“She’s a good friend to you, Peyton.” Evan smiled. “She’s a good friend to all of us because she helped us bring you back home.”
“Yeah, I owe her.”
Kane reached over and turned the lamp on. “Hit the light over there, Evan. It’s too bright in here.”
“I’ll bet. You two behave. I’ll see you in the morning.”
A few minutes after he left, Peyton stood up and started to wiggle out of her clothes. She fell down to the mattress as soon as she stood up. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I’m just tired, I guess,” She tried to explain when Kane rushed around to her side of the bed.
Kane stroked her cheek with the back of his hand. “You were struck hard a few too many times. Let me help you. Sit down.”
“Kane, I’m fine. You don’t have to worry about me. I promise. Everything is back to perfect again.”
“I’ll be right back.” He disappeared down the hall and she heard him in her room. She knew he went to get her favorite pajamas but right now, she didn’t want her PJs, she wanted to feel him against her skin as she drifted off to sleep. She wanted to know she was alive and he was alive.
She stripped off and slid in between the cotton sheets. Fighting off sleep, she tried to stay awake but failed miserably. The last thing she remembered was Kane crawling into bed. He mumbled something sweet and sexy against her lips before she drifted off to sleep.
Chapter 29
Two Weeks Later
Peyton stretched her neck and excitedly waved at Kane, Braden, and Evan.
“You act so silly about them,” Vicky said.
“Ridiculous,” Freda agreed.
“I’m still waiting for her to make her choice so the rest of us will have a shot,” one of the other girls said as she waved at her parents.
Peyton and Vicky exchanged knowing glances. Peyton studied Freda as her parents walked up and asked someone to take a picture of them.
After Freda’s parents took a few photographs of the girls, Peyton turned around and tried to find her men in the crowd once again. This time, they weren’t where she could see them.
She felt a sudden panic, and her chest tightened. She felt the loss just because she didn’t see them right away. God, she was in love. She was so in love that she didn’t think she’d make it five minutes without seeing one of her guys.
Vicky tugged her around then. “Come on. We leave our stuff here and march in. Hurry so we can see who we want to see before we go to the waiting hall.”
“The waiting hall?”
“Yup, that’s what they call the corridor in between the gyms. It’s the ‘waiting hall’ on graduation day.” Vicky grabbed her hand then. “And by the way, they must’ve had someone else’s seats. They moved over there.” She pointed to the second section of the gym and as soon as she did, they all waved like proud dads or brothers or worse still, boyfriends.
She gave them an oh-come-on-now look and rolled her eyes. Then she whispered to Vicky. “Do you think people know about my relationship with them?”
Vicky laughed. “I think if they didn’t know, one look at them right then with the silly waves, and they pretty well gave everything away.”
“Hmmm, I sort of thought the same thing.”
“Yeah, babe, the wave kind of did it.”
“And here I thought everyone was in the dark.” She clutched Vicky’s hand and they giggled as they walked toward the ‘waiting hall’. A few boys whistled, and Peyton couldn’t help but flirt a little, just to keep the men watching her on the end of their seats.
“Poor Kane will collect a hit list a mile long if you don’t stop the flirting.”
“I know. I like to keep him on his toes, you know?”
“Yeah, but he’s going to spank your ass if you don’t stop wiggling it around all these guys,” Vicky smacked her butt. She caught more of the graduation gown than she did her bottom.
They lined up in the hallway, and Vicky’s tone turned serious. “I’m glad your bruises are gone. I’d hate for your graduation pictures to have those shiners showing more than your true beauty.”
“Vicky, you know you don’t have to brag on me all the time.”
“Yes, I do. You’re my best friend. And I mean it. If I tell you something, you can always take it to the bank, Peyton.”
“Oh serious,” Peyton made light of the situation.
“This is serious.”
“Graduation?”
“No, what I need to say to you.”
“Uh-oh.”
“Peyton, I think Kane is going to eventually propose to you and…” Her smile widened and she took a deep breath before she continued, “Well, I don’t know what your exact arrangement is with them, of course, but I just want to tell you something. It’s about the day you were abducted.”
“I don’t want to think about that right now, Vicky.”
“Just hear me out, Peyton. I want you to know they were all worried but Kane…something changed in him by the minute, Peyton. He’s deeply in love with you, Peyton. They may all love you but Kane would cease to exist without you. I guess you know this though.”
Peyton looked into the audience as the double doors opened, and the graduation march began. Kane jumped to his feet and his smile lit up the gym. Yeah, she knew Kane Cartwell loved her. When Evan and Braden stood too, she saw the full circle of love, the kind of love many waited to find and the kind of love that would last for a thousand lifetimes.
“You didn’t have to do this, you know.” Peyton stood in Braden’s room with her hands on her hips. “This goes a little beyond your typical graduation party, you know.”
“If you think this is great, wait until you see what he’s planned for later.” Evan came in and slid a kiss on her cheek. “Hurry up, Braden. There are some parents here, and they want to see the adult in charge. I’m not dealing with them.”
Braden patted Peyton’s behind on his way out. “Told you I didn’t want anyone under eighteen here. What happened to following the rule?”
She shrugged. “Everyone wanted to come to this graduation party. I can’t imagine why.” She shot Evan a wink before she started for her room. “I’ll be ready in a few minutes. Right now I have to find something appropriate to wear.”
“Hurry,” Evan said, “I don’t want you to keep your guests waiting. This is your party, you know.”
“I know, Evan. I know!” Before she made it to her room, he grabbed her around the waist.
“Don’t I get something for the efforts here? You know I did have a little something to do with getting the place spiffed up for your friends.”
Peyton gnawed on the inside of her cheek and hit him in the stomach with the back of her hand. “What you want, big boy, I can’t give you until after the party.”
“Sure you can.” He yanked her into the spare bedroom and slammed her against the back of the door as soon as it closed behind them. His lips crashed against hers as he pressed his body into hers.
“You’re as naughty as I am right now, Peyton. Admit it.” Evan nibbled at her lips
“Considering about two hundred of my closest friends are waiting for me downstairs, this…” she popped him
