Page 106 of The One You Want

Chapter Twenty-Three

Maggie left Marc in the hallway being fawned over by his mom and walked back to the dining room where all her guests were anxiously waiting at the tables. She assured her parents she could handle the situation on her own.

Gray stood away from everyone with his mother. He looked both wrecked and angry, though he kept his hands stuffed in his slacks pockets, his gaze straight ahead as his mom patted his arm and whispered something close to his ear.

Maggie felt the rage vibrating inside her. She couldn’t believe this had happened or why. And she wanted answers.

Gray came away from the wall. “Maggie. Are you okay?”

“Come with me if you want the truth, because that was a total farce. There is no way in hell Rose would ever, ever,” she emphasized, “hurt you like this. I know her. She’s honest and loyal. You can’t tell me you haven’t felt that. This whole time Marc has been subtly poking at you and her. I don’t know why. Maybe he doesn’t like you two together.”

“He doesn’t want me to be happier than him.” Gray rubbeda hand over the back of his neck. “I’m sorry if that sounds bad, but it’s the truth.”

“Then you can’t possibly believe Rose has been texting him, trying to set up some kind of tryst while dating you.”

“I don’t want to believe it, but explain the texts.” The desperation in his voice said how much he didn’t want this to be true.

“Come with me. We’ll figure it out together.”

“Go,” Gray’s mom insisted. “Marc is scheming again. You need to find out what really happened.”

Maggie’s stomach soured at the thought that even Marc’s aunt believed him to be an unscrupulous man and she’d been blind to it.

Not anymore.

Gray followed Maggie back to the hallway where Marc stood with one of the cops, giving his statement. Gray’s father stood by Marc’s dad, listening.

“What are the cops doing here?” Gray’s eyes turned into a tempest of rage.

Maggie hated to deliver the bad news. “Marc had Rose arrested for shoving him into a wall. He has a deep gash on his head that probably needs stitches.”

“What?”

Maggie nodded. “He says she shoved him.”

Gray shook his head. “I can’t imagine her doing that, even though he deserved it. I didn’t want to ruin your dinner,” he admitted, “so I walked away to cool off before I said or did something stupid.” Gray sighed. “I should have asked Rose to go with me somewhere we could talk.”

“I think we were in as much shock as Rose that Marc told that ridiculous story.”

Gray stopped short and eyed her. “You looked like you believed it.”

Maggie stood beside him, the others several feet away. “For a second, it sounded real. But what I saw, and you couldn’t see, was that Marc instigated that kiss and Rose looked fit to kill. He manipulated the situation and schemed to make her look like the one who did it all. I don’t think she had a clue what he was talking about. I certainly don’t believe Rose pushed him.”

“How can you be so sure?” Desperation filled Gray’s voice.

“I’ll forgive you for doubting my friend because you don’t know her like I do. But remember, Rose is a victim of abuse. The last thing she’d ever do is hit someone. She’s not manipulative or a liar. She couldn’t even hold back the truth about her and Marc to spare us knowing or risking us being hurt and breaking things off with her. She had to tell the truth. It’s who she is. And I know when she’s holding something back. I’ve had years of practice seeing through her tough exterior.”

Gray swore under his breath. “I suspected Marc was up to something. I know him. But then he showed me the texts and I doubted everything I shared with Rose. She’s got to be so hurt and angry with me for walking away.”

“She won’t care if she gets you back.” Maggie continued through the lobby to the hall and stopped beside Marc.

Marc waved off his hovering mom and stepped toward Maggie. “Babe, where have you been? They say I need to go to the hospital for stitches.”

Maggie had little sympathy for her fiancé. She simply snatched his phone from his hand. She’d seen him punch in the code dozens of times. “I have never once felt the need to spy on you or check your phone. I find it distasteful, an ugly invasion of privacy. I thought we loved and trusted each other. When you said you were taking calls and texts for work, I believed it.”

Marc tried to grab the phone back.

Gray caught his hand and stopped him. “We want the truth.”