His refusal came too soon after the hurtful words for her to have any prayer of naively believing he hadn't meant them. She would have continued on regardless, ignored the grief his words caused her, if it meant helping him even marginally. But, she'd also promised that she would leave if he asked, and Rosalie wouldn't force him to have an obviously sensitive conversation if he didn't want to.

She closed her notebook with a nod. "Okay." It wasn't fair of him to give up, to send her away when she felt close to answers. It wasn't fair that she never had the chance to help him until it was too late. Rosalie stood from the chair and shouldered her satchel. "I'm sorry to have intruded on you like this. Would you like me to leave my notes?"

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