Page 83 of Throwing the Curve

He stepped in closer to her. Every survival instinct in her body went on high alert. She should be safe in this parking lot in broad daylight. But she didn’t know what kind of guy he really was. Was he the kind to hit her? Maybe.

“What’s going on here?” A deep male voice called from behind her, and she breathed a sigh of relief. She glanced over her shoulder and saw Smitty and Gonzo walking up toward them.

“Nothing,” Simon said.

The two men stopped just behind Peyton. Their presence letting her know they were there and it felt like they had her back.

“Doesn’t look like nothing to me. Does it look like nothing to you, Gonz?”

“Nope, doesn’t look like nothing to me either,” Gonzo replied.

“Mind your business, boys,” Simon told them.

“I don’t know, Andy, this here is our boy’s girl and she doesn’t look too happy with you, so since Ry’s not here that kind of seems like our business,” Smitty said.

“Something we can help you with, Peyton?” Smitty asked her.

She winced. God, this was so humiliating, but needed to be done. She took a deep breath and looked Smitty in the eyes. “I need him to delete that video.”

Smitty winced and she glanced over at Gonzo, who didn’t meet her stare. Their expressions making it clear they had both had seen the video in question.

“I don’t have to delete shit,” Simon growled.

“You do when I didn’t give you permission to make the video.”

Gonzo stepped closer to Andy. “You took that video without her knowing?”

“Who cares? She’s a fucking groupie. We’ve all made videos, man.”

“Not without permission, we haven’t,” Smitty replied.

“Delete it,” Gonzo snarled.

“Fuck you.” Simon puffed up and stepped into Gonzo, challenging the other man.

A slow mean smile curled up the corner of Gonzo’s lips and he stood tall, the move emphasizing the size difference between them. “Trust me, little man, you don’t want me to make you.”

When Simon glanced over at Peyton, he didn’t look quite as confident as he had a moment ago.

Peyton squared her shoulders, pulling on all of her strength and confidence and maybe stealing a little from the men at her back. “Delete the video or else.”

“Or else what? Like I said, Carm’s not going to care.”

She chewed her bottom lip. How was she supposed to make him do the right thing?

“Or else she goes to the cops,” Smitty said.

Peyton’s stomach dropped. God, she knew that was an option, but could she do that? The idea of going to the police made her feel sick. Going to the police would ensure everyone found out about the video. Her employer would fire her for sure. Yes, she didn’t know about the video, but there was no way they would want her to work with the youth when she had a sex scandal attached to her name. It was wrong, but that’s what would happen. The Hawks would likely pull their support because of the scandal. What a mess.

“Yeah, on what charges?” Andy scoffed.

Peyton squared her shoulders. How could she tell the kids to stand up for themselves when she wasn’t willing to do it herself? “I didn’t know about the video, Simon, and it’s illegal to show anyone.”

Andy stared at her and she shifted her weight, forcing herself to stand strong. Could he tell how much she didn’t want to have to go to the police? She hadn’t done anything wrong and yet she’d never felt so much shame in her life. It was humiliating to have to face Simon, to know Ryan’s friends and teammates had seen something so intimate.

“Whatever Peyton. You’re not gonna do shit and we both know it. Walk away.” Andy stared at her with cruel eyes. It was like he got some kind of charge out of seeing her humiliated like this.

“I’m not leaving until you delete the video, Simon.”

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