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Peyton’s gut churned. That’s the kind of woman Ryan normally went for? She knew she was attractive, but the only reason traffic stopped when she walked by was if she was at a crosswalk. “Why’d they break up?”
“In hindsight, she was drawn to Ryan because everyone knew he was going to be drafted. Don’t get me wrong my brother is amazing, but that’s not what Denise liked about him.” Kendall picked up her plate and took a bite of food, then sank deeper into the chair. “Ry was a big shot on campus and together they were this power couple. When the draft came up, we all knew he was going to Chicago. He’d been down there multiple times to meet with the team. The contract his agent landed him was amazing, and they were willing to have him go straight to the majors. Which is unheard of. It was everything he’d ever dreamed of.
“Two weeks into training camp, he dumped Denise. He got into a huge fight with my parents because he wanted to leave Chicago and go to Philly’s farm team instead, which seemed ridiculous.”
Peyton sat forward in her chair. “What happened?”
“Denise slept with one of the players in Chicago. The guy wanted her to dump Ryan and be with him.”
“Oh my god,” Peyton gasped. How awful. “He wanted to go to a different team so he didn’t have to see Denise?”
“Sort of.” Kendall sat quietly for several seconds. “Denise didn’t want to break up. She wanted to work it out. It was just sex, after all, and could he blame her? The guy was like a fucking rockstar in the league. Married but who cares, right?”
“He was married?” Peyton covered her mouth with her hand as she processed the information. From everything she knew about Ryan, that wouldn’t sit well with him. “And of course, Ryan cared.”
Kendall nodded. “Ryan cared. Denise isn’t the one who told Ryan, the guy did. Bragging about it to let Ryan know his place.” Kendall’s shoulders dropped and she sighed. “Given Ryan’s unprecedented contract, I guess the guy thought Ryan needed to be knocked down a few and this was the way to do it.”
“Ouch.” Peyton could only imagine how much that must have hurt Ryan.
“Yeah, Ry could either dump Denise or this guy would make sure everyone on the team hated Ryan.” Kendall’s mouth tightened. “There was no way my parents would let him walk away from everything he’d worked for over a girl. My parents rode him hard to get him to follow his dream and not let what happened hold him back, so he stayed in Chicago. But how could they have a cohesive team when that’s what he was walking into? Those guys were merciless. It was brutal.”
“Hang on I thought he broke up with Denise.”
“Oh, he did. There’s no coming back from that one.” Kendall sighed. “But that didn’t stop the guys from ribbing him and talking about him. Like I said, the guy felt Ryan needed to learn his place on the team. Ryan might have been a big shot in college, but this was The Show and he better not forget it.” Kendall set her plate down and leaned forward so she was facing Peyton. “My brother has always been this black and white thinking perfectionist. In his mind, you always put what’s best for the team ahead of yourself. No matter what. Even at the expense of yourself. So he put up and shut up.” Kendall smirked. “And became Rookie of the Year just to prove a point to everyone on the team.”
“That’s messed up,” Peyton replied. But it explained a lot. Why his initial reaction was all about himself and the team instead of her.
“Yeah, it is,” Kendall agreed. “But that’s what’s been drilled into his head since day one. Team first, no matter what. My dad always disliked those players who thought they were bigger than the team. There was no way he was letting my brother become one.” Kendall shook her head. “This one time in high school, Ry got lippy with my dad about how he was going to The Show and what his life was going to be like. The endorsements he’d have, how he’d be the hot shot on the team. My dad marched him outside in the pouring rain and made him run while dad drove the car behind him to light the street so he could see.” Kendall smiled sadly. “He looked like a drowned rat when he got home, but he was a whole lot easier to be around.”
Peyton winced. “Well, I’m glad he was easier to be around at least.” She took a sip of her beer as she pictured Ryan as an up-and-coming player with the beautiful girlfriend and the world at his feet. What must that have been like for him? The rookie on the team with everyone talking about him, gossiping? It broke her heart.
Somehow, despite all that, he managed to win Rookie of the Year on a team that made his life miserable. It spoke volumes about the man he was. And explained a little why he had such an adverse reaction to her when he thought she’d chased after a married teammate. She sighed. And why he was having such a hard time with the idea of the guys talking about him again.
“My brother isn’t perfect, but when Denise cheated on him, and the entire team knew about it and talked about him behind his back. That changed him. Not only did it divide the team, but it broke something in him when he felt like he was forced to pick the team over himself especially when his teammate was in the wrong.” Kendall put her feet on the ground and sat up straighter. “I know this changes nothing, but I’m just trying to help you understand why my brother was dick when you first met and then again when that video came out. To Ryan it felt like everything was happening all over again. That first year was rough on him, but it’s nothing compared to how this is affecting him.”
“But don’t you see, Kendall, that’s why this would never work. How can it? Especially given what you just told me,” Peyton asked.
“But that’s where you’re wrong. When shit went down with Denise, my brother won Rookie of the Year. With you, his game is shit.” Kendall stared at Peyton. Her eyes imploring her to listen. “My brother punched a teammate, Peyton. He went to the coaches and told them what kind of man Andy is knowing full well that Andy could get suspended or traded which would hurt the team, and he didn’t care because Andy had hurt you. You came before the team. Ryan doesn’t put anything before the team, not even himself, and I just wanted you to know that.”
Peyton’s head whirled as she tried to process what Kendall was saying. “I appreciate you telling me all this.”
“I’m just going to tell you one more thing, and then I’m going to leave so you can think about all this. Ryan came to me about doing an educational campaign with youth sports.”
“What do you mean?”
“He doesn’t like the way athletes feel like they are above the law and can treat people however they want. So, he wants to go into the schools and talk to the male athletes about how they treat women. Really hitting them about respect, consent, and just being better.”
Peyton reeled back in her chair. “What? He wants to do that?”
“He does and all the money raised will be donated to sexual assault centers in the area.”
“Why would he?” Peyton’s eyes burned as she fought to fight the tears that threatened to fall.
“Because of you. Because he told his coach about Andy expecting him to be suspended and knowing that might screw up their team. But the coaches did nothing other than switch Patel to catch for Ryan and it pissed him off.”
“Did he really expect them to suspend Andy over a sex tape that no longer exists?”
“Not really, no, but for the first time in his life it pissed him off the team was put first before what was right.” Kendall set the plate down on the table. “My brother is crazy about you, Peyton. When Pete and I were having some issues early in our relationship, my brother sat me down and explained Pete’s history, and it really helped me to understand Pete a little better. I thought it was important you had a clearer picture of Ryan. Falling in love with you threw a curveball at him he didn’t know how to handle. He fucked up, I know that, and so does he. But when you love somebody, you love all of them, Peyton, even the fucked up pieces.”
