The Butler Didn't Do It (A Maddox Storm Mystery Book 2)

by Claire Robyns

  I nodded against his chest, stayed there wrapped in his arms and my own failures. I’d also made vows in our marriage, to love him through thick and thin, but I couldn’t do it. I’d slipped on the first thin patch, and couldn’t find it in myself to pull myself up and try again.

  The sound of someone clearing their throat intruded.

  Joe’s arms slackened.

  I stepped out of his embrace and turned, to see Nate framed in the doorway. How long had he been there?

  Long enough to blank whatever expression had crossed his face when he’d found me in Joe’s arms.

  Long enough for his eyes to cool to slate.

  “I came to collect my things.” He pushed a hand through his hair, kept it there. “And say goodbye.”

  I knew what he thought he’d seen, what conclusions he’d probably drawn. And I could have said something, corrected him, but I didn’t. Maybe it was for the best, before things got complicated and I messed up someone else’s life. This friendship bargain had too many potholes for me to trip over. Bone-melting smiles, stone-baked gazes, fluttered pulses, that sort of thing.

  “I’ve packed everything up,” I told him. “It’s just inside the door.”

  “Thanks.” His gaze locked on me, so cool and yet so intense. A smile ghosted his lips, all that was left of what we could have been. “Goodbye, Maddox.”

  “Goodbye, Nate.”

  I watched until he disappeared from sight, and then I watched some more until Joe’s hand landed on my shoulder.

  “Are you okay?”

  I shifted to look at him. “Yeah, I will be.”

  “You should go after him,” Joe said softly, sincerely.

  “No.” I shook my head.

  And okay, every part of me itched to do exactly that. But I didn’t trust myself in a relationship with a pet goldfish right now, let alone with a man I’d come to care for.

  “No,” I said again, slow and sure. “I really shouldn’t.”

  … Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed the secondbook in my Maddox Storm Cozy Mystery series. Please don’t forget to give this book a quick review on Amazon if you’re able. Even just a couple of words, “Liked it” or “Not for me” reviews help so much. I’m grateful for all feedback from my readers, good or bad.

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