Page 14 of Coff

He stares at me for a moment. “And over the years, have you ever overheard anything odd?”

“No, like what?” Now, this is a lie. I have heard a few things, but I shrugged them off, assuming the men were joking. But now, the way my brother is looking at me, I’m not so sure.

Duke glances up at the sky as he takes a deep breath. Then he sits next to me. “Remember Uncle Leo?”

“Of course.” Leo is my dad’s stepbrother. He used to live here with us after he got out of prison but then suddenly took off to visit all of Europe. Apparently, he loves it because he never returned.

“Leo’s not in Europe, Delaney.”

“Where is he?”

“Under a house in the Maple Glen neighborhood.”

I blink several times as what he says sinks in. “He’s dead?”

My brother nods. “Dad found him kissing Mom. Dad later told me Leo wasn’t taking no for an answer, so he took care of Leo that night.”

I remember my uncle loved to play with us. It was strange that he left without even saying goodbye. But Duke is saying my dad killed him.

“Dad would never do that.” Not the man I know and love.

“He did, and it wasn’t the first time,” Duke says as the front door flies open.

Logan storms past us with his bag in his hand.

“Logan?” I call after him.

He stops and turns. Anger burns in his eyes. “I can’t stay here.”

I grab his arm. “No, you can’t leave. Please don’t let him run you out. That’s his goal!”

Duke walks over to us. “She’s right. He’ll say whatever he can to get you to take off. He’s done it before.”

Logan’s eyes meet mine.

“To a couple of guys who came to pick me up for dates. But then they left.”

Logan’s eyes move from me to the house, then to Duke.

“Hey, I’m going to leave you two alone,” Duke says, then heads inside.

Logan drops his bag on the ground. “Delaney, this has all caught me off guard. Why didn’t you tell me you lived with your parents before?”

I drop my hand from his arm. “Because you’re so independent, I didn’t think you’d understand. And I was afraid you’d break things off and find someone more mature. I’m sorry. This isn’t fair to you.” I take a step back, hoping I can turn and run inside before I cry.

But he grabs my hand and pulls me up against him. “Delaney, you’re all I think about; don’t you know that? From the moment I met you and our week together, my gut has told me you’re the one. Living with your parents won’t scare me off. Nothing will scare me off. What I feel for you is everything. You got that?”

I nod, and the tears fall down my cheeks.

“Look at me,” he says.

I raise my head so I’m looking into his eyes.

“You need to be honest about everything from here on out. I can’t handle dishonesty. Okay?”

“Okay.”

Then he leans down and kisses me. It starts off soft and tender, but like most kisses with us, it gets heated fast. All I want to do is drag him to the pool house. But that will need to wait until no one notices me walking out there.

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