CHAPTER 13
***MALCOLM***
Malcolm carried two steaming plates of scrambled eggs and toast over to the table and set one down in front of Rose with a flourish, then sat down next to her with his. “It’s nothing fancy, but it will fill you up,” he said, sliding a jar of jam toward her. “And we have Hattie’s homemade strawberry preserves to go with it.”
“This smells amazing,” Rose said, grabbing a fork and digging in. “Thanks for feeding me, I didn’t realize how hungry I was.”
“My pleasure, you can consider it part of my apology for the other night. I acted like a jerk and you had every reason to be mad at me,” he said, setting down his fork and looking over at her. “I didn’t mean to send you mixed signals. I didn’t mean to play with your emotions. I did get carried away, that was the truth, and then I got scared. I’ve never felt anything like that before. It freaked me out. Falling in love wasn’t part of my plan, at least for now, but it looks like plans may have changed.”
Rose’s eyes widened, the meaning of his words sinking in, then a blush spread across her cheeks. “I thought…you said…I mean…” her words died away, and she shook her head, thenlet out a long sigh. “It’s all so confusing…I don’t know what to think…”
“I’m sorry, I know this must be a lot to handle after last night; I just wanted to clear the air between us,” he said, reaching over and taking her hand, pleased when a wave of warmth spread through him. “We can stay just friends if that’s what you want. I don’t think it is, but I’ll understand if you want to take it slow.”
Rose studied him for a second, a look on her face he couldn’t quite read, then she let out a long sigh. “I can’t stay mad at you,” she finally said, shaking her head. “Maybe if we take things slow, really slow, it will be okay.”
It wasn’t quite the answer he was hoping for, but he hid his disappointment. Rose had every right to be wary of him. “I’d still like to take you to the winter ball,” he said. “That could be our first date.”
“I think that would be fine,” she said, a smile finally appearing on her face. “Like starting over.”
“Exactly,” he said, smiling back at her. “I never meant to hurt you, Rose. I hope you know that.”
“I believe you,” she said, picking up her fork again, a look of relief on her face. “These eggs are perfect, mine never come out this fluffy. What’s your secret?”
He knew that she was changing the subject and he was okay with that; he just wanted to move on, too. “I didn’t think I was doing anything special, but thanks for the compliment,” he said, taking a bite of his own eggs. “So, what are you planning to do with our surprise day off?”
“Well, I’ve got to call the insurance company, figure out a rental car, and find my way home, I guess,” she said, dreading all of it. “It’s a good thing Roger gave us all the day off, I don’t think I would have been able to make it into work anyway.”
“I still think you should stay here for a few days,” he said, his protective instincts kicking in when he thought about her alonein her apartment. “Or let me come stay with you. I could sleep on the couch. I just don’t like the idea of you being all alone before they’ve caught Sandra. Maybe I’m being overprotective, but I can’t help it.”
Rose thought about it for a second, then shivered. “I guess that it would be okay to stay here a couple of days,” she said. “But only if you’re sure that I won’t be in the way.”
“One more person around here won’t make that much difference. Besides, I’m sure it will only be for a few days,” he said, waving away her objections, relieved she’d be close. “It’s hard to disappear for very long these days. They’ll find Sandra, and then you’ll be able to go home.”
“This is all so strange, I still can’t believe it’s all happening,” she said, shaking her head. “I’ve been a good person all my life…”
Rose got a funny look on her face as the words died away, and he sensed she was struggling with something. “Never mind, crying about it won’t change anything,” she said. “Let’s talk about something else. What are you going to do today?”
“I’m going to take a sledgehammer to the old bar on the first floor of that property I bought down on Main Street,” he said, a big grin on his face. “I rented all of the rest of the space to a woman who is going to open a café; a bar just doesn’t fit, so it has to go. Do you want to come help? Demo can be pretty satisfying if you’ve got some suppressed anger to work out.”
“I’ve definitely got some anger simmering inside me,” she said, then shook her head. “I doubt I could pick the sledgehammer up, but I’d love to come along just to see the building, it will take my mind off everything. Could you wait long enough for me to make a few phone calls?”
“Sure, go for it, I’ll just clean up in here and put my stuff away,” he said. “Just let me know when you’re ready.”
“Hopefully it won’t take long,” she said, getting up from the table. “Do you want me to take my dishes to the sink?”
“No, I’ve got it,” he said, getting to his feet. “Go make your phone calls.”
He watched her leave the kitchen, then took the dirty dishes over to the sink, wondering why he didn’t feel as good about the morning as he should. Rose had forgiven him for being a jerk, she’d agreed to go with him to the ball, the mess he’d made was cleaned up, but something still didn’t feel right. Pushing it out of his mind, he told himself to be patient. All of this was new to him, he might just need to give her a little space and time.
***Rose***
Guilt drove Rose upstairs and into her room. It made her stomach hurt and her head throb, and she wasn’t sure how she was going to finish what she’d come to do. The thought of hurting Malcolm made her want to throw up, and she plopped down on the bed, more confused than she’d ever been. She’d never imagined that anything like this would happen. She’d been sure Malcolm was going to be a bad guy, but he wasn’t, he was the complete opposite. Now she was going to have to betray him, tell her stepfather all his secrets, or face his anger. There was no way she could win, unless she told Malcolm the truth.
That thought made her even sicker, and she let out a frustrated groan when her sister’s face popped into her head. She was stuck, there was no easy way out. She’d have to do her stepfather’s bidding. She couldn’t let her sister suffer, but in the end, she’d end up hurting someone she was beginning to care very deeply about. That would have to stop. It was the only answer; she had to get the information Chet wanted and do it fast, then disappear before she hurt Malcolm any deeper.
Wondering how her life had become such a mess and how karma had found her so quickly, she got to her feet, grabbed herphone, and steeled herself against the guilt. It wasn’t going to do her any good to feel bad. There wasn’t any other choice she could make, it was Malcolm or her sister. When she came downstairs fifteen minutes later, she’d talked to the insurance company, arranged for a rental car, and even checked in with the police, but she didn’t feel much better.
“Are you ready?” Malcolm asked when she walked into the kitchen. “I’ve got everything cleaned up, and I let Hattie know you’d be staying with us for a few more days. She put you on dish duty, by the way.”
