Author: L A Cotton
Category: Contemporary
Go to read content：https://onlinereadfreenovel.com/l-a-cotton/page,6,592781-tragic_lies_a_forbidden_age-gap_romance_rixon_high.html
A few seconds later, the ball sailed through the goalposts. Defeat was etched on the other team’s coaching staff, but when the final whistle blew, they were good sports, congratulating us on a well-deserved win.
Friends and family of the team rushed on the field to celebrate, swarming the players. Lily made a beeline for Kaiden and he picked her up, twirling her around as they laughed and kissed. Jeez, he had it bad. Completely and utterly under her spell. But Lily was a good girl, and fuck knows, she’d been through enough. She deserved happiness. She deserved someone like Kaiden. I saw a lot of my brother and Hailee in them. The unwavering love and faith in one another, and although they were only young, although they had their whole lives ahead of them, something told me they’d go the distance.
My eyes flickered past Lily, landing on Peyton. She stood on the edge of the field, arms wrapped around her waist, watching as her friends celebrated with the team. A guy approached her. I didn’t recognize him. He wasn’t wearing the telltale Rixon blue and white, but he wasn’t wearing Panthers’ green and black either.
“Xander,” Cameron stepped into my line of sight, demanding my attention. “Good game.”
“It was all them.” I flicked my eyes to the guys, a heavy weight settling on my chest as I watched them laugh and joke and soak it all up.
That could have been you. I shut the voice down, pushing the unwanted memories down.
“Don’t do that,” Cam said, raking a hand down his face. “Don’t sell yourself short. Jase says your input has been invaluable.”
“I’m not sure about that.”
“He told me he asked you to stay on after the season ends.” Cam eyed me carefully.
Of course he had.
“I told him I’d think about it.” The lie rolled off my tongue. A flash of blonde caught my eye, and my spine went ramrod straight when I saw the guy follow Peyton along the edge of the field.
“Xander?” Irritation hung in Cam’s voice.
“Yeah?”
“You’re distracted.”
“I’m not… I’m fine.” God, I fucking hated that word.
“I think the job would be good for you. It’s about time you—”
One minute there was just the two of us, the next we were swarmed by the team as the guys jostled to high-five me.
“Enjoy it,” my brother said around a small smile, backing away. That look in his eye, it made my heart clench. Longing. Regret… Disappointment.
I knew what he was thinking. I could have had this. I could have had it all. But I’d squandered my shot.
I’d messed it up.
“Okay, go easy on me,” I protested, as the guys closed in around me, their excitement bleeding into the air. It was impossible not to be swept away in it, and soon I found myself chanting alongside them.
“Raiders, Raiders, Raiders.”
As the high settled, the crowd began to disperse, and Jase ordered everyone into the locker rooms to get showered and changed so we could move things to the hotel.
I lingered behind though. When he noticed, he called, “Coming?”
“I’ll be there in a minute.”
Understanding passed between us and he nodded, taking off after his players. The high school stadium was almost empty now, save for a few stragglers.
I walked into the center of the field, crouching down and running my hand over the trampled grass, breathing in the cold air. My eyes shuttered as I let the memories out. The harsh glare of the Friday night lights. The noise, the smell, the crackle of anticipation. I’d once lived for it, but even the promise of a future in football hadn’t been enough to chase away my demons, and in the end, I’d sabotaged any chance I’d had going pro.
Burying my face in my hands, I inhaled a deep breath as I rose and prepared myself to lock all that bullshit back in its box. Back where it belonged. There was no point crying over spilt milk. I wasn’t a kid anymore, and it was too late for second chances.
I started to make for the tunnel leading to the locker room, but something caught my eye over by the exit.
Peyton.
Peyton and the unfamiliar guy. He was all up in her face, whispering something into her ear. It didn’t look like a friendly conversation though, her arms folded over her chest, creating a barrier between them.
Why wasn’t she with the others? Waiting for the team to get done?
I was about to intervene when Bryan appeared, jogging in their direction. He was still in his kit, looking murderous as he approached them.
He hadn’t even acknowledged me, his sole purpose getting to her.
Had she texted him?
It made sense. They seemed close.
Why do you care? The thought rang loud in my mind. I didn’t. At least, I wasn’t supposed to.
But then Bryan got all up in the guy’s face and Peyton lunged forward trying to separate them.
I was moving before I knew what was happening. “You don’t want to do that, Hughes,” I growled, startling Peyton. She shrunk into herself, refusing to meet my eyes. “What the hell is going on here?” I demanded.
“Ask Farrow,” Bryan spat, eyes narrowed with contempt.
“You,” I pinned the other guy with a hard stare. “What’s your name?”
“Sean Farrow.”
I vaguely recognized it from Jase and the other coaches. From what I’d heard, he was bad news.
“You okay?” I asked Peyton, who nodded, still refusing to meet my eyes.
“Get out of here,” I said to Farrow.
He shot Bryan an irritated look and walked off, running a hand through his hair.
“Do I need to go to Jase with this?”
“What?” Her wide eyes finally landed on me. “No! He was just…”
“Harassing you,” Bryan chimed. “It’s okay, you can say it.”
“I can handle Sean,” she murmured.
“Yeah, is that why you texted me?” His brow arched and I saw the disapproval there.
Just then, Lily and Ashleigh appeared near the bleachers, and Peyton spotted them. “I should go.” She took off toward them, leaving me and Bryan watching after her.
“What happened?” I gritted out.
“She texted me saying she needed me. I came.”
“This Farrow kid, what do you know about him?”
“The guy’s a complete douchebag. He and Peyton had a thing at the beginning of the semester, but it wasn’t serious.”
“Do I need to be worried?” The words spilled out before I could stop them.
Bryan’s brows drew together as he let out a steady breath. He was watching her, stalking her every move as Lily and Ashleigh led her off the field.
“I can handle Farrow, Coach.” His chest puffed out.
“I don’t doubt it. But you can’t afford a red mark against your name.” I pinned Bryan with a hard look. “If he becomes a problem, I want to know, okay?”
What the fuck was I saying?
Peyton wasn’t my problem.
She wasn’t my anything.
He finally looked at me, confusion clouding his eyes, but after a second, he said, “Yeah, okay.”
“Come on, you need to take a shower before we leave. You stink.”
A faint smirk traced his lips. “The girls dig it. All that sweat and dirt, gets them going…”
His eyes betrayed him though when they flicked back over to where Peyton and her friends had disappeared.
He wasn’t thinking about girls… he was thinking about one girl.
The same girl who had plagued my thoughts ever since I’d pulled her from that damn river.
Chapter Seven
Peyton
After checking in at the hotel, Lily’s dad ushered all of us down to the adjoining restaurant and let us order a late-night feast. Everyone was high on the win, excited about next weekend’s semi-final in Harrisburg. But my mind was still back at the stadium.
Bryan caught my eye across the table and mouthed, “You good?”
; I gave him a small nod, pretending to be drawn into Ashleigh and Poppy’s conversation.
I hadn’t expected Sean Farrow to be here. He hated football the way bats hated sunlight.
We’d hooked up a few times at the end of the summer, but I’d cooled things off when he’d tried to push for more.
I didn’t want more. I wanted fun. A distraction. Intimacy without strings. Besides, if I was ever going to go steady—and I wasn’t—it wouldn’t be with a guy like Sean. He liked the thrill of the chase, that’s all. As soon as I’d become too hard to get, he’d moved on with another girl in our class, Layla Hannigan.
I’d learned a long time ago that the word ‘no’ was like a challenge to most guys.
A shudder went through me, and Lily laid her hand on my arm. “Where did you go just now?” she asked.
“Nowhere.” I grabbed my soda and drained the glass dry. “Do you think we can go soon?”
“Yeah, I heard the adults say they wanted a quiet drink once we all go to our rooms.” She leaned in closer. “You’re okay with rooming with Leigh and the girls, right?”
“Yeah, of course.” The plan was me and Ashleigh would return to our room and then sneak into Poppy and Sofia’s room, so Lily could have some alone time with Kaiden.
I never imagined I’d witness her do something so daring, so of course I didn’t mind. I just hoped the girls didn’t want to make a big thing about our night away.
“Good, okay.” She gave me a shy smile.
“Something you want to tell me, Lil?” I teased.
“I… uh, I brought something with me.”
My brows knitted. “Like a dildo?”
“What?” She stuttered. “No, I didn’t bring a… one of those.”
I smothered the laughter crawling up my throat. “Sorry, I thought you meant—”
“Lingerie. I brought some sexy lingerie,” she whispered, color blooming along her cheeks.
“How very scandalous.”
“Do you think… I mean… he’ll like it, right?” Her eyes slid to where Kaiden sat flanked by his teammates.
“Babe, you could wear a burlap sack and Kaiden would still think you’re the most beautiful girl in the room. You have nothing to worry about.”
Relief washed over her, and she let out a thin breath. “Okay, I didn’t know if it was the right time. I mean, Mom and Dad will be right down the hall, but it isn’t like we get any time alone at home and—”
“Lily?”
“Yeah?”
“Breathe, babe. You have to breathe.” I smiled.
Her eyes fluttered closed and then open. “I’m being ridiculous.”
“You’re just nervous.” I squeezed her hand. “But you have nothing to worry about. Kaiden loves you.”
So much that sometimes it made my chest ache to watch.
Okay, most of the time.
Not that I would ever admit that to her. Lily would only tell me how I’d find somebody one day. If only I opened myself up to guys more.
That was the whole point though; if you opened yourself up, you were vulnerable. I couldn’t be vulnerable. Not again.
“Okay, can everyone settle down.” Bottle of beer in hand, Mr. Ford stood and ran his eyes over the section of the restaurant we filled. “I’m only going to say this once. When you head back to your rooms, you go straight to your rooms, and I don’t want to see any of you until first thing in the morning. If I hear so much as a whisper of you breaking the rules, it won’t just be running suicides you’ll have to worry about.” His eyes fixed on the guys. “You got the job done tonight. You represented this team, and you did Rixon proud. Don’t disappoint me now.”
A rumble of, “Yes, Coach,” went around the room.
“Okay, get out of here. Coach Macintosh and Coach Huckley will escort you up to our floor.”
It was a mass exodus as the team eagerly filed out of the restaurant. Kaiden lingered. Aaron and Cole too.
“You did good tonight, Son,” Aaron’s dad said, fist bumping him. “Go get some sleep.” His lip curved knowingly.
“Ash,” Jason warned, and he threw up his hands.
“What? They know not to break the rules.”
Aaron fought a grin. “Night, guys, catch you all tomorrow.” His eyes found Poppy, and she ducked her head.
The two of them were so obvious, but neither of them had fessed up to being anything more than friends.
The girls got up too. Poppy hugged her mom and dad while Sofia did the same. Lily was next, her dad whispering something to her. It didn’t take a lot to figure out what he’d whispered when she swatted his chest and turned firetruck red.
“Night, Peyton,” Felicity said. “We’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Night,” I said, following Lily out of the restaurant.
The guys were waiting for us and we all rode the elevator together.
“Party in my room?” Bryan said. “I managed to smuggle some vodka and snacks in.”
His eyes were heavy on me, but I didn’t meet his stare. He came anyway, pressing his body against the side of mine. “Hey, Myers, you okay?”
I lifted my face to his and faked a smile. “Peachy.”
“Listen, about you and Sean—”
“There is no me and Sean. He obviously got bored with Layla and decided to come crawling back to me. And now he’s pissed I didn’t want to hang out again.”
He flinched, anger simmering in his eyes. We both knew the lengths to which me and Sean had hung out.
Everyone did.
My eyes fluttered shut as I inhaled a small breath. When I opened them again, I saw the reflection of Lily and Kaiden kissing in the mirror behind me. My expression must have betrayed me because Bryan piped up, “Can you two at least wait until you’re behind closed doors?”
“You’re just jealous, Bry,” Gav snorted.
Bryan’s heavy-lidded eyes dropped to me again, but I glanced away. His lust was like a living, breathing thing, swirling in the air around us.
The second the door pinged open, I said, “I think I’m going to call it a night.”
“No,” Ashleigh said. “You have to come.”
“You go. I just want to sleep.”
“Pey,” she whispered, concern glittering in her eyes, but I waved her off.
I wasn’t feeling sociable, not after pasting on a smile for the game and dinner.
We filed out of the elevator, the hall a hive of activity as the rest of the team all headed toward their various rooms.
“Let’s go,” Coach Huckley shouted. “We’ve got an early start in the morning.”
Me, Lily, and Ashleigh had an adjoining room with Poppy and Sofia, so it would be easy for us to sneak into their room. But then they would have to sneak down the hall to the guys’ rooms.
We all said goodnight and disappeared into our rooms. Ashleigh immediately began gathering up her things.
“You don’t have to leave right this second,” Lily said, chewing her lip as one of her hands slipped to the braid hanging loosely over her shoulder.
“You’re nervous,” I said, recognizing her tell for what it was.
“My dad will—”
“Relax, your dad and the other adults will be in the bar for at least another couple of hours reminiscing about the good old days. Besides, they probably expect you to sneak Kaiden in here.”
“Peyton’s right,” Ashleigh added. “I mean, the Bennets trusted Ezra to stay at home. They trust us enough to not come up here snooping.”
“I still can’t believe they left Ezra,” Lily said.
Ezra was Sofia and Aaron’s foster brother. Only he didn’t act like it. He’d been with the Bennets for a few years now and I knew as little about him now as I did the day he’d arrived.
“Their neighbor, Mrs. Grakinsy is checking in on him.” Ashleigh was a mask of indifference, but me and Lily both knew she had a soft spot for the elusive boy who lived with the Bennets.
“Ready?” she asked me. I nodded, grabbing m
y small bag.
“Enjoy your night.” I smirked at Lily, and she ducked her head, failing to hide her bright red cheeks.
“Yeah, Lil. Don’t do anything we wouldn’t.” Ashleigh winked, going to the interconnecting door and opening the one on our side. She knocked on the second door and it swung open.
“Party time,” Poppy grinned.
“Don’t let her go too crazy,” Lily said. “Dad will—”
“Never find out.” Poppy blew her a kiss and pulled us into the room she was sharing with Sofia. I closed the first door, hardly surprised when I heard the lock click into place. Lily knew me and Ashleigh wouldn’t do something like barge into the room to catch her and Kaiden… but she probably wouldn’t put it past Poppy.
Closing the second door, I leaned against it, eyeing the two Queen beds. “I’ll take the fold-out bed,” I said, knowing they planned to go and get drunk with the guys.
“Are you sure you don’t want to come with us?” Poppy asked.
“No, I’m tired.” The lie sounded convincing.
“Okay, that was Aaron,” Poppy didn’t lift her eyes from her cell phone. “He said the coast is clear, so if we’re going to go, we should probably go now.”
Sofia leaped up and grabbed her purse, following Poppy to the door.
“You sure you’re okay?” Ashleigh asked, uncertainty shining in her eyes.
“Go. I’ll be fine.”
“Okay, but if you need me…”
“I know.”
I watched them sneak out of the room in a fit of muted giggles.
And I didn’t know whether to be relieved I was finally alone or bitterly disappointed.
An hour later, sleep still hadn’t found me. I’d changed into my favorite pajamas and had gotten comfortable on the fold-out bed. But the murmurs from Lily’s room—my room—and the thud of footsteps overhead, along with doors slamming and laughter out in the hall made it impossible to drift off.
Frustrated, I pushed off the sheet, pulled on my hoodie and shoved my feet into my sneakers. I didn’t know where I was going, but I knew I couldn’t stay in here for a second longer.
Grabbing the remaining key card, I opened the door and peeked out. The hall was empty, so I ducked out of the room and hurried for the stairwell, making my way up to the rooftop. I’d seen the sign for the rooftop terrace in reception during check-in. Of course, I doubted anyone would be up there this time of year.