Page 53 of A Reputation Dark & Deadly

Chapter 14

Peyton knewshe was in the hospital when she flickered open her eyes. She could feel the needles pressed through her veins and taped to her skin, could feel the wires caressing her arms as they wrapped around the bed to the beeping machines behind her, could feel the material of the scratchy hospital gown on her flesh. Her head hurt and her mouth tasted dry and a little like blood.

She closed her eyes, furrowing her brows. She was actually in a lot of pain, thanks to Brandon. Peyton remembered every little detail of the entire night; how she went to visit Brandon at the jail, how he told her about how Logan allegedly pulled the plug on their abusive father, how Brandon was jealous of who Logan became and who Brandon became, how Brandon wanted to get back at him for so long, he just didn't know how. Peyton shook her head, not wanting to remember the blows he gave her body, how he ripped at her clothes and tried to push his greedy hand between her denim-clad pelvis and her very core. She squeezed her legs together and whimpered in pain.

"Sweetheart?"

Peyton's eyes snapped open, afraid the voice was just a dream, afraid he was going to disappear in the blink of an eye. But no, Logan was standing at the foot of his bed, dressed in his leather jacket and faded denim. His hair was slicked back, every black lock in place. His eyes were on her, sharp and worried. He wasn't even trying to hide his concern, though there was an edge to it.

When he held her eyes for a beat, he frowned. "What the fuck did you think you were doing?" he asked, his voice low and dangerous but insistent.

Peyton looked away and swallowed. "I just thought" -

"I already fucking know," he interrupted. He made sure to keep his voice down because the last thing they both needed right now was a noise complaint or anyone overhearing Logan's aggressive tone and thinking he was a bad guy. Because he wasn't. "You thought you could make things right between Brandon and me."

Peyton looked back at him. She pressed her lips together to keep any words from carelessly falling out of her mouth. The last thing they needed was a fight.

He's just worried, she reminded herself. He's just furious you're in the hospital, hurt.

"You're the dumbest intelligent person I know," he said, his tone droll. "You aren't fucking scotch tape, Peyton. You can't fix something that's been broken for years."

"I just thought" - she tried again but he stopped her.

"You thought wrong," he told her. "Brandon doesn't want to be fucking okay with me and I don't want to be fucking okay with Brandon. He's a little shit and I avoid him as much as I possibly can. When we went to Old Newport, it had been months since I last spoke to him. He's a fucking liar and when he saw me with you, he wanted to take what was mine and make you his. He didn't give a shit about you. He wanted to hurt me. And it fucking worked."

Peyton swallowed but didn't say anything. She continued to stare at Logan, to watch his shoulders hunch as he paced, to relax to his deep voice.

"How did you hear?" Peyton managed to get out. Her throat was dry, she realized. She needed water. Her eyes dropped from Logan, looking for a tray or a water jug.

"Karla called to tell me you went to Brandon on your own," he said. “So I called you to make sure she wasn’t fucking with me, and when he answered, that was all the confirmation I needed.” He furrowed his brows as he watched Peyton look around. As though he could read her mind, he found the jug of water and the small plastic cup before pouring her a glass. She downed the water after shooting him a grateful smile.

"Fucking, easy," he said, nodding his head at the now-empty cup. "Don't overdo it."

Peyton nodded but her lips were curved up. He was worried about her, she knew, and that made her insides melt into caramel. It made her feel worthy and cared for and special. Logan was not the sort of man to care about a lot of people. He didn't even care about his own brother. But he cared about her. That much was clear. And that made Peyton feel like she had wings, like she could fly as close to the sun if she wanted to without consequences.

"Brandon is a piece of shit," Logan told her after a long moment. "I'm sure you never had to fucking realize that sometimes family is what you choose, not what you're fucking born with. You have a brother, right?"

Peyton nodded her head.

"The only reason he's not here is because he probably didn't know you're here," Logan told her. "After Karla told me - smirking and everything - I got here as fucking fast as I could. I just didn't know who else to call."

Peyton nodded. "You don't owe me an explanation," she told him.

"I don't," he said, "but you..." He let his voice trail off, shaking his head as he began to pace once more. "I know why but I don't fucking understand why you just didn't take my fucking word" -

"Were you worried he was going to tell me what an asshole you are?" Peyton asked, furrowing her brow. "We're going worried he was going to tell me how you were as a kid and how shitty you treated him and the completely frightening and abusive relationship your dad had with your mom and you? Did you not want me to learn all of these things about you?" Peyton dropped her eyes to her hands. "Brandon told me everything, Logan. He made sure to let me know that you're the worst of the worst. He told me what you did to your father." Logan stiffened but his face gave nothing away. "I told him I didn't care."

"What?" Logan asked, his tone crisp.

"I told him I didn't care," Peyton repeated.

"I fucking got that," Logan muttered, stepping to the foot of the bed. "You're going to have to backtrack. He told you fucking everything and you don't care?" Now, Logan looked confused, which made him look endearing. "Did you fucking think he was exaggerating?"

"No." Peyton shook her head and she winced. "I knew he wasn't lying."

"I don't understand," he said, shaking his head.

"I love you, Logan," Peyton told him, unafraid of saying the words. Unafraid of him hearing them. "I don't care what you did in your past."

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