Total pages in book: 83
Estimated words: 79597 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 398(@200wpm)___ 318(@250wpm)___ 265(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 79597 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 398(@200wpm)___ 318(@250wpm)___ 265(@300wpm)
“Okay.”
I stood. “How about we sit in the living room? This feels like a living room conversation. Not a kitchen one.”
“What constitutes a kitchen conversation?”
I shrugged. “Weekend plans, dinner ideas, deciding to say screw it and going back to bed to make love all day, that sort of thing.”
“Oh.” Her cheeks flushed again. “I see.”
I laughed, tugging her out of her chair and running my fingers over her cheek. “I like this. I haven’t seen you blush before.”
“I haven’t heard you talk like this before,” she replied.
I kissed her again. “Get used to it.”
I brought us fresh coffee, and we settled on the sofa, turning to face each other. Our knees touched, and I was glad. I needed to be close to her for this conversation.
“What do you know?” I asked, feeling strangely calm.
“Not much,” she admitted. “You and your brother were in jail. Your charges were minor compared to his. You were released early for good behavior. Your brother died in jail. I know the charges but not the story.” She took a breath. “And I know your dad died not long after you got out of prison.”
I nodded, feeling the sense of loss drift over me again. “My mom died when I was younger, and my dad sort of lost interest in us. Wes was older. He acted out, and since I hero-worshiped him, I followed him. As we grew up, his actions changed. He changed. What used to be done in fun or to get Dad’s attention was more focused. Devious. Intentional.” I ran a hand over my head, feeling the anxiety creeping in. “I didn’t know the extent of what he was doing. All the illegal things he was getting himself into, but I suspected at times and I joined him on occasion. Our father bailed us out. He had little else to do with us, but he gave us the money to keep being horrible people.”
Hannah reached over and pulled at my hand. “I like your hair on your head,” she said with a small smile. “Hold on to me, Chase. I’m right here.”
I lifted her hand to my mouth and kissed her knuckles. I hoped she would still be there when I finished.
“We were known as the Donner brothers—trouble. Wes ruled his little kingdom. As I got older, I pulled away a little. I met a girl from another town. She was sweet and kind. I wanted to be a better person for her. Wes kept dragging me back, and out of some weird loyalty, I let him.”
“He was your brother. You loved him.”
“I did. But he became even angrier at the world. He wasn’t the brother I knew anymore. He set his sights on Charly. He hated Maxx simply for the fact that he was Maxx and didn’t take Wes’s BS. Maxx would stand up to Wes all the time and protect whoever Wes was bothering.”
“Especially Charly,” Hannah surmised.
“Yes.”
“The day he hurt Charly, I was with him. I was driving. He thought it was great. I was sick. He had physically hurt someone. A woman. A defenseless woman whose only crime was not putting up with his over-the-top ego.” I shook my head. “I had no idea how badly she was hurt. Wes refused to let me stop the truck. We had a huge fight. Later, I went to the police and confessed. Told them everything I knew. Even things I only guessed.”
“You turned your brother in,” she said, sounding surprised.
“Yes. I knew if he hurt Charly, he would hurt other people—maybe even worse. I couldn’t sit back and let that happen.”
She squeezed my hand. “Because you’re a good person, Chase.”
“Long story short—we went to jail. Wes for a much longer sentence. I got out early, but I took advantage of every program I could while I was there. I wanted to come out better than when I went in. When I was released, I went to Charly and Maxx to ask for forgiveness after I had gotten more counseling. Charly gave it instantly. I had to win Maxx over. But they became my family.”
I huffed out a long sigh. “You have my permission to look through all my files, Hannah. Dig deep into the darkness of my past. Ask me any questions you want.”
She shook her head. “I don’t want to do that. You can tell me whatever you want to share, and that is good enough.” She paused. “And your father?”
“He died. He died never speaking to me again. Wes refused to talk to me after the one time I went to see him once I got out. He said he hated me and called me a bunch of names. Told me he never wanted to see me again. Not long after that, he picked a fight with the wrong person in jail, and he lost.”