Player (A Secret Baby Sports Romance)(211)

The EMT nods curtly; “Of course, Doctor,” he says, stepping aside and letting her into the ambulance.

“You’re completely nuts, you know that, right Doc?” I mumble out, grimacing as I try to smile at her through my bruised up face as she slides next to me and takes my hand.

“I love you; you know know that, right Marine?”

The words hit me harder than any punch ever has, and the lasting glow exploding through my body better than any win, better than any adrenaline high I’ve ever had. Her hand squeezes mine and it feels like the whole world is just dropping away into the background, leaving just me and her, and nothing else matters.

“I love you too, darlin.”

She sniffs back a tear, and then she’s cupping my face gently in her hand as she kisses me. And I know it should hurt, and I know I should be in pain right now.

But then again, it seems I’m not very good at doing what I should when it comes to her.





30





Quinn




The aftermath of Florida was actually less messy than you would’ve thought. Especially so when you considering the implications of a plane from Cuba landing without authorization outside Tallahassee, of Logan refusing to tell anyone in the hospital his name, and with me almost killing someone. And the cleanup from all of that was thanks to someone I’d have thought as possibly the most unlikely candidate in the world.

If anyone could’ve taken a picture of my face when Peyton walked into that E.R. room in Florida, it probably would’ve broken the camera. I remember glaring at her, my jealousy bubbling to the surface even with everything that’d just happened, including the “I love you” part.

But she didn’t seem to bat an eye, and suddenly cold-shoulder, schedule-stickler, frosty Peyton was marching right up to me in the waiting room and throwing her arms around me in a big hug.

Uh, what?

“He hasn’t told you about us, has he.”

It’s a statement more than a question, and part of me wants to smack that little smile she’s only half holding back off of her smug little twenty-year old mouth. I purse my lips, my jaw tensing and my eyes narrowing at her; “No, he hasn’t.” I say evenly, arching a brow at her; “And look, I really don’t actually need to know-”

“Quinn,” She cuts me off as she cocks her head at me; “He’s my brother.”

Whatever scathing retort I’m about to let loose on Peyton freeze in my throat as her words hit me full-force; “Excuse me?”

Peyton’s usually stiff face breaks into a grin, and it’s an expression I actually recognize because it’s the same one pretty much permanently plastered on Logan; “Well, half-brother,” She says with a shrug; “Our mom- well, that part I might let him tell you.”

“I had to find her a few years ago for- I just had to go home for this thing.”

Holy shit.

“Look, I’m sorry for being…” She trails off and looks at the floor.

“A bitch?”

Peyton looks up at me, grinning; “He’s always been protective of me, and so I guess I just get protective right back.” She shrugs, just like her brother; “I kind of figured you probably had the wrong impression,” She says, grinning at me in that wholly Logan way; “He’s a dick for messing with you like that. Sorry, he’s like that sometimes.”

I choke out a laugh; “Tell me about it.”

She squeezes my hand in hers as her face takes on a softer look; “So, how’s the big guy doing, anyways?”

“I- I- He’s-” And right then it’s like all the pent up fear and stress and emotion of the past twelve hours just comes draining out of me at once, and I find myself collapsing into her; Peyton, of all people.

“Hey, hey now,” She’s stroking my hair and helping me to sit before she pulls out her cell phone and looks me in the eye; “Hey, just sit tight, I got this.”

And, she does.

Bryce is there within hours, and if he has any questions about what, at that point is pretty painfully obvious about what’s going on with Logan and I, he doesn’t say a word. But it’s really when Major Lawson arrives soon after and starts mentioning things like “national security” and “State Department” to the concerned-looking State Troopers and hospital staff that the whole thing sort of just gets fixed. Half an hour later, we’re all on a jet headed to New York, and for the first time in what seems like a day, I can finally breath.

Contrary to what I guess either of Logan or I thought would happen, Bryce and Hudson actually ended up taking the news about us pretty well, especially when they heard the story of my spur-of-the-moment heroics back in Florida. Actually, I believe Hudson’s exact words on the entire matter were “You know, the deal was that we protect them, not the other way around, idiot.”