Page 60 of Vicious

Where did she go? Off with Gunner?

I rolled my eyes at the thought. The two of them would end up like dumb and dumber, getting themselves killed if the threat was serious. They had no idea how dark this world could be, and while I thought that Hannah was tough as nails...

This was a whole different ballgame.

I hurriedly got dressed, pulling on a pair of dark wash Levis and a white t-shirt to go under my vest. I barely got it all on before I slung the room door open, nearly seething already at what she could be up to. Had she not learned by nownotto go anywhere without talking to me? I had been mostly nice about requiring that from her, right?

I’m notthatbig of a dick.

Though I was definitely considering just how big of one to be as I walked out into the lounge; however, relief instantly washed over my body as my eyes made it to the bar. Hannah was sitting in the same pair of white knit shorts and blue t-shirt she had slept in, looking as beautiful as ever. There was something about the way she carried herself, a bright smile on her face as she sipped on an orange juice and laughed with Sarah and Ginger.

Guess I can’t be mad at her then.

“Well, good morning, sunshine,” Ginger greeted me from the chair next to Hannah. “We were just talking about you. Most of the boys are out in the garage.”

“I figured they would be.” My eyes darted wearily to Hannah. “I thought you might’ve taken off on me.”

Hannah looked at me, letting me know she was humoring me. “Oh, I’m not that stupid. That’s the fastest way to get myself in trouble.”

Ginger and Sarah both giggled, exchanging glances that made me roll my eyes again. They were nearly the only consistent women who were around the clubhouse all the time. The rest of the guys seemed to be unstable when it came to their relationships.

It took a special kind of woman to hang around.

Like maybe Hannah.

I mean, yeah, she didn’tlooklike she belonged, but she had the grit to hang around—and that was terrifying.

And exciting.

As long as I can keep her safe.

My stomach lurched just as Gunner appeared from the hallway, his motorcycle keys in his hand. He took in the sight of all of us for a split second, before ducking out and heading to the porch.

Oh no, no way.

I spun on my heel, ignoring the widened eyes of Hannah, and chased Gunner right out of the front door. “You really think you’re gonna walk right past me without saying a word to me?” I snapped at him, grabbing his arm before he could head down the steps and to the fleet of motorcycles parked nearby.

“Dude, I just have some errands to run.”

“For Hannah?”

“What?”

“You heard me,” I sneered, narrowing my eyes at him as he tried to play dumb. “I know that you know—and I know that you’ve joined the private investigation team of hers.”

He burst into laughter. “I don’t think Hannah is a private investigator, though,” he paused, scratching his chin. “That would be kind of cool—and would probably make everything a hell of a lot easier.”

“What do you mean,this?”

“I thought we were on the same page after last night...” Gunner’s voice trailed off as he searched my face. “I mean, you shut me down pretty quick.”

“Yeah, because you know there’s cameras in the meeting room. I don’t think it’s a good idea to go blabbing about theories in there.”

“Theories?” Gunner tilted his head at me, his brows furrowing. “Isthatwhat you think all of this is? Just some wild theory? Because I sure as hell think that she’s probably right, man. It all makessomuch sense considering the way things went down.”

“These guys are mybrothers.”

“Yeah, and have you seen some of those true crime documentaries? Family doesn’t seem to always mind knocking off someone. If anything, I think it’d probably make it a hell of a lot more likely to happen.”

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