Page 86 of The Vengeance You Crave

"Oh yeah, because I do fucking nothing for you."

I flip him off over my shoulder, but when I look back, he's smiling just as much as I am.

"Thank you," I say again before slipping out of his room in favor of mine so I can do as he suggested because he's not wrong about how I smell.

22

Peyton

As it has become normal, my stomach is in knots and my hands tremble when I walk into The Locker Room on Tuesday evening.

Thankfully, when I walk out into the bar, I find my dreaded booth empty. But I'm sure it won't stay that way for long.

"Hey, how are you doing?" Bry asks, once he's finished serving and comes to my end of the bar.

"I'm good. Thank you for last night."

"No problem. It seems you've got a new babysitter tonight," he mutters, passing my bottle of water over.

"Huh?"

He nods toward the table where Luca was sitting the very first night I found him here. Looking over my shoulder, my breath catches when I find Leon sitting there smiling at me.

It really shouldn't happen but one look at him and my heart drops. After everything, I shouldn't want Luca to be here. But I do.

"Here. He needs a refill."

Bry passes a soda over and I take it over.

"Hey," I say shyly as I walk up to his table, aware that I'm wearing way less clothing than I'd like right now. But despite all the skin I'm showing, his eyes don't once drop from mine.

"Hey. Thank you," he says politely, accepting the drink I pass over. "I assume Luca sent you."

"Yeah, what gave me away?"

I laugh, but it lacks any humor.

"You don't belong here, Peyton. This." He finally looks down at me, his eyes widening. "This isn't you."

"I’m not the girl I used to be, Lee. And sometimes, we've just got to do things to survive. This is one of them."

"I'm sorry about your mom."

"T-thanks," I force out. My emotions are running high just from the sympathetic look in his eyes. "How much did he tell you?"

Leon shakes his head. "Not much more than that, other than he's been an asshole."

"Putting it mildly," I mutter, making him laugh.

"I know it's not an excuse, he's totally in the wrong here no matter what happened between you, but he's in a really bad place and you just happen to turn up at the wrong time."

"He hates me, Lee. Anytime would have been the wrong time."

"Yeah, maybe. But you're wrong. He doesn't hate you, Peyton. Far from it."

I scoff, looking over my shoulder when a commotion starts at the door. The second I find them, my eyes lock with Slick and my stomach drops. Oh good, now my night can really get started.

"You don't need to be here to babysit me, Lee. I'm a big girl and I can look after myself."