AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Yeah,” Aaron let out a steady breath, “Dad said he has to be there. Gave him the whole, ‘you are part of this family’ speech.”
“Aaron,” Sofia warned.
“What? I’m just telling it like it is.”
“Yeah, but you know it isn’t easy for him.”
“He doesn’t even try, Sis. It’s like he’s… ah, I don’t know.”
I could count on one hand how many times I’d spoken to the twins’ foster brother Ezra in the last three years, but I got it. More than ever, I knew what it was like to feel displaced. It wasn’t about people’s generosity; it was about self-worth and knowing your place in the world.
So yeah, I got why Ezra might have been having a hard time living with the Bennets. Sometimes you had to accept yourself and lay your past to rest before you could accept that family wasn’t always what you were born into, that sometimes it was what you made for yourself.
“I can’t believe this time tomorrow we’ll know if we’re the champions or not,” Bryan kicked out his legs and folded his arms behind his head.
“Make yourself comfortable, why don’t you,” Aaron mumbled.
“Don’t mind if I do,” Bryan quipped.
“You’ll do it,” Lily said. Curled in Kaiden’s lap, she kissed the underside of his jaw. “You’ve worked too hard not to win.”
“If only it was that easy, Lil.” Aaron chuckled.
“Well, I believe you can do it.”
“Fuck yeah.” Bryan drained his beer and slammed it down on the table beside him. “I’ve dreamed about this since I was a kid.”
“Yeah, and fuck knows you were never going to win it as an Eagle.” Aaron smirked.
“Low blow, man.” It was Kaiden’s turn to chuckle. “You’re not wrong though. Coming to Rixon High wasn’t all bad.”
“Yeah,” Bryan snorted. “You got the girl and the football team.”
“Asshole,” Kaiden leaned over and smacked him upside the head.
But Bryan had a point. When he, Kaiden, and Gav had transferred to Rixon High after their school burned down, nobody could have predicted Kaiden would become the Raiders star player.
“Fucker, that hurt. Peyton, babe, care to kiss it better?”
My brows pinched as I gawked up at Bryan. “Relax, Myers, I’m joking.” His smile said one thing, but the intensity in his eyes said something else entirely.
Thankfully, Kaiden and Aaron started discussing strategy for the game tomorrow and Bryan moved along the couch to join them.
Ashleigh slipped into his space and looked at me. “What’s going on with you?”
“Me? Nothing, why?”
“I don’t know. You seem… I mean, I get it. But you went really tense just now…” She lowered her voice. “When Bryan said that. Did something else happen with you two?”
“No, I just…” I couldn’t tell her the truth, that I was thinking of Xander, of what he might say if he saw Bryan flirting with me.
“And this Carrie-Anne thing… that’s what exactly?”
“I don’t know,” I said. “I felt bad… she had no one to go to the game with. And she stood up for me with Layla.”
Ashleigh’s brows knitted together. “If Layla is giving you a hard time, you should have told me. I’ll deal with Layla Hannigan.”
“She’s just jealous because Sean dumped her and came after me again.”
