Author: L A Cotton
Category: Contemporary
Go to read content：https://onlinereadfreenovel.com/l-a-cotton/592781-tragic_lies_a_forbidden_age-gap_romance_rixon_high.html
Tragic Lies
A Rixon High Novel
l a cotton
Published by Delesty Books
TRAGIC LIES
Copyright © L. A. Cotton 2021
All rights reserved.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and events are the product of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons or events is purely coincidental.
No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any manner without the written permission of the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages for review purposes only.
Edited by Andrea M. Long
Proofreading by Sisters Get Lit.erary Author Services
Cover Designed by Lianne Cotton
Image from CJC Photography
Contents
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Chapter 28
Chapter 29
Chapter 30
Chapter 31
Chapter 32
Chapter 33
Chapter 34
Chapter 35
Chapter 36
Chapter 37
Epilogue
Playlist
Author’s Note
About the Author
Never be ashamed of a scar. It simply means you were stronger than whatever tried to hurt you.
~ Unknown
Prologue
Darkness consumed me. Cold, unforgiving darkness.
It coursed through my veins, an unrelenting storm dimming every speck of light.
“Peyton. Stay with me, you have to stay with me,” a voice said somewhere in the distance.
But it was cold.
So freaking cold.
My teeth chattered as I slipped deeper into the black abyss cocooning me.
I just wanted to close my eyes. To drift away… away… away.
It would be easier… the pain would stop.
Everything would just—
“Peyton. The EMTs will be here any—thank fuck, they’re here.” Warm hands held me, trying to tether me to the light. “They’re here. Down here.”
But the lull of the darkness was too strong. It cloaked me, smothering out all of my senses. Except the chill. That didn’t abate. It was in my bones; icy-cold water coursing through my veins. My body trembled as I hovered on the thin ledge between consciousness and unconsciousness.
“Down here,” the voice said again, a featherlight touch running across my face.
“What happened?” another voice asked.
“Peyton… sh-she fell in the river. I dragged her out, but she was under for at least half a minute.”
“Okay, move over and let us do our job. Peyton, can you hear me?”
I tried to answer, only a murmur escaping my lips.
“We’re going to get you warmed up and into the ambulance, okay?”
Something rustled around me, wrapping me up like a burrito, then I was lifted onto a gurney, the air whooshing around me.
“X-Xander?” Panic swarmed me as I fought against the claws of darkness, my eyes flickering open. The edges of everything were blurry but I saw his face. The deep lines of concern, the grim curve of his lips.
“I’m here.” He loomed over me. “I’m right here.”
“D-don’t leave me.”
I was scared, so freaking scared.
She was gone… my mom was gone, and I was all alone in the world. And I was supposed to want this. I was supposed to feel a deep sense of relief.
But all I felt was bleak despair.
I was alone.
And as the darkness consumed me, and I lost the fight against the bitter cold, the last face I saw was his.
Chapter One
Peyton
My mom was dead.
Seven days, eight hours, and twenty-five minutes, give or take.
I didn’t want to count the time. It seemed so pathetic to mourn the loss of a woman who never wanted me around. A woman who loved her next high more than she ever loved me. A woman who, in the end, had given me a parting gift I would never forget.
A gift that wasn’t a gift at all but more like a curse.
So yes, mourning Kate Myers was as undeserved as it was pathetic.
Yet, I couldn’t stop.
Seven days, eight hours, and twenty-six—
“Peyton?” My best friend Lily touched my arm, startling me.
“Yes?” I blinked over at her.
“I asked if you wanted any more pizza?”
“No, I’m fine.”
“You barely ate your slice.” Concern laced her words.
“Not hungry.” I didn’t meet her eyes, I couldn’t.
Lily was my best friend in the whole world. The girl who knew me better than anyone. She knew my flaws and insecurities, my hopes and dreams. But she didn’t know.
How could she?
Lily had a family who supported her. She had two amazing parents who were there no matter what. I mean, they’d taken me in more than once when my mom couldn’t put food on the table or keep her shady associates out of the house.
“Go on now, you little brat. Stay in your room and don’t come out until I say.”
“But, Mama,” I sniffled, my stomach cramping with hunger. I’d only had a bruised banana for breakfast and if she made me go into my room now, who knew how long I’d have to stay there for. Sometimes, she forgot about me for hours. “I don’t like it when you—”
“I said go,” she snapped. “And you don’t come out until I say.” She shooed me away with her bony, stained fingers, ignoring the tears rolling down my cheeks. Sometimes, when she was like this, I hated her. God, I hated her so much.
I shook the thoughts away. I wasn’t a small helpless kid anymore. I hadn’t been for a while. Still, I would never forget my childhood.
I’d lived with the Fords over the summer and the start of senior year before Mom got clean, again. Then I went home to be with her.
What a fucking mistake that was.
A shudder ran through me as I stared out of Lily’s bedroom window. She had one of those window seats overlooking her family’s huge yard. There was something peaceful about sitting there, watching the trees sway gently in the frigid Pennsylvanian wind.
“I’m worried about you,” she said.
“You don’t need to be. I’m fine.”
I internally cringed at the words.
“You know, nobody’s expecting you to return to school tomorrow. It’s still—”
“Lily,” I snapped, finally looking over at her. “I said I’m fine.”
“Sorry.” She perched on the end of her bed. “I’m doing it again, aren’t I?”
“You’re not doing anything. I just… I’m fine. School will be good for me.” I needed to keep busy, to do something—anything—rather than sit around all day. When I stopped and my mind was still, the images ambushed me. Blood. So much freaking blood. M
y mom’s dull lifeless eyes as she stared up at me, her wrists shredded open.
“I’m sorry I ruined Thanksgiving weekend.”
“Peyton, you didn’t ruin anything. We wanted to be here for you.”
Lily and her family had big plans before my mom took a razor to her wrists and I… well, I got drunk, went down to the river, and ended up in hospital. Not my finest moment. But I was okay now. It was a lapse in judgment. A split second where I just wanted it all to stop.
The pain and heartache.
The constant dejection.
The years of abuse and neglect and never feeling good enough.
All I ever wanted was a family who loved me… a mother who loved me.
And now she was gone.
Emotion welled in my chest, but I swallowed it down. I’d spent my entire life locking away my feelings, I wasn’t about to break the cycle now.
“Is Kaiden nervous about the quarter-finals?” I changed the subject, turning to the one subject I knew Lily wouldn’t be able to resist.
Her boyfriend. Kaiden Thatcher.
“He says he isn’t. But he has to be. I mean, it’s a big deal, right?”
“Well, yeah. Everyone’s looking to him to bring home the championship.”
“God, I’m so nervous. I know how much it means to him.”
“He’ll be fine, babe. If anyone can do it, it’s Kaiden.”
He was kind of a big deal on the football field, and despite a rocky start to his senior year at Rixon High, he had led the team to an impressive season record.
“He and Dad spent the entire day yesterday strategizing. I swear they went from mortal enemies to best friends in the space of a weekend.”
I smiled but it didn’t reach my eyes. I was happy for Lily, she deserved nothing but good things. But feeling happy for someone and being happy were two different things. And my sunshine-o-meter was all out of juice.
“If you’re done eating, I’ll clean up.” Lily climbed off the bed.
“Actually, I’ll help you.”
“Yeah?” Her brows pinched.
“Yeah, a change of scenery might do me good.” I hadn’t stepped foot out of the Ford’s house since being discharged from the hospital five days ago except to attend Mom’s funeral. I could barely remember the service. Thankfully, Lily’s parents had organized almost everything and all I’d had to do was show up.
Standing, I ran my hand through my long blonde hair and inhaled a shuddering breath. My body ached, weary with grief, but sleep refused to come easy since that night.
Seven days, eight hours, and thirty—I checked my cell phone—thirty-five minutes, give or take.
I grabbed our glasses and followed Lily downstairs. The familiar rumble of Mr. Ford’s laughter drifted down the hall and I hesitated.
“Relax,” she said, noticing. “They’ll be pleased to see you.”
“You make it sound like I’ve been holed up in my room for days on end.”
Lily cast me a knowing look that had a sticky trail of regret snaking through me.
“I haven’t been that bad,” I murmured as we made our way into the kitchen.
“You’re entitled to space,” she said. “We just want you to know that we’re all here for you too.”
“I know.” I swallowed over the lump in my throat. “I’m lucky to have you.”
Without Lily and her family, I really had no one. Another tidal wave of emotion swelled inside me. I wasn’t used to being so battered by my feelings. Usually, I controlled them. Wrangled them the way a cowboy wrangled cattle. But this was different. When I’d slipped under the Susquehanna River, the icy-cold water flooding my lungs, something inside me snapped.
Something that felt irreparable.
Permanent.
“Hey, girls,” Lily’s mom appeared in the doorway. “It’s nice to see you up and about, Peyton.” She gave me a warm smile.
Mrs. Ford was the best. Kind and understanding, compassionate and funny, she radiated love. Fierce, unwavering love. The kind of love a mother should have for her daughters, her husband, and family. She represented everything I’ve never had, but despite not being mine, Mrs. Ford had welcomed me into her house with open arms and accepted me flaws and all.
But her acceptance could never fully repair the damage caused by the woman I got to call mom.
“How was the pizza?”
“It was fine thanks, Mrs.—”
“Felicity. You can call me Felicity, Peyton. You’re family now, sweetheart.”
Her words twisted my gut. “I-I’m going to get some fresh air.” I made a dash for the back door, slipping into the cool winter air. My breath drifted into the sky in a smoky tendril as I burrowed into my chunky knit sweater and sat on the swing chair. When I inhaled deeply, I could still feel it in my lungs, the icy sting of the Susquehanna River. I made myself take a breath, forcing the memories out.
I stared out at the Ford’s oversized yard. The swimming pool, covered for the winter, and the seating area nestled around an impressive grill. It wasn’t as fancy as some of our friends’ yards, but it was still worlds away from what I’d grown up with.
I was hardly surprised when Mrs. Ford joined me on the swing. “I hope you don’t mind,” she said, running her hands around her mug of hot chocolate. “The weather is turning.”
I managed a gentle shrug, shuffling up for her.
“Look, Peyton, I won’t pretend to know what you’re feeling or thinking. You have been through something no child should ever have to go through. But I want you to know that you can always come to me, with anything. You’re not in this alone, sweetheart.” She gently squeezed my knee. “And I know Jase is like a bumbling idiot at the moment, but it’s only because he doesn’t know what to say. He’s a man; they like to fix things. But this is one thing he can’t fix and he’s having a hard time reconciling that.”
My lip twitched. “It’s okay Mrs.—Felicity. I understand it’s weird for everyone, and I’m sorry—”
“Oh no you don’t. You’re not apologizing for anything that has happened. Apologizing suggests you’re at fault and you’re not, sweetheart, okay?”
I couldn’t meet her stare.
“Peyton, look at me.”
Slowly, I lifted my eyes to hers, swallowing over the giant lump in my throat. “What your mom did, it wasn’t your fault. I need you to know that.”
A small nod was all I could manage. She meant well, but this wasn’t something you could slap a Band-Aid and a few motivational words on.
“How are you feeling about tomorrow? You know, I can speak to Principal—”
“No.” I shook my head gently. “I want to get back to classes. The holidays are coming up. I need the distraction.”
“Well, okay, if you’re sure. But if it’s too much, you just say the word and I’ll talk to the administration. I spoke with Mya too. She’d like to see you.”
“I appreciate everything you’ve done for me; I do. But I don’t need to see the guidance counselor.”
“I think the school will insist. It’s protocol after a student…” She trailed off, and my cheeks flamed.
“I didn’t… like I told you and Jason before. It was an accident.”
“Nevertheless, it was a traumatic event.” A reassuring smile lifted the corners of her mouth. “Mya—Mrs. Bennet—is there to help you. She’ll be able to refer you for grief counselling if you want it.”
“I’m fine, really.”
“Peyton, you can keep saying the words over and over, but it won’t change the fact that you’ve been through something life changing.”
Lily peeked around the door looking sheepish. “Aunt Hailee’s here. And they… uh… Xander is with them.”
My entire body froze at the mention of his name.
“He’s here?” I breathed the words.
“Yeah. Do you want to go back upstairs and—”
“Lily.” Her mom shook her head.
“Sorry. I didn’t want you to be blindside
d.” She glanced at me, chewing her bottom lip.
“It’s fine.”
So Xander was here.
It wasn’t like he’d saved my life or anything.
When I’d waded into the river that night, I hadn’t ever anticipated that I would need rescuing. So when my friend’s uncle had pulled me out and stayed with me until the EMTs arrived, I thought I was dreaming.
Xander Chase was an enigma. Solitary and brooding, he was a man of few words. He’d recently started helping Lily’s dad out with the football team at our high school. But he wasn’t like the other coaches. There was darkness in his eyes. A shadow hanging over him like thunder clouds on a stormy day.
I knew because I’d sat and watched him enough times with Lily while she ogled Kaiden from the bleachers.
“I should probably head inside and go see to our guests. If you girls need anything just holler.”
“Thanks,” I murmured, staring out at the yard still.
Lily took her mom’s seat, lacing her arm through mine and laying her head on my shoulder. “I’ve been thinking, and I think you’re right. Going back to school will be good for you.”
“I think so.” It would keep my mind off everything, hopefully.
“And after the holidays I’ll be able to drive us.”
My eyes snapped to hers. “You’re finally going to take driver’s ed?”
“Yep.” A huge smile spread over her face. “I think it’s time.”
“Wow, Lily. That’s huge.” I hugged her. “I’m so proud of you.”