He Kills Me, He Kills Me Not

didn’t listen.”
    Pierce let him go and stepped back. “That’s it? Good God, man, didn’t you hear what I said? She doesn’t blame you for what happened. She told me that . Besides, you suspected Riley long before she wrote that list. If you’re going to blame someone, blame me. I’m the one who told you Riley had an alibi. If I’d made my men dig deeper earlier on, he’d never have gotten his hands on Amanda again. Hell, Karen would probably still be alive.”
    Pierce pounded his fist on the granite countertop. “Don’t think you have the corner on the guilt market. There’s plenty of that to share. If you want to feel guilty, feel guilty about making the rest of Amanda’s life miserable. You can’t change the past, but you can damn well change the future.”
    Logan stared back at him, afraid to move, afraid to breathe. “She told you she doesn’t blame me?”
    “Direct quote, man. Haven’t you figured it out yet? She’s in love with you. She doesn’t blame you. I don’t know what you think her reason was for coming here, but I’d bet she was giving you one last chance to come to your senses.”
    Logan shook his head in disbelief. Was it possible she had forgiven him? Was it possible she really did love him, in spite of everything?
    He pictured her the way she’d looked, standing in front of him on the deck, her eyes practically shooting sparks at him as she ripped into him for giving her money.
    He loved that sassy mouth of hers. She was opinionated, stubborn, as passionate in her beliefs as she was in bed.
    In other words, perfect.
    He’d thought she’d come to his house just because of the money. What if there was more to it? What if she’d been waiting for him to tell her he loved her?
    Could it really be that simple?
    He scrubbed his hands over his face and groaned. “I’m such an idiot.”
    “No kidding,” Pierce said.
    “What time is her plane leaving?”
    Pierce grinned. “Now you’re talking.” He looked at his watch and frowned. “You’ll never be able to catch her.”
    “Chief?”
    Logan turned around at the sound of Officer Redding’s voice, the rookie cop who’d followed Logan around like a lost puppy after being released from the hospital. Apparently Redding’s near-death experience when Riley slammed into his patrol car to snatch Branson had changed Redding’s outlook on life. He was studying to become a detective now, and was always asking questions about police procedures.
    “Redding, I need to get somewhere in a hurry and I don’t have time to talk right now. You’ll just have to wait.”
    Logan opened the laundry room door off the kitchen. He grabbed a fresh t-shirt and tugged it on over his head.
    “Call her cell,” Pierce said. Convince her to wait.”
    “She doesn’t have a cell phone—never saw the point, since she didn’t have any family and rarely left her house.” He shook his head. “She’s probably halfway to the airport by now. I’ll have to fly out to Tennessee and track her down. That could take days. By then she’ll hate me so much for letting her go in the first place she’ll never forgive me.” He clenched his fist. “But I still have to try.”
    Logan grabbed his wallet and keys from the coffee table in the living room. He shoved the wallet into his back pocket, then frowned as he noticed the sawdust covering his shorts and the patches of sweat soaking through his t-shirt. He needed a shower, and a change of clothes. But he didn’t have time for that.
    Redding was standing in the way when Logan and Pierce headed toward the French doors at the back of the house. “Not now, Redding,” Logan said.
    The rookie backed out of the way but followed them as they stepped onto the deck. “Maybe I can drive you guys wherever you’re going and we can talk on the way. The mayor is after all of us like a pit bull over your resignation, chief. He’s determined to get you to come back. He said he’ll do whatever it takes. The entire department is at your disposal.”
    Logan’s gaze shot to Pierce. They both stopped and slowly turned around.
    Redding glanced back and forth between them, his eyes suddenly wary. “What?”
    F or what felt like the hundredth time since driving away from Logan’s house, Amanda glanced in her rearview mirror, hoping to see his black Mustang. But even though she’d driven well below the speed limit in case he came to his senses and decided to go after her, the mirror remained empty, along with her