The Rocker That Needs Me(66)

“We need your hangover bucket!” she told him.

I grimaced. Linc had a hangover almost every Sunday morning, but instead of sleeping it off he worked through his sickness. Most of the time that meant carrying around what we had deemed “the hangover bucket,” which he threw up in when he had to, and then he went on about his day. Dallas swore she could still smell the contents even after it was bleached Monday mornings. I hoped that wasn’t the case today.

Linc appeared with the little white waste basket. As he offered it to me, he frowned. “Want me to kick his ass?”

I offered him a small smile. “Nah, but thanks for the offer.”

He winked. “Anything for you, beautiful.”

The phone by the door rang, and I felt my stomach churn because I knew in my heart who it was. I ached to see my sister, and in truth Jesse and Emmie too. But I knew that Drake would be with them. As Linc moved to answer the phone, my stomach heaved and I emptied my dinner from the night before into the hangover bucket.

Shane’s hands were cool on my neck as he rubbed soothingly. A damp washcloth was put against my forehead by Harper, and I closed my eyes, fighting the next wave of sickness. When I thought I had control of it all, I raised my head.

“Shane, I don’t want them to see me like this,” I whispered.

He just nodded and lifted me into his arms. “I’ve got you, Lana,” he murmured as he carried me down the hall to my room.

From the edge of my bed, I heard the front door open. Through the open bedroom door, I could hear the feminine voices of my sister and Emmie. There was a long pause between greetings as Jesse spoke to Linc and his guest. Well, fuck! I had forgotten about the new guy.

“Shane, please make sure no one kills anyone while I brush my teeth,” I told him.

“I’ll do my best,” he promised and closed the door behind him.

Harper lingered. “Need any help?”

I shook my head. “No, but thanks. Can you help him? They all have territory issues.”

“Yeah, I’ve noticed.” She sighed. “Yell if you need me.”

When the door shut behind her I stood and went into our shared bathroom. I scrubbed the taste of vomit out of my mouth and prayed that I wouldn’t have to do it again anytime soon. My hair looked like shit, and I pulled it up into a sloppy ponytail. As soon as I opened the bedroom door, I heard the raised male voices.

Linc and Drake.

I groaned, knowing that Drake was about to lose it. I should have introduced those two long before now, dammit!

“No way!” Drake yelled. “You are not the roommate. She said you were gay…”

“Dude, I am.” I reached the living room in time to see Linc point at the shirtless guy still sitting on the couch. “See? That’s the guy you saw me hanging out with last night. Remember? We talked for like twenty minutes last night, man. Me, you, Dallas, and Axton? Ring any bells there, man?”

“Of course he doesn’t remember,” I answered for him. “If he was inhaling Jack Daniels like I suspect he was, then he would be lucky to remember his own name today.”

“Angel…”

For the first time I let my eyes go to him. He was pale, his eyes bloodshot and glassy. I remembered all the signs of his hangovers. I wondered how long he had spent with his head in the toilet that morning and if Emmie had to help him shower.

“Don’t,” I told him. “Don’t ever use that word again.” It felt like poison now; him calling me Angel felt like a white hot dagger stabbing me in the heart.

“Lana.” Layla’s cool hands touched my arm, and I turned my head to meet my sister’s gaze. “Baby, are you okay? You look a little green.”

“I don’t want to talk about it, Layla.” More than anything I wanted her to just hold me, to rock me in her arms the way she had when I was a little girl. But I knew that I had to deal with Drake on my own. Already, I could feel the tears that had evaded me for hours stinging my sinuses.

“I wish I could take last night back.” Drake’s voice had my head snapping around in his direction once more. He took several steps toward me, but my glare stopped him. “I know I let you down, Angel…”

“I said don’t.”

He faltered for just a second before clenching his jaw. “Nothing happened,” he informed me, sounding so sure.

“And you know this because you remember? You know that nothing happened?” I demanded, not believing him for a minute.

“No, I don’t remember anything from last night, Angel.” His shoulders drooped just a little. “But…”

“But nothing!” I pulled away from my sister and took a step in his direction. “If you don’t remember, then how can you be so sure that nothing happened?”