Murderous Lies by Chantel Rhondeau Page B

date and she’s a pretty girl. Plus, I hadn’t seen or heard from you for days.”
    He didn’t like to admit it, but it sounded bad when she put it like that. He hadn’t meant to leave her alone and confused. It got busy once he started working and he had wanted Rose to be certain of his innocence before they were alone again.
    She folded her arms. “Maybe you’re the one who doesn’t know how he feels. I’m not the same girl I was when you left. This experience changed me. I try to act normal and go about my life, but I’m stressed all the time and things aren’t as easy as they used to be.”
    “Things haven’t been easy on me either,” he pointed out.
    Her eyebrows rose and her face reddened. “I’m sorry you spent time in prison for a crime you didn’t commit, but you still have your family. You can move on and get over this, start somewhere fresh. I will never get my family back, so please don’t tell me how hard things are for you, Max.”
    Damn it. She was right, and there wasn’t much he could say. They both had issues to work out.
    “I do love you, Rose.”
    “And I love you, but is that enough?”
    He shook his head slowly. It wasn’t. As much as he wished things were different, love wasn’t a magic cure to fix either of their lives. “Maybe once I prove that I didn’t kill anyone, maybe then. I don’t mean to keep pulling away from you, but I can’t just start over, no matter what you think. I have to stop whoever killed Sage and clear myself. It’s the only way I’ll ever be able to live a normal life and be happy.”
    “Then I guess we’re at a stalemate, because I can’t keep sitting around hoping you’re going to be with me and as committed to it as I am. You are obsessed with this case. We might never find out who killed Sage for sure, and if you can’t move on with me until you know the truth, maybe we’re wasting our time.”
    It hurt so bad, hearing her say that. Rose used to be so full of idealism and innocence. She was always the optimist, sure things would work out for the best and never really worried about anything. She was right when she said she had changed. Sage’s death killed her trust and her joy. It wasn’t fair of him to put more pressure on her.
    He just had to know one thing. “Are you going to date Calvin if we aren’t together?”
    Her mouth opened, then shut again, and she looked away from him. Her fingers twitched in jerky movements and the silence was deafening.
    Maybe he shouldn’t have asked, but he really needed to know. When he got his life in order, he and Rose would be together—he’d find a way to win her back. He couldn’t handle the idea of her being with Super Cop in the meantime.
    She faced him again, raising her chin in defiance. “That’s really none of your business now. Go away and stop toying with my heart.”
    None of his business? “Fine.” He wouldn’t grovel to anyone. If she ended up going to Super Cop, maybe they really weren’t meant to be together. “Look after yourself, Rosemary.”
    ***
    R ose watched Max walk to his car, waiting until he pulled away to allow her tears to fall. So much for a boring night. She wished it had stayed that way.
    Max was obsessed with clearing his name. Rose could understand when the killer was making threats against her that Max would want to figure out who it was and stop them, but it had been weeks and they hadn’t heard anything else. It was a tactic to get Max in trouble with the police. The killer wasn’t really after her.
    Why did Max care so much what other people thought? It should be her opinion that mattered to him, if he really loved her and wanted her back. She knew he didn’t kill Sage.
    She would leave Clarkston for him. Move to a new town and find another place for her mom to live. She’d go anywhere with him, but that didn’t seem to matter. He pushed her away when she offered him herself, and he pushed her away again tonight when she issued an ultimatum. It seemed