Page 49 of Secret Stalker

“I’ve read everything in this file dozens of times over the years. So I’ll know if your story jibes with what we know or not.”

She blinked again, surprised. “Why did you read it dozens of times?”

“The woman I loved ran away. What do you think?”

She shrank back from the bitterness in his tone. “I’m sorry, Max. I truly am.”

“Meaning if you could do it over again, you wouldn’t have told me no when I asked you to marry me that night?”

“I didn’t say that.”

“Exactly. Then you aren’t truly sorry, are you?”

She winced. “If we’re going to fight, maybe you should just take me back to the station and let me get my confession over with.”

He closed his eyes briefly, then shook his head. “No fighting. I’m...sorry, Bex. Seeing you again after all these years has been a huge shock. Apparently I’m not taking it very well.”

She swallowed hard and nodded. “Me either. I never know what to say around you without making you upset. That’s why I didn’t go to your mom and dad’s when I got in town. I would have loved to say hi to your family. But I didn’t want to risk upsetting you after the way I left things between us.”

He stared at her incredulously. “You wanted to see my family, but, what, you were trying to run in and out of town purposely not trying to see me?”

“I’m doing it again. Everything I say comes out wrong. Can you please just drive me to town, Max? Neither of us is doing each other any favors here.”

“Sit down, Bex.”

The bite in his tone had her sitting before she even thought about it. Then she got so mad at herself for following his directions that she jumped up and started past him toward the front door.

He stood and grabbed her arm, stopping her. “Bex—”

“No.” She shook her hand, but his fingers remained around her wrist, like an iron band. Tears burned at the backs of her eyes and her breath started coming in gasps. “Stop it, Max. You don’t have the right to tell me what to do or keep me from leaving if I want to leave. Don’t you get it? That’s what he did. He’d corner me in some alcove at school, or surprise me in my own backyard when Mama wasn’t home. And he’d scare me, use his superior strength to try to make me do what he wanted. He’d grab my arm, just like you’re doing now.”

His eyes widened and he immediately let her go. The blood drained from his face as she rubbed her wrist.

“Bex, my God, I’m so sorry. I wasn’t thinking about...about what you went through.” He held his hands up and took a step back. “I won’t physically try to stop you from leaving. But please, please think about what you’re doing. I want to help you.” His eyes took on a tortured look. “I couldn’t protect you back then, even though I tried. But I’m a grown man now. And I know what I’m doing. Let me protect you now. Let me keep you safe.”

His phone buzzed. He frowned and checked the screen, then flipped a button on the side to silence it.

“Bex? What’s it going to be? Will you let me help you?”

She couldn’t bear to see the hurt in his eyes, hear the hurt in his voice, knowing she was the cause. No matter what she did, she always seemed to hurt him. Ever since he’d asked her to marry him and she’d turned him down. Her entire life had turned upside down after that. And now she was turning his upside down, too. What would have happened if she’d said yes?

No, she couldn’t go down that road. She couldn’t have said yes back then. No matter how much she loved him, she’d known that if she said yes, she was signing his death warrant. Because that was one of Bobby’s many taunts to her—that if he couldn’t have her, no one would. And she believed him. He would have killed Max if she’d agreed to marry him. And that was something she couldn’t bear.

True to his word, Max wasn’t trying to stop her by using his physical strength against her. Because he wasn’t Bobby. Max was a good man, always had been. And it was wrong of her to ever compare the two.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I shouldn’t have said that, about Bobby, and you...it was cruel. And a lie. Because I know you would never hurt me. You’re nothing like him, Max. You never were, and never will be. You’re the most decent man I’ve ever known.”

He gave her a tight smile. “I don’t know about that. But I do know I want to help you. Will you let me, Bex?”

She slowly nodded. “If I can. What do you want me to do?”

“I need you to tell me exactly what you did the day Bobby Caldwell died, from the moment you woke up until the cops knocked on your door around one in the morning.” He grabbed the legal pad and pen and sat down on the couch, waiting.

“But...you know most of it. We were together until around nine thirty that night.” She didn’t meet his gaze. She couldn’t. Because that was when he’d asked her to marry him. And she’d turned him down.

“All of it,”he repeated, not missing a beat. “From your perspective, from the moment you woke up.”

She let out a deep sigh and sat beside him, pulling her legs up on the couch to get more comfortable. At least, sitting here beside him, she didn’t have to look into his eyes while she recounted the more intimate details.

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