Deceptive Truth: Cowboy Justice Association (Serials and Stalkers Book 4) by Olivia Jaymes (reading women .txt) 📕

Standing, Logan rounded his desk and sat down in his oversized leather chair. "That's too bad. I guess I'm confused then as to why you're in a shit mood. If you ended it, then why are you upset?"

"I don't know," Knox blurted before he could stop himself. "Dammit, I don't mean that. I mean...maybe. Shit, I don't know."

Frowning, Logan leaned forward, his elbows propped on the desk. "If you don't mind my saying, you seem like you don't know whether to scratch your watch or wind your butt. Whoever this woman is, she's got you confused as hell. Are you sure you wanted to break up with her? Was this some sort of weird impulse? Were you drinking? Did you argue?"

Knox had been thinking about it all night and still wasn't quite sure how to describe it.

"I wouldn't say we argued. But we had a disagreement."

"Okay, so you ended the relationship over this disagreement but now you're having second thoughts."

Was he? No, he'd done the right thing. Jenna was a liar. Plain and simple.

"I'm not having second thoughts."

Logan's brows shot up. "Then you're going to have to help me out here because I can't see why you're being such a shit to everyone today and acting like a bear with a sore paw."

Knox's hesitation must have clued Logan in.

"Is it personal? You don't have to tell me about it. I respect your privacy. What I will say is whatever it is, try to leave it at the door. You can't take out your frustrations on everyone else in the office."

Do I want to talk about it?

Knox would trust Logan with his life. That was a fact.

"It is personal," Knox admitted. "But I'm not keeping it a secret. It turns out that Jenna didn't bump into me by accident that first night at the sports bar. She knew who I was."

"She knew who you were?" Logan echoed. "I'm not sure I follow you."

As succinctly as he could, Knox explained what had transpired the night before all the way to the point where he drove away and then spent the entire night tossing and turning.

"She wanted you to help prove that your brother had something to do with her sister's disappearance? That's one wild story."

"I certainly didn't see it coming. I was shocked."

"Did you even know Callum was dating this woman?"

Knox shook his head. "I haven't seen him since...you know..."

Logan was well aware of Ben Owens and his issues.

"And you're certain he wouldn't do anything like this?"

That was a question that Knox had been chewing on all night. He hadn't much liked the answers he was coming up with either.

"Callum is a grade-A narcissist and all-around asshole. I definitely believe he could be verbally and mentally abusive to his partner, but I've never seen him get violent with a female. I don't think he would kidnap and then maybe kill his girlfriend. I do see him making her wish she'd never started dating him to begin with."

"You and I both know that behavior can escalate."

"True," Knox conceded. "I just don't see it with Callum. I'm not trying to protect him or anything. Believe me, I have no delusions about what a dick he is, but I don't think he's a kidnapper or a murderer."

"So that's that."

Logan had...something in his tone. Like he wanted to say more but he wasn't going to.

Dammit.

"That's that," Knox agreed. "I told Jenna that I wasn't going to help her. She lied to me, after all. And stalked me too."

For some reason he felt like he needed to justify his decision to Logan. It was a good decision. Sound. He didn't need to defend it or himself.

"So you're walking away? Just letting it go?"

"Of course, what else would I do?" Knox paused for a moment. "What would you do?"

Rubbing his chin, Logan shook his head. "I don't think I should weigh in here. This is a personal issue for you. You said so yourself."

But now Knox really wanted to know. He respected Logan's opinion as a boss and as a friend.

"I wouldn't mind your thinking on this."

Logan didn't answer right away, still rubbing at chin, his lips twisted.

"I think," he finally said, his words measured. "I think that my curiosity would get the better of me and I'd have to look into her claims. Aren't you the least little bit curious as to what happened to her sister? It's not even my brother being accused and I'm curious as hell."

Knox had mostly been concentrating on Jenna's betrayal, but he had found his mind wandering to the myriad of possibilities a few times.

"A little," he admitted. "But I don't think that I should get involved. From what Jenna says, the cops aren't even investigating this. They seem to think that her sister's gone off on her own for awhile."

Logan smiled. "And cops are never wrong."

Knox had most certainly been wrong in the past. So had every lawman that Knox had ever known. They weren't superhuman, they were fallible just like everyone else. They did their best though and they tried to do the right thing.

"I'm not sure that I want to see Jenna again."

Knox hadn't been able to shake her expression, the pain and desperation. To do what she'd done...

Stop. Don't make excuses for her.

Shrugging, Logan sat back in his chair. "Then don't. I'm not suggesting that you do. Just look into the case, do a little research. See how you feel after that. You don't need to make any decisions right now. In fact, you don't need to make any sort of decisions today or tomorrow or