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In hindsight, maybe I’d been too hard on her. She was clearly hurting, lost and afraid. But she wasn’t my problem. Jase and Fee were keeping a close eye on her, Mya too. Peyton had plenty of people around her to lift her spirits.
Including Bryan Hughes, one of Rixon Raiders’ defensive tackles. He bounded over to her and slung his arm around her shoulder, drawing Peyton into his side. She beamed up at him, but it didn’t reach her eyes. Did he notice? Did he see the way she recoiled slightly at his touch?
I noticed.
I shouldn’t have fucking noticed.
If Bryan did, he didn’t let on, as he and their small group laughed and chatted about whatever high school seniors talked about these days.
Fuck, senior year felt like a lifetime ago. For a moment, I’d had it all. The world at my feet.
Until I hadn’t.
Shaking the miserable thoughts out of my head, I made my way toward the building.
“Morning, Coach,” Kaiden called over and I found myself looking over at them again.
Peyton’s gaze immediately darted to the ground, and I felt like a complete asshole. I didn’t want to play therapist, but I didn’t want her to think—
Oh, who the fuck was I kidding? That’s exactly what I wanted her to think. She was a teenager. A messed up, emotionally unstable teenager. The last thing she needed was some misplaced crush on the guy who had saved her.
A guy who was just as messed up and emotionally unstable as she was.
“Shouldn’t you all be heading for class?” I said as I reached them.
“Nah, we have time,” Bryan grinned, tucking her further into his side.
Peyton caught my eye but quickly looked away. My brows furrowed, a strange tugging sensation spreading in my chest. It wasn’t guilt. I had nothing to feel guilty about.
You were a bit of an asshole to her last night. I shut down the little voice. She was a senior. She needed to turn to her friends, kids her own age. She didn’t need me offering her reassurance or some sage words of advice.
But as I walked away from them, I felt her eyes on me. I felt them burning into my back begging me for something.
Something I didn’t ever want to acknowledge.
