Killing Me Softly: A Thriller Romance Novel [FIRST DRAFT]

Chapter 6

I couldn't believe my ears. Mary Jo had a half-brother? And he was standing at the same bar as me and had approached me simply because he had noticed me there staring at Theo.

"Sorry, what?" I said, feeling all the blood rush to my chest.

"You recognize him from the news, don't you? Let me guess. You're a fan of true crime? Someone who saw him on the news, and you are now wondering if he's the same guy accused of murdering his wife in Yoakum?" said Donnie.

"Oh," I said and released a laugh of discomfort. "No, you have me mistaken. I mean, true crime is interesting, sure. But, no...I, uh, I actually know him—er, used to know him—from school. I used to know Mary Jo, too."

Donnie's pale eyes widened at me. "No shit?"

"No shit. Yoakum High School, class of '03."

"Mary Jo was class of '02. Him, too," said Donnie, motioning toward Theo.

"Yeah, I was there," I said.

Donnie's eyes skimmed my face briefly as he held a grin and then laughed. "Well, that really is something, isn't it? What a small world."

"Yeah, small world," I said and sipped my Cosmo as I turned my eyes to Theo, who was still in his own world.

"Wow, see, I didn't go to Yoakum. I'm from Corpus," he said, placing a hand on his chest.

"Corpus? Really?" I said, and bells went off in my head.

The guy is from Corpus. That's where they found Mary Jo's body, isn't it? I thought. A chilly, eerie feeling came over me once I received weird vibes from him.

He nodded and sipped his whiskey. "Yep," he said, darted his eyes to Theo and then back to me.

"Does Theo know you're here? Are you here to meet him or something?" I asked, wondering if I would find answers in Donnie that I might not get from Theo regarding the murder.

"Pfft, no. He probably should, though, considering he should have a restraining order from me and all," he said, chugging down the rest of his whiskey.

I leaned back from him. "Sorry. Did you say 'restraining order?'"

"That's right. I absolutely hate the guy, and he hates me," said Donnie calmly and casually.

Was this guy pulling my leg, or did he mean it?

"Okay...if you two hate each other so much, then why are you here?" I asked boldly.

"I should ask him the same thing," he said and clenched his jaw. The muscles in his jaw flexed as he glared at Theo.

This wasn't going to be good. I suddenly became aware of the fact that I was now possibly hanging out with one of Theo's enemies, and if he saw me with him, he might think I was with him.

"I thought about going right up to him and clocking him one right in the kisser, but then...I saw you," Donnie said, turning his eyes to me.

He bit down on his bottom lip at me as he skimmed his eyes over me from the waist up. It was kind of creepy but kind of flattering, too.

"Are you...hitting on me?" I asked him, confused about what was happening here.

"Maybe," he said with a twinkle in his eye just before he winked at me and smiled.

"Oh, god," I said and flushed. I haven't been hit on by a guy in years! I didn't know how to handle it, especially from someone this good-looking and a complete enemy of Theo's. That is if it was true. "Look, I'm not looking to—"