Page 20 of The Destruction You Desire

"Stop. Please. None of this is your fault."

A sad laugh falls from my lips. "You're damn right there."

"Talk to me, P." A shudder runs down my spine at his use of one of the nicknames Luca uses for me.

Dragging my eyes from his carpet, I stare into his concerned green eyes as he rubs the back of his neck almost nervously.

"Would you be able to drive me home?"

Disappointment floods his face, but after a second, he nods and reaches for his keys that are sitting on his desk.

6

Peyton

The air in the car as Leon pulls away from the house he shares with Luca and some of the team is thick.

I know he has a million and one questions for me, and I know that I need to start answering them but the thought of letting Kayden's existence be known by someone else connected with their father terrifies me.

I know it shouldn't. It's Leon. I trust him as much as I used to Luca.

Leon's loyalties have never been with his father. With every day that passed when we were kids, it became more and more obvious that Luca was Brett's favorite because of his chosen football position and I watched as Leon became more and more detached from his father. And even sadder, I was forced to watch his father not even care.

That's just one of the many reasons why I understand why Mom did what she did when she dragged Libby and me away from Rosewood.

She didn't want Libby, or her grandchild connected to that pathetic pig of a man.

I get it, I do. It just terrifies me that he could have repeated what he did with Libby over and over again and no one is any the wiser, other than those it directly affected.

I've prayed that Libby was the exception. That she was his one vice that he couldn't stay away from and broke all the rules for. But the fact that he didn't have any contact with her from the moment we left Rosewood forces me to believe that she could have been one of many.

He didn't care about her. He just wanted to get his rocks off with a younger model than he was used to.

My chest aches once more as I think about Maddie. The sweetest, most caring woman ever. How could he do what he did while she was at home being the parent Luca, Leon and Shane deserved?

I exhale a long breath, finally lifting my eyes from my lap to find that Leon's stopped the car in the line for takeout.

"W-what are you doing?"

"Getting coffee and breakfast. I'm starving and you look like you could use it."

Right on cue, my stomach growls.

"I think I might have puked all over Luca last night."

Leon throws his head back and laughs. "I really fucking hope you did. It's the least the asshole deserves after the stunt he pulled last night."

"What happened?" I ask. "My memories are hazy." And I have no idea what was a dream and what was reality.

"Well, you already know that we were dancing and he took offense to it," he mutters, rubbing at his bruised cheek.

"Yeah," I mutter.

"You ran, he chased you, and the next thing I knew he was carrying you out of the building in his arms."

"I drank too much. I was reckless."

"I don't know whether to be glad he looked after you or not."