Player (A Secret Baby Sports Romance)(270)

But, yeah, that’s all over now. And again, this is a girl who’s fine on her own; defiantly so.

“You don’t get to tell me what I can and can’t-”

“Bryce is right.” We all whirl at the sound of Hudson’s croaking voice. He’s wincing as he tries to sit up in his hospital bed as Reagan throws her arms around him and buries her face in his neck. He’s nodding, finding his words, and pushing the pain away; “There’s no way you’re getting involved in this, Peyton.” He grins, which is sort of more of a grimace at that point; “Because your brother would fucking kill us if we let anything happen to you.”

“I’m not a child.”

Hudson goes to say something, but winces instead as he sits back into the bed, grimacing. I shake my head; fuck this. If being the bad guy she wants me to be keeps her from harm’s way, fine. If being every inch the asshole she wants to pretend I am keeps her here and safe, I can deal with that. That piercing look of disdain and hurt in her eyes that she’s shooting me right now is nothing less than I’ve been dealing with for a fucking year anyways.

“You’re staying,” I say, louder than I mean to; “And that’s final.”

She jerks her head up and glares at me, and I’m steeling myself to ignore it when she whirls on her heel and storms out of the room.





3





Peyton




I’m not playing these fucking games with him. This is exactly the type of shit we did before; these damn power trips where we play “who knows best”.

We were both broken back then, back when mistakes were made. Two shattered people, all cuts and bruises and battered souls. We were fools to think two people like us could somehow fit together and make something whole, and it only fell apart from there. The lies, the sneaking around-

And then the bigger lies. The ones I couldn’t just pretend to ignore. But no, I’m not doing this; not here and certainly not right now. Not when my only family in the whole world has just been ripped away from me.

Shame hits me then, as I think about the group of people back in the hospital room that are for all purposes, my family. The family that took me in, accepted me, and basically just made me one of them without batting an eye. My last name might not be “Archer”, but I know every single one of those women back in that room considers me an equal, and a sister.

But blood is blood, and mine’s just been stolen from me.

“Peyton.”

I jump at the feel of his hand on me, for the third time that day. It’s more physical contact than we’ve had in a year.

“Get your fucking hands off of me,” I hiss, shaking his hand off and moving away from him. I can’t have him near me like this, not right now, and especially not touching me.

“For fuck’s sake, calm-”

“I said don’t touch me!” I say sharply, jerking my arm away again and whirling to face him.

“Will you stop it!” His voice breaks for a second, and for a moment, I allow myself to realize that it’s not just me hurting here. Logan might be my brother, but he’s been a “brother” to Bryce and Hudson for longer than I even knew I had one.

“I’m not letting you go,” Bryce says firmly, his eyes boring right into mine. I ignore the double meaning those words hold as I follow the thin crease line down the side of his jaw, across his shadowed concave of his cheek, and down to his squared chin.

“Letting me” I roll my eyes; “I don’t remember asking for fucking permission.”

“You know what I mean.”

“Do I?”

His lips part and that thin crease in his jawline tenses as his grits his teeth; “Why is it never fucking simple with you?”

“Because this isn’t simple, that’s why,” I snap; “None of this shit is. Nothing about today, or the day before, or the fucking three-hundred and sixty-five days before that are simple, and you fucking know that.”

He glares at me; “Logan would kill me if I allowed something happen to you.”

I bark out a laugh; “Little late for that kind of noble thought, don’t you think?”

Bryce’s eyes narrow; “That was different,” He says quietly.

“Sure.”

“I owe it to him to make sure you’re safe.”

I laugh, rolling my head away from him; “What is this, for karma? You fuck his sister behind his back so now you think you have to make sure I’m sa-”

I gasp as he’s suddenly against me, pushing us back into an alcove by a vending machine. His heat and his scent invade every sense I have as he stands there, blazing eyes full of storm and heat with his hands flat against the wall on either side of me; “You know that’s not what this is!”