Page 46 of Under the Radar

She looked oddly vulnerable. “How do you feel?” she whispered.

I leaned over, cupping the back of her head. I tugged her close and kissed her, licking into her mouth. She tasted of coffee, the mint of her toothpaste, and Hannah. She whimpered, gripping my T-shirt and kissing me back. I kissed her until I was breathless, until my head was swimming, and then I dragged my mouth across her cheek to her ear. “I am fucking crazy about you, Hannah Gallagher.”

I eased back, watching as she slowly opened her eyes. I smiled and ran my finger across her swollen lips, still wet from my tongue. “Clear enough?”

She blinked and smiled. It was wide and honest. Her eyes shone with happiness.

“You may have to keep reminding me,” she replied.

“Anytime.” I pressed another kiss to her mouth. “But we need to talk.”

“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.”