Chapter 15 – ryan
RYAN
The other guys are too macho to say it, but I’m not—the White Elephant party is better with the girls.
For one, nobody showed up straight from the gym without showering.
For two, we’ve got homemade decorated Christmas cookies, thanks to Cat.
And for three, Pippa’s wearing a low-cut dress in a color for once—a forest green that brings out the hazel hue of her eyes. She looks hot as fuck, and I’m not ashamed to stare—when I think she won’t catch me.
A couple of days have passed since our weirdly friendly Vampire Diaries marathon. We’ve managed to avoid getting on each other’s nerves too much, minus a minor incident where I almost spilled an energy drink on her laptop. It’s not my fault they don’t make laptops waterproof.
The mood is high all around, thanks in part to Beau’s Grinch-themed welcome cocktails and the novelty Christmas-light necklaces Cat hung around all our necks.
Luke and I hauled out the faux Christmas tree we keep in storage.
James and Nate contributed in their own way—namely, by standing back and keeping any grumpiness to a minimum.
Cat and Brinley are behind the bar, making themselves Sex on the Beach cocktails. They made it clear they’re planning to hang and chat until the poker portion of the game is over, so I’m setting up chips for us five guys at the table.
“I think you miscounted.” Pippa points at the table. “That’s only five spots.”
“There are only five players. Me, Luke, Nate, James, Beau.”
“And me.”
I turn toward her, brows arched. “You want to play? Against me?”
She leans forward, giving me a perfect view down her shirt. “Why not?”
“Because even if you try to use boobs to distract me, I’ll still kick your ass.”
“Maybe. Maybe not,” she says.
I shrug. “It’s your funeral. You know the buy-in is ten grand, right?”
Pippa flinches. That’s no small chunk of change for her, and for a second I feel a little bad about it.
“Hey, I’ll stake you if you want,” Luke offers.
“You would?” Pippa shoots him a look of gratitude that makes me want to stomp on something. “I’d pay you back, obviously.”
“Nah. It’s not a big deal.” He waves his hand.
I cross my arms. “Yeah, that’s barely pocket change for Luke. Let him throw his money away if he wants.”
“Luke can stake me, too,” Brinley announces.
He blinks, giving his sister a look. “Seriously, Brin?”
“Yes, seriously. If Pippa’s playing then I want to try, too.”
“I’ll play too, if that’s okay,” Cat says brightly. “Sounds fun.”
Nate grins, wrapping one of Cat’s wild blonde curls around his finger. “Oh, Kitten, this is going to be fun.”
“Even if I beat you?”
“Especially if you beat me.” He kisses her temple, and Beau and I make gagging noises.
“Stop being cute! It’s weird,” Luke whines.
“It’s unnatural when you smile,” I add. “It’s like a zebra standing on their hind legs. Put the scowl back on, you’re scaring me.”
Cat laughs and rubs Nate’s back. I’m being honest—it’s so weird to see Nate being all sweet and gooey—but it’s good weird.
I redistribute the chips into eight piles while James pulls up more chairs to the table.
“I haven’t played poker since college,” Brinley says, taking a seat by Beau. “I might forget some of the rules.”
“If you need advice, just ask,” Beau offers.
“Only if you’re out of the hand,” I say. “If the amateurs need help, they can get it from anyone who’s not playing. Otherwise, there could be collusion.”
“You really think any of us would collude with you guys?” Pippa says dryly.
“I think Cat and Nate would absolutely collude with each other. They’re practically sitting in each other’s lap right now.”
Blushing, Cat takes her legs down from where she has them draped across Nate’s lap.
James deals for the first round, and we all sit down to play.
An hour later, we’re down to four.
Even with our help, Cat and Brinley got knocked out of the tournament pretty quickly.
Cat was more focused on joking around with Nate than actually playing.
Brinley fared better. She clearly knows the game, but she went all in on a bad beat, losing on a full house when Nate lucked out with a straight flush on the river.
Unlike I would have, the girls didn’t waste the night sulking.
They’ve been hanging out by the Christmas tree, chatting and chowing down on the pizza we ordered.
Beau and Luke weren’t that far behind them.
I’m pretty sure Luke lost a hand on purpose.
He’s been trying to connect with his sister recently, and he’s taking any chance he can get to talk to her.
Beau, on the other hand, got knocked out in a savage blindside by Pippa.
Because Pippa can fucking play.
I should have known something was up right for the beginning.
Cat and Brinley got advice from the other guys on practically every hand they played, but Pippa turned them down every time.
I thought it was just her pride. Nope—it was because she knew exactly what she was doing.
Right now, her chipstack is the second largest, second only to mine.
I take a long drink of water. I’ve won enough hands by now that I’ve taken plenty of shots. I’m a little tipsy, and I’ve got to keep my wits about me.
Across the table from me, Pippa daintily sips her own water. She’s under the gun, and her eyes are unreadable when she checks her cards. After a moment, she tosses in double the big blind.
Next to her, Nate calls, and so do I. My cards aren’t great, but it’s worth it to have another chance to observe Pippa while I play against her. I need to figure her out.
Her play style is eclectic. She’ll be conservative for a few hands, then play like a maniac for the next three. She’s bluffed her way to victory at least once, and I didn’t spot it until she turned over her cards. I never know what to expect from her.
It’s driving me fucking insane, but there’s a part of me that loves the challenge.
Playing Pippa reminds me of playing my mortal nemesis in online poker, the dreaded PixiPirate09.
Pixi only joins lower buy-in games, but they give me something the higher stakes players I usually face can’t: a real challenge.
As the dealer, Nate turns over the first three cards. It’s a rainbow with no face cards, and we all check. Not much to play on there. The next card is a queen. The second I reach for my chips, Pippa sighs and tosses her cards in. “Don’t do it, Nate. Ryan’s got two ladies.”
It takes all my training to keep from reacting. How the fuck does Pippa always know what’s in my hand? I know I don’t have any tells. I drilled them out of myself over years of training. Yet all night, she’s been calling my hands like she can see through the goddamn cards on the table.
Nate examines my face, then nods. “I’m out.”
I grit my teeth. I think my stepsister is enjoying fucking up my game a little too much. I pour myself a shot for winning the hand.
“You’re playing pretty well for someone who’s not that into poker,” I tell Pippa through gritted teeth.
“Beginner’s luck.” She fiddles with her necklace, deliberately drawing my eyes to her breasts.
She plays too goddamn dirty.
Pippa’s the dealer for the next hand. Nate and I throw in the little and big blind, and everyone’s in by the time Pippa deals the flop—all diamonds, a nine, a seven, and an ace. Nothing works with my hand, so when Nate raises, I fold. James and Pippa call.
The fourth card is the ace of spades, and I hum the Motorhead song to myself. This makes things interesting. A table pair sets up a possible full house, which challenges Nate’s flush. Nate would only raise if he knew he had it.
James raises this time, because he has the full house. Nate calls, because he thinks James is bluffing. Pippa calls too, and I have no idea why. Maybe she’s bluffing, maybe she thinks she can win with a two-pair, maybe she has a full house, too.
The final card is a four of hearts. I can’t see that helping anyone, but Pippa shoves her chips toward the center of the table. “All-in,” she says.
Nate pushes his chips in, too. “I’ll call.”
James does the same. “Let’s see them.”
Everyone turns over their cards, and it plays out just like I thought. A diamond flush for Nate, a full house with sevens for James. Great hands all around, but not enough to beat Pippa’s full house with nines.
James and Nate jump to their feet, shocked. Nate rakes back his hair with his hand while James shakes his head in disbelief. “Holy shit,” he says.
“Un-freaking-believable,” Nate says.
“What happened?” Luke calls.
“Pippa just took me and James out!” Nate says. “She’s going head-to-head with Ryan!”
“You’re kidding!” Cat cries.
Everyone gathers around the table to watch our match-up while Nate tells the group about how Pippa took him out. James grabs the cards, silently settling into the role of dealer.
Across the table, Pippa meets my eyes. There’s a challenging glint in them that makes my heartrate speed up.
“Nice stack you got there.” I wink. “It would be a shame if anything happened to it.”
She shakes her head. “Oh, Ryan. I’d never let you anywhere near my stack.”
Luke lets out a low whistle while Brinley and Cat jump up and down, chanting Pippa’s name. I mentally shut out the noise as my focus zeroes in on the cards.
I’m the champion, and this game is mine to win.
In hand one, my two-pair beats her pocket sevens, and I take a shot.
Hand number two, she folds as soon as I lay down a pair of jacks. I take a shot.
Hand number three, she folds as soon as I raise after the river. I take a shot, and I realize that I’m a fucking moron.
She’s been baiting me.
She knows I’m trying to figure out how she plays, so I’m more willing to call and play for a smaller pot, just to see what she’ll do. She’s been baiting me to play small hands, not because she’s scared off by my raises. No, she’s folding so I win and I have to take a shot.
I look up at her, and I see double of her beautiful, gloating face.
“Trying to get me drunk, Pips?” My voice sounds slurred even to me.
Her red lips curl up into an evil smile. “Never.”
Closing my eyes, I take three deep breaths. I know my reasoning is impaired by now, but every hand counts. As dangerous as it is to lose any chips to her while she’s in the lead, I can’t afford to take another shot. I can only play when I know I’ll win.
And she knows it.
I fold the next two hands in a row to her, and she smiles like the cat who got the cream. She’s got me right where she wants me—bleeding chips and playing safe.
On my third hand, I’m dealt my salvation. A queen and jack of hearts. It’s my only chance to get a big win and regain ground in the game.
Pippa’s eyes glitter when I raise before the flop. She reminds me of a lioness, playing with her prey. She calls, and James turns over the cards.
Seven of hearts, seven of clubs, ten of hearts.
For the first time, I can read Pippa’s face. Her lip twitches, and I know she’s got at least one seven her hand, maybe two. Four of a kind or a full house, they’re both on the table. I like my odds for a flush, but unless I’m reading her wrong, I’ll need a straight flush to beat her.
I shove in half my stack. I know she’ll call. One way or another, the game is ending here.
She matches my bet, and James flips the turn card.
King of hearts.
My own heart thuds hard in my chest. Impossibly, I got one of the cards I needed. A nine or ace of hearts, and victory is mine. The odds aren’t in my favor, but they never were from the beginning.
“What do you say, Pippa?” I ask. “Wanna take all my chips?”
“I’d love to.”
I shove my stack to the center, and Pippa matches it. The room is completely silent when James flips the final card to show—the nine of diamonds.
With a sheepish smile, I show my cards. Pippa glows with victory as she reveals the two sevens in her hand.
The whole room erupts. Cat and Brinley practically knock Pippa to the ground with their fierce hugs. Luke and Beau jump up for an actual chest bump while Nate howls with laughter.
“You got beat by a girl!” Cat yells victoriously.
“Your little sister kicked your ass!” Beau cheers.
James leans over and quietly says, “Did you let her win?”
I shake my head. “No. She won all on her own.”
Pippa beams, and I can’t look away from her. Has she always been this radiant? It’s like gold light is shining out from inside her. I feel like I’ve never seen her before.
“Good game, Pips,” I say, pushing myself up to stand. Except the first step I take, the room tilts and I stumble. I have to grab the edge of the table to keep from falling.
“Whoa, let’s get you some coffee and water,” James says, wrapping his arm around my torso for support. “We need you sobered up before we swap presents, and things really get interesting.”