was pissed. “What the hell is going on there, Ben?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Are you fucking kidding me? You call me at eleven on a school night because our twelve-year-old sister snuck out and got drunk. That’s not nothing.”

  “I shouldn’t have called. I’m sorry.”

  “I’m not angry at you for calling.” I sighed. “Just tell me what the hell is going on.” I had a feeling I was missing some very important pieces of information. “Like what’s the deal with Uncle Brian?”

  Ben didn’t answer right away, and I cursed. “Ben, for fuck’s sake—”

  “He’s not adjusting well to having children in the house.” By the way he said it, I could tell he was reciting something Aunt Christy had said. “So we try to stay out of his way, especially when… never mind.”

  My fingers gripped the phone so tightly, I was worried I would crack the case. “When what?”

  “When he’s drunk.”

  The dull throbbing behind my eyes that had started at the beginning of the conversation turned into a roar. “How often is that?”

  “Enough.”

  Goddammit! I wished Ben wasn’t being so cagey about everything.

  “What’s Ashley doing now?”

  “Um… moaning and hugging the trash can. Serves her right. I told her not to go meet that guy, but you know she never listens to me.”

  No, I didn’t know that. I didn’t know anything about my siblings’ lives anymore. I hadn’t planned to visit that weekend, but it had been two months since I’d been home. It was overdue, and I needed to see for myself what the situation was.

  “Make sure she drinks plenty of water,” I instructed again. “She’s going to feel like hell tomorrow.”

  “I should go. I need to clean up this mess before anyone sees.”

  “All right. I’ll see you soon, Ben.”

  “Okay. Sorry for bothering you.”

  Before I could tell him he didn’t need to apologize, he hung up. Fuck. Since when did he think a phone call was a bother to me? Granted, he hadn’t called because of the best situation, and I wasn’t thrilled about Ashley’s behavior, but he should never feel like he couldn’t call me.

  I would let Aunt Christy take the lead with them, but they were my siblings. I was their closest family. I was in no situation to care for them personally, but I at least needed to make sure they were being well cared for. Yeah, a surprise visit was in order.

  ***

  KEEPING ONE EYE on the road, I checked the text on my phone, split between hoping it was Ben and Rachel. I was waiting to hear from Ben since I’d texted him first thing that morning, asking about Ashley. I could have texted her directly, but I was more likely to get a straight answer out of my brother. And after last night’s conversation, that wasn’t saying much.

  I wanted to hear from Rachel because I was looking forward to seeing her again. I’d spent more time than I should have thinking about her, especially when I should’ve been focused on what was going on with my siblings. But damn, something about her sweet nature wrapped up in that cute little package drew me to her in a way it shouldn’t since I barely knew her.

  I wanted to change that, though. I wanted to know her very well, in every sense.

  After getting in a workout with Carson, who I’d had to drag to the gym in a role reversal, I hit the road. I should make it to Aunt Christy’s house by dinnertime. If all was well, I would be heading back to Bleaksburg after breakfast the next morning. But even as I thought through my plans, guilt crept in. Couldn’t I spare more than twenty-four hours to visit with my siblings? I hadn’t had much of a life left in Richmond before my parents died, and now that they were gone, there was even less there for me. Just Ben, Ashley, and Emily.

  They’re enough. I needed to get my head out of my ass. This wasn’t about me and how uncomfortable going to my hometown was. I’d never had a close relationship with my siblings, but if my parents’ deaths weren’t reason enough to change that, I didn’t know what was.

  On autopilot, I put my blinker on to take the exit for my parents�
�� old house. Cursing, I turned it off. Aunt Christy’s house wasn’t far from where I’d grown up—just twenty minutes—but it was far enough that my siblings had had to change schools.

  I pulled up to the curb and eyed the house my aunt and uncle had lived in my entire life. As a kid, I’d spent some time there with my cousin, Tyler, who was four years older than me. It hadn’t taken him long to outgrow playing with me, though, so I didn’t have many memories from that house.

  Tucking my hands in my pockets, I walked up the drive to the front door. Two cars were in the driveway, so I assumed that meant both my aunt and uncle were home. Though I didn’t recognize the bright-red two-seater convertible. The last time I’d been there, my uncle had driven a sturdy sedan. Midlife crisis? It looked out of place next to my aunt’s minivan. Since she only had one kid, I’d never understood why she had one and why she’d kept it long after Tyler was grown. But I supposed it came in handy now.

  Feeling awkward as hell, I rang the doorbell. I probably could just walk in, but I wasn’t comfortable doing that.

  “Get the door!” my uncle yelled from inside.

  A few moments later, the door swung open, and Ben stood there with wide eyes. It was like looking at a scrawny version of myself, only with glasses. Since he didn’t invite me in, I opened the screen door and let myself in.

  Stepping back, he swallowed. “What are you doing here?”

  I scowled. “I wanted to see you, and I drove several hours to do it.” Jerkass. Maybe I should have stayed in Bleaksburg and trusted my aunt to handle whatever was going on.

  My brother winced. “Sorry. It’s good to see you.”

  We stood in the foyer, sizing each other up. It was weird. He’d changed a lot in the two months since I’d seen him. He was at least an inch taller, and his shoulders had broadened. Though we looked a lot alike in the face, the similarities ended there. When I had been fourteen, my height had been closing in on six feet, and I was already a stellar athlete. Ben’s skin had the pallor of someone who spent too much time in front of a screen.